The first impression is seductive: The eyes can hardly get enough of the dynamically short and exciting curves of the glossy black synthetic fibre frame. It brings to mind the bodywork of a racy sports car from the seventies, when cars were still allowed to be beautiful. If you grasped the massive down tube, you could feel your pulse, if the Diamant had one: the carbon fibre mats are so thinly layered that you can press them by hand. Only extremely carefully, of course! With silent horror, you hope that the Rubin never crashes hard into a post because someone has put it down improperly. A break in the fibre structure, possibly invisible from the outside, would be the almost inevitable consequence of such a hard impact.
Smooth and fast
So always go slowly with the young horses! This also applies if you Ruby over the test track: The light-footedness with which the bike reacts to pedal pressure is striking, how nimbly it gallops off, how suddenly it surges forwards when you give it the spurs. The smoothness of the direct steering is also outstanding: the Rubin almost tends to get nervous if you pull too hard or, in the heat of the pedalling, pull unevenly on the handlebars. A steady straight-line ride therefore also requires a steady hand. The wild ride doesn't even feel that uncomfortable: The wide handlebars, also made of carbon, the cushioning silicone grips and the long seat post gently swallow up many a disturbing impulse from below. The 42-millimetre tyres also do their bit: The super-light (only 490 grams per tyre), fast-rolling Marathon Supreme use a rubber compound with a high damping factor. If you keep the tyre pressure justifiably low, they develop an astonishing amount of grip and rolling comfort on asphalt, but also on fine gravel roads in and out of town.
The bright lighting system also copes well in complete darkness. However, the Herrmans headlight is not very durable: the plastic frame of its lens is not very solid and not sufficiently sealed against water ingress. In contrast, the solid, bag-compatible pannier rack and the sufficiently long SKS mudguards are faultless. The only problem is that they are mounted together: as the stable carrier is only attached to the frame with a simple steel strap, panniers weighing more than about ten kilos cause strong lateral torsion in the filigree rear triangle. In addition, only a single, vertical bolt under the rear mudguard holds the carrier, mudguard and mounting bracket together. It is so long that the tyre only just misses it. This is an urgent need for improvement. Other lessons learnt on the road: It's a good idea to tape the luggage rack struts where bags touch them. Their surface is very sensitive to scratches. The rear brake assembly also has a weak point: if you need to adjust the brake calliper on the road, you have to remove the parking support first. Otherwise you won't be able to reach the retaining bolts of the flatmount brake calliper with the tool.
The gears also need to be carefully adjusted at the beginning: The narrower spacing of the 1x12 derailleur reacts early with grinding noises when the cable length changes minimally due to Bowden cables and sleeves settling and running in. However, the 520 per cent gear range and the unrivalled crispness of a well-adjusted XT drivetrain contribute significantly to the versatility and dynamics of this racy racer. It obviously feels most at home at a stretched gallop.
Test summary of the Diamant Rubin Super Legère
The super-light and pretty Rubin feels most at home on long, fast routes. However, its sophisticated technology makes it quite sensitive in everyday use.
The price is 1,999 euros.
