Capable of winning, slot-car accurate or blindingly fast - The lively slogans on the manufacturer's website are reason enough to take a closer look at the Deviate Claymore. Anyone who thinks that the Scots can only come up with vivid advertising slogans is way off the mark.
Deviate is one of the pioneers of high-pivot rear triangles in the enduro segment. To be fair, however, it has to be said that we have known mountain bikes with a high pivot point since the early 1990s - although back then they were mostly downhill bikes. Since 2017, however, we have also seen more and more enduro bikes with the special rear triangle design.
What does high pivot mean with the Deviate Claymore?
But what is it all about? As the name suggests, the main pivot point of the rear triangle is not located near the bottom bracket as usual, but much further up. This increases the distance between the bottom bracket and the rear wheel axle during compression, causing the rear wheel to move backwards to avoid the obstacle instead of getting "stuck" on it. The disadvantage: The longer the chainstay length, the more the chain pulls the chainring back during compression. Depending on the chain tension, this leads to negative effects on the chassis and pedal kickback. In order to decouple the chassis from these drive influences, the chain on high-pivot bikes usually runs over a pulley near the pivot point.
On the Deviate Claymore, this development approach was taken to the extreme and a particularly high pivot point was chosen, resulting in the longest chainstay length recorded on our test rig to date. Deviate built the bike especially for this test. In the online shop, the Claymore is only available as a frame set. The carbon chassis alone costs 3600 euros including taxes and customs duties. However, Deviate also offers different shocks for an additional charge. Complete bikes are only available from a few dealers in Germany.
Deviate: utilise 168 mm suspension travel effectively
But back to the test. When riding the Deviate Claymore, you can literally feel how the wheelbase stretches out when rolling over bumps or landing hard. This gives the Scottish enduro bike a great deal of stability, especially at high speeds. The outstanding response behaviour generates traction en masse and calms even the angriest trails. When braking or on steep descents, the rider also benefits from the good anti-rise behaviour of the Deviate Claymore. This means that you are always low in the suspension travel and can enjoy excellent traction even without a lot of weight on the rear. Thanks to the late progression, the 168 millimetres of travel can be used very effectively. However, active riders will miss some support in the middle of the travel. However, this effect can be counteracted with volume spacers. Unfortunately, the Öhlins fork cannot keep up with the extremely plush ride feel at the rear.
Handling Deviate Claymore: Perfect balance between smoothness and manoeuvrability
When it comes to handling, Deviate strikes the perfect balance between smoothness and manoeuvrability with its Enduro Claymore. Thanks to the low front end and the steering angle, which is not too slack, the Claymore can be steered precisely through the terrain with a lot of pressure on the front wheel. Perfect for fast cornering and unpredictable terrain. The 438 mm chainstays and the long 490 mm reach still provide sufficient smoothness. But the candidate also quickly won the hearts of our test crew on the climbs. The Deviate Claymore climbs steep ramps with ease - thanks to the combination of a steep seat angle, moderate chainstays and low front end. The compact riding position is instantly appealing. The advantages of the high-pivot rear triangle also come into play: top traction and free of annoying bobbing movements when pedalling - nothing is left to be desired here.
All that's missing is a lively slogan on the website about the climbing properties of the Deviate Claymore. Apart from that, the advertising texts sum up the core competences perfectly.
Conclusion on the Deviate Claymore
While the majority of modern enduro bikes are increasingly developing into uncompromising full-throttle machines, the Deviate Claymore takes up the original idea of race enduro bikes again: Pleasantly uphill and fast - but still manageable - downhill. This means that the Scottish enduro bike is always ready for top times, regardless of the terrain. - Max Fuchs, BIKE test editor
This is Deviate
The brand from the Scottish Highlands was founded in 2016. Chris Deverson and Ben Jones knew each other from the guiding business, but were never really satisfied with their sponsors' bikes. The duo decided to take matters into their own hands and began developing their own bikes under the name Deviate. The result was the geared enduro Guide with a high-pivot rear triangle. The two soon gave up riding. Instead, they work with a team of eight on what is now the fourth bike in their portfolio.
Technical data and notes Deviate Claymore
Manufacturer information
- Price: 3600 Euro (frame)
- Available from the shipper / specialist retailer
- Frame material: Carbon
- Frame size: M /L / XL (Tested size L, 43 cm)
Measured values
- Weight without pedals: 14.93 kg
- Frame weight: 2975 g
- Weight of wheels: 5042 g
- Acceleration wheels: 4086 kg x cm²
- Handlebar width: 800 mm
- Frame rigidity (absolute): 49 N/mm
Equipment
- Wheels: DT Swiss EX 1501 Spline 30mm-
- Tyres: Vittoria Mazza; Graphene 2.0 Trail 29 x 2.40
- Fork:: Öhlins RXF38 m.2
- Shock absorber: Öhlins TTX Air
- Front / rear suspension travel: 165 / 168 mm
- Brakes: Shimano XT BR-M 8120 / 203/203
- Gear system: Shimano XT 1x12
- Ratio/range: 34; 10-51 / 510 %
- Telescopic post / stroke / Ø: One1 Dropper Post V2 / 200 mm / 34.9 mm
Evaluation of the Deviate Claymore
- Driving behaviour uphill: 19 from 20
- Chassis efficiency: 16 out of 20
- Rolling resistance: 7.5 out of 10
- Weight: 3 of 15
- Inertia impellers: 4 out of 10
- Bottle cage: 1.5 out of 5
- Driving behaviour downhill: 40 from 40
- Front suspension: 22.5 out of 25
- Rear suspension: 25 out of 25
- Saddle retractability: 10 out of 10
- Brakes: 14.25 out of 15
- Tyre grip: 13.5 out of 15
- Driving stability: 4 out of 10
TOTAL UPHILL: 51 OUT OF 80
TOTAL DOWNHILL: 129.3 FROM 140
- Other 25 of 30
- Ease of maintenance: medium
BIKE test rating*: super - 205.3 out of 250 points
*The BIKE judgement reflects the laboratory measurements and the subjective impression of the test riders.
The BIKE judgement is independent of price. BIKE judgements: super (250-205 P.), very good (204.75-170 P.), good (169.75-140 P.), satisfactory (139.75-100 P.), with weaknesses, unsatisfactory.
Max Fuchs
Editor
