Brexit has been decided and the UK is now effectively turning its back on the EU. But regardless of the political developments, the UK has an exceptional bike scene with fine customised bikes. Three UK fullys put to the test.
You can download the individual tests of these three UK bikes from BIKE 4/20 as a PDF below the article. Each individual test costs 0.99 euros. Why not free of charge? Because quality journalism has a price. In return, we guarantee independence and objectivity. This applies in particular to the tests in BIKE. We don't charge for them, but the opposite is the case: we charge for them, hundreds of thousands of euros every year.
- Starling Cycles Murmur Factory
- Nukeproof Reactor 290c Elite
- Vitus Sommet 29 VRX
A British department stores' wants to remove chef's knives from its range because they are no longer being bought due to the popularity of ready meals. Anyone who studies the customs of a country will automatically come across its curiosities. For example, the Queen, afternoon tea, bad weather and bad food are at the top of the typical English list.
The bikes and bikers from the United Kingdom also have a very specific reputation. They like it "super long and super slack", which translated into geometry German means extremely long reach and extremely slack head angle. At international bike presentations, British journalists therefore routinely reach for the XL frame, even if they are only 1.75 metres tall. True to the motto "length matters", many UK frame builders also design their bikes. In an international comparison, the bikes from the island forges therefore tend to be longer, although the international market is now largely picking up on this trend. Our two test bikes in size L have an average reach of 474 millimetres and a head angle of 65 degrees. The chainstays are also very generous at 447 millimetres on average and have E-MTB dimensions.
But it's not just the geometries that are special; the UK manufacturers are also very fond of steel as a frame material. A good half of the manufacturers have at least one MTB with a steel frame in their programme. Why this is the case Interview with Starling boss Joe McEwan. One thing is clear: the British tend to build solid and functional bikes that can cope with the worst muddy weather. Which brings us to another prejudice. Compared to Germany, it actually rains less in England. The large number of hardtails on offer in the UK market is also special, which is probably due to the carefree approach, but also to the predominantly flat topography of the island. In some areas, a fully is simply too much of a good thing and would destroy any technical riding challenges, explains Joe.
Even if there is a spark of truth in some prejudices, our three test bikes from Nukeproof, Starling Cycles and Vitus prove at least two things: Firstly, the English build very good fullys. And secondly, not all bikes that come from England are made of steel.
