Search Term – Change
Today, we are showing off Jordyn’s deep custom Chromag Darco. Unlike your local rad dad selling his 10-year-old MTB as “custom” after swapping the saddle and grips, Tucson local Jordyn went deep to adapt his Chromag Darco to his desert trails. Check out all the dialed details below!
Chromag is synonymous with hardtails. Trail hardtails. And the 160 mm travel Rootdown ($801 frame, $3,912 complete) is now in its sixth iteration. The updates this round are chassis details and new build specs so let’s check it out…
Our Radar Roundup compiles products and videos from the ‘net in an easy-to-digest format. Read on below for today’s findings…
Coming off of the REEB SST and having ridden the piss out of my Starling Murmur 29er over the past three years, when Chromag announced its new full-suspension bike, the Darco 29er, my interest was piqued. It’s no secret to readers here that I love how steel full-suspension bikes ride, and it’s been great seeing small brands put in the PR&D on these niche bikes. After some pleading, the fine folks at Chromag shipped me out a stock build of the Darco in size XL, for me to womp around on down in Phoenix while I escaped the ice-capades of Northern New Mexico for a week. Was it love at first flight? Find out below…
Our Radar Roundup compiles products and videos from the ‘net in an easy-to-digest format. Read on below for today’s findings…
Our Radar Roundup compiles products and videos from the ‘net in an easy-to-digest format. Read on below for today’s findings…
The Chromag Surface has been in the brand’s 29er catalog for years but the Surface Voyager is something different entirely. With multiple cargo bosses, a 140mm travel fork, and sliding dropouts, perfect for converting the bike to a singlespeed, the Surface Voyager has versatility and capability built-in.
With a CNC’d headtube, custom sliding dropouts and a beautiful chainstay yoke, it’s not just your run of the mill hardtail. This frame is built by Chris Dekerf in Canada and retails for $2,121. See more at Chromag.
I think they nailed the opening text from the new Doctakawk page when they say “Longer, lower, slacker, faster, stronger, slacker, etc etc, did we say slacker?” The new Chromag Doctahawk is a 27.5+ or 29’r mountain bike with 180mm of front travel, a 62º head angle, and a 77º seat tube angle, making it a veritable shreddy hardtail! While it looks bonkers at the side profile, I hope to one day throw my leg over this monster! See more at Chromag.
What say you, Bicycle Pubes?
Tyler’s Electric Mexican Blanket Sunday Driver Chromag Road Bike
Photos by Ross Measures, Words by Tyler Morland
The idea was simple: Create a “Sunday Driver” of sorts. I took inspiration from a bike I was currently riding and blended it with that taste I have for old Ritcheys. My dad has this old Ritchey Timberline comp and I always loved the Fillet brazing look and feel. So Ian Ritz at Chromag Bikes and I started the conversation and we talked about every detail. We used raw material that Chromag had in stock and used something that they have refined for a couple of years, like the drop outs and generally put it through the process that all Chromag frames go through. The head tube was machined in shop and follows the taper of the fork. A real pain in the ass to make. Then, we chose curved seat stays to give it that plush steel ride.
He had no idea it would be this long of a process and neither did I. We roped in Chris Dekerf for the internal routing and brazing. North Shore Billet for the machined parts and sent the completed frame in for a crazy paint job at Troy Lee Designs. I visit TLD once a year for various reasons and those guys are just a bunch of beauties. I’ve been part of the family over at TLD FOREVER and this was a great conversation with a legendary painter… Why not electric Mexican blanket?
The build kit was a no-brainer. That just goes with the territory – All SRAM everything. I still can’t decide if I go ZIPP 303 or 202.
Basically, its special and part of my weird collection… Forever.
____
Follow Ross on Instagram and follow Tyler on Instagram and special thanks to Morgan Taylor for coordinating this post!
Chromag just dropped their first run of fatbikes, hand built by Mike Truelove in Squamish, BC. Cheekily named the Nice Dreams, this steel beauty is built around a 120mm RockShox Bluto with a 67.5º head angle and a 170mm rear end for 4″ tires. Result? One seriously shreddable fatty.
This small run will sell out quick, but there are still a couple M and M-L frames available as frame only or full SRAM builds. Contact Chromag to swoop!
Locals in Bellingham, WA know him as “the guy on the Chromag hardtail,” and as the humble hardtail holdout, Robbie Kane is one of those few who have not only embraced a minimalist mountain bike mindset but have made a soulful connection with, pun intended, the roots of mountain biking. Despite riding for 20 years, Robbie has never owned a full suspension bike, opting to be content with one basic bike to rule them all…
Over a decade ago, Kona helped spark The Mountain Bike Geometry Revolution. Their Process line of aggressive full-suspension models were some of the first to get the “longer, lower, slacker” treatment that is so ubiquitous today. And although the 2024 Kona Process 134 harbors the same rebellious spirit as its ancestors, Travis found it was uniquely approachable.
Trek just teased this steel (and carbon) full suspension “PipeDream” prototype on its Instagram, designed by Trek employee and industrial designer Kyle Neuser and built in-house by Trek’s prototype lab. Inspired no doubt by the work and growing popularity of steel full suspension bikes from the likes of REEB, Cotic, Starling, Chromag, and more, Kyle was lured to experiment with the natural damping of steel with the geometry of the Trek Top Fuel.
This steel frame uses a carbon swingarm from a Top Fuel and rocker link, exposed cable routing, and bolt-on aluminum shock mounts. The PipeDream is finished with a paint scheme inspired by Trek’s steel bikes from the ‘80s and ‘90s. If Trek were to pony up and make a production run of these bikes, would it ignite a race for more metal full-suspension bikes? Hey, Specialized, you won’t! Let’s see it!
Read what our staff thinks of steel full suspensions below in our Related Archives!
When Esker Cycles released their new Smokey hardtail, initially in titanium then shortly after in steel, they proclaimed it a hardtail with “big travel for big days.” With a 160mm travel fork and aggressive geometry, is the Smokey a wildfire or does the spark not catch? Find out in Spencer’s review below…
With two members of our Radavist editorial team living in Arizona, it only made sense to head to Flagstaff for our second Cycling Guide. With its recent spike in new singletrack development, legendary dark skies, and accessible location as a hub for other Northern Arizona destinations, there’s a lot to talk about. Read on for a look at The City of Seven Wonders…
This week’s reader’s ride comes from Ali Becker as she rides across the Great Northern Bike Route. She talks about her journey from overstuffing panniers to her current svelt bikepacking setup and entertains us with a poem about packing her rig up…
Whenever we veer into the mainstream by covering a bike from The Big Three, we do it because that bike has something special going on. And the Giant Trance 29 2 certainly is special. Travis spent a month aboard the moderate-travel, moderate-price trail bike. He praised its modern features, sophisticated suspension, and thoughtful spec. It does need bigger brake rotors, but that’s kind of a compliment if you think about it.
For our second-ever high-pivot bike review, Travis tests the third-generation Norco Optic. Turns out short travel and short chainstays pair pretty well with high pivots and high speed, both downhill and uphill.
