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Scapin teases boosted XC marathon Oraklo 148 carbon hardtail

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First raced at the UCI’s XCM stop in Capoliveri a couple weeks back, Italian bike maker Scapin is now letting the cat out of the bag on some of the details of their upcoming 2017 Oraklo 148 carbon hardtail reboot. The bike gets a fairly major overhaul for next season, and while a good bit of the changes might appear to be just for looks, there is some rational behind the new appearance. Built specifically for racing the long distances off-road of marathon cross-country races, the 29er hardtail incorporates some new tech that hasn’t made it into too many racing hardtails yet, and along the way earns its name adopting a 148mm Boost rear end…

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The Oraklo 148 builds on Scapin’s typically angular aesthetic, with faceted shaped tubing throughout. The new bike gets a small kink in the downtube that is said to help with tire and fork crown clearance, and a larger kink in the toptube that both isolates flex in the rear of the frame and effectively curves the toptube into alignment with the seatstays. This also has the added benefit of slightly improving standover, especially on the smaller sizes.

From the wider rear-end up through a wide, boxy downtube to an oversized headtube, the monocoque Toray T800 frame is designed to be stiff laterally to provide stability and precise handling to live up to its race pedigree, but more vertically compliant to keep riders fresh for several hours long off-road racing events.

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The bike’s geometry carries over mostly from the current Orkalo which already has a really long toptube (463mm of reach on a size L!), but the new Oraklo 148 does get a 1° slacker headtube angle in a nod towards modern trail riding geo updates. At the same time its bottom bracket drops down by 5mm, also in a move to generally increase ride stability.

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Scapin mentions that the chainstays get shortened a bit too, which will be a good step as the current 440 stays are a bit rangy, for even a full-suspension 29er. At the same time as the move to a wider Boost rear end, Scapin switched to a direct Side Swing front derailleur mount that freed up space at the tire to trim things down a bit in the rear.

The claimed 1290g weight Oraklo 148 frame (in S) will come in 4 sizes from Small-Extra Large, 3 color finishes (orange/black, gloss/matte black & black/white/red), and 7 different builds.  In the range of build kits there will be at least one SRAM Eagle 12 speed setup and five different forks on offer. The bike uses a 31.6mm seatpost,  post mount disc brake, and 12x148mm rear thru-axle. Full details on the bike and pricing will come later at the end of summer at Eurobike.

Scapin.com

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Haromania
7 years ago

I always look for two things right off the bat when I read a mtn. bike review/story. How much, and what’s the widest tire I can fit on it? Good looking bike though.

Scapin USA
7 years ago

Thanks, Corey!! Excited to start bringing this new rig into the US and Canada soon. Speak to us for any questions or details.

Best,
Mike Yakubowicz
Scapin USA

Von Kruiser
Von Kruiser
7 years ago

Seems the Pivot LES is a better option if youre wanting a “nod towards modern trail riding geo.” However I’m sure this has it’s place as more XC then the LES. LES would be better for marathons and longer distances for comfort and better wheel options (27+, 29) then this bike.

Kc
Kc
7 years ago

Marathon bike, with room for one waterbottle….. No boost or Eagle will make for that

JDM
JDM
7 years ago

I ride a lot with a lady who owns a Scapin Kyoto 26″. The attention to details on that frame is stellar. Best paint on any bike I have touched and that means bikes between $200 and $10.000.

Antipodean_eleven
7 years ago

I remember once some internet keyboard design genius spouting that no bike with a ‘hump’, i.e. like the Scapin’s TT, would ever sell.

That’s one very tidy looking frame I have to say.

cookiemonster
cookiemonster
7 years ago

But every bike with a “hump” gives up stand over clearance for fashion. That’s a trade I personally will never make.

Jeb
Jeb
7 years ago

“stand over clearance” is the stupidest metric in cycling. What possible difference can that make while riding a bike?

Tim
Tim
7 years ago
Reply to  Jeb

That makes a huge difference when riding technical trails and you have to dismount unexpectedly. Imagine doing this on a frame that’s way too big- you can easily rack your private parts. Way back when, most frames had top tubes that were actually horizontal, so this was a real problem. That you seem not to know about this problem is a sign of how far things have come in the right direction. Having a bit of extra standover is for me a real bonus.

Jeb
Jeb
7 years ago
Reply to  Tim

If you are bailing in tech sections by straddling your top tube you have a bigger problem than just stand over clearance.

Tim
Tim
7 years ago
Reply to  Jeb

So in terms of standover you’d be happy going back to bikes with dead horizontal top tubes? Because by your logic it makes no difference (apart from perhaps the weight). If standover were of no importance when doing technical riding, then trials and BMX riders would all be content with high, horizontal top tubes. And yet all of those bikes have low, sometimes drastically sloped top tubes.
For me, standover a) makes me quite certain my dudes aren’t going to get racked (not that it has ever happened, but that assurance makes me more likely to go big- even talented riders can have wacky accidents, and we are talking about an inflexible tube directly under our dudes); b) reduces weight; c) lowers the center of gravity.
If you don’t like standover, fine, but I will take every cm I can get it.

Tim
Tim
7 years ago
Reply to  Jeb

More standover clearance also means a lower center of gravity, which means more stability and better control.

Johan
Johan
7 years ago

Why is no one mentioning the relatively heavy weight?
That is at least 25 percent heavier than most.
What is the new headtube angle?

JDM
JDM
7 years ago
Reply to  Johan

Because this is not the top of the range Scapin. That would be the Spektro and is under 1000gr for a size M.

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