Funn MTB had more than just new components, they also had new brands from their employees making a stealthy debut – like the Pipedream frame and Granite collapsible bike stand shown above. Those items made displaying the new Funn parts a little easier, of course, but are worth a look on their own.
But first, the new UpDown dropper seatpost, which had absolutely 0º of rotational wiggle. While those perfect tolerances could potentially make its movement tight or more susceptible to binding in an over-tight seatpost collar, the demo bike felt very smooth. There was the tiniest bit of fore-aft movement, but nothing we’d likely notice while riding. Check out the tech specs and their lightweight, modular chain guide and bash guard bits below…
The UpDown is available in standard or stealth routing options. They wouldn’t divulge the exact keying system that keeps it from wiggling, but the motion is controlled by a mechanical cable affecting an air-and-hydraulic cartridge. That design makes swapping out the internals quick and easy should something go wrong.
The CNC’d alloy lever can be mounted on either side of the bar, top or bottom. The shape and layout mimics the left shifter button, letting it fit perfectly where a front shifter used to be.
The head and upper (inner) tube is one-piece forged with a single bolt for adjusting saddle angle, plus side bolts for adjusting fore-aft position. They’re available in 27.2 with 100mm travel, and 30.9 and 31.6 diameters with 125mm drop. Claimed weight is 570g for the post, 35g for the remote.
The new Zippa chain guides use a CNC’d 7050AL body with composite guides that are height and chainline adjustable. They offer it in ISCG, high direct and low direct mount options.
A shim system lets you adjust it to your chainline, and etched guides show you where to set the height depending on chainring size from 26T to 36T. The Zippa Taco Bash guard fits to their guide’s mount and the other hole on your frame (or, presumably, just your frame) and comes in two sizes to fit 26-32 tooth or 34-36 tooth chainrings. Click to enlarge image for full specs.
The Black Ace UD carbon fiber handlebar gets updating geometry, now with the following options:
- 7mm rise, 2º upsweep, 5º backsweep, 185g
- 15mm rise, 5.5º upsweep, 8º backsweep, 192g
- 30mm rise, 5.5º upsweep, 8º backsweep, 195g
Width on all three is 785mm. Head over to FunnMTB.com for more.
The new Pipedream Sirius frame modernized their decade-old hardtail with a UK-designed 4130 custom butted tubeset with longer, slacker trail geometry.
What makes the frame really unique is the chainstay yoke. It’s left as thin, shaped sheets of steel to give the bike solid 27.5×2.8 tire and large chainring clearance. Those pieces are then slid over the bottom bracket shell, but because of the tiny amount of space between their edge and the bottom bracket cup, they had to attach it with a mix of welding and brazing. The result is very clean, and very different, and gives it plenty of room to also run 29er wheels and tires. Not show, replaceable and adjustable dropouts let you run it geared or single speed. Let ’em know you want one at PipedreamCycles.co.uk.
Holding the prototype Sirius up was another all-new product and brand, the Granite Design folding bike stand. Weighing in at or under 1,000g, it’s lightweight, but more importantly gets out of the way when not in use.
The lower legs flip out and around and use small steps for the body to rest on, using the weight of the bike to keep it locked into place. The peg that slides into the crankset’s spindle flips up and locks into place with a spring-loaded mechanism. Fold it all down and it’ll easy slide into the deeper water bottle pockets found on the sides of some backpacks. It’s made of CNC’d 6061 aluminum and has a max load of 20kg (44lb). Pricing TBD, this one’s still a prototype. Check it out at Granite-Design.com.
