Home > Bike Types > Mountain Bike

2021 Propain Rage CF 29er and mullet put the shock back in the front triangle

2021 propain rage cf schladming badmit
Support us! Bikerumor may earn a small commission from affiliate links in this article. Learn More

Propain Bikes have gone to town with a new suspension design for the 2021 Rage CF downhill bike. A whopping 215mm of rear wheel travel is now delivered through the redeveloped PRO10 suspension linkage which puts a floating shock in front of the seat tube for improved weight distribution. And, you can easily switch it from 29er to a mixed-wheel setup. Here’s what we know…

2021 Propain Rage CF

2022 propain rage cf downhill mountain bike carbon 215mm rear travel pro10 suspension
215mm travel in the rear is paired with a 200mm travel fork

The Propain Rage downhill bike is back for this model year with an all-new carbon frame and suspension kinematic, redesigned around a shock that sits inside the front triangle. For those less familiar with Propain Bikes, this is a big deal for the German brand.

early propain rage al frame shock behind seat tube wall hanging propain hq germany
Early iterations of the Propain Rage AL hanging at the Propain Bikes HQ in Germany

The Rage was their debut bike; every iteration of the downhill bike since its inception fifteen years ago featured a suspension platform with the shock positioned behind the seat tube.

2022 propain rage cf frame pro10 suspension linkage layout
100% anti-squat is said to allow the bike to accelerate without bobbing. Learn about anti-squat here.

The 2021 Propain Rage CF now runs the PRO10 suspension platform with a linkage very similar to that seen on their trail and enduro bikes such as the Hugene, Spindrift and Tyee. The floating shock is said to give the bike incredible small bump sensitivity, while the leverage curve delivers 38% progression throughout the 215mm of travel.

2022 propain rage cf downhill world cup racing schladming
The 2021 Rage CF has been seen on the World Cup Circuit numerous times this season

Propain say the new linkage delivers a rearward axle path, said to prevent that feeling of getting hung up on roots and other square-edged hits. Though we cannot share the axle path graph with readers, we can say the rear wheel initially moves 1.5mm rearward before arcing up and forwards for the majority of the travel.

2022 propain rage cf blend carbon
The new 2021 Propain Rage CF frame is made from blend carbon

29er or Mullet?

2022 propain rage cf 29er dh bike
The frame weighs a claimed 3.7 kg (L) while the complete bike (high end) weighs a claimed 16.9 kg (L)

The new Rage CF can be run in a complete 29er configuration or as a mixed-wheel size bike by virtue of a flip-chip positioned at the interface between the swingarm and the upper link. A flip-chip at the dropouts allows for 15mm adjustment of the rear-centre length. You can run both the 29er and mullet setups in the long and short chainstay positions, depending on your riding style and how much tire/mud clearance you need.

2022 propain rage cf flip chip geometry adjust wheel size change

The 29er and mullet setups are both available to purchase straight away; you don’t have to buy a 29er and then convert it to a mullet, or vice-versa.

It will come as no surprise to hear that the 29er, preferred by Phil Atwill, is said to be the faster of the two configurations. This one gets a 63° head tube angle, 0.5° slacker than the aluminium iteration of 2019. Reach stretches from 440mm to 495mm across the M-XL frame size range. 

2022 propain rage cf 29er geometry
The 2022 Propain Rage CF 29er geometry chart

2022 propain rage cf grey

The mixed-wheel size setup, preferred by George Brannigan, is said to be the more maneuverable of the two configurations. Thanks to the flip-chip, much of the geometry figures including head angle, seat angle, wheel base and reach remain unchanged. Only the BB height is lower on the mullet setup.

2022 propain range cf mullet geometry

Frame Details

2021 propain rage cf frame details
The 2021 Propain Rage CF runs a 225mm x 75mm shock, which can be air or coil

Just like the Propain trail, all-mountain and enduro bikes, the 2021 Propain Rage CF downhill bike runs large diameter Acros stainless steel bearings at each of its 10 pivots. These are further protected by Propain’s proprietary Dirt Shield technology which basically provides an extra seal to protect the bearings from water and trail grit for durability. 

It runs a plugged ISCG mount, so you can run a chain guide and bash guard if you so wish. The carbon frame is protected along the underside of the downtube, and along the drive-side chainstay and seat stay to quieten any chain slap that might occur through rough section of trail. All of these are replaceable.

2021 propain rage cf frame bumpers

The frame also features integrated bumpers just behind the head tube to protect the carbon from the dual-crown fork when you inevitably bin it. Cable routing is fully guided internally. The BB is bolted while the headtube is able to run a number of head angle adjustment headsets if you feel the need to slacken it beyond 63°.

Pricing & Availability

2021 propain rage cf badmint

The 2021 Propain Rage CF downhill bike is available at three price points, starting at 3,999 EUR for the entry-level Start model. All are available now direct from Propain.

2021 propain rage cf start performance highend spec lists

Propain-Bikes.com

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Subscribe Now

Sign up to receive BikeRumor content direct to your inbox.

Subscribe Now

Sign up to receive BikeRumor content direct to your inbox.