Orbea has announced two new trail bikes for 2024; the Occam LT and the Occam SL. The LT pulls up as Orbea’s more progressive trail bike, boasting 150mm of rear wheel travel paired with a 160mm travel fork on a geometry-adjustable frame. Meanwhile, the SL is pitched as the faster rolling of the two, with 140mm of matched front and rear wheel travel.
2024 Orbea Occam Trail Bikes
The Occam LT and Occam SL land in carbon (OMR) and aluminum (Hydro) models, all of which are largely re-configurable via Orbea’s extensive MyO customization platform.
Importantly, both the SL and LT bikes go slacker and longer than their predecessors, with appealingly progressive geometry numbers. And, there’s all the bonus bits you could ever want, including a straight seat tube that allows for monstrously large seat post insertion depths (230mm drop possible on all sizes), and useful accoutrements such as frame storage and integrated tools.
The linkage is of the linkage-driven single-pivot flavor, wherein a pivot concentric to the rear axle is said to help keep the suspension active under braking.
Also new for 2024 is the update to a SRAM UDH rear end, making all the new bikes you see here compatible with SRAM Transmission. Altogether, the 2024 Occam Trail Bikes seem a more attractive proposition than ever before.
Occam SL & LT – The Same, But Different
To be clear, the new Occam LT and Occam SL trail bikes run the very same front and rear triangles. What sets them apart are their suspension travel numbers. Again, it’s 150/160mm for the LT, and 140/140mm for the SL. In accordance with their divergent intentions, the LT models get 4-piston brakes and aggressive tires with a gravity-focused tread pattern. The SL models, on the other hand, get 2-piston brakes, and faster-rolling tires.
And, with the exception of the lowest spec models, the LT models get piggy-back shocks (with both air and coil options to choose from), while the SL models get lighter in-line shocks.
What sets the frames apart is the yoke that drives the rear shock. These are distinct in both their shape and material.
The LT gets an aluminum yoke to drive the shock, featuring an eccentric QuickFlip Chip at the shock mount. That gives the LT two distinct geometry positions; high and low, and switching between them is said to require no more than 15 seconds of your time. Just loosen the bolt, guide the shock into the alternate position, and re-tighten.
That should be eons faster than the the flipping of other brands’ flip chips. While they can, theoretically, be flipped trail-side, it is usually a pain in the backside; only a bike stand makes the process frustration-free. Orbea’s little eccentric innovation is a really nice addition.
Meanwhile, the Occam SL frame gets a lighter carbon shock extender. It is sans QuickFlip Chip, so there is no alternative geometry to be had with this 140mm configuration.
Orbea does plan to offer the distinct shock yokes aftermarket, but pricing on those is not yet available. That will mean that owners of the SL can upgrade their frame to an LT should they wish to make the bike a more capable descender. Alternatively, owners of the LT can make their bike an SL, should they wish to benefit from a lighter and livelier shorter travel bike. It goes without saying that riders will also need to source the relevant shock and fork to complete the transition.
Another differentiator would be the remote lock-out offered on the Occam SL builds. These bikes make use of Orbea’s patented i-Line system that stealthily routes a cable through the top tube to the shock. It relies on the SquidLock bar-mounted remote also featured on Orbea’s XC race bike; the OiZ. Except, here on the Occam it is a push-to-lock affair, instead of a push-to-unlock.
Occam LT
- Bike: 2024 Orbea Occam LT
- Fork Travel: 160mm
- Rear Wheel Travel: 150mm
- Frame Material: OMR Carbon & Hydroformed Aluminum
- Wheel Size: 29″
- Size Availability: S-XL
- Starting Price: $4,999 USD (OMR) // $3,599 USD (Hydro)
As compared to its predecessor, the 2024 Orbea Occam LT is a slacker, longer bike overall, with a 64° head angle and a wheelbase of 1257mm in its lowest setting (size large). Reach is up by around 10mm across the frame sizes, now at 480mm on the large. All frame sizes get the same 440mm chainstay.
Another notable change is seen at the seat tube. It is now straight, maximizing the permissible seat post insertion depth to allow all frame sizes to accomodate a 230mm dropper seat post. I’m told all frame sizes can run such a post without the rear tire contacting the back of the saddle at full compression and full travel.
Right enough, it’s highly unlikely anyone on a small frame will be wanting 230mm drop, but it’s an impressive claim all the same. Seat tubes are shorter on the new bike for the M, L & XL frames, but considerably longer on the S at 405mm (up from 381mm). So, despite the increased insertion depth, it’s unlikely that shorter riders will benefit from any additional clearance.
The seat tube sits more upright for 2024, now at 77° in the low geo position. It goes steeper in the high geo position to 77.5°, a change that concomitantly steepens the head angle to 64.5°, and increases reach by 5mm. The bottom bracket height difference is 8mm, at 342mm in the low setting.
Occam SL
- Bike: 2024 Orbea Occam SL
- Fork Travel: 140mm
- Rear Wheel Travel: 140mm
- Frame Material: OMR Carbon & Hydroformed Aluminum
- Wheel Size: 29″
- Size Availability: S-XL
- Starting Price: $4,799 USD (OMR) // $3,199 USD (Hydro)
Geometry is fixed on the SL. We have a 65.5° head angle and 440mm stays, with a wheelbase of 1245mm in a size large. Again, chainstay length is consistent across the size range. Reach is 5mm longer on the SL, at 490mm in a large. This bike boasts the steepest seat tube angle of 78°, and the lowest BB at 341mm.
Other Frame Details
All 2024 Occam frames (OMR Carbon and Hydro) run thru-headset cable routing. In more positive news, all are endowed with the LOCKR frame storage, the FLP multi-tool (2, 3, 4 and 5mm hex) and a 6mm hex stored in the rear axle.
For the most part, cables are guided internally, with tubes running from the rear to around mid-way up the downtube. Here, around the point of the LOCKR door, the tubes come to an end. Silicon plugs at the frame entry and exit points are said to help keeps things quiet. For the same reason, we see extensive stay protection on the drive-side, that runs right up along the chainstay to the chainring.
For the avoidance of any doubt, the geometry tables above pertain also to the hydro (aluminum) models. These frames get their welds polished smooth to give a similar aesthetic to the carbon tube shapes. This is where the best value for money is to be had, if you’re willing to pedal around the extra grams that come with an aluminum frame. Unfortunately, we haven’t been provided with weights for the Hydro models, so we can’t tell you exactly what that weight penalty is.
- Threaded BB
- 203mm maximum rear rotor size
- SRAM UDH
- Boost (12mm x 148mm) spacing
Pricing & Availability
Orbea sell all 2024 Occam OMR & Hydro frames with a lifetime warranty. All models shown below are customizable using the MyO platform, allowing riders to swap out important components like suspension, wheels, brakes and tires.
Occam LT M-TEAM – $8,599 USD
Occam LT M10 – $6,499 USD
Occam LT M30 – $4,999 USD
Occam LT H20 – $4,399 USD
Occam LT H30 – $3,599 USD
Occam SL M-LTD – $10,599 USD
Occam SL M10 – $6,499 USD
Occam SL M30 – $4,799 USD
Occam SL H30 – $3,199 USD
Occam SL H20 – $3,999 USD
Occam SL H10 – $4,399 USD
