Orange Bikes have given their Stage 6 enduro bike the EVO treatment, with an all-new custom-formed frame now delivering just 140mm of rear wheel travel via that instantly recognizable Orange single-pivot. The Stage 6 EVO doesn’t replace the Stage 6 – that 150mm travel bike remains in the line-up for those after the extra cushion. The new EVO is simply a pared-back version of that 29er, running the same wheel size, almost the same geometry, but in a stiffer, stronger and more laterally rigid frame with a little less travel at each end.
Orange say it is F. A. F… Fergus Lamb shows us what that means.
Orange Stage 6 EVO
The Orange Stage 6 is by no means the first bike in the stable to get the EVO makeover. Earlier this year, the British frame manufacturers dropped the Alpine EVO, a 155mm travel version of the longer travel 27.5″ Alpine. Besides smaller suspension numbers, a key change was made at the swingarm which saw a new asymmetric design with a lowered non-driveside chainstay.
Why? To better resist twisting under pedaling loads, creating a stiffer and more pedal-friendly overall package.
The Stage 6 EVO follows suit, rocking that same asymmetric swingarm. Other notable differences include “better integration” of the bearing housings, along with revised tube thicknesses. The result? A 20% increase in longitudinal stiffness and a 15% increase in overall strength compared to previous construction methods, without incurring a weight penalty.
Orange tell us the new asymmetric bearing housing meant they could re-locate the main pivot to a more neutral position to minimize pedal kickback, allowing the bike to pedal smoothly through choppy terrain.
So, while the Stage 6 EVO drops 10mm travel at either end, the geometry numbers are barely affected. Like the Stage 6, it runs a 64° head tube angle and a 76° seat tube angle with ever so slightly longer reach figures. With the switch to the asymmetric stays there’s a nigh-on negligible (2mm) shortening of the rear-centre length, still very healthy at 467mm. That figure is consistent across the M-XL size range.
Pricing & Availability
The new Orange Stage 6 EVO is available now in the Special Edition (SE) model only, with other models to follow in due course.
Retailing at £6,400, the Stage 6 EVO SE is fairly binged out with an Ox Blood frame rocking a 150mm Ohlins RXF 36 M.2 Air fork and a TTX1 air shock. Other notable parts include:
- Shimano SLX 12 Speed Drivetrain
- Hope Tech 3 E4 Black Brakes paired with 180mm (Rear) and 203mm (Front) rotors
- Stans Flow Mk4 rims laced to a Hope Pro 4 hubset
- Maxxis Minion DHF/DHR II Combo in EXO Casing
- SDG Tellis 150mm
The Orange Stage 6 EVO is designed and built in Britain and is sold with a 5 year frame warranty with Limited Lifetime Crash Replacement.
