Based just outside of Leeds in northern England, bike maker Carbon Wasp has an all-new UK-made carbon Truffle short travel full-suspension mountain bike. Sitting in between long XC and short trail, the 120mm Carbon Wasp Truffle has a familiar-looking linkage-drive shock, single-pivot suspension design, plus a few trick details to take on any trail…
Carbon Wasp Truffle 120mm UK-made carbon MTB
Carbon Wasp owner & bike designer Adrian Smith calls the new 120mm Wasp as a ‘strong and stiff ‘ carbon trail bike developed to balance efficient climbing to get you up the hills and a plush ride to enjoy getting ‘rowdy on the way back down’.
“We wanted to create a bike that can do anything, a real “go to” bike for all trail conditions. The Truffle is light and predictable for climbing, agile for singletrack and robust for technical descents. We basically made the bike that we want to ride, a bike that would be at home on the XC race circuit or razzing around the local woods,” describes Smith.
Modern Trail Geometry
Even though the short-travel bike rides the line between XC & trail, Carbon Wasp says the Truffle is built to take on all sort of trails. Geometry-wise, they call it Modern Trail, with longer frame reach, a slack 65.5° head angle, and steep 76° seattube (already when paired with a matching 120mm fork.)
Plus, that “120mm of plush and progressive rear travel” can be balanced with anything from a 120mm XC fork for less aggressive singletrack & trails, or up to a more beefy 140mm trail fork for more technical & steeper riding.
Tech details
The Carbon Wasp Truffle is a 120mm full-suspension bike made entirely by hand in Yorkshire, even down to the full-carbon shock linkage. It also includes a nice downtube storage opening to keep trailside spares low & protected inside the frame.
Carbon Wasp has been crafting carbon components & bike frames for other brands out of their West Yorkshire workshop for several years. But as mountain bikers themselves, Carbon Wasp really wanted to create their own perfect trail bike. The Truffle has been in development for several years, and from the looks of things has gone through several evolutions, seeming to dial back travel while maintaining a progressive nature for all-rounder trail duties.
“When designing the Truffle the objective was to make a frame that could be built into a lightweight XC race bike, but was also robust enough to take on the most technical descents. It’s not designed for bike park laps, but it could handle that if you occasionally needed it to.”
The in-house carbon layup itself has taken 3 years to refine, alongside balancing a reliable supply of the UK-sourced prepreg fiber that Carbon Wasp builds the Truffle with.
The Truffle features fully sealed bearing pivots for UK durability, internal cable routing, stealth 30.9mm dropper post compatibility, a classic BSA threaded bottom bracket, Boost 148 rear spacing, replaceable derailleur hanger, a couple of ISCG chain guide tabs, and a single bottle cage mount.
The 1800g frame (without rear shock) includes a burly stick-on rubber downtube protector and chainstay protector to keep the frame safe and running quietly over rough terrain, and has UK clearance for 29 x 2.4″ tires (tyres?).
Carbon Wasp Truffle – Pricing, options & availability
The Carbon Wasp Truffle comes in 4 stock sizes (S-XL) and is only available as a frameset – including a 5 year repair or replace warranty. For £2800 you get a Wasp frame with a Cane Creek DB Air IL air shock, or just £2400 without a shock, including free delivery worldwide.
Frames are available now from the small builder in standard Wasp Yellow paint with an approximate 3-week delivery time. Or other custom single-color paint jobs are also possible for no extra charge, since the bikes are painted locally. You can even go wild with custom paint (pricing to be agreed with Carbon Wasp) so you can build up your own unique long XC or light trail bike.
