The Turners Burner is more than just the latest in a sea of 650b. As the first production bike for Dave Turner, the Burner name has roots as deep as modern full suspension rigs. Over time, the Burner evolved along with Turner itselft to the DW-Link equipped, 650b sized trail blazer shown here. Still aluminum, still made in the USA, the current Burner is made my Zen Fabrications in Portland, OR to the same exacting specifications of all Turners before it. After a few prototypes, specifications on the Burner are finalized, and the production bike is here.
See why Turner is in the details after the break.
No question about it – Turner aluminum means made in the USA. Laser etching on the back of the 30.9 seat tube confirms it. Up front a 44mm head tube allows for tapered or straight steerers. To run a tapered fork you will need a ZS44/28.6|EC44/40 (1-1/8″ ZeroStack to 1.5″ Traditional Tapered Standard) headset. Also known as a 44XX lower and Zero Stack upper.
Built on the DW-Link suspension design, the Burner like other Turners has beautifully machined suspension links. Our test bike is fitted with a Fox Float CTD shock that is custom tuned for the frame with a very low compression and rebound tune. The Burner has 140mm of rear travel which is best matched with a 150mm fork, though it can run 140-160mm.
No ISCG adapters needed – the mounts are built right into the frame around the threaded bottom bracket shell. Metal.
Turners have a reputation for being super durable – especially the pivots. Turner uses journal bearings (or bushings) as they claim they are better suited to the high loads and small movement of suspension pivots than bearings. Turners pivots use a hard anodized aluminum pivot shaft with Kevlar composite bearings that are all able to be lubricated through the Zerks fittings built into each pivot. The journal bearing system is lighter than bearings and since it is proprietary to the frame, they are designed to use the entire width of the pivot adding to the torsional stiffness of the back end of the bike.
Turner sells a grease gun on their website with Super Lube synthetic grease for the pivots, though any bent tip grease gun can be used. Turner says to inject just enough grease to pressurize the system, but never to purge the sytem. Ever. All of the small parts are available on the webstore as well, so if you lose the small Zerks plug, they have you covered.
Keeping the rear wheel in place is a DT Swiss 142×12 Axle that threads into the replaceable derailleur hanger. The hanger is also held into the frame with a T30 Torx bolt which combined with the one piece swingarm results in a very stiff interface. Turner was one of the first to push the post mount rear brake standard since it eliminates the additional adapter and bolts. Adding the replaceable threaded barrels (held in place here with tape) means if you screw up the threads, you don’t screw up your frame.
A lot of attention has been paid to the cable routing on the Burner like all of their bikes. No zip ties here – every point along the frame has a threaded clamp for cables and even a port in the swing arm upright for the rear derailleur cable to pass through.
With all of the hardware and rear axle, our medium anodized Burner frame comes in at 6.97 lbs (3162g). Not carbon light, but still should be able to be built up pretty light.
Early prototypes had a lower BB, while production versions are set at 13.25″. A 67° head angle is achieved with a 150mm fork, which sets the seat tube angle at 73. Stay tuned for the rest of the build coming soon!
