Snafu, largely a BMX brand, is introducing two new Dirt Jump / Freeride mountain bikes called the Crenshaw (above) and Hawthorne. Here’s the deal from Jeremie at Sidewall Distribution, who’s kickin’ it in Taiwan for the Taipei bike show and sneakin’ some peeks (NOTE: the products referenced are items carried by Sidewall):
Since arriving in Taiwan last week, I’ve been teasing out photos of SNAFU’s new complete bikes…until now, however, none of the photos have shown either machine in full livery or spec.
Truth be told, these photos don’t show the final graphics, eitherâ€â€the seat mast and chainstay stickers are still at the printer.
Decals notwithstanding, what you see here is our Crenshaw and Hawthorne in their individual glory. The Crenshaw is in Electric Gold; the Hawthorne is Electric Purple.
Both models are built on the same SNAFU frameset. Our Crenshaw Project frame is handcrafted with seamless 4130 chromoly, and features a European BB and a 1-1/8-inch head tube for integrated headsets. Dropouts are laser-cut 4130 chromoly, and the left dropout includes tabs for a rear disk brake. Other frame specs include:
• 71° head angle
• 71° seat angle
• 22.5″ T/T length (center to center on T/T center)
• 15.5″ chainstays (center to center)
• Removable U-brake bosses on underside of seatstays
• Removable cable guides on underside of T/T
• Brazed-on housing guides on left side of T/T and left seatstay
• Removable steel detangler tabs on side of head tube
This latter feature allows us to spec the Crenshaw with a SNAFU brake detangler system, which includes our AstroGlide cables and CNC’ed alloy Mobeus. This proven BMX brake system makes bar spins and tailwhips possible without compromising the powerful stopping that disk brakes provide. To the best of my knowledge, SNAFU is the first company to offer its high-end freestyle detanlger system on an MTB with disk brakes. When riders become familiar with the performance and progression that detanglers offer, I’m sure we won’t be the last.
Both the Crenshaw and the Hawthorne feature the following other proven SNAFU BMX components as original equipment:
• Taper-butted and heat-treated 4130 chromoly SNAFU MTB handlebars
• SNAFU CNC’ed 6061 T-6 alloy Towatay stem (31.8mm bar clamp/45mm reach)
• SNAFU Rim Job and Knob Job 26″ x 2.35″ street/trail tires
• SNAFU’s new front BMX hub and 135mm OLN cassette MTB rear hub with one-piece CNC’ed 11-tooth driver
• SNAFU Love Seat with 8mm chromoly rails
• SNAFU 27.2mm OD x 350mm long J-Bar CNC’ed alloy micro-adjustable seatpost
• New SNAFU Seatpost clamp with stainless-steel threaded insert
• SNAFU Mayweather tubular 4130 chromoly three-piece BMX cranks with 19mm OD x 48-spline spindle
• 30-tooth CNC’d 7075 alloy SNAFU Gesser sprocket
• SNAFU New External (N.EXT) BB with threaded alloy cups and Spanish sealed bearings
We’re really proud of our new BB, because it makes installing 3-piece BMX cranks with 19mm spindles on Euro BB’s reliable and easy. Before the introduction of the SNAFU N.ext BB, European bottom brackets and BMX cranks simply did not mix… there wasn’t enough space between the heavy-duty spindles and the BB shell for rugged sealed bearings to fit. Our N.ext BB solves this problem, and the MTB community will be better for it. Let’s face it: who among today’s value- and performance-conscious MTB riders wouldn’t want to run a BMX crank on his MTB?
The Crenshaw is equipped with X-Fusion’s new-for-2010 Velour air spring fork with adjustable compression and rebound damping. This sub-4-pound suspension fork is short travel (< 3″), lightweight (< than 4 pounds) and tunable for a variety of street and trail applications. The SNAFU Crenshaw is the first complete UDJ bike we’ve seen with X-fusion’s new fork as original equipment.
The fork on the Hawthorne is our brand-new 440 Pickle fork for MTB’s. the 440 refers to our MTB Pickle Fork’s axle center to crown race seat measurement, and we designed it to retrofit any UDJ MTB with a sub-3″ travel fork. The slightly shorter axle center to crown race measurement offers slightly faster steering, a nice mod for aggressive riding on groomed and technical trails.
We’re still in negotiation with our factories for final costing on both models, and some specs like pedals and rims are subject to change. As it stands today, however, I’m 99% confident that what you see here is what SNAFU riders and customers will get when US and International SNAFU distributors receive inventory this summer.
