The Genesis Grapil ten may be a greenhorn entrant into the mid-travel path full Sus marketplace for 2013. coming back from a whole best well-known for his or her hardtails and niche product like cyclocross and track bikes, it’s a daring move. however will it pile up next to the opposition?
Ride & handling: direct style copes well with UK path conditions
Genesis have a verified record building long-forked, trail-orientated hardtails that handle extraordinarily well. The Grapil ten includes a ton to measure up to, that is presumably why Genesis spent 2 years tinkering with linkage styles before launching. The result’s pretty smart.
The long, low frame with short stem blends simple chuckability with enough stability to stay things pointed wherever they must be after you simply need to cruise. very cheap bracket is high enough to stay pedalling through stormy path eventualities, without worrying of grounding a pedal, and therefore the combination of 15mm front and 12mm rear axles implies that there’s barely a trace of frame shimmy within the rough.
We didn’t miss the dearth of adjustable compression damping on the rear shock, that enhances the fork’s dynamical quantities of rock swallowing ability with a luxurious performance that’s simply the correct mix of tiny bump sensitive and large hit capable.
The only fly within the ointment is that each one this ability comes at a worth that’s arguably a trifle steep for the kit on supply. If you don’t mind paying alittle premium for a British-designed dirt bike then the Grapil ten is well value a review, however there ar higher worth choices out there.
Frame & equipment: nice handling frame however description appearance a trifle ungenerous
Genesis have engineered a name on the rear of direct styles engineered with British riding in mind. The Grapil comes from identical mould. There are not any shape-shifting, complicated hydroformed tube shapes here – simply a set of gently manipulated, largely spherical tubes showing neatness welded into a classic faux-bar setup with a linkage-activated shock. Genesis have gone for a 120mm (4.7in) rear, 140mm (5.5in) front travel setup, claiming their testing has shown this to figure best.
Tidy cable routing with bolt-on guides offers the choice of running a remote-operated pipette post. Our solely niggle is that the 142mm ass combined with wide, low seatstays isn’t smart for riders with a heels-inward pedalling stance – our heels hit the stays on nearly each pedal stroke.
The RockShox Sektor fork and Monarch high volume rear shock don’t have the straightforward management over compression damping that the Fox CTD-equipped competition will boast, though the fork will have AN adjustable gate and may be latched out for ascension or sprinting. In follow it’s not a significant issue, though it will create the Grapil look marginally less filmable to totally different path conditions and riding designs.
The kit is all useful and works well. It’s based mostly around a 2×10 SRAM X5 transmission that simplifies gear choice however loses one or two of the lower wall-climbing gear ratios of a 3×10 setup. Having aforesaid that, X5 isn’t furthermore finished as a number of the Shimano SLX-equipped competition. You pays your cash…
The Grapil 10 Bike is painted a lovely deep green colour and features Sram X5/X7 drivetrain, plus a Rockshox Sektor 15mm Tapered fork and a Monarch High Volume rear shock.
£2099.99
Image Credit: © Genesis