The Frame
Devinci offers the Spartan in both aluminum and carbon versions, with four different build kits each.
The aluminum version comes in about $400 cheaper than the carbon model, but it gains about .62kg (1.4lbs). With the Rockshox Debonair RCT3 mounted up, my carbon frame weighed about 3400 grams (7.49lbs), which includes all of the little cable routing fittings as well as the aluminum bashguard.
It’s worth noting that the frame is manufactured in Canada. Especially for a carbon frame, it’s pretty rare these days to find a frame that’s manufactured in North America.
Also noteworthy is the fact that the Spartan comes with a lifetime warranty, which is pretty great since this is a rig that’s designed to be ridden hard.
The frame is designed around a Split Pivot rear end, which uses a pivot concentric to the rear axle. The Split Pivot is designed by Dave Weagle, of DW Link fame, who has designed a lot of well-liked bikes for a lot of well-liked companies. The Split Pivot’s concentric pivot location is pretty similar to Trek’s ABP suspension platform, but the shock actuation and other pivot locations are a bit different.
The Spartan’s shock is bolted directly to the seatstays, without any linkage in between.
There is, however, a bit of linkage that ties into the seatstay to stiffen things up and modify the leverage ratio. As a minor note, this means there’s relatively little rotation on most of the pivots and at the shock mounting points, which should help everything hold up better. Generally speaking, the less movement a rear suspension pivot has to do as the suspension compresses, the less likely it is that the bearings will need to be frequently replaced (although that’s certainly a simplification, and other factors play in as well).
The axle path on Split Pivot bikes is the same as a single pivot; there isn’t any linkage between the main pivot above the bottom bracket and the axle. The pivot location above the bottom bracket is a bit higher than on something like a Trek Remedy.
That pivot location seems to be geared toward efficiency with a single chainring setup, and with a 32t chainring, it works out to an anti-squat percentage of just over 100% in the easiest gear. I’ll talk a bit more about how that translates to real world pedaling efficiency below.
Aside from being a concentric pivot, the rear axle itself is a Rockshox Maxle. This works well and is easy enough to get dialed in, but it does protrude pretty far, and seems liable to get clipped occasionally. I prefer the DT Swiss axle employed by Specialized.
The frame does offer a direct mount front derailleur option, and the lower end builds come with a double ring setup.
Cable routing on the frame is internal, and is about as easy to set up as any internal routing I’ve used. Easy to access ports open up at all the key locations, and cables, housing, and hydraulic hose can be threaded through with a bare minimum of fussing and swearing. Everything comes out clean, and the seatpost and rear brake both come fitted with SRAM’s “connectamajig,” so no bleeding was necessary.
The underside of the downtube is protected by a fairly burly aluminum skid plate in the bottom bracket area, which also serves to protect cables that pop out in that vicinity. That plate is essentially identical to the one used on Devinci’s DH bike, the Wilson.
One thing that the frame doesn’t have is a water bottle mount. Maybe water bottle aficionados aren’t the target market for this bike, but I really try to avoid wearing a pack if I can. A lack of a bottle cage mount makes this a bit difficult, though. I’ve been debating trying to modify the aluminum skid plate to accept a bottle cage, but that’s certainly not the ideal mounting location for something that’s going to end up in my mouth.
NEXT: The Build, A Brief Manifesto re: 27.5 Wheels, Etc.
I closely inspected the DaVinci lineup at my LBS
The shop rat gushed on about it as I frowned and remarked that quadruple digits for a single pivot was not on the list of bikes I’m seriously looking at throwing my platinum card down for.
Too bad he couldn’t explain the split pivot.
Hi Bob,
Could you please tell me which Devinci dealer you went to to get that information ? We may have to provide them with better info regarding our product line if that is the answer he gave you. Split Pivot is definitely not a single pivot !
Julien from Devinci.
Digging the new review format – all the talk and comparisons with regard to playfulness and stability (as well as other contexts like pedal efficiency). This is exactly how reviews should be done.
For an experienced rider who knows what they like, it answers the question:
“I want a playful (or stable) bike. What bikes should I be looking at?”
Four thumbs up dude!
Right now I run an older Nomad with PUSH link and an Yeti ASR5. The new Reign sounds like a good replacement for the Nomad – a heavy, stable plow bike with solid DH chops for when I feel like getting in over my head. If the Spartan is out of the price range, what would be similar, as a good replacement for the ASR5 as a poppy/playful bike for trails that I know well and have dialed? It sounds like the Mach 6 didn’t have the poppiness.
Thanks Lindahl!
Yup, in terms of a heavy, stable plow bike, the new Reign would probably be my first pick. As for an ASR5 replacement, there’s a few really good options. In that travel segment these days, you’re looking at a lot more 29ers, so some of the answer will really depend on whether you want smaller wheels (which these days on new bikes mostly means 27.5), or bigger ones.
On the smaller wheeled side of things, a Devinci Troy would be worth a look – it has the same split pivot design as the Spartan, although it’s a bit longer travel than your ASR5. You could also check out a Transition Scout or a Trek Fuel EX. Obviously there’s the new Yetis, but I haven’t swung a leg over one so I’m not sure how they ride.
On the 29er side, a Salsa Horsethief or a Transition Smuggler might be worth a look. Like the Devincis, the Salsa is running on a split pivot suspension design. I’ve also been hearing a lot of good things about the Evil Following (not a split pivot, but still Dave Weagle designed suspension), but I’ve yet to get my hands on one.
I’m with Lindahl. Great write up in focusing on the bike’s character. Bikes are so good now, we can choose what kind of ride we want.
I also appreciated that you talked about weight as just one element of the overall character of the bike, not as a primary factor.
On a linear rate frame, do you think a rider can dial in more playfulness or more plow by adjusting air pressures up or down, or rebound settings?
On the 650b wheel benefits, I am right there with you. A lot of Meh. A bit better roll over, at some playfulness expense. Not much benefit for changing frames and wheels. I feel a bit taken on a bike industry ride on this one. Some sort of force in the industry HAD to change wheel size (to counter the 29er?). Or maybe mountain bikes are just now in the micro-incremental performance boost phase of development? = Gotta change a lot to get a little.
Re: hub flange size. Hub flange height does not really matter on a 2x or 3x wheel. It won’t increase stiffness like it would on a radial spoked wheel. Tall flanges on a radial spoked wheel will increase the bracing angle, which will up the lateral stiffness. On a 3x spoked wheel, the bracing angle doesn’t really change with taller flanges as the spokes come off the hub at an angle, an angle that will be similar with both smaller and taller flanges. Boost will help with 650b wheel softness, due to the higher bracing angle, but is super lame for needing a new frame and hubs to get there.
Thanks Mr. P!
And yeah, I definitely think the shock plays a significant part in the pop and playfulness of a bike. Some of that is settings, and some of it is the shock itself; different dampers from different companies have distinctly different “feels” to them and can certainly make a given bike more or less playful. Like most characteristics of a bike, it’s the sum of the parts – the damping type and how that damper is set up certainly contributes a lot to how the bike rides, but that just gets mixed in with all the other ingredients like geometry, wheel size, linkage kinematics, weight, etc.
On the issue of the hubs, I’m not sure I agree with you. All other things being equal, the bracing angle is always reduced when the hub flange diameter is increased, and that makes the wheel laterally stiffer. It’s true that going from a 3x to a radial lacing pattern would also change the bracing angle, but that brings on other issues.
And aside from the bracing angle, it’s pretty well accepted that larger flanges make for a torsionally stiffer wheel. It’s also worth noting that (again, all other things being equal) larger flanges would mean that the wheel would use shorter spokes. I haven’t found anything that quantifies the effects of spoke length on wheel stiffness, but my gut tells me that it’d make for a stiffer, stronger wheel.
Now, whether any of that would actually make a noticeable difference, I couldn’t say.
Is it new that Devinci build carbon frames in Canada? I had heard that they built all aluminum frames here, but for carbon frames they are built offshore and the bikes are assembled in Canada…
Hey Noah, just wanted to say that your review helped me push over the edge and pull the trigger on a 2015 Spartan Carbon XP that was being cleared out – I felt like I got a heck of a deal on it especially since the MSRP is rising due to the weak Canadian dollar.
So far I’m loving the bike – its got a lot of extra travel compared to my previous bike and feels so much more stable and plush due to the geometry/suspension. I mainly do shuttling with not too much climbing so the lack of pedaling efficiency compared to a lower-travel bike hasn’t been much of an issue, but going downhill has changed for the better tremendously. I’m in Burns Lake, BC so we have lots of amazing trails with features that I’m becoming more confident on when I’m riding the Spartan – it’s that good!
Nice! The Spartan is definitely an awesome bike for building confidence!
Nice Noah, such a good review. I did exactly what you did, 2013 Enduro Expert to RR. I debated the 2015 Enduro but this one won out in the end. You nailed the switch exactly. I loved the Enduro and was skeptical my first three rides on the Spartan. After the 4th ride I literally laughed out loud ripping down and haven’t looked back. Headed back up to Whistler this weekend for a few days and have toyed with the idea of leaving the DH at home with the versatility of the Spartan.
Any suggestions on how to lighten the load a touch? All your efforts here very much appreciated.
For others reading, my only gripe about this bike is the lack of water bottle option. Very minor. I ride packless whenever I can and have been hiding water in friends bags.
Hey Mike – thanks!
And I’m with you on the water bottle thing – I’ve started wearing some Specialized bibs a bit more often that can hold a water bottle in the back. I’ve concluded that I dislike wearing a pack more than I dislike wearing bibs.
As for the weight, I’ve mostly just ignored it. I think my bike has actually gotten heavier since the review since I’m now running some pretty heavy tires (WTB Riddler, which is over 1000g).
If I really wanted to throw money at the weight issue, some carbon rims are the first thing I’d look at. But on more reasonably priced front, there’s weight to be saved in the saddle. Other than that, you could save a few grams here and there, but nothing that seems like it’s worth the money. I suppose you can always just start drilling speed holes!
any more tips for the monarch debonair setup? having trouble finding the right balance of support and small bump sensitivity. generally finding myself riding too deep in the travel and packing up with sag between 30-40%. gonna try a little more air and rebound next but wondering if you fiddled with volume spacers at all?
in the same boat as you in sizing and got the medium as well. a few rides in the high setting and 800mm bars had me wishing for a large, but a switch to low and trimming the bars to 780 really helped.
cheers for the great review! agree with everything you’ve said.
niccolo
Hey niccolo,
I’ve settled on running mine at about 32% sag and I’ve been pretty happy there. I haven’t messed around with the volume reducers on the Debonair on my Spartan, but I’ve done it one some other bikes (like the Devinci Troy I reviewed a month ago). Some assorted thoughts, in no particular order:
-If you’re packing up a bit, maybe try running your rebound a bit faster.
-Reducing volume won’t, in and of itself, help with small bump sensitivity. But it might allow you to run lower pressure / more sag without running into bottom out problems.
-Running lower pressure with a reduced volume will still probably reduce that supportive feeling through the mid-stroke, but it’ll make the shock ramp up a lot late in the stroke.
-Throwing some “bottomless rings” into the Debonair can is quick and easy, and they’re pretty cheap. I’d say give it a try; it can’t hurt.
Hope that helps!
Hey Noah sorry to be so late on the reply but I figured I’d update you on my experience. I ended up giving up on finding the perfect balance of air to rebound after fiddling with all kinds of variations. Your 32% sag suggestion was where it felt best to me as well. Decided to send the monarch off to be tuned by Avalanche and it came back absolutely perfect. Can run it at 30% and get insane small bump sensitivity with the mid stroke support I was missing too. Translated to much less chatter and packing up through the rough and improved tech climbing / traction as well. Would highly recommend the upgrade to anyone on a spartan.
Hello, I’m 6’4″ 200lbs and have just sold a 2010 26″ enduro and was fulling contemplating going with a newer 29 enduro but found an xl 2015 carbon Devinci with manitou pro mattock with fox dhx4 for a pretty nifty price. This article sure helps but I gotta get more research.