2023 Jamis

FAULTLINE A2

More comfortable on the blues than the reds, the A2's outdated geometry holds it back

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The Jamis Dakar has always been a strong contender in our entry-level, budget full-suspension bike test. But with the category shifting to embrace the improved rollover and stability that bigger 29in wheels bring to trail riding, it had to step aside and make way for the new Faultline A1. Need to know: Sag gradients on the RockShox Deluxe shock make suspension set-up easy Available in four frame sizes, S to XL all with very slack seat tube angles Light wheels and 120mm travel make the Faultline more XC focused No chainstay protection and rattly cables make for a percussive ride Boasting 120mm of suspension at the rear, the Faultline A1 29 doesn’t quite live up to its freeride sounding name as the travel puts it more at the XC end of the trail bike continuum. The sleek, alloy frame has a lot in common with its smaller wheeled sibling, where both use Jamis’s signature MP2 suspension, a single pivot design that places the shock directly under the top tube. Internal cable routing gives the Faultline frame a smooth clean appearance, but even when we were assembling the bike we noticed that the cables rattled inside the down tube. So while you can’t see them, they’ll make themselves known to you and everyone you’re riding with. Captured cable entry and exit ports are needed to keep the cables tight, or, at the very least, foam cable covers to reduce the rattle. A rubber chainstay protector wouldn’t go amiss either, as it would reduce some of the chain noise and protect the paint on the chainstay too. Hydroformed tube profiles give the Faultline frame an organic feel, but Jamis seems to have taken a firehose approach to the seat tube, with its rather dramatic kink. And it doesn’t just look dramatic, it dramatically impacts the riding position and handling of the bike. With a seat tube angle that’s slacker than the head angle, the saddle is really far behind the bottom bracket. It also skews the top tube measurement; the size L Faultline measuring 670mm. That’s a whopping 50mm longer than the Vitus or Polygon, even though the Jamis has a much shorter reach measurement. In fact, it’s such an outlier in that regard, we can only assume that someone messed up on the original design and the mistake made it all of the way into production. Suspension In keeping with the more XC oriented ride, the rear suspension on the Faultline has been configured to provide extra support around the sag position to keep pedalling efficiency high. The RockShox Deluxe Select+ RL shock also has a lot of compression damping, even on the open setting. So much so that we ran the rebound damping fully open to try to compensate, but even then it still didn’t ping back to the sag position as quickly as we’d have liked and that’s with an 80kg rider so any lighter and you’ll struggle then to get a half-decent suspension set up. Combine the heavy-handed …Continue reading »

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