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The Ideal Galbraith Mt. Bike?
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| Model: | Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Disc 120 |
| Category: | Light weight trail |
| Suspension: | 3 through 5 inches in the front; 5 inches in the rear |
| Ideal for: | It almost seems like the Stumpjumper FSR 120 was made for sweet Galbraith's single track like the Ridge Trail, Purple Heart, the Candy Trails and Naughty Nellie. |
| Over all performance: | If you like technical trail riding (and you ride just about every trail on the mountain, but don't jump off anything much), this could be your ticket to bike bliss. Forget everything you already know about the Stumpjumper FSR; this is an entirely different bike. While the original (and still very sweet) 3-inch travel FSR XC was born to climb, the FSR 120 is two inches deeper and biased toward technical trail riding and descending in general. The 2005 Stumpjumper 120 is the most well-ballanced Stumpjumper we've ever ridden, and like all the bred, it handles beautifully. |
| Front end: | The Fox TALAS RL fork that comes stock with the FSR 120 Disc is GalbraithMt.com's favorite adjustable travel fork. It's supple, deep, and the travel adjustment actually works. Nuff said. |
| Rear end: | Since the late '90s, Specialized's patented Horst-link four-bar FSR design has been the reigning champion among rear suspensions from a performance standpoint.
The term Horst-link refers to the placement of the back pivot on a four-bar rear end. If the pivot is above the drop out for the rear wheel (ala Kona, Raliegh, etc.), then it is NOT a Horst-link. If it is below the drop out, then it IS a Horst-link design (ala Specialized, Titus, etc.). This may sound like a pretty arcane distinction, but it has tangible real world effect on the performance of mountain bike suspension. Efficient, comfortable, and utterly free of brake jack, Horst-link rear ends put the power down -- whether you're seated or hammering out of the saddle -- better than any other design. And when it comes to braking, nothing but a floating-brake equipped bike (like the Foes Inferno, or any bike with Brake Therapy) is as smooth. Virtual Pivot Point (VPP) design bikes like the Santa Cruz Blur, Giant Reign and Rocky Mountain ETS have raised the bar in the last year or so, but Specialized and the Gang of Four (Bars) have fired back with the help of a marvelous new generation of shocks from Manitou, Fox and 5th Element. The Stumpjumper 120 Disc's proprietary Fox Float Septune rear shock is similar to the Fox Float RP3, and gives the 2005 Stumpjumper a ride so comfortable and efficient that it's actually exhilarating. Today, in 2006, there are few mountain bike rear ends as good as the Horst-link four bar when mated to a stable platform shock, and none better. |
| Brakes: | The FSR 120 Disc comes with excellent Avid Juicy 7 hydraulic disc brakes. Small and Medium size frames have160mm rotars, while Large and Extra Large frames have 185mm clean sweep rotors. |
| (The devil is in the) Details: | Although we've been fans of Specialized's Body Geometry seats for many years, the Specialized BG seat that comes with the Stumpjumper 120 Disc is a tool of the devil. |
| Durability: | This is a strong and proven design that is backed by one of the best companies in the business. |
| Geometry and sizing: | Although the FSR XC's geometry no longer runs to the tight end of the XC scale, frame size is still smallish compared to other bike brands. |
| Weight: | 29 pounds as pictured. |
| Reviewed: | July 2005; updated June 2006 |
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