Ben Plenge heads out to the woods to give us his first look at his new long term whip, the 160mm travel, 27.5″ wheeled Radon Jab 10.0.
Ben’s new long term test bike comes from another German direct sales brand, this time it’s the Radon Jab 10.0. What can direct sales get you for the £4500 mark that a regular dealer bike can’t?
Ben gives his first impressions of this 160mm travel, full carbon, 27.5″ wheeled enduro sled.
Key features:
- 160mm travel front and rear.
- 27.5″ (650b) wheels.
- Full carbon frame.
- SRAM XO1 Eagle 12-speed.
- Fox 36 Float Factory fork.
- Fox Float X2 Factory shock.
- e-Thirteen TRS+ wheels.
- £4,615.12 RRP.
- Radon-Bikes.de
Ben took his new long term test whip, the German Radon Jab 10.0 to the Mendip Hills and our test lap to see what it can do.
This is Radon’s top of the line enduro race bike, and sporting a full carbon frame, Fox Factory dampers and Transfer post, SRAM XO1 Eagle 12-speed, Guide RSC stoppers and carbon Descendant cranks all rolling on e-Thirteen TRS+ wheels. All very impressive indeed. With a kerb weight claimed at under the 30lb mark (28.8 going by Radon’s site), means this should be quite the beast.
The 18″ Jab is the size medium in the range, with 16s and 20s either side. With the medium you get yourself a 448mm reach, a 65 degree head angle and a lengthy 1193mm wheelbase. While Ben prefers a longer reach, the lower speeds of winter will see the speeds drop and that room to manoeuvre not so much of a necessity.
First impressions were of a bike that isn’t as planted and plush as expected but far more lively for a bike of this type. Ben’s experience with the current Fox Factory line is that he will take some time to find the sweet spot, so watch this space.
Ben will be putting it through its pace in the winter slop, so any reliability issues will come to the fore early on if there’s to be any.
