Can the NS Bikes Define 2 130 take the fight to the rest of the very competitive 130mm travel, 29″ wheel bikes out there? Joe has been finding out.
Joe has been putting the NS Bikes Define 2 130 through its paces over the winter to see if it can cut the mustard against a raft of competition. Bar a few interesting spec choices, they might be onto something…
Photos by Dave Price.
Key features:
- Carbon frame
- Fox Performance 34 Float Grip 140mm fork
- Fox Performance Float DPS EVOL shock
- SRAM GX/NX 12 speed drive
- 29” wheels
- Adjustable reach, bottom bracket height & head angle
- £3899.99 RRP
- NSBikes.com
Buy online at Chain Reaction Cycles.
On paper the NS Define 2 130 sits firmly in the trail bike camp, but after living with it for a few months I have come to learn it is much more than that. With its progressive geometry and capable suspension it can hold its own when shown the steep stuff. With adjustable geometry settings and options to change the rear travel it grabbed my attention from the off.
Oh… That love it or hate it paint spatter finish to the frame. I will leave it for you to decide on that one…
Frame and Build Kit
You get a carbon frame with what NS call ‘hybrid cable routing’. Rather than being internally routed, the cables run in a channel on the underside of the down tube. Personally, I prefer this as it makes changing cables and swapping out brakes much easier. All the pivot hardware seems well made and in the few months of very wet riding the bearings still remain smooth and I have not had to tighten a single bolt.
The other stand-out features of this frame are the offset headset cups, which give +/- 10mm of reach adjustment which on this size large gives either a 490mm or 500mm reach, and the option to purchase a different lower shock mount to run a longer shock giving 155mm travel. You would need to swap the fork to a longer travel model to balance things out though. It is the same frame as the Define 150, NS just use a different shock mount to adjust the travel and geometry between the two models.
Geometry of the size large is, in my view, a true size large with a 490/500mm reach, 440mm chainstays, combined with a 65.5 head angle and 76.5 effective seat tube. I’ve been riding large frames for the last few years to get the reach I like, but NS seem to have got the sizing about right with this one, meaning it actually feels a little long for me. At 178cm I would class myself as an average sort of height, so should be riding an average size frame, so I would like to try the medium size in the 470mm setting.
The lower shock mount can be rotated through 180deg to adjust the BB height, but I left it in the low/slack position for the whole test period. When the bike arrived the headset cups were in the 500mm reach position, so I went about adjusting to the 490mm position which was a breeze. In fact, I was surprised how easily they came out of the frame… just a gentle knock to get them out and they pressed back in by hand. They did creak after the first ride shake down but after tightening the headset again there was no more noise or knocking.
Aesthetically, the lines of the frame look good, and I have always liked the way the line of the top tube flows into the seat stays on the recent crop of NS bikes, although the paint and the petrol finish stem and hubs won’t be to everyone’s taste. I am not sure what market NS are trying to target with the styling if I am being honest.
The Marmite paint job doesn’t seem all that tough either; I wore though to the carbon within the first two muddy rides where the heel of my trailing foot rubs on the drive side chain stay before I noticed. In hindsight, some protective tape would have prevented that but it’s a bit late for that now. Also to note, there is no chain stay protection at all to prevent chain slap, but to be honest I didn’t notice any chain slap resulting in a very quiet ride. However, I still think a lot of people would rather see something there just to be safe.
Suspension wise, the Fox Performance 34 Float Grip fork and Performance Float DPS shock worked flawlessly during the test period. Both fork and shock have lock out features, both of which I left well alone as I would just forget to switch them off once at the top of the hill.
The SRAM GX/NX Eagle 12 speed gears worked fine and you would be hard pushed to notice the difference between the more expensive versions. The only real downside of the NX cassette is the weight, and the fact that it fits on a traditional HG freehub body, meaning you can’t upgrade to a lighter SRAM model when the time comes.
The SRAM Guide T brakes were powerful enough but the lever feel was a bit wooden and I could not get the position or feel quite how I like. Also, being the budget version of the Guide, the lever reach adjustment required a 3mm hex key, not usually a problem, but access to is is on the bar side of the lever and access was restricted by the angle of the screw and the grip clamp being in the way, meaning to adjust the reach you either had to remove the grip or the lever from the bar, which was a right pain in the arse, especially for trailside adjustments.
The X-fusion Manic seatpost worked flawlessly for the test period. The drop on the size large is 150mm, but there is room for an even longer dropper if you wanted. The lever was made of plastic and felt a bit flimsy but the action was light enough and it was easy to get it in a good position on the bar.
Climbing
I don’t generally ride to enjoy the climbs, so as long as a bike has a comfy climbing position then I am happy. The Define has that with the steep seat angle and relatively long reach. The reach combined with the 440mm chain stays help to keep the front end down on really steep stuff. The shock has a 3 position compression adjuster but I never felt the need to lock out the shock for climbing.
The kinematics work amazingly well to stop pedal input from affecting the suspension, plus I do have a habit of forgetting to switch off a climb switch. Overall weight of the bike is obviously a small factor in climbing ability, but more important is wheel weight, which brings me on to…
The wheels held up during the test period, with no loose spokes, but they are pretty heavy and for a nearly £4,000 bike I would expect something a bit lighter. They were wrapped in some Schwalbe Nobby Nic Performance Snakeskin tyres which may have been OK for summer trail centre riding but I think they would struggle to inspire confidence even in the dry.
It does annoy me when bike brands spec tyres like this to hit a price/weight point, as straight away you need to spank £70-£100 on a decent set of tyres. I opted for some WTB Verdict Wet/Verdict in the light casing/high grip combo which offer huge amounts of grip in the mud. They are a bit on the weighty side, so combined with the heavy wheels did make for a bit of a drag on the climbs. A set of quality light wheels would help there. Add to that the budget NX 12 speed cassette and the rear wheel in particular is a bit of a lump.
Down Hills
This is where the bike excels and as an ex-downhill racer I am most keen to talk about.
The Define’s geometry is pretty downhill-oriented for a trail bike, with the long each, it’s a bike that just begs to be ridden hard on the way down. I took it round Cwmcarn Cafall trail and it really did feel like the fastest bike I have ever ridden on the trail centre descents. Not overly steep trails, but with plenty of opportunity to pump rollers, pop gaps and jumps and rail berms, it was perfectly suited and was loads of fun. On the steeper tech off piste trails on the opposite hill it was equally at home, although personally I would have preferred a slightly higher front end.
Personally the 45mm stem was a smidge too long for me, especially combined with the 490mm reach. Bars are a personal thing, and for me I would have preferred a higher rise to lift the front up a bit, as there was not much adjustment in the way of stem spacers. Maybe the 490mm reach was stretching me out too much, hence the need to feel I needed to bring the bars up and back a bit. Perhaps a medium frame would be a better fit and I wouldn’t feel the need for a shorter stem or higher bar.
As a bit of a test I bolted on a set of 160mm Rock Shox Lyriks, a 35mm reach stem and 38mm rise bar and it instantly felt more like ‘my’ bike if you know what I mean. As expected, with the higher front end and extra 20mm of fork travel, the bike felt more capable on the steeper and rougher trails. Even with the 30mm travel difference front to rear, the bike felt balanced
The head angle was a degree slacker and the extra 20mm on the fork length and the higher bar made a big difference. But then that’s why NS have two bikes in the range to cater for all. I’m not faulting the NS Bikes Define 2 130 at all for being what it is, but just trying to prove to myself what I had in the back of my mind.
I had wanted to try it in full 150 mode with the alternative shock mount to show in the review how you can effectively have two bikes in one, but Hotlines unfortunately did not have one in stock. I do think this would be a great option if you wanted a trail bike for the UK, and a bigger hitting bike for an alpine holiday for example. I know a spare set of forks and shock don’t come cheap, but its a lot cheaper than a second bike.
On flowy single track, and undulating trails, the bike did feel a bit sluggish but that was down to my choice of hefty tyres combined with the heavy wheels. The stock Nobby Nics would roll a lot faster but grip would be severely compromised on anything remotely wet.
What do we think?
The NS Bikes Define 2 130 is the bike I wish I had made a few years ago when I was riding for them on the first generation Snabb carbon. Personally I prefer 29ers, and with a few tweaks this bike could be a serious contender for me. The adjustability and option to upgrade to more suspension travel makes this an incredibly versatile bike.
We Love:
- Descending ability
- Great frame is the base for upgrades
Could Do Better
- Rubbish tyres
