The updated Hope HB916 was revealed at the 2024 edition of the Core Bike show with UDH compatible rear triangles that get longer for bigger sizes, plus a lower idler.
Hope’s HB916 is a 160mm travel, high pivot with idler, hand made carbon fibre enduro offering from the Barnoldswick lot.
Photos by Pete Scullion.
Key features:
- Ohlins RFX38 Air 170mm fork
- Ohlins TT Air TM shock
- SRAM XO AXS Eagle T-type 12-speed drive
- Hope Tech 4 V4 brakes
- Hope Pro5 Boost hubs on Hope Fortus 30SC rims
- OneUp dropper
- £7,795.00 RRP
- HopeTechHB.com
The second edition of the Hope HB916 is the Barnoldswick outfit’s forth complete bike. Revised this year to include a lower idler that helps it operate with SRAM T-type drivetrains that are now possible thanks to the new UDH compatible rear end. These rear triangles are now longer in the larger sizes too.
Hand-layered as one piece, the front triangle is all carbon fibre, whilst the rear triangle is composite of carbon and aluminium, allowing the wide-set bearings to sit in aluminium. Routing is internal, there’s rubber frame protection in the critical areas. The ‘Butty Box’ downtube storage is now also Fidlock compatible.
A high pivot with idler manages the 160mm rear wheel travel and the frame can be run as a Mullet or full 29″. The bike seen here is a full 29er. A flip chip allows you to drop 0.8 degrees of the head angle.The bike is available in two colours, green or bare carbon. As a frameset (frame, shock, BB and headset), complete bike minus drivetrain or a complete bike. The bike seen here is the bare carbon frame complete bike with the optional Hope cranks at £7,795.00.
Geometry
The Hope HB916 is available in H1, H2, H3 and H4 sizes.
Reach on the H2 in Slack is 467mm with a seat tube of 410mm. Head angle is 63.2 degrees with an effective seat tube angle of 78.1 degrees. Chainstays are 440mm with a wheelbase of 1262mm.
Opening moves
It may only be available in one full build but there’s really nothing on the HB916 that you’d turn your nose up at. Ohlins air units handle the 160mm rear and 170mm front travel. Drivetrain is SRAM’s XO Transmission with this bike swapping the SRAM crank out for Hope’s own. Hope branded kit is also unsurprisingly everywhere on this bike. The wheels are Pro5 hubs on Fortus 30 rims, Maxxis rubber on ground duties. The only other things that aren’t Hope are the saddle, grips and dropper.
Setting sag on the rear of the HB916 is a treat thanks to the laser-etched bearing caps that line up when you hit the sweet spot of 30%. The forks are the usual measure 30% of 170mm, wind the damping out on both and it’s onto the long Hope Tech4 V4 anchor levers to dial in the sweet spot.
As expected, the labyrinth seal in the rear hub let’s this bike roll forever, so getting to the trailhead is a treat for a bike of this calibre. Whilst the small isn’t particularly small, it fits me pretty much bang on. If I was riding bigger terrain more regularly then I could also fit on the H2 thanks to the short seat tube.
On the climbs, you do get a bit of bob from the shock but nothing that feels like it’s robbing you of momentum. Thankfully, the M2 variants of the Ohlins suspension is far more supple off the top than the older models, something that was music to my ears.
As soon as you point the HB916 downhill you notice two things. One is the ability of the rear wheel to pretty much take any shape of hit in its stride and do it without change in momentum or any noise. The second is that Tech4 V4 brakes are potent. Despite normally running my levers almost to the bar, these brakes were another step up. The Tech4 V4s I tested had enough stopping power, but the V4 caliper is another level.
The combination of the high pivot, plus shock and labyrinth hub seal means this bike want to go. The brakes means you can get everything back under control in a prompt and controlled manner regardless of the grease under your wheels. If anything, the rear wheel might be wanting of a grippier tyre to make the most of the rear brake’s power as it’s hard to brake and not lock the rear. I’ll get a few more rides in to get the measure of the bike before making any changes though.
