Intense Carbine 275

It’s said that sex sells and with that in mind, there’s a fair chance that Intense is going to sell truckloads of the Carbine 275 (at long as interest rates remain low and lenders easy to come by, in any case). Draw up a checklist of all the desirable features that you’d like on a modern long-travel trail bike – make it a long and uncompromising list – and there’s a pretty good chance that the Intense Carbine 275 will tick every box.Sounds easy enough for a bike company to handle; keep an eye on the internet forums and listen to what mountain bikers are excited about, then shoot the specs over to their manufacturer in China or Taiwan and pump them out. In reality it’s far from simple. The MTB market is currently a very fickle and changeable one—perhaps more now than ever before. Within just a couple of years, things like straight steerer tubes disappeared, riders now seem to expect any high-end offering to be rendered in carbon, rear thru-axles are now on the list as well as dropper post routing, and all this comes before we even touch on the issue of wheel size.

Carbon moulds cost tens of thousands to make and a different mould is required for each frame size. Once three or four moulds are made up and the manufacturing process dialled, the last thing they need is a new-style derailleur mount to become the ‘must-have’ item and all of a sudden their cutting-edge frame is behind the times.

Back to Carbine and its ranking on the ‘hot list’. To start with it’s got the long legs that people desire in a modern trail bike. With well-designed linkage systems, lots of suspension doesn’t present the hindrance that it once did and it’s entirely possible for a long travel bike to pedal very efficiency. On the Carbine you get two travel options; 152mm and a shorter 140mm mode that’s achieved by moving the shock position—it takes less than five minutes to swap modes. So it’s got plenty of travel and the VPP linkage is one of the better recognised and most reputable suspension systems currently on the market—an efficient ride should be a given.

Good carbon construction should yield a frame that’s both stiff and light, but many manufacturers err on the side of caution and their carbon bikes come out weighing as much as many alloy offerings. Not so with Intense. Our medium frame with the nude carbon finish weighed 2,460g. It’s comparable in weight to many short travel carbon XC-race bikes and it’s the lightest 152mm travel frame that we’ve encountered. Built up with SRAM X.0 and a RockShox Revelation fork it weighed just on 12kg without pedals, but that was with 1,800g SRAM Rise 40 wheels. Those aiming for a truly high-end build with fancy wheels could expect the Carbine to dip towards the 11kg mark or even below—impressive for a six-inch trail bike.

The fitments are 100 per cent up to date. There’s a tapered steerer up front (a given on pretty much anything built within the last two years) and the rear end is tied together with a 142x12mm thru-axle—perhaps roadie-style quick release axles are finally in their death-throes? The direct-mount front derailleur allows Intense more design freedom with the size and shape of the seat tube, while the bottom bracket is a press-fit 92 style; this provides more room for the linkage mounts and the broad down tube. There are enough guides under the top tube for a dropper remote and about the only feature missing from the Carbine is a set of ISCG tabs. Some may lament the lack of dedicated chain guide mounts, but with modern clutch-style derailleurs and an XC-style top-mounted guide, chain retention shouldn’t be an issue for a trail bike such as this.

Possibly the biggest drawcard with the Carbine is the wheel size. There’s no doubt that this topic has attracted lots of attention in recent times—possibly more attention than it really deserves, as people are now encouraged to choose a bike based primarily on the wheel diameter—important things such as suspension design now seem to be overlooked. In any case, 29-inch is old news and slightly less exciting than it once was, 26-inch is being called ‘officially dead’ by many and 650B appears to be the new golden child. The Carbine, well it’s got 650B wheels of course—can this bike do no wrong?

The final clincher for the Carbine is the fact it comes from Intense. There’s no hiding from the fact that small, US-designed brands hold a unique appeal to mountain bikers. Brands such as Giant, Trek, Specialized and Merida may have well-engineered bikes at competitive price-points but they are also common and lack the same ‘boutique appeal’ as the smaller brands. Names such as Yeti and Santa Cruz have long held a mystique within the MTB community and Intense bikes are of the same ilk. They’ve been around since 1991 and their alloy frames are still manufactured in Southern California—a rarity these days. Intense bikes have been ridden by out-and-out legends of the sport and hold a special place in MTB history.

Carbine Chemistry

Beyond all the ‘box-checking’ I think it’s fair to say that the Carbine also looks hot! Carbon delivers a good deal of design flexibility and tube profiles don’t have to be round or straight. Despite this the Carbine holds classic lines with relatively straight tubes and simple curves—it’s not a wacky looking plumber’s experiment gone wrong like some modern frames. The simple forms also help to keep the frame strong and light. Straight tubes are lighter and the gently radiused curves allow for more even wall thickness, with less chance of manufacturing issues due to poor compaction or kinks in the carbon lay-up. It’s the simplicity of the lines and the well-proportioned tube diameters that make this bike—it just looks ‘right’. Whether you go with the rich and racy red or the nude carbon-black, the graphics add enough interest without being overdone or gaudy.

There’s no getting around the fact that this is one very desirable bike – both in features and looks – but what’s the Carbine really like to live with once the blinding honeymoon period is over?

People love to pigeon-hole bikes based on a single parameter; ‘oh it’s a 29er; it’ll roll over anything’ or ‘it’s made from carbon; it must be light and fragile’. The Carbine may utilise the VPP suspension – a system that’s licensed from Santa Cruz Bicycles – but it does not ride like a Santa Cruz. Sure, there are some similarities but it really has its own unique feel.

I’ve ridden plenty of Santa Cruz bikes over the years – there have been a few 26-inch Blurs and more recently a Tallboy LT 29er – and given they all use the VPP system, it only seems logical to compare. To start with, the Carbine suffers more suspension squat than the other VPP bikes that I’ve ridden (and the same applies when compared to the DW-Link and Switch systems too). The suspension doesn’t firm up as much under high pedalling loads and as a result, it’s more inclined to feel soft and inefficient when climbing. It’s not bad by any means, but it’s enough that aggressive climbing will have you reaching for the ‘Trail’ mode on the Fox CTD dial—especially on smoother surfaces.

Many would assume that some suspension mush is entirely normal, especially on a 152mm-travel bike; after all, that’s why we have the on-the-fly adjustable platform shocks. However, many modern suspension bikes resist suspension squat, and they do so without the need for special damper settings.

As with most bikes, the pedalling effectiveness varies with the size of the front chainring. Our Carbine was equipped with a 2x10 drivechain and it pedalled pretty well in the smaller 26-tooth chainring. In that chainring there was minimal suspension bob, even with the shock fully open in ‘Descent’ mode. This went awry in the 39-tooth big ring where hard seated pedalling produced noticeable suspension squat. Flicking across from Descent and into the Trail mode restores the pedalling efficiency but also compromises small bump compliance. Fox really comes to the party here, as the platform damping is very subtle; it does a great job of masking negative traits whilst still keeping the suspension active and enhancing traction. While suspension may be more bob-prone than the best pedalling trail bikes, the frame is also a good deal lighter than most 152mm-travel rigs, so with a bit of platform damping the Carbine still ascends as well as the competition.

The positive offshoot of having less anti-squat effect in the suspension is that there’s also less feedback through the pedals. Bikes that employ chain torque to enhance pedalling efficiency are more likely to suffer noticeable levels of pedal kickback or torque induced lockout—especially when using the smaller front chainring. On the trail it’s often felt as a lumpy pedal stroke when climbing rock-stepped trails and some people find it quite disruptive. The Carbine doesn’t present any issues in this regard; it remains active when climbing and I couldn’t pick up on any suspension feedback through the drivechain.

Getting a little tech here, but VPP bikes have a rather distinctive leverage rate curve; that is the rate that the shock compresses in relation to the actual movement at the rear wheel. Varying the leverage rate changes the suspension feel at different points in the travel. VPP bikes typically get softer through the mid-part of the travel to provide a feeling of plushness on mid-size bumps before firming up towards the end to resist bottoming out on bigger hits. The Carbine has the typical VPP-style plush mid-stroke but it differs in the early travel, where it’s firmer than you’d expect for a bike that’s pitched at the trail/all-mountain market. As a result, the rear suspension didn’t feel particularly supple and glued to the trail. Running more sag will assist (I had the test bike set with 30 per cent sag) but I still found the performance to be a bit lacklustre in this regard. Of course, some may like the firmer initial travel; it provides additional trail feedback and gives the Carbine a slightly more responsive and connected feel, rather than just suckingeverything up.

Real-life Romance

Suspension feel is one thing, but there are many other factors that combine to create the end product. Appropriate frame geometry is a critical ingredient, as the world’s best suspension technology is worthless if a bike doesn’t handle or fit. The Carbine is sized a little on the small side. Our medium test bike had a 445mm (17.5-inch) seat tube and a 585mm effective top tube length. Most current generation medium sized trail bikes have top tubes that are in the 590-615mm area. If you generally find yourself caught somewhere between a small and medium size in most brands, the medium Intense is probably made just for you. If not, a regular medium rider may choose to go with the 19.5-inch ‘large’ frame with a short stem. Tall riders may find the Carbine line-up lacking as there’s nothing bigger than the large with a 609mm effective top tube measurement.

It may have 650B wheels but the geometry closely mirrors the figures that you’d expect to see on a long travel 26-inch trail bike. There’s no magic in this, as the Carbine was originally designed for 26-inch wheels. Intense put their interchangeable G1 dropout design to good use and made the Carbine 650B compatible by shifting the axle slightly rearward and upwards—this was all that was needed to clear the four per cent bigger wheels. This simple adaptation clearly works and there’s plenty of clearance for big-volume tyres. Compared to the 26-inch Carbine as well as the Tracer (their alloy 650B model), the bottom bracket on the Carbine 275 sits around 10mm higher. Obviously the bolt in G1 dropouts couldn’t compensate entirely for the difference in wheel radius. It’s hardly an issue though, as the 348mm bottom bracket height on the 650B Carbine is entirely within normal bounds and it’s still lower than plenty of other 152mm travel bikes.

Up front you’ll find a 67-degree head angle (with a 150mm travel fork), which is a popular figure for modern long-travel trail bikes. It’s slack enough to inspire great downhill confidence without introducing too much steering flop when climbing. Obviously it’s no XC race bike and the front wheel will be more likely to wander on really steep climbs, but it’s something that you can overcome by shifting your weight and making a concerted effort to get your body into the right position.

If you enjoy the lively ride of a long-travel 26-inch trail bike, then you’ll enjoy the 650B Carbine. The 432mm chainstays are within a few millimetres of what you’d expect to find on a 26-inch bike and there’s no real loss in agility with the slightly larger wheels. These traits combine with the slack head angle to make a 26-inch devotee feel right at home on this bike. By the same token, there’s no obvious revolution in traction, rolling resistance or roll-over ability. For me it felt a lot like riding a 26-inch bike with good-sized tyres.

If there was any area where I could discern an advantage with the 650B wheels, it was when tackling uphill steps and rock ledges. In those situations the margin for error seemed to be a touch broader but there really wasn’t much in it. Logic suggests that 650B offers an advantage in these situations; it’s just that the wheel size isn’t that different to the one most riders are familiar with. In theory 650B is also a little heavier and not as strong as 26-inch but the differences are too small to detect. I typically use 26x2.35 tyres on my trail bike and they have an outer diameter of 682mm (very close to 27-inch). The 2.25 Maxxis Ardent tyres on the test bike measured 702mm. So in this case the 650B wheels are 20mm larger in diameter compared to the tyres that I usually run—that’s three per cent difference and I’m not about to pretend that it turned my world on its head or suddenly made all of my trails flat!

I felt that 650B was like running something slightly taller than a big 26-inch tyre, except you gain the rolling diameter without adding the extra weight of such fat rubber (the 650B Ardents are 715g each versus my 26x2.35 tyres at 770g). Then of course you can always run big-bag 650B tyres and get a more distinct roll-over advantage. In any case, 650B is a viable option. It follows the industry trend towards larger wheel diameters whilst still permitting short chainstay lengths on short-link four-bar designs (like VPP) and it still works in long-travel applications without creating other problems. Most importantly, it provides a ride feel and performance traits that won’t alienate 26-inch fans.

Moving In Together

The Carbine proved an easy bike to live with. Many manufacturers seem to have forgotten that having a water bottle is a desirable thing on a day-to-day, do-everything bike. Try to find a 152mm travel trail bike that doesn’t have the mounts shoved under the down tube as a giardia-collecting afterthought—I assure you it’s not an easy task. The Carbine allows you to run a full-size bottle within the frame; a bonus for quick morning or afternoon rides that don’t warrant a hot and cumbersome hydration pack.

Service intervals will be extended by using the grease injection ports on the lower linkage pivots. Within the first month, the lower pivots came loose on our test bike. Thankfully it’s easy to adjust the bearing preload and we had it running slop-free in no time (you just need 5mm and 8mm allen keys and about five minutes to spare). With the lower link correctly adjusted, the Carbine is very stiff platform to pilot down the trail. It’s also very adaptable; swap the G1 dropouts and it’s possible to run 26-inch wheels with a 10mm lower bottom bracket if that how you prefer to roll.

The classy good looks and blatantly obvious attributes of big wheels and big travel will attract the attention of any red-blooded mountain biker, but is the Carbine a keeper? Well like any long-term relationship, there needs to be an element compatibility that endures beyond the initial chemistry. Intense’s execution of the VPP suspension design differs from some others. It favours a more active ride that mightn’t pedal as well but gives a little less drivechain feedback on technical granny gear climbs. Rather than ironing out every small bump, it gives more trail feedback whilst still offering up 150mm of travel when called upon. It also handled bigger hits with more bottom-out resistance than some of its competitors—many of them tend to be very linear in their suspension action but leave nothing in reserve for when things get really serious. Wrap this all up with 650B wheels and a very light-yet-stiff frame and I can envisage that more than a few riders would be happy to sign on the dotted line.

Thumbs Up

Awesome travel to weight ratio

Bigger wheels that don’t alienate the 26-inch fan

Modern design and good looks 

Thumbs Down

Less pedalling efficient than you may expect

Compromised small bump sensitivity

Boutique price to match the marque

Specifications

Frame: Carbine 275 Full Carbon VPP

Shock: Fox Factory CTD 150mm travel

Fork: RockShox Revelation RCT3 150mm travel

Headset: FSA Gravity, 1 1/4 - 1 1/8

Handlebars: Truvativ Noir T40 720mm

Stem: Truvativ Noir T40

Shifters: SRAM X.0

Front Derailleur: Shimano SLX

Rear Derailleur: SRAM X.0

Cassette: SRAM X.0, 11/36 10-speed

Chain: SRAM 1070

Cranks: SRAM X.0, 26/39

Bottom Bracket: SRAM GXP Press-Fit

Pedals: N/A

Brakes: SRAM X.0 Trail

Wheels: SRAM Rise 40

Tyres: Maxxis Ardent 2.25

Saddle: Charge

Seatpost: RockShox Reverb

Weight: 12.06kg without pedals (Medium frame 2,762g)

Available Sizes: S, M (tested) and L

Price: $3,599 Frame only ($7,599 as tested)

Distributor: Monza Imports (03) 8327 8080 / www.intensecycles.com