Orange multilink 140mm travel bike
A week or so ago I noticed this bike posted to the Singletrack Flickr pool, which subsequently appeared on our MTB Pic of the Day page. I left it on there for a while, expecting people to notice and perhaps comment but it seems this went under quite a few people’s radar.
It caught my interest though as it steps on some hallowed turf currently occupied by one of the UK’s most popular bikes, the Orange Five. That bike, increasingly appears to be moving into more Alpine country, certainly some of the changes I’ve heard talked about seem to make it suitable for more rugged riding.
Which leaves a kind of 140mm, all-day-bike sized hole in the Orange range. It seems that Orange have noticed this which partly explains the existence of this Strange prototype.
I’ve no idea if it’s set for production or if it’s not, in fact a kind of burlied up ST4. But the bike itself looks great, with masses of mud clearance on a svelte looking frame that’s quietly reinforced with some chunky gussets. It also looks as though there’s a through axle on the rear for added stiffness.
One to watch I think. I’d be intrigued to find out how it rides versus my venerable Five which continues to surprise me after three years of riding. The photos are taken from Carl and Sian’s Orange photoset on Flickr where you can see much more detailed shots.
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June 16, 2010 at 4:35 pm
kc says:
Hate the colour!
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June 16, 2010 at 5:11 pm
Colin says:
Looks interesting, lets hope the rear end stays together, unlike the ST4 by all accounts !!
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June 17, 2010 at 9:11 am
Matt says:
Maybe if it makes production it’ll be called something like the ST5 perhaps?
I’ve seen and heard of ST4s breaking but Orange are pretty good on the support side. It’s the rocker linkages I think that have been a problem on early ones, hopefully sorted now.
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June 29, 2010 at 11:21 am
Neil Cain says:
Looks a little like a Blood – maybe a lighter, more ‘XC’ version?
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June 29, 2010 at 11:33 am
Dave says:
Looked at one closely on Saturday. Nice machine, simpler linkage than the ST4. Basically a single pivot, linkage driven shock. It also has a bottle mount although Dave said it was a bit tight for a full size bottle! Boo!
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