new S40 colours coming March 31, 2020

[benphyr]

From @Lucia's teaser email here's the first colour. Red matt, supersaturated, hot red flirting with orange in sunlight

If you want first access to the other new colours make sure you submit your EMAIL SIGNUP at the bottom of the regular website (eg. https://cruzbike.com/products/s40)

 

[velocio]

What is ...

I'll save my vote to see if a non-matte paint is offered. I guess I'm getting old and crotchety, I truly don't understand the appeal of matte paint.

Drivetrain still 1x (meh ...), fork now "body color" instead of black, which lightens the front end, visually, so that's nice. Is the seat or seat cushion different?

 

[cpml123]

I'll save my vote to see if a non-matte paint is offered. I guess I'm getting old and crotchety, I truly don't understand the appeal of matte paint.

Me either. I think matte finish is harder to clean or keep clean.

 

[skankingbiker]

well..... my once in a lifetime trip to Scotland is no more, so that means I can get a new bike with all the money I'm saving.....right?

 

[ak-tux]

Wow! Great color and a nice bike as always!

Interesting! Has the fork clearance been reduced to handle rim brakes or is that tire huge?

 

[benphyr]

What is ...

I think that might be the care instructions or manufacturer name tag for the seat pad.

 

[velocio]

Not new to the upcoming S40, also on my 1'st gen, but what is ...

I've read folks theorize that it's a mount for a steering damper, but CB's website doesn't offer one or mention one. My pet theories are that it's either a (very inconvenient) bell mount or a dedicated braze-on for mounting a FlickStand, like some Cannondale touring bikes had in the late 80's / early 90's. Anyone else remember the Rhode Gear FlickStand? I'd pay handsomely for a CB-specific FlickStand on a custom braze-on. Waayyy nicer & more convenient wheel locker than the rubbery Voila strap.

Here's a generic downtube clamp on, not custom braze-on, mounted FlickStand deployed for parking. One of my favorite cycling accessories ever and even more useful for Cruzbikes with floppy frontends than on DF bikes.


-Jack

 

[Rampa]

3D printing, and wire bending time!

Someone could take this on who has the 3D printing capability. But just a block of wood or plastic with some carving might do it. Old coat hanger for wire. The T50 has that as well.

 

[Lucia]

I'll jump in here and share some details on the subtle tweaks rolling out with the new S40 colors. Some of these you have already noticed

What is ...

What you see on the back of the frame is a new seat attachment system that makes installing the carbon fiber seat much easier and does away with any issues aligning the holes in the seatback with the holes on the frame.

We are also really excited about the removable front derailleur holder stalk. For those who run a 1x system like the one we spec'd, that means you get a beautiful, clean front end (sans stalk).

The mounts for the racks are now welded inserts in the frame, another very subtle aesthetic change.

Wow! Great color and a nice bike as always!

Interesting! Has the fork clearance been reduced to handle rim brakes or is that tire huge?

View attachment 8997

Finally, that tire clearance is indeed reduced. There was a crown change with this run of S40s that results in reduced clearance. Again, it's a subtle change, but one that I am told improves the already excellent handling of the S40. It will change fender compatibility for the front stock tire on the complete bike. A set of Raceblades will work well, attached to the fork. If you run a 25c tire, a traditional fender will fit. If you go for a 650b setup with a wider tire, a traditional fender will also work well.

Color #2 is rolling out tomorrow!

 

[Jim Parker]

Not new to the upcoming S40, also on my 1'st gen, but what is ...
View attachment 8998
I've read folks theorize that it's a mount for a steering damper, but CB's website doesn't offer one or mention one. My pet theories are that it's either a (very inconvenient) bell mount or a dedicated braze-on for mounting a FlickStand, like some Cannondale touring bikes had in the late 80's / early 90's. Anyone else remember the Rhode Gear FlickStand? I'd pay handsomely for a CB-specific FlickStand on a custom braze-on. Waayyy nicer & more convenient wheel locker than the rubbery Voila strap.

Here's a generic downtube clamp on, not custom braze-on, mounted FlickStand deployed for parking. One of my favorite cycling accessories ever and even more useful for Cruzbikes with floppy frontends than on DF bikes.
View attachment 8999

-Jack

Correct. Not new. It's there for a steering dampener mount, though we are still doing R&D on that.

 

[benphyr]

Wow! Great color and a nice bike as always!
Interesting! Has the fork clearance been reduced to handle rim brakes or is that tire huge?
View attachment 8997

@ak-tux If those are the same "Kenda Kriterium Endurance 700x30c tires" given under specifications on https://cruzbike.com/products/s40 then you would have wheels and tires that are about as large as you would normally find on a road bike except maybe for touring without going into gravel bikes. Bead seat diameter (bsd) for the 700c are 622mm. If you went down to 650b aka 584mm bsd or 26" aka 559mm bsd you would have space for some amazingly wide tires.

 

[cpml123]

Not new. It's there for a steering dampener mount, though we are still doing R&D on that

You mean like this? I have to say it's not that effective. The hole is too close to the fork. I had to concoct different fittings and try different springs to sort of make it work. It will be great if CB can sell a plug-and-play kit
Thanks,
Michael

 

[bladderhead]

Finally, that tire clearance is indeed reduced.

When I managed to get full length mudguards onto my Silvio Cruzbike realised I had beaten them and they knew they had to raise their game.

 

[benphyr]

Colour # 2 : green neon, glossy, and glorious

Friends:

 

[benphyr]

My hair flirts with orange in sunlight - does that mean I'm new or an S40! Or that I just need an S40.

 

[velocio]

What you see on the back of the frame is a new seat attachment system that makes installing the carbon fiber seat much easier and does away with any issues aligning the holes in the seatback with the holes on the frame.

By chance will this new seat attachment system make the mounting of a Thor seat easier?

We are also really excited about the removable front derailleur holder stalk. For those who run a 1x system like the one we spec'd, that means you get a beautiful, clean front end (sans stalk).

By chance will this new removable FD stalk system make the mounting of a FD at a height suitable for 42-46T large chainrings easier?

The mounts for the racks are now welded inserts in the frame, another very subtle aesthetic change.

That is subtle! That's cool, but for me the hourglass shaped external ones are 100% as nice. Perhaps 105%, since the hourglass shaped ones allow some creativity in using the backside of the "braze-on" as an attachment point for whatever uses one might think up.

Finally, that tire clearance is indeed reduced. There was a crown change with this run of S40s that results in reduced clearance. Again, it's a subtle change, but one that I am told improves the already excellent handling of the S40. It will change fender compatibility for the front stock tire on the complete bike. A set of Raceblades will work well, attached to the fork. If you run a 25c tire, a traditional fender will fit. If you go for a 650b setup with a wider tire, a traditional fender will also work well.

Ability to fit fenders on a bike of this genre is an important quality, to me anyway. I was considering getting a gen 2 fork for my gen 1 S40, since it's rumored to have better clearance for fenders, as well as much better fender attachment points. Sounds like I should pursue that swap quickly, since the gen 3 fork won't alleviate the issues I have with my gen 1 fork. Does the statement "If you go for a 650b setup with a wider tire, a traditional fender will also work well" imply that the gen 3 crown is as wide as the gen 2, but the gen 3 fork has reduced the axle to fork crown dimension? The gen 1 fork is too narrow to mount "traditional fenders" even when running 650B wheels, assuming those 650B wheels have commonly available 650B road tires which will be 1.5"+ (about 38mm+). A gen 1 fork won't fit a fender wide enough to cover such tires, unless you do surgery on the fender and cut notches where the fork legs are, but such surgery generally, significantly weakens the fender.

 

[Robert Holler]

Q: By chance will this new seat attachment system make the mounting of a Thor seat easier?

A: Not necessarily. Maybe? Someone will have to experiment I suppose. It is not intended for that purpose necessarily. This is primarily a production/manufacturing change, allowing for the seat to be drilled and eliminating the tedious alignment of the small tabs, which if off by just a hair can be a hassle. But - stay tuned because as anyone who is anyone knows - we are always innovating and making changes for a reason...


Q: By chance will this new removable FD stalk system make the mounting of a FD at a height suitable for 42-46T large chainrings easier?

A: Likely - the old mount from 2019 has a longer mounting slot already, making smaller doubles possible. The reality is that the industry is largely moving to singles and wide cassettes anyway unless you go traditional road. The stalk will be an inexpensive extra option on the complete bikes for people wanting to convert, and come included in the frame set. Our experience is that 99.5% of people love the 1x systems anyway, so this makes for a much cleaner front end.

Q: Does the statement "If you go for a 650b setup with a wider tire, a traditional fender will also work well" imply that the gen 3 crown is as wide as the gen 2, but the gen 3 fork has reduced the axle to fork crown dimension?


A: Yes. The width from the second batch to this one is the same, but there is a bit reduced height.


The gen 1 fork is too narrow to mount "traditional fenders" even when running 650B wheels, assuming those 650B wheels have commonly available 650B road tires which will be 1.5"+ (about 38mm+). A gen 1 fork won't fit a fender wide enough to cover such tires, unless you do surgery on the fender and cut notches where the fork legs are, but such surgery generally, significantly weakens the fender.

A: This is correct. The first generation S40 fork is 100% identical to a V20 fork, but it had a much longer steer tube. Given the S40 is more of an adventure bike, we widened the fork. I can say from trying out various wheels and tires that the stock 700c width tire is really as wide as is realistic... 28c is super nice if you want to go fast, and swapping to 650b and a wider tire is super plush.

Robert

 

[velocio]

Thanks Robert, that's super helpful info! If you can tolerate one more question ... Is a gen 1 S40 frame compatible with a gen 2 S40 fork with no change in geometry from the swap? If compatible, are gen 2 forks available for purchase?

-Jack

 

[3bs]

That’s a lot of forking information!

 

[benphyr]

A: ... I can say from trying out various wheels and tires that the stock 700c width tire is really as wide as is realistic... 28c is super nice if you want to go fast...
Robert

And a clarification if you don’t mind.
What size tire and which fork (the v1, v2, or v3 S40 fork) are you referring to with this statement?