- Motor
- Bosch Performance CX and CX Race
- Battery
- 625 and 750 Wh
- Price
- €5.499-8.899
This is the new Focus Jam2 and Sam2. Rob has ridden the bike, so make sure you check out his video before reading on.
It seems Focus is branching out. Not only do they make bikes, now they’ve started match-making too. They’re trying to match two of their riders, Olly and Iven. Not to each other though. I don’t think they’re allowed to do that, even though it’s their riders. Also, they’re matching Steffie too, even though she’s taken, I believe.
I’m not making this up, not all of it. The match making thing is actually in the press release!
The 150/160 mm travel 29er Focus Jam2 6.7 is €5.499. That’s not too bad considering it comes with a well performing DVO Diamond E3 fork, Shimano Deore 12-speed drivetrain and 625 Wh battery. All the new bikes get the Bosch Performance CX motor, and the more expensive models comes with the 750 Wh battery. Claimed weight ranges between 24.9 and 25.7 kg. The 6.7 is the lightest much because of the smaller battery.
The most expensive one, the Jam2 8.0 Limited Edition gets the Bosch Performance CX Race motor. Bosch make a limited number of this motor, so it’s no wonder the 8.0 is a limited-edition bike.
Matching people with bikes, cool or cringy?
Once again, I find the entry-level model interesting. The Sam2 6.7 has a Rockshox Deluxe coil shock, and I’m happy to see the Suntour Durolux 38 fork. I’ve only ridden the Durolux 36. That’s a great fork and I expect the 38 is too. The 6.7 gets the smaller 625 Wh battery and has a claimed weight of 25.4 kg. Price for this bike too is €5.499. Weight is between 25.4 and 26.7 kg for the Sam2 lineup.
The most expensive model, the Sam2 6.0 comes in at €8.699. This too is a limited-edition model that gets the Bosch Performance CX Race motor. Much thanks to the big 750 Wh battery, the bike has a claimed weight of a healthy 26.4 kg.
Some would argue there is a downside to tilting the motor upwards though. It makes the bottom bracket area quite chunky. If you’re paying a five digits figure for a new bike, you of course want it to be sleek, skinny, shiny and whatnot.
But you’re not, this bike can be had for much less. My impression is Focus has put function, and value, over form with the new Jam2 and Sam2. To some degree. Just the way I like it.
It seems Focus is branching out. Not only do they make bikes, now they’ve started match-making too. They’re trying to match two of their riders, Olly and Iven. Not to each other though. I don’t think they’re allowed to do that, even though it’s their riders. Also, they’re matching Steffie too, even though she’s taken, I believe.
2023 Focus Jam2 6 series
Focus is matching them with their new bikes. Olly likes to settle it seems, so he picked the entry level aluminium Jam2 6 series. I too am always excited to check out the cheaper bikes in the line-up. How cheap is a sufficiently specced bike?I’m not making this up, not all of it. The match making thing is actually in the press release!
The 150/160 mm travel 29er Focus Jam2 6.7 is €5.499. That’s not too bad considering it comes with a well performing DVO Diamond E3 fork, Shimano Deore 12-speed drivetrain and 625 Wh battery. All the new bikes get the Bosch Performance CX motor, and the more expensive models comes with the 750 Wh battery. Claimed weight ranges between 24.9 and 25.7 kg. The 6.7 is the lightest much because of the smaller battery.
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Focus Jam2 8 series
Steffie aims higher and picks the Jam2 8 series with a carbon frame. The cheapest Jam2 8.7 has similar specs to the 6.7. This too is a 150/160 mm travel 29er. The 8.7 is listed at €5.999 with a claimed weight of 23.7 kg. Weight is between 23.4 and 24 kg for the 8 series.The most expensive one, the Jam2 8.0 Limited Edition gets the Bosch Performance CX Race motor. Bosch make a limited number of this motor, so it’s no wonder the 8.0 is a limited-edition bike.
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Jam2 geometry
Frame geometry is the same for both the 6 and 8 series. I think it’s a nice surprise that Focus set the chainstay length to 450 mm. My experience is it improves agility over the almost standard 455 mm length. It’s cool to see that Focus thinks a more all-round oriented bike needs a slack 64.5* head angle. But the bike has an adjustable headset cup that can be set to 65.5*. Frame seems nice and long with a Reach of 460 mm and a wheelbase of 1.230 mm for size M.Focus Sam2 6 series
It appears Iven likes long legs, so he picked the 170/180 mm travel 29er Sam2 . Where the Jam2 is more of an all-round emtb, the Sam2 is more about descending hard. Still, it looks a lot like the Jam2 and it’s got the same detachable battery integration. The Sam2 only comes with an aluminium frame.Matching people with bikes, cool or cringy?
Once again, I find the entry-level model interesting. The Sam2 6.7 has a Rockshox Deluxe coil shock, and I’m happy to see the Suntour Durolux 38 fork. I’ve only ridden the Durolux 36. That’s a great fork and I expect the 38 is too. The 6.7 gets the smaller 625 Wh battery and has a claimed weight of 25.4 kg. Price for this bike too is €5.499. Weight is between 25.4 and 26.7 kg for the Sam2 lineup.
The most expensive model, the Sam2 6.0 comes in at €8.699. This too is a limited-edition model that gets the Bosch Performance CX Race motor. Much thanks to the big 750 Wh battery, the bike has a claimed weight of a healthy 26.4 kg.
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Sam2 geometry
The Sam2 also has 450 mm long chainstays, everything else is upped by one. Head tube angle can be altered between 63.5 and 64.5*. Reach is 470 mm and wheelbase is 1.259 mm for size M. This all looks promising, quite burly with a nice rear end length.More details about the bikes
All bikes have detachable batteries, that’s not a given for bikes running the 750 Wh battery. There are a few challenges implementing this big battery, such as weight and space. Focus decided to tilt the front of the motor upwards, making room for the battery in front of the motor. I like this solution, it allows for a detachable battery through a small opening at the bottom of the frame. This opening requires less reinforcement to maintain frame rigidity, thus reducing frame weight.|
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Some would argue there is a downside to tilting the motor upwards though. It makes the bottom bracket area quite chunky. If you’re paying a five digits figure for a new bike, you of course want it to be sleek, skinny, shiny and whatnot.
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|
|
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But you’re not, this bike can be had for much less. My impression is Focus has put function, and value, over form with the new Jam2 and Sam2. To some degree. Just the way I like it.
