Levo Gen 2 Mullet setup for levo?

[naharris212]

Anyone try a mullet setup on their levo? If so, very interested in what, if anything you did to keep the kinematics? Also

 

[MSH]

Anyone try a mullet setup on their levo? If so, very interested in what, if anything you did to keep the kinematics? Also

I personally really want to.

 

[Rosemount]

There are a few threads re mullet Levos if you search .

This is mine .
Put the 27.5 on during the week . 160 fork , 55 mm stroke on the shock . 2.6 nobby Nic . Liking it so far .

 

[naharris212]

I’ve read you can get a $10 bushing for your shock that offsets the BB height you lose. I did read the other Mullet / levo topic but only really had the one guy running 3.0 width which isn’t really applicable.

 

[maynard]

I'm a big fan of the mullet . 2.6 rear trye . And went 2.5 on the front . Bike handles so much better now . I still have 150 pike fork

 

[Letford]

Here’s mine, offset bush in the shock. 2.6 front & 2.8 rear. I’ve only rode it on some pretty tame local trails but felt ok, hopefully get it on some more challenging stuff soon.

 

[kombos]

Here’s mine, offset bush in the shock. 2.6 front & 2.8 rear. I’ve only rode it on some pretty tame local trails but felt ok, hopefully get it on some more challenging stuff soon.

Curious how you're liking the rear wheel swap? Also, what offset bushing are you using?

 

[Rosemount]

Liking my Levo in Mullet mode a lot .
I am 5 `9" 175 cm . Coming from a Cube Stereo 160 with 27.5 wheels the Levo felt a little bit high for me . I appreciated the 29 er roll over abilities . But found it harder to manual and almost impossible to bunny hop . Mullet has remedied that some what . Feels better in slalom type situations and switch backs too.

 

[jbodnar]

I run both my 2020 Levo Comp and 2021 SL Carbon Comp as 27.5+/29+ with 160 mm Lyrik/Yari with the 210 x 55 shocks in the high position.

The bottom bracket on my Comp sits at 347 mm and the SL Carbon Comp is about 350 mm with 3.0 tires front/back...I’m not sure why they aren’t the same.

The Comp came with a Lyrik at 150 mm and the SL Carbon Comp came with a Rhythm 34 at 160 mm...so the fork upgrades helped compensate for the lower 27.5 rear bottom bracket height (Lyrik/Yari has a longer axle to crown than the 34).

Note: I did not want my bottom bracket significantly lower than the stock setup.

Mullet is the only choice if you want to run 3.0 tires with some clearance.

I will take/post some pics tomorrow.

 

[jbodnar]

Last year’s Xmas present to myself:

This year’s:

 

[Letford]

Curious how you're liking the rear wheel swap? Also, what offset bushing are you using?

Hi, bike feels great definitely more manoeuvrable with the smaller rear wheel. I’ve recently put 160mm forks and dropped the tyre size to a 2.6 and left the chip in the low position and I’m happy with the way it handles. The bush is from offsetbushings.com

 

[jbodnar]

Hi, bike feels great definitely more manoeuvrable with the smaller rear wheel. I’ve recently put 160mm forks and dropped the tyre size to a 2.6 and left the chip in the low position and I’m happy with the way it handles. The bush is from offsetbushings.com

Just curious, what is your bottom bracket height?

Did you use the offset bushing to lower the BB more?

 

[Rosemount]

Levo with Ohlins 36- 160 mm fork, 210 x 55 shock . 29 x 2.5 Ass guy - 27 .5 x 2.6 Nobby Nic , flip chip high .

345mm to the centre of crank axle .

 

[Letford]

Just curious, what is your bottom bracket height?

Did you use the offset bushing to lower the BB more?

No idea on the height sorry, I’ve ridden some pretty gnarly stuff recently and it’s not caught anything. I used the bush to try and slacken the front out a little when it was on the standard 150mm forks.

 

[JJLevo19]

It seems most of the Levo mullets are running the rear with 27.5 x 2,6-3.0 tyres. Is there a reason for the wider tyres being used for the mullet ? Is it because the wider tyres the higher the profile to make up for the lowered bb height ?

My Levo 19 came with 2.6s F&B but once worn I am now running 2.5 up Front & 2.3 on the rear. It feels quicker and was thinking of running 2.3s F&B. It still feels good with plenty of traction and stability and was thinking of putting a 2.3 on the 27.5 as I am about to try the mullet

 

[Rosemount]

2.6 for BB height and traction .

 

[JJLevo19]

2.6 for BB height and traction .

So do you think going a 2.3 on my Levo 19 with the mullet that my pedal strikes will increase a lot. I have enough pedal strikes with the 2.3s on the 29er but being cautious the last couple of rides after being high sided with a strike at 30ks. My problem is I like to pedal through switchbacks constantly but realising it’s not a good habit with bent cranks lol.

 

[Rosemount]

I had a 2.6 Magic Mary super soft .
Awesome feel decent clearance . Lasted about 8 weeks ! Now trying an Assegai 2.5 in Max Terra . I can notice the difference in the height .

I def graze the pedals more with the mullet set up . But its graze the pedals on rocks or graze my testicles on the rear tyre . Easy choice for me .

 

[JJLevo19]

I had a 2.6 Magic Mary super soft .
Awesome feel decent clearance . Lasted about 8 weeks ! Now trying an Assegai 2.5 in Max Terra . I can notice the difference in the height .

I def graze the pedals more with the mullet set up . But its graze the pedals on rocks or graze my testicles on the rear tyre . Easy choice for me .

 

[JJLevo19]

Yes. Fair call, I think the pros out way the cons IMO and the mullet will suit me for the good In many ways Thanks for the tips ?

 

[chrismechmaster]

There are a few threads re mullet Levos if you search .

This is mine .
Put the 27.5 on during the week . 160 fork , 55 mm stroke on the shock . 2.6 nobby Nic . Liking it so far .
View attachment 46993

Did you have to flip the chip ??

i am looking to run a 27.5 on the rear and have the same suspension set up

do you run hi or low chip ?

 

[Rosemount]

G `day Chris

In high position .
Easy to do . Tie up the back wheel before you take the shock off . Other wise the yoke for the shock can rub the seat tube .

 

[Jeff McD]

Did you guys see this video below? When Martin Maes first wanted to try a mullet Bike on the Enduro circuit while he was riding for GT team, they didn't have one and so they took a non-mullet 29 inch wheeled long travel bike and converted it for him. To keep the geometry the same and avoid excessive pedal strikes they used an offset bushing on the shock to lift the bottom bracket back up to normal. I think I'm going to do this. Here's the video:


Not sure how this works. These bushings are designed to lower the bottom bracket but maybe if you turn them around 180° they raise it? Anyway come Monday I'm going to chat with the company and ask this question. Looks like it should fix the problem. And very cheap.

 

[jbodnar]

I sent an email to offsetbushings.com some time ago, Jeron H replied that they can’t be used to raise the BB because they will rotate when riding.

Seems like a 10 mm crown race spacer should help raise it a bit...I’ve never tried one.

 

[Jeff McD]

I sent an email to offsetbushings.com some time ago, Jeron H replied that they can’t be used to raise the BB because they will rotate when riding.

Seems like a 10 mm crown race spacer should help raise it a bit...I’ve never tried one.

Thanks for that information. Yes the crown race spacer is my next move but would've preferred raising it in the back for more BB ht. Will just buy the cascade link then which apparently decreases pedal strikes because more progressive and shock rides higher throughout the travel. So much more expensive though. Can anyone explain what offset bushing the GT rep is referring to in that video then? Theoretically they did the conversion successfully without changing the geometry so they must know what they're talking about.

 

[Rosemount]

Thanks for that information. Yes the crown race spacer is my next move but would've preferred raising it in the back for more BB ht. Will just buy the cascade link then which apparently decreases pedal strikes because more progressive and shock rides higher throughout the travel. So much more expensive though. Can anyone explain what offset bushing the GT rep is referring to in that video then? Theoretically they did the conversion successfully without changing the geometry so they must know what they're talking about.

2.6 Schwalbe tyre will help raise the BB .

 

[Punawarrior]

Here’s mine, offset bush in the shock. 2.6 front & 2.8 rear. I’ve only rode it on some pretty tame local trails but felt ok, hopefully get it on some more challenging stuff soon.

Hi i have the same bike. What is the rim at the rear, roval 27.5 ?

Hi View attachment 47055

 

[Jeff McD]

Hey thanks, Rosemount. Switching to mullet soon, planning to use 2.6 or 2.8 Michelin E wild 27.5 to raise the rear. With our frequently wet/extremely slippery roots/rocks from nightly tropical showers, the specialized hillbilly and Michelin E Wild are the only tires that work well in my tight/extremely technical conditions. Every other tire I've tried including the minions are treacherously scary in our conditions. Stock butcher and eliminator were excellent dri condition tires but not suitable for our wet.

The hillbilly is not a high tire so I will keep that in the front and run the higher profile Michelin in the rear, 2.6 first and if still too many strikes then the 2.8. Both tires slide out minimally on our trails yet are very flat proof when we ride the lava flows-absolutely unforgiving to impacts. The tires have improved so much I get few flats on the lava as long as I use enough air pressure. Brutally hard on the hands though on long descents @ speed ha ha.

Present bottom bracket height with 29 x 2.6 hillbilly tires fr&rr, cascade link installed, chip-high setting, 160 mm lyric ultimate fork is 346mm, with 347.5 mm from the specialized spec list w/150 mm fox 36 fork/chip OEM low setting, 2.6 butcher/eliminator tires.

After further research it appears the GT team used the offset bushing in the reverse position to raise the bottom bracket and they dropped the fork travel from 170 mm to 160 mm with different air spring to maintain the same kinematics.

Thanks for the information from offset bushings.com that they cannot recommend this practice, but admitted that many do it. The feedback is that, as long as you keep that upper shock bolt where are the offset bushing sits properly torque'd, users have not had trouble. Of course there is always the risk of it rotating so I am not recommend this to anyone else, but if Martin Maes didn't knock it off position I doubt my skinny 140 pounds can. Having said that, I am going to check the tightness of the bolt with my trusty torque wrench after every ride.

Finally I can always add the 6 mm or 10 mm crown race for the fork. Will wait and see what these other changes due to the steering first. As an interesting sidenote I put a 170 mm lyric fork on initially and this slacken'd the steering more than optimal with the chip in low position. But I did not realize this until I switched to a 160 mm fork and put the chip in the high position which quicken'd the steering to where now I love the bike. I had too much wheel flop/front wheel pushing in flat turns with the 170. I will go to a 44 mm offset in the future if I ever go back to a 170 mm travel fork, but honestly I prefer the 160.

As Rosemont said, I am really looking forward to having an easier time lifting the front wheel with mullet and a more active bike in general. Thanks for everyone's advice.

 

[Rosemount]

No probs Jeff .
I recently bought a Kenevo . I enjoy the playfulness . The longer rake and smaller foot print with the 27.5 front make the front less forgiving . 29 has more rubber touching the ground . I have to be more aware of where my feet are going on the mullet . But switch backs and jumps are def more fun . Lose it a little in super steep tech climbs as well . But worth the trade off for me .

 

[Jeff McD]

No probs Jeff .
I recently bought a Kenevo . I enjoy the playfulness . The longer rake and smaller foot print with the 27.5 front make the front less forgiving . 29 has more rubber touching the ground . I have to be more aware of where my feet are going on the mullet . But switch backs and jumps are def more fun . Lose it a little in super steep tech climbs as well . But worth the trade off for me .

Sounds great. Looking forward to the conversion. Thanks for the replies.