jamesgarbett
Member
Has anyone heard from Whyte or ATB about the availability of this to retro fit to an e150?
It's mentioned in the MBR review of the e160
It's mentioned in the MBR review of the e160
Whyte Shape.It link/shock extender
- Thread starter jamesgarbett
- Start date
I would like to know too. I'm running 160mm at the front on my E150 and feel I need just a tiny lift at the rear to balance it out.
(Hopefully the widget will enable that..)
Spoke to ATB they said it would be available soon but did not give a date
Nakedebiker
Member
Mine is now on order. I've been told it's coming at the end of September.
Tribey
Active member
My LBS knew nothing of this yesterday. Any more news?
Nakedebiker
Member
I called in at my LBS to see if there was any news. The guy i spoke to has seen one and its basically this-
With some kind of flip chip at the shock mount. Still no idea when it will turn up though.
It's now on the Whyte site -
whyte.bike
SHAPE.IT LINK
The Shape.It Link has the ability to change the geometry but importantly not the suspension kinematics. By using the shock extender and effectively moving the eye to eye length of the shock, the bottom bracket (BB) can be lifted or lowered. Part Code / SKU Description Previously Called WAMLINK02...
whyte.bike
Nakedebiker
Member
£70 seems a bit pricey for what it is. I was going to have a go at doing something along those lines myself with an offset bushing. At least this will keep the warranty intact.It's now on the Whyte site -
SHAPE.IT LINK
The Shape.It Link has the ability to change the geometry but importantly not the suspension kinematics. By using the shock extender and effectively moving the eye to eye length of the shock, the bottom bracket (BB) can be lifted or lowered. Part Code / SKU Description Previously Called WAMLINK02...
Tribey
Active member
It does seem pricey when you consider the similar 'Shock Extender 2' is £49.99
highpeakrider
E*POWAH Master
Ive ordered mine, should stop the odd strike I get in the Peaks.
Tribey
Active member
The Whyte website gives a guide for data , for the e150 with the 66mm link, it shows a BB height change of + 12.5mm with a head angle change of +1 degree.
I know eMTB reviews are full of stats and fiugures, most of which go right over my head, but will I notice this 1 degree increase in head angle? It would be slower, but much?
I know eMTB reviews are full of stats and fiugures, most of which go right over my head, but will I notice this 1 degree increase in head angle? It would be slower, but much?
IMO - yes you'd notice a 1 degree increase in head angle and definitely the 12mm increase in bottom bracket height, not sure why you'd want to increase BB height and head angle though, I guess it will give marginally less pedal strikes but at the expense of downhill ability. If I had a problem with pedal strikes I'd be fitting shorter crank arms or learning to time pedal strokes better,or just living with it, I wouldnt be compromising downhill ability by steepening the head angle and lifting the BB.
Jamze
Well-known member
Steeper head angle would be very slightly quicker/twitchier (steering).
I assume the benefit of one of these is you'd be able to adjust the geo back to as it was designed after you've fitted a fork with more travel like @1Squadr0n said. Can't get my head around what happens to the rear if you jack the bottom bracket up 12mm though ?
The ultimate guide to bike geometry and handling
Getting into the details of why no two mountain bikes ride the same
www.bikeradar.com
Bottom bracket heightmassively affects stability, cornering and braking.
I think the only reason to fit one of those links that raises the bb would be to compensate for lowering the bb too much(and hence head angle) by fitting a smaller back wheel
highpeakrider
E*POWAH Master
I actually doubt anyone will notice it, the bike has really wide bars anyway, and I guess most use it as a trail bike rather than a full on downhill bike.
For me in the Peaks it could improve the bike plus I still have the option of shorter cranks.
Whyte are known for making good riding bikes, I doubt they would release a product that makes a good bike into a crap bike.
For me in the Peaks it could improve the bike plus I still have the option of shorter cranks.
Whyte are known for making good riding bikes, I doubt they would release a product that makes a good bike into a crap bike.
Nakedebiker
Member
The 12mm bb increase is unladen don't forget, so once you're actually weighting the bike its going to sit into its travel. As for head angle, I'm old enough to remember 150mm stems and bars so narrow you had to run your levers at different angles. In comparison, modern geometry bikes are so stable and steerable that 1/2° steeper HA° will hardly be noticeable. Another outlook on this is that it will allow a softer rear shock setting and therefore a more compliant ride.
jamesgarbett
Member
- Thread starter
- #18
Are they adjustable then ? Some sort of offset bushing? Is that how the 66mm vs 62mm is achieved?
Jamze
Well-known member
Yeah, you can see it here.
My take on this is it allows you to adjust a 2020 Whyte eBike to 2021 geo - about 10mm higher BB, you can run a 10mm longer fork. All you're missing is the extra 5mm travel at the rear.
Last edited:
highpeakrider
E*POWAH Master
But 10mm at the fork won’t equal 10mm increase at the bottom bracket.
Jamze
Well-known member
Agreed. It's the link that raises the BB and steepens the front slightly. Then increasing the front travel will slacken the front a bit.
If you fit longer forks that slacken the head angle by say 1 degree, and you then fit one of those links to steepen the head angle by one degree to bring it back to the same head angle as it had originally, your bottom bracket will now be 10mm or so higher (in the sagged position) than the original bike had.
Whether you consider a higher BB to be a positive or negative is up to you and how you ride, but I'd consider it a negative compared to this bikes normal BB height.
Have a play with this to see what different changes to various dimensions do to the rest of the dimensions of any given bike
Whether you consider a higher BB to be a positive or negative is up to you and how you ride, but I'd consider it a negative compared to this bikes normal BB height.
Have a play with this to see what different changes to various dimensions do to the rest of the dimensions of any given bike
Tribey
Active member
I'm normally riding trails and green lanes where BB height isn't really an issue, and the low CoG is a benefit. However when riding on the moors, coming down granite scattered slopes, the BB height was always on my mind, because of possible strikes to the shifter cable.
Therefore the in-coming Shape-it extender was of interest to me.
Now I've done the shifter cable re-route, I've found I'm not worried so much about the BB height, but I'm interested to see the effects on handling.
Therefore the in-coming Shape-it extender was of interest to me.
Now I've done the shifter cable re-route, I've found I'm not worried so much about the BB height, but I'm interested to see the effects on handling.
Nakedebiker
Member
Its arrived today!
Haven't had chance to fit it yet and I'm not sure why a new shock eye bush is included but here are some pictures
Haven't had chance to fit it yet and I'm not sure why a new shock eye bush is included but here are some pictures
Nakedebiker
Member
I'm disappointed that it's not the same colour as the original as its the only thing on the bike that is that colour so I might get it painted to match.
jamesgarbett
Member
- Thread starter
- #26
Will it be easy to fit? Torque wrench needed?
Nakedebiker
Member
It will be easy to fit, I would recommend using a torque wrench as they are alloy components/ threads. The only awkward bit is if the eye bush needs replacing.
Jamze
Well-known member
If you don't have many miles on it, and they're the same, use the existing one and keep as a spare?
jamesgarbett
Member
- Thread starter
- #30
The High and Low settings - does that relate to BB height or something else?
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