Test: US manufacturer Fuji has developed a steadily growing fan base over the past few years with extremely successful bikes and great commitment in the amateur and professional sectors. We checked out the new SLM 29 1.5 Disc.
Fact check
[tab:Overview]
RRP: 2999€
Weight: 10,9kg
frame material: carbon
wheel size: 29"
Suspension travel: 100 mm
[tab:Geometry] [easytable]Size, S, S/M, M, M/L
Horizontal top tube, 587mm, 604mm, 623mm, 642mm
Seat tube length, 394mm, 445mm, 483mm, 533mm
Seat Angle,73,73,73,73
Steering angle,70,70,70,70
Head tube length, 90mm, 100mm, 131mm, 120mm
Chain stay length, 430mm, 430mm, 430mm, 430mm
Wheelbase, 1087mm, 1093mm, 1112mm, 1132mm
Stack,597mm,616mm,634mm,630mm
Reach, 413mm, 424mm, 443mm, 459mm
[/easytable] [tab:Equipment] [easytable]component, model
Fork, Fox 32 Float 29 Evolution CTD Remote 15mm
Wheelset,Oval Concepts 400 CL
Tires, Schwalbe Racing Ralph 29×2.25″ Evo
Brake,Shimano XT M785
Brake discs, Shimano SLX RT68 CL 180/160mm
Rear derailleur, SRAM X0
Front derailleur, SRAM X0 DM 2-speed
Gear lever,Shimano X0 2-fold
Crank, Oval Concepts M620 38/26t
Cassette,Shimano SLX HG81 11-36
Stem, Oval Concepts 713 6° 100mm
Handlebar,Oval Concepts 650 710mm
Seatpost,Oval Concepts 650
Saddle,Oval Concepts 400
[/easytable] [tab:END]frame and geometry
The voluminous frame of the Fuji SLM 29 1.5 Disc immediately catches the eye - the black/orange carbon fiber gem comes with the latest standards: A tapered head tube for integrated headsets, dropouts for a 142mm thru axle, integrated train and cable guides and mounts for a PF30 bottom bracket. The area around the head tube is particularly striking. As is so often the case with modern carbon frames, this is quite bulky – but in the case of the Fuji, this fits very nicely into the overall picture. Fuji opted for a glossy coating for the surface - although the look is a matter of taste, the glossy clear coat offers a decisive advantage: it is much easier to remove mud and dirt from the frame than a matt counterpart. The internal cable routing ensures a tidy look, while the orange (or optionally red) decals are a pleasant splash of color, even if their shape seems a bit uninspired - the designers could have been a little braver here, in our opinion.
The geometry of the SLM 29 1.5 is extremely sporty - as befits a bike in this class. With a reach of 424 or 443mm in size M, the Fuji is something for lovers of longer bikes and more stretched seating positions. Due to the short head tube and the resulting deep cockpit, you can also get a decent saddle rise quite easily - something that is still a problem with some 29″ bikes from the competition. When looking at the geometry data, the chainstays, which are very short at 430mm for a 29″ bike, are also striking – we are curious to see how this affects the handling.
Facilities
To get straight to the point: there is a lot of light in the features of the Fuji SLM 29 1.5 Disc, but there are also a few shadows. But let's start with the positive: A mix of SRAM and Shimano is installed in the drive. While the rear derailleur, front derailleur and shifter all come from SRAM's X0 series, shifting is done on an SLX cassette from Shimano. In terms of shifting performance, the mix of manufacturers certainly does not have a negative effect, but the rather cheap SLX cassette falls significantly short of the excellent X0 group - especially in terms of weight. The HG100 cassette is over 81g heavier than the X0 counterpart from SRAM.
A similar picture emerges with the brakes: While the Shimano XT brakes are probably among the best currently available on the market, Fuji uses the inexpensive 1-piece SLX stoppers for the brake discs, which are not quite as heat-resistant as the higher quality ones , two-piece brake discs. Even if this is of secondary importance for a cross-country car like the Fuji, we would have preferred two-part discs for the targeted RRP. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the Fox fork at the front. The 2015 Float Evolution is an excellent and beautifully light fork whose CTD damping offers the right setting for every driver and route profile.
Impellers, cranks and attachments come from Oval. If you are wondering why: The manufacturer Oval Concepts belongs to the same parent company as Fuji and a cooperation is therefore not only advisable for logistical reasons. We were very interested in the rather exotic crank: The Oval M620 comes with the usual gradation of 29 and 38 teeth for 26ers and, in contrast to other cranks on the market, uses a large drive shaft with a diameter of 35mm. This should provide additional rigidity while saving weight at the same time. The fact that the big shaft also requires a special bottom bracket, which is pressed into the frame because of the PF30 standard, is a bit problematic. So if you decide to use a different crank afterwards, you also need a new bottom bracket, you have to press the old one out and the new one in (or have it pressed in). But basically there are hardly any reasons for an exchange: The Oval Concepts crank is relatively light, stiff and the chainrings have a good shifting performance.
The wheels are also from Oval Concepts - while the set isn't lightweight, they aren't overly heavy either and proved stiff and strong in testing. The tires come from Schwalbe - the choice fell on the Evergreen Racing Ralph in the very good Evo version, which is also tubeless-ready. The oval stem, saddle, handlebars and seat post blend in nicely with the rest and make a well-made impression. The cockpit is sporty with the 100mm long stem and the 710mm wide handlebars with a 5mm rise.
On the trail
We were excited to see how the Fuji would fare on the trail. From the first moment it's clear: the Fuji is a race bike - the long reach, the low front - when you get on you inevitably ask yourself: "Where's the starting line?" The extremely successful geometry ensures that the power flows directly from the legs lands on the ground and the handling is really excellent. The short chain stays make the Fuji surprisingly compact and manoeuvrable for a 29er, only on very steep ramps does this occasionally lead to a little less pressure on the front wheel - but we are happy to accept that in view of the otherwise great advantages.
The drive works absolutely perfectly. The X0 Trigger with the associated rear derailleur offer excellent shifting performance - the crisp shifting feel and the extremely fast gear changes differ noticeably from the rather gentle shifting that is known from Shimano, but fit very well with the character of the Fuji. We adjusted the fork to our needs in no time at all and this also fits into the performance-oriented overall concept: The Fox is more firm than comfortable in its character, but this only leads to a very small loss of power and the bike still remains very good controllable. Schwalbe's Racing Ralph tire is more for dry conditions: The rolling resistance is very low and the tire is therefore damn fast, but when the ground gets deeper and the conditions wetter, it quickly reaches its limits.
Conclusion
The Fuji SLM 29 1.5 Disc is a devilishly fast bike. The sporty seating position, the stiff frame and the well thought-out equipment make the bike a racy race bike. A few weaknesses in the equipment and the rather high weight of 11kg cloud the overall impression a bit, even if these flaws will probably only be noticed by very few riders on the trail.
Leave a Comment