mountain bikes: Test: Santa Cruz Hightower CC Reserve – great bike, great price

Test: With the Santa Cruz Hightower CC Reserve, we tested a real noble bike. Almost 10.000 euros for an extremely light and powerful package with exclusive attachments and a simple, beautiful look. Is Santa's 29er fully the right choice for you? Our test will help.

Santa Cruz Hightower CC Reserve: Frame and Geometry

The Santa Cruz Hightower is entering its fourth season in 2019 as a large-wheeled all-rounder in the Californians' portfolio. This product cycle, which is quite long for the fast-moving MTB industry, speaks for the sophistication of the bike, which will also be available exclusively with a carbon frame this season. As with most carbon bikes from Santa Cruz, carbon does not mean carbon here. In addition to the "Standard" variant, the Hightower also has the even lighter Hightower CC frame: With the same rigidity, weight can be saved here through the use of high-quality fibers.

The VPP (Virtual Pivot Point) rear triangle gets 51mm of spring travel out of the 135mm shock absorber stroke. At the front, the complete bikes have a fork with 140mm travel, but according to Santa Cruz, the frame would easily handle a 150mm fork. By the way: If you are looking for more travel anyway, you should take a look at the Hightlower LT (= Long Travel), which is better equipped for rough terrain with 150mm at the rear and up to 160mm at the front. The Hightower is consistently designed for 29-inch wheels and offers tire clearance of up to 2,4″ at the rear – so if you are using particularly thick tires here, you should measure if in doubt.

We found the cable routing on the Santa Cruz Hightower CC quite interesting – while the outer casing for the gears runs inside the frame, an external solution was chosen for the brakes. Thumbs up for that from us: In the event of any maintenance work and the associated dismantling of the brake, you don't have to separate the transmitter and brake caliper and laboriously thread the open line through the frame.

In terms of geometry, Santa Cruz doesn't dare to experiment with the Hightower and relies on proven dimensions - but this shouldn't sound negative in any way, because a successful balance is absolutely crucial for all-mountain all-rounders and too extreme and progressive dimensions are often counterproductive. Expressed in numbers, this means: A moderately slack head angle of 67° meets a main frame that is not overly long and chainstays that are quite short at 435mm. All in all, you get a bike with compact dimensions, whose character should probably be somewhere in the middle between agility and smooth running - just right for the intended area of ​​application.

Santa Cruz Hightower CC Reserve: Amenities

With the Hightower CC Reserve, we tested the finest, lightest and most expensive version of the 29er fully: For a proud 9.799 euros, however, you can also get the full component package that leaves nothing to be desired. From the Fox Factory chassis and a complete Sram XX1 Eagle drive to the big highlight of the equipment, the in-house reserve wheels.

At first glance, the mix of components in the chassis seems exciting: With the 36er Float, there is a genuine enduro fork in the front, which is combined with the very slim DPS damper on the high tower. Actually, one would rather expect a piggyback damper of the DPX2 type - at least that's the theory. However, if you keep an eye on the practice of an all-rounder like the Hightower, it becomes clear that Santa Cruz's plan could definitely work: While the increase in stiffness due to the thick stanchions of the fork compared to the light Float 34 can be felt on almost every trail should, the damper is probably only at a disadvantage compared to its piggyback counterparts on long descents.

There isn’t much to say about the Sram XX1 Eagle drive and the befitting DUB crank – except: you can hardly change gears easier and better on a modern mountain bike. The brakes are also light; the Sram Guide Ultimate is the Americans' top trail brake and, together with the 180mm brake discs, brings the Hightower to a standstill. The combination should be perfectly adequate for most riders, only those who weigh a few kilos more and/or regularly ride long descents under their wheels should perhaps consider a larger disc at the front.

A highlight of our Hightower CC test bike is the wheelset: The in-house Reserve 27 carbon rims are combined with elegant Industry9 hubs. This combination is not only extremely light, but should also be extremely robust. The freewheeling sound of the I9 rear wheel hub is also probably the most beautiful trail symphony in the ears of die-hard mountain bikers.

Santa Cruz Hightower CC Reserve: On the trail

In view of the top carbon frame, "bling bling parts" such as wheels and XX1 gears, we had high expectations of the Hightower CC - even uphill. However, there was no real climbing goat feeling - but that doesn't mean that the Hightower climbs badly, quite the opposite. It climbs as well as other good climbers on test. Two things should be considered here: Firstly, the damper needs to be well adjusted, otherwise it will bounce. Riders with rather uneven or stomping pedals should use the lockout lever. Second, the frame size should fit. If you pull the seat post far out on a frame that tends to be small, you sit far back. If both of these fit, it goes uphill towards the trailhead. The 30 chainring with the 12-speed cassette fits, the low weight and overall rather stiff components do not give away any power. This means that the Hightower is not in the top group in the test field going uphill, but it remains within sight, earning its laurels on the descent.

If the trail inclines towards the valley, the slight grin suddenly reaches from ear to ear and you have to be careful not to fill all the gaps in your teeth with insects at high speed. Dust doesn't tend to collect between the teeth, it's more likely to get caught by the person behind you. The Hightower overtakes the leaders of the uphill in the descent on the first few meters and doesn't let the "Enduros" pass voluntarily in the test field. The wheels require a precise choice of line, and inexperienced pilots should choose softer aluminum models. However, with a capable driver at the handlebars, progress is all the more rapid. The Hightower drives very intuitively, it is always agile enough to participate in all imaginable gimmicks. Nevertheless, the feeling never arises that the journey would eventually become restless. The Fox 36 fork and rear end, together with the Maxxis Minion tires, create superb traction, yet the bike doesn't stick to the trail and willingly follows every command. You are positioned great, low and centrally on the bike, you always have an overview and control, and you can react quickly to everything. The ground clearance is sufficient, the down tube is protected against bottoming out.

We have already praised the chassis, the Fox Factory components do not have to hide from a "full-blooded enduro". Sram's top-of-the-range Guide model, the Guide Ultimate, is easy to dose and packs a punch. The 12-speed Eagle circuit in a noble design, XX1, also leaves nothing to be desired. We would only have wished for a Fox-Kashima variant for the dropper post. It is even more reliable than the built-in reverb and would have gone a little better with the overall package, both visually and technically. The wheels cancel that out. Industry Nine hubs with Santa Cruz Reserve rims leave little room for tuning, it really doesn't get any better. All testers liked the in-house Santa Cruz handlebars and the Race Face stem, the grips were occasionally classified as a bit thin, on the other hand they were particularly praised. The WTB saddle is very comfortable.

The most expensive bike in the test field is therefore one of the best, and depending on your personal preference it may also be the best for you. Something that deserves praise and puts the price into perspective is the promise of Santa Cruz: “At Santa Cruz we attach great importance to the quality and durability of our products. However, should a defect occur, we will replace all defective frames or frame parts for the first owner for the rest of their lives. The prerequisite for this is a complete, promptly after purchase, completed registration..." This applies to all frames after mid-2015 and all rims. Thumbs up for that from our side. What doesn't have to be the case with a bike in this price range: shift housing and brake line rub or rattle on the seat tube! This can be done better.