When we roundtabled the twanger Stumpy back at the beginning of Beta/end of bikemag, we were all mighty impressed with how the bike accelerated, but were also all a bit flummoxed by the suspension. I am going to completely talk out my ass now, since I have ZERO real evidence to back any of this up, but I suspect what is going on with longer travel twangers is not so much that the suspension doesn't work all that well, but that it is more difficult to strike a good front/rear ride characteristic/balance. Meaning, the inherent springiness of the twanger causes a different ride sensation than might otherwise be achieved, and it is "differenter" than what is going on up front.
At shorter travels, this disparity between front and rear behavior is less noticeable, but it becomes more apparent the more travel you have to play with. Now, factor in that there is less ability to play with leverage rates or instant center positioning because there are fewer links, AND there is an additional spring for the damper to try and manage, and the longer travel twangers become more challenging to control in more dynamic environments. Maybe. Like I said, this is just me scratching my not very well educated chin.
Feb. 28, 2024, 7 a.m. - Mike Ferrentino
When we roundtabled the twanger Stumpy back at the beginning of Beta/end of bikemag, we were all mighty impressed with how the bike accelerated, but were also all a bit flummoxed by the suspension. I am going to completely talk out my ass now, since I have ZERO real evidence to back any of this up, but I suspect what is going on with longer travel twangers is not so much that the suspension doesn't work all that well, but that it is more difficult to strike a good front/rear ride characteristic/balance. Meaning, the inherent springiness of the twanger causes a different ride sensation than might otherwise be achieved, and it is "differenter" than what is going on up front. At shorter travels, this disparity between front and rear behavior is less noticeable, but it becomes more apparent the more travel you have to play with. Now, factor in that there is less ability to play with leverage rates or instant center positioning because there are fewer links, AND there is an additional spring for the damper to try and manage, and the longer travel twangers become more challenging to control in more dynamic environments. Maybe. Like I said, this is just me scratching my not very well educated chin.