Whatever happened to the naild bikes?

https://nsmb.com/articles/marin-and-polygons-naild-r3act-suspension-system/

The handful of reviews I read were all pretty positive about the ride, also positive that the bike looked bizarre. But the bikes just evaporated from the media.

I think it just never caught on in the market.

Can't say I'm surprised. I actually rode that Marin Wolfridge tester a few times and to me it felt like it sacrificed a lot of things to try to solve a problem that didn't really exist for me.

I did notice increased climbing traction but in the big picture it was not really significant. I'd say the steeper seat tube angles we now have make a much bigger positive impact on climbing, not to mention the fitness and skill of the rider.

At the same time the bike had polarizing looks, no place for a water bottle, and that bulky downtube/bottom bracket section (that gives it the profile of an e-bike) got hung up on features sometimes. The planted suspension also didn't exactly make the bike feel poppy.

I like it when bike companies try something different but bottom line I don't think this idea made enough of a difference.

yeah i think people wana buy a bike that looks like their buddies bike

try owning a cannondale with a lefty if you wana feel like the antichrist,

Ugly.

I would think it was hard to sell one based on that alone.

there ya go ^^ ugly

about my Cdale people would say  no right fork leg to which I would deadpan reply

yer right ,fuck I wonder where it went ?

that bike took me 2 years to sell at the bike swap

Posted by: XXX_er

yeah i think people wana buy a bike that looks like their buddies bike

try owning a cannondale with a lefty if you wana feel like the antichrist,

Now that is funny. Polaraizing looks to be sure. To a large extent a bike has to look right. Doesn’t matter if it works better or not it must have the look I suppose. I’ve never even seen one in the flesh let alone ride one. Being a short guy steep seat tube angles do nothing for me and I don’t use lockouts ever so I thought the bike sounded like I would like it.

If the reviews had been more positive in terms of ride experience vs. my preferences I would have given one a shot. But, I'm someone who had a couple Rohloffs, cargo bikes, a fat bike, Mudhugger fenders, Bike Friday folding bikes and a Hammerschmidt. So I am happy to check out some goofy bike nerdery without worrying about looks or what people think. As I read the reviews they sounded reasonable in general terms, but not really all that well aligned with what I was after.

Posted by: andy-eunson

Posted by: XXX_er

yeah i think people wana buy a bike that looks like their buddies bike

try owning a cannondale with a lefty if you wana feel like the antichrist,

Now that is funny. Polaraizing looks to be sure. To a large extent a bike has to look right. Doesn’t matter if it works better or not it must have the look I suppose. I’ve never even seen one in the flesh let alone ride one. Being a short guy steep seat tube angles do nothing for me and I don’t use lockouts ever so I thought the bike sounded like I would like it.

Prophet with a Lefty max 140mm with SPV, they gave the owner a card with all the setup specs depending on your weight and it was spot-on

it was the most dialed ride at 04 interbike compared to most of the suspension setups on other brands that were shit by the time they got to interbike after demo's or whatever they did to them, I remember riding the 1st reign with a shitty fork that was puking itself all over bootleg canyon

Lefty actualy worked flawlessly for a lot of years, the only issue was that some body had forgot to torque the strut bolts on the triple clamp

so they loosened off twice, the specifyed 15lbs with a tork wrench and all was good

It seems they were overshadowed by high pivot bikes as the "new thing in suspension".

I like weird and different and I though those bikes were kind of cool.

I was close to buying one, but I got a smoking deal on my Yeti.

I was going to put my Trust Shout fork on the front and probably usher in the ugly-apocalypse.

Posted by: kavurider

I like weird and different and I though those bikes were kind of cool.

I was close to buying one, but I got a smoking deal on my Yeti.

I was going to put my Trust Shout fork on the front and probably usher in the ugly-apocalypse.

That would have been QUITE the spectacle! Praying Mantis front end with shitting-dog rear end.

Those Trust forks are another product I would have tried if the reviews sounded better. I'm happy to give an innovative product a shot, but I am over my bike nerd beta testing phase of life.

Not much hurts more than shelling out premium dollars for a barely functioning barely reliable thing.

Posted by: Vikb

Those Trust forks are another product I would have tried if the reviews sounded better. I'm happy to give an innovative product a shot, but I am over my bike nerd beta testing phase of life.

In my opinion all the big problems with MTBs have been solved for a while already: geometry, suspension, drivetrains, tires, dropper posts, you name it. Any "innovation" is now either only a marginal improvement over an existing solution or something new but mostly unnecessary designed to lift the top end price level of the market (electronic shifting etc.) and lure in consumers looking to spend no matter what.

I've mostly lost interest in new bike tech developments and just focus on enjoying my rides.