NS FUZZ 1
£4,099 Race-ready DH demon you might not have considered
NS’s Fuzz downhill bike has flown under many people’s radar, but it’s been quietly notching up impressive results at some seriously challenging races over the past couple of years.
The frame A flip chip at the rear axle lets you adjust the chainstay length between 427mm and 442mm (which is still slightly shorter than on the 2017 frame). NS also o er the ability to adjust the reach, using o set headset cups, available in +8mm, 0mm and -8mm options. With the stays and reach at their longest, our medium test bike had a 1,270mm wheelbase. The head angle has also been slackened by a degree for 2018. Once we’d set our preferred bar height and pushed the fork stanchions through the crowns a little, ours sat at a superslack 62 degrees.
The Fox DHX2 rear shock pierces the seat tube and is compressed between an upper rocker link and the chainstays. In the longest setting, the four-bar Horst link back end dishes out 206mm of travel. While our sample came with its gear cable and rear brake hose routed internally, through the down tube, NS give you the option of keeping them external, via bolted fixtures on top of the tube.
The kit
Although our Fox shock was of the top-end ‘Factory’ variety, it should have been a second-tier ‘Performance Elite’ unit, just as the 40 fork up front is. While that shouldn’t hinder the shock’s performance, it does mean you don’t get quite as much external adjustment. The Fuzz’s finishing kit is mostly from NS and does the job nicely, though some might want some flashier bits for the price.
The ride
The Fuzz’s shape and sizing feels natural from the get-go. Even in the longest setting, it felt a lot more agile and playful than we’d expected. Although the back end slips easily into the early part of its travel, NS have designed plenty of support into the system, which lets you load, pump and pop the Fuzz without it feeling like you’re battling a bike that’s glued to the dirt. The light (16.9kg) build makes things that bit easier when you’re trying to manhandle the bike through tricky sections, too. There’s still plenty of grip on o er, though, thanks in part to the well-centred riding position and the seriously capable Schwalbe Magic Mary tyres, which work incredibly well in a wide variety of trail conditions.
In terms of suspension balance, the front and rear feel like they work in sync with one another well. Despite the front end being so slack, we had no issues keeping the wheel weighted on flatter turns. In rougher stu , chain slap became irritating, but NS say they supply a neoprene chainstay protector and additional tape with production bikes.
At high speeds, the Fuzz feels planted and stable. The back end is nicely progressive when tackling the big hits too, although on a couple of occasions, in really rocky sections, it hung up on repetitive hits and we got that distinctive rock on rim sound. This never seemed to really slow things down, though, and even after some seriously sloppy line choices, the Fuzz always felt confidenceinspiring and controlled. ROB WEAVER www.hotlines-uk.com