JIMMER’S NS SYNONYM TR2 £4,199.99
Mud, mud, inglorious mud, nothing quite like it for boiling the blood!
With so many miles under my belt this winter, I’ve been able to identify any quibbles I have with the Synonym and hone the build to suit my riding style.
First off, it’s had a complete cockpit change. Gone are the NS bar and stem. At 60mm, the latter left me feeling a little too stretched-out on what’s already a bike with a ton of reach. So I fitted a 40mm Truvativ Descendant stem, and figured I might as well save a little weight by adding a matching carbon bar, too. The shorter stem has tightened up the handling and puts me in a more central riding position, and I love the feel and shape of the 760mm bar.
I’ve also ditched the NS grips. They were comfy but also some of the longest on the market – no good for my little paws – and left scant room for the dropper lever and shock lockout. In their place, I’ve fitted some PNW Components Loam grips. At 133.5mm long, these take up 14.5mm less bar room, allowing me to space the dropper remote far enough from the shock lever to avoid accidental actuation.
Talking of droppers, I’ve replaced the stock X-Fusion Manic post, because it was too long for me at full extension. I’ve gone for a 150mm PNW Loam dropper instead. This has a much smaller stack height and you can reduce the travel in 5mm increments, so I’ve managed to achieve a perfect fit. It was easy to install, and I like the way you can tune the return speed. PNW also do a vertical lever called the Puget, which is designed to work with a front shifter or shock remote – bang on!
The Synonym is morphing into a rad little machine. I always saw room for some tweaks to maximise its potential and everything so far has enhanced it. I’ll admit the Schwalbe Magic Mary and Big Betty tyres have taken a bit of pop out of the ride, but the grip gained is an acceptable trade-off for now. Mud clearance is an issue at the seatstays when running chunkier tyres, though. I’ve had some comedy clogging-up moments, and below the shock mount there’s a curved nook that loves to fill with mud and gunk, so I’ve ended riding with a few extra pounds of mud on some rides! www.hotlines-uk.com