ED’S YT JEFFSY CORE 3 29 £3,749 + P&P

He’s had a lot of fun aboard the Jeffsy, but for Ed, the geometry doesn’t quite hit the spot

While I wouldn’t say it’s the perfect bike for me, my time aboard the Jeffsy has certainly been a positive one. Having a rig that’s light (at least compared to my previous longtermers) and goes fast both up and down hill has made longer rides and hacks about in the woods equally fun. It’s not a bad pedaller, but with some noticeable bob when you push hard, a bit more support wouldn’t go amiss. The Fox DPX2 Performance shock has pedal-platform and lockout settings that help offset this – if only I could remember to toggle them off again before descents!

The flipside of the active suspension is that I’ve always found the rear end to be really supple and sensitive, even under braking. It copes with big hits robustly, too, considering there’s only 150mm of travel. This is matched admirably by the Fox 36 Performance Elite fork, which is just one part of an altogether well-chosen build kit.

I have no complaints about the DT Swiss M 1900 Spline wheels, which remained solid all year, nor the SRAM G2 R brakes and GX Eagle drivetrain, which never skipped a beat. The YT Postman dropper worked well and I only switched it for a BikeYoke REVIVE as I wanted more travel. My only spec-related gripe is the hard dualcompound Maxxis Minion DHR II front tyre. I’m a big fan of the tread pattern, but traction and confidence would certainly be improved by some softer 3C MaxxGrip or MaxxTerra rubber.

This brings me to my one big complaint about the bike, and that’s the 66/66.5-degree head angle.

I just think this is too conservative for hardcore trail riding. Fitting offset hardware in both ends of the shock slackened this out by two degrees, improving things greatly, but it’d be good if this DIY adjustment wasn’t required. It’s really only this, and the fact that I should perhaps have gone for a bigger size, that, for me, meant the Jeffsy didn’t quite live up to its potential, and prevents me from wanting to part with my hard-earned for it. www.yt-industries.com