CANE CREEK DB KITSUMA AIR SHOCK
£724.99 www.extrauk.co.uk
The Kitsuma continues Cane Creek’s commitment to their DB (Double Barrel) technology, which delivers four-way external damping adjustment via two internal tubes housing independent compression and rebound circuits. What’s new here is that the adjustment is tool-free, so you no longer need to fiddle around with multiple Allen keys to alter your settings. The dials are all within easy reach, too, above the piggyback reservoir.
Cane Creek claim the shock should work on most bikes without the need for any internal tuning to make it compatible with your frame, due to the wide range of external adjustment. The dials are indexed, but their limited rotation (one full turn for the low-speed circuits, two for high-speed) means you can check your settings at a glance, based on their positions. Soft/firm and fast/slow labels provide simple guidance.
Internally, the shaft diameter is wider (9.5mm) to increase lateral stiffness. There’s also a new polished and ported main piston for better responsiveness, a monoblock oil seal head and larger shaft rings for improved durability and alignment, plus a more progressive bottom-out bumper.
We ran the high-speed compression and low-speed rebound fully open on our test bike, but settled on 11 out of 14 clicks of high-speed rebound. That leaves enough adjustment for lighter riders to get a sufficiently fast rebound speed. With the low-speed compression, we switched between fully open and seven of 11 clicks (from closed) depending on the trail. Being able to change the settings on the fly was welcome when riding high-speed flow trails, where we could dial in a bit more support, or steep tech trails, where we could open things up for extra traction.
The rebound can be set fast enough so the suspension can recover between repeated bumps, stopping the shock from packing down and feeling harsh, and allowing you to use your bike’s travel effectively. It gave our test machine a lively yet supple feel, and helped smooth out the trail. The compression damping was light enough for us that the Kitsuma Air tracked the ground well and delivered plenty of grip, but smaller riders may find it harsh. It comes alive when ridden hard, rather than cruising.
Spring progression is good and can be tailored with volume bands. Another pro is the three-position climb switch. The ‘Descend’ mode maintains your open settings, ‘CS’ is great for undulating terrain and chunky climbs, and the ‘firm’ mode almost locks out the shock.
Overall, the Kitsuma Air is impressive, but the high-speed dials are stiff to turn, and if you’re a fit-and-forget rider, then all this adjustability might not be important to you. Luke
A high-performance shock that tracks the ground well and will please the tech-tweakers