1ST IMPRESSION
To help keep the weight low, On-one uses high-quality SRAM kit like the 150mm-travel Rockshox Pike Select fork. The same brand’s lightweight 12-speed Eagle drivetrain uses an alloy chainset with the oversized
DUB axle for stiffness and an X-sync II chainring to keep the chain secure. With a 12-speed GX shifter and rear mech, the shifting is smooth, solid and secure, even if a few quid is saved (and grams added) with the cheaper 11-50t cassette and SX chain. SRAM’S Guide G2 brakes are top quality at this price too, plus there’s a genuine hydraulic 175mm Rockshox Reverb dropper post with the smooth-to-push posh handlebar remote.
And it’s not just the frame that’s been updated. The first-generation Hello Dave used cheap and cheerful Alex rims and plasticky wire bead Panaracer tyres.
The bike now gets wide WTB i30 rims and folding Schwalbe Hans Dampf EVO tyres with grippy Addix Soft rubber that are leagues ahead of the original wheelset in terms of performance and quality. I’d still prefer the pointier Magic Mary tread up front, though.
HOW IT RIDES
With so much talk of radical geometry, I half-expected Hello Dave to be some kind of crazy niche-specific, Dh-only one-trick pony. In reality though, it rides like a normal bike. In fact it’s bemusing just how intuitive and familiar it handles my local trails, especially after double checking that the brand’s angles were as extreme as advertised (they are).
So, even with the front wheel kicked out well in front of the frame, steering is neutral, with little of the floppiness or lethargy you might reasonably expect. There’s a great riding position for pedalling and accelerating, in or out of the saddle, and (while I suspect it’s not even optimised for it) climbing is very nippy under power with the seat angle placing glutes and quads correctly to apply maximum muscular force through the chainset.
Dave’s bombproof remit doesn’t extend to an overly stiff or solid lump that pummels your feet over rough ground either. The steel frame is noticeably well damped, supple and smooth across smaller bumps and chops. And, in keeping with the theme of my expectations being confounded, I haven’t really noticed the longer chainstays putting excessive weight on the front tyre, except on the steepest downhills with sizeable steps or drops. Most of the time, Dave comes over as a bit of a relaxed smoothie; stable and easy to control and capable of slinking calmly down anything.
One area where you do sense the length of the chainstays is when trying to slice through tighter turns – it’s just more effort and this may well be more of a limiting factor on the smallest size too, where my guess is the weight distribution might be a bit off, with a proportionally shorter front end.
So while the rangy On-one Hello Dave is born from an anarchic, turn-itup-to-11 attitude, that stops you going out the front door on the steepest trails, it’s also way more versatile than expected. It’s a well-finished frame and combined with the high-quality spec it’s a half decent, albeit heavy-duty, mile-muncher that’s equally up for a bit of thrashing in the woods or some old-school bridleway rides. Best of all, it will keep you safe and composed at high speeds in harsh terrain for a fantastic price.
HIGHS
Smooth, supple and with plenty of do-it-all versatility. Hello Dave’s ride contradicts its radical geometry.
LOWS
The long chainstays detract from the bike’s intended speciality of excelling on the steepest, most technical downhills.