JAMES’S FOCUS JAM 6.9
MONTH 8: Coil or Air? James answers the age old question… or does he?
£3,199 / 29in / focus-bikes.com
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I’ve been going down a rabbit hole this month trying to tweak the Jam to fit in a little more with my current style of riding and favourite trails. Last month, I mentioned that I was contemplating swapping out the Fox DPS for a coil shock. A couple of emails to the guys at Silverfish/fox UK and a new Factory DHX2 found its way into my hands. But as the law of Sod dictates, could I find my bushing tool to swap the hardware over? Of course not. Luckily my local bike shop, Bikeshredz in Caerphilly, saved the day and did the job for me. Thanks guys.
I want to say that swapping to the Fox Factory DHX2 coil shock has been a revelation and that it has cured all the niggles I have had with the Jam. But, I’ll be honest, I’m still not sure it’s the right way to go. Do I need to spend more time testing and setting up the DHX2 with its multiple adjusters? Totally. What I can say is that it has made a marked improvement to how planted the bike feels on stuttery trails when ridden fast (the kind with lots of roots and rocks). It’s not quite as lively or as poppy as the DPS but it’s way more composed – a trait I’m more than happy to find in a bike for South Wales. How much of that is due to the coil spring or the four-way adjustable damping is hard to say.
While out testing the shock at Cwmcarn, I managed to lose the chainstay protector while riding through a metric tonne of tree branches downed by Storm Eunice. I only noticed it as I thought the derailleur was broken owing to the very noticeable increase in chain slap. It’s amazing how modern chainstay protectors do such a good job of creating a silent bike. I’ll try to source a replacement asap from my local Focus dealer.
WHY IT’S HERE The new Jam promises to connect you with your inner child