MERIDA ONE-FORTY 10K
Merida’s top-tier all-rounder’s a monster truck on paper but a hot rod on the trails
If first impressions are anything to go by, Merida’s latest logically-named One-forty trail bike looks like the kind of do-it-all rig you’d expect from a mainstream brand, with a well-finished, smooth-lined carbon frame and fancy big-name kit. Dig a little deeper though, and Merida’s latest creation kicks any conservative ideas to touch faster than you can say ‘Rishi Sunak’. With real attitude and some of the most radical trail bike geometry around, the new One-forty is seriously cutting-edge.
While most brands have scaled back the leaps in frame length that have revolutionised sizing over the last decade, Merida has gone full throttle. The mid (medium) bike here has a 480mm reach and a near-vertical 80° effective seat angle, which we’ll get to in just a minute. It’s so long in fact, that the 535mm reach on the X-long frame frame puts it neck-a-neck with an XL Geometron – one of the pioneers of the longer frame philosophy.
Merida’s new ‘Agilometer’ tailoring system goes on frame length rather than seat tube height, so all five sizes come with very low seat tubes and stacks of standover clearance. This leaves tons of room for the rider to be dynamic on the bike and lowers the centre of gravity.
But let’s get back to the 80° effective seat tube angle. It sounds crazy steep, right? That’s because Merida measures it with a saddle height level with the top of the head tube, not very useful for seated pedalling. Raise the saddle to something normal, say 740mm, and the effective seat tube angle decreases to 78° or thereabouts. Which is spot on.
Choosing your optimum saddle height isn’t an issue either, thanks to Merida’s clever adjustable dropper post with a maximum 230mm of drop. Bigger frames also get a different suspension tune with more damping and support for heavier riders that typically opt for longer sizes.
Now, part of the explanation for the progressive geometry on the One-forty is that it shares its frame with the new One-sixty enduro bike. By fitting a shorter-stroke (57.5mm) shock (rather than 65mm), travel is limited to 143mm. It also gets a shorter-travel 150mm fork, which steepens the angles, drops the BB and increases the reach over the Onesixty. To compensate for the steeper seat tube angle, Merida fits a 10mm lay-back head on the dropper post. Yes, it seems to have thought of everything.
The full carbon frame employs flex stays to replace the seatstay pivots, where Merida’s hardware is super-clean. There’s also a flip-chip to convert to a smaller-wheeled mullet set-up, that adds 10mm more rear travel (which I didn’t try). Factor in the skinny internal storage area accessed from the bottom of the (threaded) BB shell, where you can fit a tool roll and pump, and Merida has ticked all the boxes. However, the storage is not really big by SWAT standards, so don’t expect to stash a jacket and lunch inside the frame.
Another key difference between the One-sixty and the One-forty is that the latter comes as a full 29er, with parts more suited to trail riding to differentiate it and save some weight. It also packs a finish to justify the special-edition tag, with a stunning metallic green chameleon paint job.
All of the bling finishing kit here adds up to an eight grand price tag, but compared to many carbon rivals, Merida’s value is still decent considering it’s dripping with top-tier kit. Fox suspension is Factory level at both ends, with a 150mm-travel Float 36 fork with its best-in-class four-way adjustable GRIP2 damper. You don’t get the same degree of adjustment with the inline Float DPS shock, but again it helps differentiate the One-forty from the One-sixty.
Merida has nailed the rubber too, with a Maxxis EXO front in a wide/grippy
£8,000 • 29in • merida-bikes.com