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EB13: All-New Orbea Alma Hardtail Mountain Bike – Sleeker, Lighter & New Wheel Sizes!

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2014 Orbea Alma hardtail mountain bike in 650B and 29er

The Alma has always been a very special bike for Orbea. It was their first carbon mountain bike, the first mass production carbon 29er anywhere and it’s been raced successfully at the highest level of competition.

Now, it gets a complete revamp to become lighter, faster and more comfortable. After talking to current owners and other riders to see what they’d improve, the designers went to work. In addition to the changes above, their external cable guides were thankfully on the list, too. (The guides were unique, but ended up being more hassle than necessary and sometimes rubbed the wrong spots. Check our review here).

The result is something that’s instantly recognizable as an Orbea, but is much sleeker and modern…

2014 Orbea Alma hardtail mountain bike in 650B and 29er

Much of the visual improvement comes from thinner seatstays and top tube, internal cable routing and subtler tube angles.

2014 Orbea Alma hardtail mountain bike in 650B and 29er

It’s a monocoque construction where the entire front triangle is constructed as one with the seatstays. Each chainstay is its own part, making just three pieces to create the whole.

The new tube shapes and layup give it a whopping 211% improvement (claimed) in vertical compliance. On impact, the rider’s weight will cause the seat tube to flex, using the top tube junction as the “pivot” point. That couples with a fair amount of vertical flex from the back of the top tube all the way through the chainstays. Meanwhile, lateral frame stiffness improved by 15%, making pedaling feel more direct.

It sticks with the QR rear axle they said among concerns and desires from customers, lightweight and speedy wheel changes were more important. And it didn’t need extra stiffness. Actually, they say they reduced rear end stiffness during testing different prototypes because things were getting too stiff.

2014 Orbea Alma hardtail mountain bike in 650B and 29er

Cable routing uses sealed cable liners throughout, which keeps things clean and smooth, but without the added weight of full length housing. In fact, they say this system saves 50-60 grams versus full length housing.

2014 Orbea Alma hardtail mountain bike in 650B and 29er

The result is a claimed 990g frame for small.

The other part of the equation is sizing. The overall dimensions are essentially unchanged from the prior 29er. But, their shorter sponsored riders asked for 650B, so they tested it and liked it. For 2014, the Alma will come with 650B wheels for the Small and Medium (17.5″) frame, and 29er wheels for the Medium, Large and XL. Yes, there’s overlap at the Medium frame size, giving those riders a choice.

2014 Orbea Alma hardtail mountain bike in 650B and 29er

The top level build is shown above and gets the new FSA cockpit parts with their Di2 internal battery clip…which is put to use with said power source to fuel the Fox iCD electronic lockout:

2014 Orbea Alma hardtail mountain bike in 650B and 29er

Full model run down and spec list should be live on Orbea’s website now.

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Fragglepussthechaste
Fragglepussthechaste
10 years ago

I think Orbea’s done it right with their sizing here. Rather than jumping out and claiming something an engineer might have created in a computer model, it seems like they’re using common sense with this model in regards to offering different wheel sizes for different sized riders. Two thumbs up.

Joshua Murdock
10 years ago

Not to mention, the graphic designers hit the mark on this one! Colorful and not too flashy or gaudy. I really like this.

Brattercakes
Brattercakes
10 years ago

Fragglepussthechaste I agree. Well done, Orbea! They look great.

Eric@505
Eric@505
10 years ago

Now THAT is style. Bueno trabajo, Orbea!

Johan
10 years ago

I think small riders also need 29er wheels, so do not agree with sizing options, pity, it looks great.

Mindless
Mindless
10 years ago

And no marketing drivel a-la Niner. Halleluiah.

efukt
efukt
10 years ago

sexy bike

ThinkAGAIN
ThinkAGAIN
10 years ago

I also agree that this kind of fitting the way to go… Now let’s see how long does it take for other companies to start copying such a bike fitting model…

EM2
EM2
10 years ago

reduced rear end stiffness but lateral frame stiffness improved by 15% ?
and 211% improvement in vertical compliance ?
go home marketing you’re drunk

xcgeek
10 years ago

the majority of small frame go’ers will want a 27.5 – awesome move. graphics are looking killer too. i would have liked to see a thru-axle in the back, especially if all of those percentage claims are true for the reason of less lateral deflection. the old version rocked, i can only image a leaner meaner feel from this guy. awesome.

DB4L
DB4L
10 years ago

I don’t see how limiting a rider’s choice to tire size is the right direction.

Andrew
Andrew
10 years ago

Super thin seat stays for lots of vertical compliance, and no thru axle required for stiffness. One can only assume the Chain stays are pretty much the most solid thing that has ever been made out of carbon. That’s a good thing.

lfr
lfr
10 years ago

sigh. I would take a small at 29, but I already have a 29er duallie and don’t want to have to deal with yet another wheel size. Sorry Orbea, that’s a fail, at least for this small rider.

rico
rico
10 years ago

Nice frame. Both road and mtn orbea have nice design this season.

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