Singletrack/MTB
Gravel/All-road
Dirt-road Touring
Fat-bike
In case you missed it over the weekend, one of our favorite bikes from last year got a facelift with 29×2.6 tires, new colors, and three new build specs…
Released just about a year ago, the Deadwood SUS was without a doubt one of my favorite bikes of 2017 (read the full review here). The only reason it didn’t make our Gear of The Year list was because the Timberjack Ti edged it out. Either way I was happy to see it amongst Salsa’s revamped line if Split Pivot bikes released at Frost Bike.
Like its predecessor, the Deadwood features an excellent short-travel suspension design that when paired with meaty wide trail 29er tires makes a fantastic trail bike and a sure-footed bikepacking rig. The latest Deadwood comes in three flavors. Each has 120mm of front suspension, 91mm in the rear, and room for 29×3.0″ tires. And all three are specced with Maxxis Recon 29×2.6″ tires, a departure from last year’s model which came with 3.0″ Ranger Plus tires. Having grown quite fond of this relatively new standard, I am stoked to see Salsa embrace 2.6″ tires on the Deadwood. Here are some details on each model:
Salsa Deadwood Carbon GX
The top of the line Salsa Deadwood Carbon GX comes in a funky lemon-lime color with a Rock Shox Pike RC fork and a Monarch RT3 shock. It also features DT Swiss 350 hubs, SunRingle Duroc 40 rims, a Reverb Stealth dropper seatpost, Guide R brakes with 180mm rotors, and a SRAM Eagle GX drivetrain. The GX has a claimed weight of 30lbs 10oz (13.9kg) for the medium and retails for $5099 complete. While the price is nothing to blink at, note that it’s about $900 cheaper than last year’s high end Deadwood SUS.
Salsa Deadwood Carbon SLX
The Carbon SLX model features a Shimano SLX derailleur and shifter with a Sunrace 11-46t cassette, Race Face Aeffect cranks (30t), Deore brakes, and a KS LEV i30 dropper post. It has a Revelation RC fork and the same shock as the GX model. Salsa gives it a claimed weight at 31lbs 6oz (14.2kg) for a medium and it retails for $4099.
Salsa Deadwood NX
The alloy model has a Recon RL fork, a SRAM NX 1×11 drivetrain and SRAM Level brakes for $2799 and weighs 34lbs 3oz (15.5kg) for a large.
Check out this Salsa blog post more information on the new Deadwood as well as similar revamps to the Pony Rustler and Red Point.
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