Jamis has released a new full suspension bike 29er trail bike. The Faultline features 115mm of rear suspension and a 130mm up front. The rear suspension is driven by a rocker driven single pivot system. This suspension setup is simpler than Jamis’ more complex 3VO system. While simpler, single pivot designs can still be very effective when engineered well, as Kona, Marin and others have proven.
With this simpler suspension, the Jamis Faultline is targeted a cost conscience buyer. The base Faultline A2 has a $1,749 MSRP and the upgraded A1 comes in at $2,199. This puts it in direct competition with bikes like the Marin Rift Zone and Norco Fluid FS.
Builds
As with any full suspension bike in this price range, the build kit of the Faultline A2 is a set of compromises. Front suspension is handled by a budget SR Suntour XCR 34 fork. The rear suspension, however, is a Rock Shox Deluxe Select R which is a pretty good mid-range shock. Drivetrain is 10 speed Shimano Deore and the brakes are also Shimano MT200 hydraulic disk brakes with 180mm front and 160mm rear rotors.
The build is rounded out with WTB rims laced to formula hubs and WTB Vigilante 29 x 2.35” front tire and Trail Boss 29 x 2.25” rear tire. The rear wheel is a full boost 12x148mm through axle wheel. This is an area where we have noticed that some bike makers cut corners. The bike also comes equipped with KS dropper post out of the box.
The A1 build at $2199 makes a number of upgrades. The rear shock is the RL model adding a lockout and the fork is upgraded to a Rock Shox 35 Gold RL. Drivetrain duties are taken over by SRAM SX Eagle 12 speed and the brakes get a slight bump to the Shimano MT401 series.
Geometry
We haven’t had a chance to ride a Faultline yet, but by the numbers it looks like this may be a bit more of a conservative bike. With a relatively 67.5 degree head tube angle and conservative reach and wheelbase numbers I would expect the Faultline to feel a bit more upright and sensitive to bar input. The seat angle is reported at 74.5 degrees which is not very steep.
Chainstays are 445mm which is a bit on the longer side. For comparison a Marin Rift Zone’s chainstays are 425mm and the head angle is a full 2 degrees slacker at 65.5 degrees.
Conclusion
On paper the Faultline looks like a bike that someone who likes a more “old school” feel would enjoy. If you’d like to check out the Jamis Faultline in more detail head over to: https://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/faultline-a1.html
