Cube Stereo 140 HPA PRO 27.5 – First Look
Cube undoubtedly have a huge range of bikes, so we thought we should take a look at their latest offering – the Stereo 140.
The Cube Stereo has been a very popular bike in it’s different guises for a little while now. This Stereo 140 is their latest addition to the range and is aimed at the do-it-all area of the market. We took it for a ride through the old quarries around North Wales.
Frame spec (based on 20″ model):
Wheelbase – 1171mm, Seat Tube angle – 74.5, Head Tube angle – 67.5, Head Tube length – 130mm, Chainstay length – 435mm, Reach – 444mm, Top Tube – 608mm.
Major component spec:
Fork – Rock Shox Pike RC Solo Air 150mm, Shock – Fox Float CTD, Bar/Stem – Race Face, Groupset – SRAM XO/X9, Wheelset – Sun Ringle Radium 27.5″, Seat Post – Rock Shox Reverb Stealth 31.6mm 125mm adjustment.
The neat lines of this frame are thanks to the elaborately hydroformed triple butted tube set. Add to this the internal cable routing for a clean and neat finished look. The HPA in the name refers to the metal in the frame, High Performance Aluminum, with brilliant strength to weight ratio and the ability to form the shapes you see in this frame.
As a more gravity focused rider, the first thing I noticed about this bike was the rider position. At 67.5 degrees the head angle feels quite steep and this is noticeable on steep or technical descents. Combine that with the narrow bars (740mm) and a longer than I’m used to stem, it feels that this bike is aimed slightly more towards the XC market than anything more descent based. Having said that, it is still very capable and fun when pointed downhill.
Being used predominantly to Downhill orientated bikes is probably why this bike, while still feeling fun and capable, feels a little nervous when things get tech. More my fault than the bike to a certain extent. After some more time on this I expect I’ll get used to the angles and find out what it can really do.
Pics – Tom Laws and Jerry Clelford
http://www.cube.eu/uk/cube-bikes/
