My Raaw Jibb

Rider: Andrew Baird

Height: 5’ 8”

Weight: 67kg

Bike Size: Medium 

Suspension settings and pressure

• Fork - Rockshox Zeb Charger 3.1. 4 clicks of HBO from fully open. LSC open, HSC open, Rebound 11 from open. 
• Shock - Rockshox Vivid Air RC2T, with 220 PSI, low speed 1 click from open, high speed fully open, HBO 1 click from open. 

Why I Chose the Raaw Jibb

This is my second short-travel bike, the first being a Nukeproof Reactor. I really like how this bike sits higher in its travel and has more pop compared to a long-travel enduro machine. The mullet setup suits my riding style perfectly, and the 141mm rear travel paired with the Vivid shock feels bottomless, handling almost all types of terrain with ease. I also prefer alloy over carbon. There’s something about Raaw’s welds that is truly a thing of beauty. 

The bike's geometry feels spot on to me, and I never feel perched on top of it.

External cable routing, although not to everyone’s taste, is a big plus in my books, making maintenance that bit easier. And my bike builder (Biketart's Shannon) definitely appreciated it!

Frame Geometry & Build Setup 

I appreciate the quality of the Raaw frame and the option to lengthen the wheelbase with the flip chips, as well as increase the reach using reach adjuster cups with the EX49 headset.

The bearings are nearly all the same, and the oversized main pivot adds durability, so there shouldn’t be any issues when riding mostly in wet and muddy conditions. I opted for the non-UDH swingarm so I could adjust the wheelbase to suit my preference. This feature is not on the UDH swingarm 

Components Overview 

Here's a breakdown of how I built up the frame.

Bars and Stem: Brand- X 31.6 (20mm rise), with Burgtec Enduro MK3 50mm. 

Dropper Post: One Up V2 170mm - While the V3 offers smoother operation, the big selling point for the V2 is how repairable it is. I don't see it dying any time soon! You can find the OneUp V3 Dropper Seatpost here.

Saddle: Nukeproof Horizon. This was the go to on all of my bikes, incorporating a comfy pedal platform, but enough padding that you're not 'wallowing' when pedalling. I'm not sure what I'll go for when it wears out but I'll cross that bridge when I get to it. 

Headset: Hope ZS49 top and bottom or a Hope top 4 and Hope bottom D if you are reading the technical guide.

Grips: Peatys Monarch Grips. They haven't been around super long but the feel is great and the compound works super well in the constant Irish rain.

Fork: Rockshoz Zeb Ultimate Charger 3.1 160mm. A big fork, it compliments the frame really well giving the bike a 'ride in to the chunder' feel where you never really feel under biked. It does take away some of the pop from the bike and add a chunk of weight but it suits the way I ride.

Shock: Rockshox Vivid Air RC2T. I’m more of a 'set and forget' person. I set the fork pressure and had to increase the pressure in the Vivid somewhat to suit my weight. After that, the suspension felt really good. I’m quite light on the bike, so the Vivid works well for me, as it’s quite sensitive.

Drivetrain: Shimano XT 165mm paired with a Hope BB, XT rear mech. You can find the upgrade kits here. There's been a lot of new drivetrain stuff out there from Sram but for cost and performance I'll always go for Shimano XT.

Brakes: Shimano XT M8120,  Shimano are my go-to as I’ve been using Shimano brakes forever and just get on with them. I moved from a 4-pot front and 2-pot rear to both brakes being 4-pot. I can’t say I noticed much of a difference, but there you go.

Wheels: Hope Fortus 30 wheels with Pro5 hubs. I love the engagement and they're super easy to take care of.

Tyres: Continental Kryptotal tyres Front and Rear. 2.4" Enduro casing, soft compound. These are front and rear specific and are coping with the mixed conditions really well.

Pedals: DMR Vault. My go to pedal for a long time, it's never given me reason to doubt it. Great grip, good size and a nice slim body to help reduce those pedal strikes.

A bash guard: After I broke a chain and bent a chainring in the first few days it was a must. I've put an old Nukeproof one on there but I'd normally recommend the OneUp ISCG05 Underbash Guard.