Ican S3 XC Frame

[marcocpl]

Woooo!

My S3 arrived today, 8 business days after payment. I've had a good look over it, there is a small chip (<0.5mm) in the paint on the chainstay, and paint around the linkage bolts is a little rough in a couple of places, but it's no worse than the paint quality that my Specialized Enduro had when I first got it.

My components will be
Microshift Advent X 10 speed 11-48t drivetrain
Shimano SLX 170mm cranks
Magura Trail Sport brakes 180/160 Magura discs
Truvativ carbon bars
DT XM401 rear wheel Formula hub
Merida front wheel
Revelation 120mm Fork
Monarch 165x38 shock

I was going to use my Reverb dropper but I wrongly thought it was a 31.6, it's a 30.9 so I'll need to get a dropper now. Will probably get a One Up 150mm.

It was too late to take any decent photos when I got home, I'll endeavour to have some up on Friday.

Interesting, the website spec says it's uses a 31.6mm seatpost. How's your riding impression of the bike? I also paid for a black frame after seeing yours. Your posts have been very helpful!

[Ben78]

Sorry, I may have not been clear enough.

My Merida Ninety Six takes a 31.6 seatpost
My Ican S3 takes a 31.6 seatpost

The reverb I have that I removed from my Merida is a 30.9 seatpost
I bought a Bontrager Line 150mm 31.6 seatpost instead

[Hayek]

I’m new here and this is my first post, but I just received my ICAN S3 frame. Frame looks great, good grease in the bearings, and just overall nice finish. One thing I’m missing though is any spec on the shock mounting hardware. I can’t find what dimensions are needed anywhere on their site. Anyone know? I apologize in advance if this is an ignorant question.

[Marcell96]

@Hayek: I got this information from ICAN support and a picture:
"Trunnion mount: 8*30mm/54*M10 screw or 54*30mm."
As long as you fit a trunnion mount shock you shouldn't need any other hardware.
Too bad those shocks start at like 400 usd.

@Ben78: Can you post a picture of your diy trunnion to standard mount adapter? I believe it needs to be a threaded bushing?
Aren't you afraid it will bend or that the carbon frame around the mounting hole will chip if the adapter flexes?

Also you can also get the S3 in black for 840 USD (shipped tax-free to EU).

[vw155]

Take a look at the Conor WRC DARK. Conor specifies the bike with a 165x45:

https://www.conorbikes.com/es-es/wrcdark21/wrc-dark-29er-carbon-xt-negro-md-.110505ngmd?returnurl=%2fes-es%2fwrcdark21%2f

[Ben78]

Take a look at the Conor WRC DARK. Conor specifies the bike with a 165x45:

https://www.conorbikes.com/es-es/wrcdark21/wrc-dark-29er-carbon-xt-negro-md-.110505ngmd?returnurl=%2fes-es%2fwrcdark21%2f

Interesting that they list the bike as 100mm travel with the 165x45 too, wonder if that is a typo..

[vw155]

Pictures from Conor Website...
I think I'll try a 165 x 45 mm SidLuxe...

[RobertRinAustin]

Pictures from Conor Website...
I think I'll try a 165 x 45 mm SidLuxe...

I think that's one of the best things about going with a Chiner, figuring out what is possible.

[Julian]

For the linkage nerds among you (who haven't done it themselves yet), I've done some analyzing of the S3 diagram using Linkage X3.

Firstly, two purely subjective design aspects I don't like about the S3 when compared to the FM936:
- They had to redesign the rocker arm, due to the horst link rear giving more travel. To counter that, they moved the top shock mount further away from the seatstay, lowering the leverage ratio. The new rocker arm looks a bit dull to me.
- The angle of the seatstays does not allign with the angle of the top tube. That's something I love about the FM936 design. The S3 looks a bit more old school there in my opinion.

Now, moving on to the objektive stuff:
- The leverage ratio looks good, fairly progressive for an XC frame (around 11% from SAG). Also, the software confirms what has been said before: 40mm shock = 100mm of travel, 45mm shock = 112mm of travel.
- Anti squat is relatively high, so a bigger chainring is recommended to not increase it any further. A 34t should be okay, while a 32t will already give way too high anti squat at SAG, which may result in a lot of pedal bob. Pedaling technique also plays a role of course. But generally, 100% anti squat at SAG is preferable.

And here some screenshots. Enjoy

[Ben78]

Very interesting.

I have around 100km on mine now, with a decent 30km single effort in that. Keep in mind I have a 165x38 shock currently. 32t chain ring, 11-48 cassette. I weigh 76kg and have 185psi in the shock.

I feel like the bike pedals like a classic XC bike, very little pedal bob and direct power transmission. On the descents though it turns into a trail bike - nothing at all like my previous bike, a Merida Ninety Six, which stayed in the "feels like a hardtail" mode when pointed downhill. Not only that, but the suspension has an almost bottomless feel to it, although I have bottomed it out a couple of times, mostly casing the biggest jump in my park, a 7m tabletop. After the 30km ride I wasn't sore and tired as I would have been on the old XC. I suspect that this new geo xc bikes will become very popular with the marathon crowd.

[carbonazza]

...Pedaling technique also plays a role of course...

Do you meaning pedaling more in circle than like two pistons ?
My FM936 is bobling just a little, but definitely not enough for me to add a remote lock on the bar.
One of my friend, can't stand it and is scouting the whole internet to find a remote.

[Julian]

Do you meaning pedaling more in circle than like two pistons ?

That's part of it, yes. But I'm no physicist either, so as a quick disclaimer, I'll say that my "knowledge" consists of stuff I read and observations I made

When it comes to anti squat, I think it's safe to say that there's no "holy grail number" for everyone. If you think of 100% anti squat being a perfect equilibrium between inertia forces compressing and chain pull extending the rear end, then countless other factors need to be considered. I guess rider weight alone would't really matter, since a heavier rider has to push harder (and therefore create stronger chain pull) to accelerate a certain amount. The higher inertia force would be countered by the stronger chain pull. The center of gravity however definitely plays a role, and it may be something I haven't considered enough when giving you these anti squat values. Riders with longer legs will have a higher center of gravity, which leads to less anti squat. So I guess my diagrams aren't that helpfull afterall

But as you said, the "roundness" of your pedaling will have an impact for sure. Then there's upper body movement, for example bringing the soulders down with every pedal push. Also, some people tend to sit slightly too high and start moving their hips when pedaling. And I personally experienced how even your upper body tension and how tightly you grip the handlebars make a difference.

So I guess it's generally hard to say what or who to fault when you have pedal bob. I'd start by trying to find out if the suspension compresses (anti squat too low) or extends (anti suqat too high) with every push on the pedals. Then you could try countering that with changing your pedaling technique, body tension and/or chain ring size.

[carbonazza]

It make sense, the right anti squat is a moving target.
I never considered moving the body to help, and will experiment with this.
Thank you for the hint.

[Ben78]

It's in Spanish, but review of Conor WRC Dark using the Ican S3 frame is here -

[Zoc]

i ordered one for my bmc fourstroke on
mantel.com

https://www.schaltauge.de/
this site also has a huge offer