Marino 26Inch Street Frame

[Brettoll]

Decided to go for a custom frame so I could get a perfect specification and a cool paint job for a steal of a price!

Below are some pics of the initial design and some low res (until Marino gets his camera fixed/ a new camera) pics of the frame as it is at the moment!

Comments are welcome, will put the complete spec up once I get the frame and build it

Brett

Edited January 4, 2011 by Brettoll

[Ross McArthur]

Looks spot on man.

The forks should go well.

[TrialsMan Dan]

1025 seems a bit short for a 26" frame, maybe its just me being old fashioned

[Ross McArthur]

1025 seems a bit short for a 26" frame, maybe its just me being old fashioned

Eh? Hes going for a short streety bike. Like they used to be. Old fashioned???

Edited December 22, 2010 by Ross McArthur

[Brettoll]

1025 seems a bit short for a 26" frame, maybe its just me being old fashioned

Nope your not being old fashioned.... i'm being old fashioned!! I just cannot get on with the side hopping, long bikes that are about and decided to get something that was a little more street trials orientated (which is a lot more my style).

So the 1025 is ideal as you can bunny hop it yet still allow it to feel comfortable on the back wheel.

And Ross, those forks are going to look mint on it!!

[TrialsMan Dan]

Nope your not being old fashioned.... i'm being old fashioned!! I just cannot get on with the side hopping, long bikes that are about and decided to get something that was a little more street trials orientated (which is a lot more my style).

Well yes that is old fashioned but thought the thing today was to have an old skool/new skool mix on geo if you get me like something tradtional but with wb more like 1030 or 1040 and a bit more lift on the bb

[Ali C]

not a fan on the geo (I would have gone shorter backend, higher bb and steeper headangle to give a snappier ride) but the shape of the frame is spot on! Perfect dimensions and tubing diameter, colour is pretty cool too.

[bikeperson45]

I've always hated Marinos because of the thin tubing but that looks awesome

[Ross McArthur]

Well yes that is old fashioned but thought the thing today was to have an old skool/new skool mix on geo if you get me like something tradtional but with wb more like 1030 or 1040 and a bit more lift on the bb

Who ever cared about "the thing"? Just because new expensive Alu frames out there have a few more mm on the bb height, doesn’t mean its thee thing to do.

Not having a go Dan, just saying.

I do agree that the back end could have been shorter though.

[Brettoll]

The whole point of going custom is you want to avoid following the crowd and an off the shelf frame set up.

Im 50/50 about having a really short rear end.....I used to enjoy riding things like the planet x Mk5 which was a little similar to this (infact 10mm longer at the rear) as it was manual-able and street enough without sacrificing some pure trials moves.

I guess the proof in the pudding is actually building the thing when it arrives and seeing whether I was right or wrong with this geo. So watch out Reading!

[Ali C]

that geo will manual and bunnyhop fine, but it won't be amazing for spins if they are your thing.

[saunders]

That is really nice!

Personally the geometries aren't exactly my cup of tea but they are not far off what i would have gone for, maybe a few minor tweeks but nothing major, but then its not my custom bike. lol

Hope you enjoy it, it looks awesome!!

that geo will manual and bunnyhop fine, but it won't be amazing for spins if they are your thing.

Not sure i agree, my planet X mk5 spins like a beauty on the front and back wheel! although saying that I think the planet x has a 74degree head tube. Guess it is all down to personal preference, riding style etc.

[Ali C]

I don't mean spins on each wheel, I mean proper spins like bunnyhop 360s, manuals/wallrides to 180 etc

[JD™]

I don't mean spins on each wheel, I mean proper spins like bunnyhop 360s, manuals/wallrides to 180 etc

Serious question Ali, how does the geo effect spins like that? I've always thought that hop 360s were purely about technique, because for most of the move your wheels are off the ground so geo couldn't have an effect. Obviously I'm wrong, but is that just down to the carving into the move or what?

[Brettoll]

From a chainstay perspective the shorter it is the more clearance your rear wheel has as you rotate.

From a bb perspective, not a clue.

[Ali C]

it's kinda down to the acceleration you can develop at the start of a move that dictates how easy/hard it will be (excluding rider skill).

shorter chainstays means the bike is faster to get to the rear wheel which is good for hops, higher bb makes the bike more unstable, but that instability means the bike can change direction very quickly which is good for spins.

Think of the Eurofighter jet, that is designed to be very unstable in the air and needs computers to keep it flying, but it is VERY nimble and can change direction faster than any other fighter, this translates to bike frames too. Obviously you can go too far and make the bike ride more nervously than a geko in a microwave though!

It still amuses me looking at "street" mtb frames with bbs dragging on the floor and chainstays a mile long.

[JD™]

Cool cheers, I get the shorter frame = smaller rotation bit. I guess I've just never cared about geo really, I'm more of a 'f**k it, ride round the problems' kind of guy. Though that doesn't explain my complete lack of spinning ability...

[saunders]

I don't mean spins on each wheel, I mean proper spins like bunnyhop 360s, manuals/wallrides to 180 etc

Ah I see, in which case again I always thought the MK5 planet X was a really nice for that too? nice and short and flicky.

I've always thought that the bar and stem used makes or breaks the way a bike rides rather than the odd mm in rear end length or degree in head angle.

A short stem with a bit of rise and some nice risers for the win!!!

[Object]

It still amuses me looking at "street" mtb frames with bbs dragging on the floor and chainstays a mile long.

I hate to potentially pull up a well respected rider but many 26 street mountain bikes are running around 375 to 380 chainstays? This is certainly true of NS.

I'll give you the BB height comment though as my Majesty is bang on 0 compared to the +20 of your Hex.

[Ali C]

yeah, NS bikes are actually putting out some really nice frames with much better geo than anyone else., still don't get the lack of bb rise though, I remember when trials bikes were considered modern when they had 0bb rise and look at them now!

[TrialsMan Dan]

Who ever cared about "the thing"? Just because new expensive Alu frames out there have a few more mm on the bb height, doesn’t mean its thee thing to do.

Not having a go Dan, just saying.

I know that personal preference is all it boils down to particularly with custom frames but i just thought that was the trend nowadays with the likes of the Hex and even your old Marino frame but i stand corrected course im getting more familliar with the more modern 24" frames so i cant really compare the geo of those to 26's. I am told having bigger wheels effectively raises the bb? And what other factors differ if you took two frames with similar geo but only one is 24" and one is 26"?

[saunders]

still don't get the lack of bb rise though,

A lower bottom bracket helps with high speed cornering and gives better stability in the air which is preferable for dirt jumping/trail riding/skate park stuff (i.e NS bikes target audience)

I once tried using my old planet x MK5 with suspension forks as a jump bike, with100mm travel dirt jumper 1's the BB was just too high (circa +20) and it just felt sketchy and very nervous at speed and when in the air.

[Ali C]

A lower bottom bracket helps with high speed cornering and gives better stability in the air which is preferable for dirt jumping/trail riding/skate park stuff (i.e NS bikes target audience)

haha, yeah, I heard a stable bike is good for skateparks

But yeah, it may have felt nervous but it would be better for tricks rather than straight line stability. I don't think I find +20mm high on my hex, I would be quite happy to take that dirt jumping.

[saunders]

haha, yeah, I heard a stable bike is good for skateparks

But yeah, it may have felt nervous but it would be better for tricks rather than straight line stability. I don't think I find +20mm high on my hex, I would be quite happy to take that dirt jumping.

You might be happy to take the hex dirt jumping but thats not to say a slightly lower bb isn't better for dirt jumping/freeride/skate park. As i'm sure you can appreciate alot of rider input goes into the development of a frame and i'm sure years of testing have lead to the current geometries of jump/street bikes being reasonalbly optimal for there current application and suit the majority of riders using them.

with regards to the stable bike in a skatepark comment I'm not to sure what you meant? Sam Pillgrim, Blake Samson, Lance McDermott and most of the top freeride guys in the world rip up skateparks on jumpbikes with realitively low bb, stable riding bikes and it doesnt seem to hold them back!

Its all down to personal preference at the end of the day, if there isn't an 'off the peg' option that is right for you there is always someone like marino who will build you a custom frame that is just what you want.

[Ali C]

You might be happy to take the hex dirt jumping but thats not to say a slightly lower bb isn't better for dirt jumping/freeride/skate park. As i'm sure you can appreciate alot of rider input goes into the development of a frame and i'm sure years of testing have lead to the current geometries of jump/street bikes being reasonalbly optimal for there current application and suit the majority of riders using them.

with regards to the stable bike in a skatepark comment I'm not to sure what you meant? Sam Pillgrim, Blake Samson, Lance McDermott and most of the top freeride guys in the world rip up skateparks on jumpbikes with realitively low bb, stable riding bikes and it doesnt seem to hold them back!

Its all down to personal preference at the end of the day, if there isn't an 'off the peg' option that is right for you there is always someone like marino who will build you a custom frame that is just what you want.

If I want to go in a straight line then yes, I agree lower bb would be better.

As for Lance and co, sure they are good, but so was Giles Coust and Vince Hermance when they rode level bb frames (thought the best geo at the time). I am pretty sure a level bb frame would hold them back for a lot of stuff now, I predict dirt and street frames will eventually get higher/shorter backends as riders finally realize there is a reason why bmxs are like that.

(and yes I do realize I am comparing two different sports, but the point remains)

While I am on about bmxs, lets look at the geos of the different types.

Race bmxs need to be stable at speed and in the air, they have no need for spins so their frames are usually longer in wheelbase and chainstays as well as a lower bb.

Dirt frames get slightly shorter for easier spins, but are still a bit longer to help stay stable when being a trailboss.

park and street frames get shorter wheelbases, shorter chainstays and high bbs to help with spins, they don't usually go as fast so don't need the extra stability.

Flatland, super short, super high, no need for stability when you only travel in circles.

The NS frames are a step in the right direction, but most people still use frames with geo also suitable for 4X (EG, Race bmx above). Perhaps people arn't ready for more radical geo much like trials didn't like high bbs when thy first came out, but once people realize the benefits I think it will be popular.