In addition to that, travel has been extended to Outback 160mm and geometry has been changed to expand the Dreadnought's downhill capabilities. However, adjustments have also been made to reduce the seating position and overall weight, which shouldn't be taken lightly for a bike of this type.
• Full carbon frame
• Wheel size: mixed or 29 inches
• 160mm rear travel, 170mm fork
• High pivot suspension design
• 63.1/63.5° head angle
• 77.1 / 77.5° seat angle (S3)
• Size: S1, S2, S3, S4
• Weight: 15.6 kg / 34.3 lb (S3, actual)
• Price: CAD 8,499-11,999, USD 6,499-9,299
•forbidbik.com
The Dreadnought V2 is only available in carbon (which isn't surprising since Forbidden doesn't make aluminum bikes yet). All three build kits use SRAM/Rockshox, with prices starting at his $6,499 USD/$8,499 CAD, but frame/shock/chainguide options are available if you want your own custom build. Is possible.
frame details
The pioneer of the Supernought DH frame, the Dreadnought features replaceable dropouts. Dreadnought frame kits and complete bikes are available with 27.5-inch or 29-inch zero-offset dropouts. Aftermarket +/-10mm dropouts for 27.5″ wheels or +10mm sets for 29″ will be available soon (pricing TBA). Also works as a direct mount for 200mm brake rotors.
Besides the bolt-on dropouts, another feature that differentiates the Druid's appearance from the 2nd Generation Dreadnought is the custom MRP lower pulley. This component was required because the extra 30mm of travel increases chain stretch. Fixed positioning eliminates user error and slippage when tagging prominent trail features.
Forbidden's standard protocols are in place, including water bottle and accessory mounts within the front triangle, ample rubber frame protection, internal cable routing, and serious chain security.
Frame specs include a seat tube of 31.6mm, a BB of 73mm BSA type, and a rear wheel of 12 x 148mm, same as the Super Note.
suspension design
Replacing the single high-pivot design of the first generation bike, the Dreadnought V2 introduces a floating chainstay member. This allowed Forbidden to unlock a more independent set of kinematics.
Anti-squat is increased to 137% (at 30% sag with 32-51 tooth gears), higher than most idler-equipped bikes. The leverage curve starts higher and ends higher and straighter than before, making it easier for lighter weight riders to transition to a light enough coil spring.
One thing to note about this multi-link design is that the axle path is no longer completely aft. At the 135mm mark, the rear axle begins to arc forward, but this proves not to detract from the Dreadnought's high-pivot bump-erasing nature.
As mentioned earlier, rear wheel travel has increased from 154 to 160 mm. This is controlled by a 205×60 mm stroke shock. In our case, the X0 Ultimate kit comes with a trunnion-mounted Rockshox Vivid Air shock that we've praised in the past.
geometry
Forbidden uses one of the size charts from Specialized, Trek, and many others that use numbers and letters to identify sizes. Dreadnought V2 comes in four frame sizes. Reach numbers for S1, S2, S3, and S4 are 430 to 491, almost all in 20mm increments. In my case, I chose an S3 frame with a reach of 471mm (for reference, I'm 178cm/5'10″ tall).
The actual numbers detailed here are the balance between the front and rear center lengths. This makes up Forbidden's “One Ride” concept, which maintains the same ratio of front center to rear center dimensions, regardless of frame size. This theory was also applied to the Dreadnought V1, but was slightly modified in the V2 frame.
Comparing the Dreadnought V1 and V2, the chainstay length has increased significantly even in the new neutral setting. They were extended from 446 to 460mm (V2, stock).
Meanwhile, reach has been shortened from 479mm (V1, MX) to 471mm (V2, MX), stack has increased from 634mm to 645mm, and the front center has been shortened overall (V1 834mm, V2 829mm).
Angularly, the head tube angle remains slack at 63.1 degrees (63.5 degrees for 29ers). By shortening the theoretical length of the top tube, the seat tube angle becomes a steep 77.1 degrees.
Reach, stack, and angle are all slightly distorted when switching rear wheel sizes.
Model and price
At a cool price of $9,299 USD / $11,999 CAD, the X0 RS U kit saves you money with Rockshox Zeb and Vivid Air Ultimate suspension, Sram X0 T-type drivetrain, OneUp V3 dropper post, and powerful Maven Ultimate brakes This is a list of possible parts. Crankbrother Synthesis 11 carbon wheels, regular Maxxis tires, Fizik Terra Alpaca X5 saddle, and Burgtec carbon steering combo complete the package.
Moving down the price spectrum, the GX RS S+ costs $7,299 USD / $9,499 CAD and includes, as you might expect, Select+ and Silver trim with RockShox Zeb, Vivid Air, and Mavens. Similarly, the drivetrain is T-type, but the heavier GX models and wheelsets have woven alloy rims.
Next up is the GX RS S, which follows a similar path, moving to the base model's RockShox and SRAM components and returning to the UDH-equipped GX AXS drivetrain. At $6,499 USD / $8,499 CAD, it's not as affordable as other brands' entry-level price points.
All builds and sizes use a 165mm crank, 200mm rotors front and rear, and come with a choice of MX or 29er wheels.
Ride impression
This was a literal first ride, as Forbidden engineer Ollie Bright flew down from the island to deliver the bike that morning and tested out the ideal spring conditions with me. We tweaked the controls and set the Vivid's rear sag to about 30%, leaving all adjusters at neutral settings except for the open hydraulic bottom-out.
The Dreadnought V2 has great features and the 130mm travel Druid V2 tracks the ground very well. Adding another 30 mm of travel will ensure that the geometry doesn't stretch out and hang out. To put it simply, the first lap was a heater.
There are two turns at the bottom of the classic Squamish trail, and it's easy to enter quickly, drag the brakes, sit upright, and ball up too high for good measure. Dreadnought V2 changes everything. I was riding in the middle of the bike with complete confidence that I could go faster. The wheelbase is long, but there's also plenty of grip and stability to push the tires into.
You'll need more time to coax the Dreadnought V2 into treacherous trails and maneuver over big jump sets, but even with flat pedals, it's no less exciting to change direction or maneuver over obstacles. was not necessary. Part of that could be a smaller, and therefore lighter, rear wheel that can change direction faster. That being said, getting a Dreadnought into a proper manual requires quite a bit of effort.
Another bonus that can ruin a great bike is noise. It's very quiet. It didn't immediately occur to me, but looking back at the ride, the Dreadnought V2 mutes the trail. All you can hear is the flapping of the tire tread and the noise of the hub.
One small drawback is that the extra pulley wheel provides only a small amount of resistance, but the Druid V2 doesn't need this. During long-term testing of the Devinci Chainsaw, another high-pivot bike that handles bumps well, we removed the chain tension arm to reduce drivetrain friction. During our full review of the Dreadnought V2, we plan to experiment with turning the lower pulley on and off to see if that 1% makes any difference.
