Tell me why I don't want a Bronson Mullet

[EWG]

My 2016 Intense Tracer 150/160 27.5 is officially ready for retirement. I've always had Santa Cruz bikes and like the suspension design but left them for Intense - I think it's time to come back. Looking at the Bronson MX. Colorado and Utah trails. I tend to like 150/160 travel. I ride hard uphills and fast downhill but I'm no longer racing and no longer pegging DHs to the redline, ability wise. My days of big drops are probably done. Though I very much enjoy blasting through nasty, rocky downhills. I have a tendency to like nimble over solid.

Any reason to not just find a Bronson mullet?

[XXX-er]

maybe you are allergic to carbon or don't wana spend the $$$$ ?

I'm a huge SC fanboi, I like how their mullet handles and from i seen advertised there are a bunch of SC on sale

[Roxtar]

A buddy just built one up and he's loving it.

[Andeh]

According to Vital rumors thread, new one drops tomorrow.

[jackstraw]

According to Vital rumors thread, new one drops tomorrow.

Leftover sale on the horizon.

My son is talking about selling his. I think it's a '21 SC media bike. 11k or so build.

And I'm personally sold on the mullet. Love my Bronson. Even my eeb commuter is a mullet. [emoji16]

[ASmileyFace]

My v5 5010 isn't a Bronson, but the more I ride it, the more I love the mullet... and yeah the new Bronson drops tomorrow so maybe check that out.

[jackstraw]

https://youtu.be/YiJzOfn49d8?si=6_kY_ZQC6rZpaREV

New vid

No specifics yet

[EWG]

https://youtu.be/YiJzOfn49d8?si=6_kY_ZQC6rZpaREV

New vid

Oh my god that was so fucking fun. I want to go ride.

I'm doing a pivot demo day this weekend. Gonna try a 27.5 Shadowcat and a 29 Switchblade and see if either of them can talk me out of a Bronson.

[XXX-er]

I thot I heard SC is dropping a bunch of new stuff end of month ?
The bullit is 3 yrs old at end of month, I been thinking about a new bike

[GravityDT]

New Bronson looks so fun. Had the last gen Bronson 2yrs ago and loved it- sold it for the new Hightower which is better from a pure trail side but I miss the playfulness of the Bronson when chasing Thing 2 on the Pass

[t.odd]

best thing about a bronson is that they are durable as fuck and still fun 5+ years later. I'm on a gen 3 2019 version, 27.5. It's been so fun and reliable, added a new shock and cascade link last summer and it was a great little update.

[goldenboy]

Oh my god that was so fucking fun. I want to go ride.

I'm doing a pivot demo day this weekend. Gonna try a 27.5 Shadowcat and a 29 Switchblade and see if either of them can talk me out of a Bronson.

You said you want nimble which is exactly what I wanted as well and I'm so glad I got a Shadowcat. Strangely it's also super solid at the same time. Wife ended up with a Switchblade and doesn't love it, says it feels like a tank.

[zion zig zag]

Seems like small, incremental changes in the new Bronson. Claimed reduced anti-squat, slightly lower, slacker and longer. I'd probably save $2500 and get the "old" one.

[XXX-er]

Probably just milimeters ^^

" Millimeters Matter

Moving any of the VPP™ pivots a couple millimeters in any direction makes wild adjustments to the ride quality. The lower VPP™ link is placed low and forward to optimize anti-squat. The result is a plush, open feel with a lot of traction."

" Factory sale Screamin deals on select models "

from the web site it looks like there could be 2 or 3 K off list on just about any model, SC is a big seller here, I see more of them out on the trail than any other brand, there are a lota reasons to buy SC IMO, probably the best bike I have ever bought

[Andeh]

The changes to shock stroke, reduced anti-squat, and kinematics are going to be a much bigger deal than you might think. The v4 was still their old way of doing things which was very firm and efficient feeling. Some people liked that, but lots of people thought that generation of SC were too harsh over small bumps and square hits.

Geometry and kinematics look very, very similar to those on my Heckler SL, which is an absolute blast to ride. If I didn't already have a Nomad 6 for my pedal bike, I'd be all over the Bronson 5.

[jackstraw]

best thing about a bronson is that they are durable as fuck and still fun 5+ years later. I'm on a gen 3 2019 version, 27.5. It's been so fun and reliable, added a new shock and cascade link last summer and it was a great little update.

I have a 2019 as well...but I did crack the rear triangle.

It feels like a BMX bike now when I ride it. Super fun and playful.

[XXX-er]

The Bullit is my 1st SC, the only E-bike and only mullet I've ridden. Compared to the 29x29 yeti 5.5 it replaced, the SC is somehow more playful goes around hairpins easier, in spite of being slacker/longer, I'm very interested in the next Bullit

[XXX-er]

https://nsmb.com/articles/santa-cruz-bronson-5/

A pretty extensive bronson test from NSMB

NSMB has been dropping a new mtb artical from the birthplace of freeride pretty much every weekday for I am thinking the last year

You might find it worth following them

[g_man80]

I don’t generally put too much stock in those first ride reviews. The Pinkbike first ride article was very similar. Just like new vehicle reviews, the writers/testers are hesitant to say anything too critical since they rely on early access to new products. Basically a couple paragraphs of what changed, a short section of how it’s a nice improvement over the outgoing model, and maybe a soft critique of something minor.

It does seem like a nice update (minus losing derailleur routing on the CC), but it sounds like the character has changed. If you want a mini Nomad, perfect, but maybe it will lose some of its energetic feel. Or maybe I’m just trying to convince myself to buy a discounted V4.1.

[One (+) Sentence]

https://nsmb.com/articles/santa-cruz-bronson-5/

A pretty extensive bronson test from NSMB

NSMB has been dropping a new mtb artical from the birthplace of freeride pretty much every weekday for I am thinking the last year

You might find it worth following them

This doesn't seem like an extensive review at all.

[XXX-er]

well did you actualy look at the artical do they need to ride it for a yearand break it ?

its got graphs and diagrams comparing V4 to V5 along with the ride impression which is why I say its extensive but yeah there is nothing wrong with buying the discounted V4

[One (+) Sentence]

Garen's take:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zebFOJnrdTE

[zion zig zag]

So I read some today too, since I had a zoom meeting that I shouldn't have been involved in and I gathered that the new Bronson has reduced anti-squat 30% which makes the rear suspension feel more linear. But Cascade Components sells linkages that make bikes feel more progressive, which is supposed to be good. And I always hear that the one positive attribute of air shocks over coil is the progressiveness, so that's good. But now more linear is good too. And I understand that one could be more plow and one could be more pop?

So save $2500 on "old" version and then if you want more plow use the money saved for a fancy coil shock? I'd love to ride back to back to see if I could tell.

[One (+) Sentence]

well did you actualy look at the artical do they need to ride it for a yearand break it ?

No not at all. I just think an extensive review is different than something NSMB calls "First Ride."

[jackstraw]

So save $2500 on "old" version and then if you want more plow use the money saved for a fancy coil shock? I'd love to ride back to back to see if I could tell.

I'm on a progressive coil with my '21. The only reason was a supply chain issue at the time. I probably could not tell the difference between the two if I did a test. Or maybe I could tell, but I wouldn't be able to say one was better than the other...overall