Does a race hardtail need 120 mm travel?
Rose PDQ review
Rose PDQ review – does a race hardtail need 120 mm suspension travel?
The Rose PDQ not only has 120 millimetres of travel, but also a telescopic post ex works. Is this bike still a race hardtail or is the concept possibly flirting with a completely different target group?
In starting block A, the places have been taken so far. Bikes like the Cube Elite, the Canyon Exceed, Scott Scale or the Cannondale Scalpel HT are the hot carbon hardtails for endurance fans. Those who have been interested in race hardtails so far have tended not to have a bike from Rose on their radar. The Psycho Path hardtail starts being slightly outdated in terms of geometry and standards. The new Rose PDQ, which is the abbreviation for Pretty Damn Quick, stands in stark contrast to what Rose has been offering in the carbon hardtail segment in their web shop.
With 120 millimetres of travel, telescopic seat post and 2.4 tyres, the Bocholt-based direct mail order company is going out on a limb. Can the donwcountry concept, which we know from race fullys, also work in the hardtail sector?
10 kilos – The Rose PDQ remains light
An important indicator for answering the question about the range of use: the weight! Our scales, including pedals and bottle cage, come to exactly 10 kilos. For comparison: The Cannondale Scalpel HT, which we also tested (incl. video), also weighed in at 10 kilos with 110 millimetres of travel and without a telescopic post. For trail-oriented equipment, this bike is really damn light.The new starting block A in the marathon scene?
The basis for this is, of course, the frame. We spared no effort, disassembled the entire bike and put the frame on the scales. Lo and behold: the new development weighs 1048 grams in frame size M, including the rubber protectors. If you want to know exactly – the thru axle weighs 45 grams. A derailleur hanger adds another 28 grams. So it’s clear: despite more suspension travel and telescopic seat post, the bike has the ambition to be a front-runner in marathon races. The new PDQ wants to upset the established hierarchy among carbon hardtails with more travel and low weight.
Cable routing, steering lock and bottom bracket on the Rose PDQ frame
Anyone who has ever had a race hardtail, knows that a steering limiter is really worth its weight in gold. This feature prevents the shift or brake levers from scratching or even destroying the entire top tube in the event of a fall. And the whole thing is no theoretical protection, but has really proven itself in reality. Rose really hides this limiter perfectly at the bottom of the head tube.
Talking about the headset: As with most new products, the cables, or rather the last remaining brake line, disappear through the headset into the inside of the frame. The advantage: it simply looks great. The disadvantage that many fear: Maintenance is catastrophically complex. We have completely disassembled the bike for weighing purposes and can largely dispel these fears. First of all, our test bike (the top model) has only one brake line that has to be routed through the frame. Everything else (gears & seat post) work wirelessly. In fact, it is much more convenient to thread the brake line through the large head tube opening and not through a small window on the head tube. The disadvantage: To change the headset bearing, you have to open the brake line. This is acceptable, because you don’t change the upper bearing of the headset every day. Rose uses the press-fit standard for the bottom bracket. With the Rose Bonero made of aluminium, which we also tested, we praised the screwed BSA bottom bracket. If a designer wants to reconcile lightweight construction, stiffness and durability, the press-fit standard simply combines the greatest intersection in carbon frames. You have to swallow the pill that the bottom bracket change is somewhat martial.
And around the back? Brake mount and derailleur hanger on the Rose PDQ
Striking: the flatmount brake on the frame. The thread for the brake is not in the frame, but in the brake. If you put the screws on the thread incorrectly, this affordable part will break. In addition, it is much easier to adjust the bolts at the bottom of the chainstays than if they are hidden in the frame triangle. When it comes to the derailleur hanger, Rose leaves nothing to chance and uses Sram’s UDH standard. The top model is equipped with the new Transmission shifting system from Sram, which is only compatible with this standard. So the bike is future ready. Of course, the big question remains: how does the bike ride with 120 millimetres of suspension travel off-road?- Bottom bracket: Pressfit
- Wheel size: 29 inch
- Rear wheel installation dimension: 148×12
- Cable management:through the head tube
- Bottle holder: Space for two bottles
- Shift hanger: Sram UDH Standard
The seating position on the Rose PDQ
Even on the first few metres with the bike, the sporty orientation of the seating position becomes apparent. The high reach value ensures a long top tube, despite the 75 degree steep seat angle. On more downhill-oriented bikes, the seat angle is often even steeper at 76 degrees. But steeper is not always better. With such a sporty bike, you also want to accelerate on the straights. If the seat angle is too steep, the rear seat can no longer be adjusted correctly on such a bike. In other words, the saddle is positioned too far forward. We tried it and the line fell right through the kneecap. And indeed, even with a straight post, this bike allows the perfect saddle setting. When you’re in the saddle for three hours or more, it’s really important not to struggle with knee problems.
Comfort and frame stiffness – completely overrated
With race hardtails, comfort is always a hotly debated topic. Many people ask themselves: Does the seatpost or the frame flex enough? And of course it’s clear that the telescopic seatpost hardly makes a difference. But the really wide tyres are so forgiving that 2-3 millimetres of flex on the seatpost are not really important. The same applies to the frame stiffness. For decades, racers in particular have compared the pure values of frame stiffness with each other. You can do that, but such a bench test for the frame is of course only one side. The biggest weakness in terms of stiffness, especially on XC bikes, has always been somewhere else. The transition from stem to handlebar has always been a major weak point. Slim, torsion-prone suspension forks shape the riding experience much more than the frame. And it is precisely these weak points that the Rose PDQ no longer has. The transition from the handlebar to the stem is super-widely supported on the Rose carbon unit and correspondingly stiff. The 120mm Rock Shox Sid has 35mm thick stanchions. This makes them just as thick as on a Lyrik Enduro fork with 160 millimetres of travel. Neither when braking nor when steering do you notice any significant twisting of the fork.So the PDQ shows no deficiencies in stiffness in the test.
Roses PDQ is a Swiss Army Knife on the Trail
Uphill, of course, the bike’s low weight plays into its favour. The light Newmen carbon wheels ensure quick accelerating due to their low weight. Of course, when you’re fighting against gravity, you notice every kilo. At 10 kilos, the total weight is good. Without the telescopic seat post and with 100 millimetres of travel, other manufacturers (like Scott with the Scale) even crack the 9 kilo mark. However, the advantage on the scales always goes hand in hand with a loss in downhill performance. What is striking about the PDQ from the first few metres on the trail is that the suspension fork is super sensitive. The bike’s head tube is equipped with the brand new Rock Sid Ultimate. For the first time, it has a three-stage lockout. So in addition to open and closed modes, there is also a “pedal” mode, which you can activate via the Gripshift lever.
This new mode allows the suspension engineers to make the open position even more sensitive. With the thick 2.4 tyres, which also come across as really voluminous on the rims, you not only experience dreamlike comfort here. The bike is also bursting with grip. You notice this especially in open curves. When the going gets steeper or there are smaller jumps, the fork with 120 millimetres plays to its strengths. It has clearly more reserves than the usual 100 millimetre forks. In combination with the telescopic seat post and the really successful geometry, going downhill is a lot of fun. This is exactly the part where the Rose PDQ differs from classic race hardtails like the Scott Scale or the Orbea Alma. It simply allows you to have more fun downhill, or even take a trip on minimally rougher trails.
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