The takeaway: Fully capable enduro bike that climbs so well you'll enjoy earning your turns.
- Customizable parts and finish
- Solid pedaling platform for all day riding
- Smart component choices and finishing kit
Weight: 30.8 lbs (Size L)
Price: $7,700 (2019 model)
Orbea may be best known for its road racing bikes, but its mountain bike history stretches back 30 years and features some impressive race wins.
All the years of experience seem to have paid off with the Rallon. I won't lie, I'm a sucker for a 29er enduro bike so I had high hopes for max fun on the Rallon. On paper, it looks like exactly the kind of enduro bike I like. It features a carbon frame with 150mm rear travel with a 160mm fork, some of the world's best suspension from Fox, modern enduro geometry, tough DT Swiss wheels wrapped in stalwart Maxxis tires, and an ever reliable SRAM Eagle drivetrain.
What's New for 2020
The bike reviewed here is a 2019 model. Orbea recently rolled out its 2020 Rallon M-Team build which is based on the same frame as the 2019 model, but has a few updates.
The biggest is a 10mm bump in suspension travel at both ends. The M-Team now has 160mm rear paired to a 170mm fork. Current owners of the Rallon can purchase a new link from Orbea for $369 to bump rear travel up to 160mm. The new link also gives the suspension a more progressive shock rate.
The added travel changes the geometry slightly. Angles get a bit slacker—the 2020 bike has a 64.5 degee head tube angle and 75 degree seat tube angle in the low setting—and the bottom bracket goes up about three millimeters.
The 2020 model bike gets Shimano's new XT 12 speed group and a Race Face crank instead of the 2019 model's SRAM 12 speed drivetrain and crank.
Orbea also dropped (not a misprint) the price $700. The 202o model sells for $6,999. The 2019 M-Team models are currently on sale at Jenson for $6,544.
Build
As far as build kit on the 2019 Rallon M-Team it is hard to deny that Orbea hooks you up. However, for $7,700 you'd likely expect nothing less. One thing I really appreciate with this build is the lack of carbon wheels. This might seem like a surprise but it's hard to beat a nice reliable set of aluminum hoops, especially if it keeps the cost down. Often times the only way to get this level of suspension and finishing kit is to dive off in to the $10k Enve-shod superbike world or build a full custom bike.
Aside from the wheels, you are treated to a high quality RaceFace cockpit and SRAM Eagle X01 shifting. The real star of the show is the full Fox Factory suspension with four way damping adjustment at both ends. Once dialed in the 36 Grip 2 fork and Float X2 rear shock soak up anything the trail throws at you, allowing for confident descending and cornering.
Another big win for me is the choice of 170mm crank arms. In the current era of low bottom brackets I think more bikes should come stock with shorter arms. I'm also a fan of the threaded BB, just for the ease of maintenance.
I did swap to a Fox Transfer Dropper from the stock option—a painfully svluggish Crank Brothers Highline–for the improved performance.
The other issue with build for were the Shimano XT four-piston brakes. This certainly is due to a personal preference, but I found myself frustrated by their performance throughout my time on the bike. The off/on nature of Shimano braking is just something I have yet to fall in love with. I find SRAM's Code RSC offers smoother modulation, which I prefer.
Obviously, if you like Shimano braking you'll be happy with these parts. One good thing about the XT brakes is that they are four-pot so they do stop the bike very well—I just never felt confident I could predict when.
OneUP chain guide
Added sense of security.
Downtube Protection
Nice feature until it starts falling off...
Trusted Maxxis rubber.
DHF/Aggresor combo is ready to grip and rip.
X2 Factory Shock.
One of the finest available.
170mm Cranks!
Because who doesn't like less pedal strikes.
Frame: Carbon
Wheel Size: 29 inch
Travel: 150mm
Shock: Fox Factory Float X2
Fork: Fox Factory Float 36, 160mm
Drivetrain: 1x12
Crankset: Truvativ Descendent, 32t
Rear Derailleur: SRAM X01 Eagle
Cassette: SRAM XG-1275 Eagle, 10-50
Brakes: Shimano XT M8020 hydraulic disc,
Seatpost: Crank Brothers Highline
Rims: DT-Swiss E-1501 Spline 30 TLR
Tires: Maxxis Aggressor 2.3" (rear), Minion DHF 2.4" (front)
Sizes: S, L, XL
Good Geometry, Odd Sizing
Oddly the Rallon is only offered in a "S/M," large and extra large size with a stand-alone medium not in the picture.
At 5'8" I usually would ride a medium, but with that not available I had to decide between the S/M and the large. I chose the large for the longer reach (455mm vs 432mm). The large's 444mm seat tube allowed me to get my saddle height just right by slamming the 150mm dropper to the seatpost collar. The large's 455mm reach is similar to the mediums offered by many other brands so, not surprisingly, the large felt very natural on the trail even though it is not what I'd typically ride.
But if you have shorter legs you may have to opt for the small and work with a shorter reach, or swap to a shorter-travel dropper on the large. Due to this, I suspect some riders may not be able to find a good fit. Luckily for me I was able to get comfortable on the Rallon and really enjoyed ripping around on this machine.
As far as the rest of the geometry, the Rallon follows the flip chip trends utilizing a low or lower option. Depending on the chip, the 2019 Rallon has a 65.5/65-degree head tube angle paired to a a 44mm offset fork. The seattube angle is fairly steep at 76/75.5-degrees which keeps the rider in a nice position while climbing. The wheelbase is 1217mm, on trend for modern enduro bikes, and helped keep the bike stable at speed, but it's not so extreme that it's a pain to move around.
Custom Available
Orbea offers the Rallon in a few different build kits ranging from $3,799 for a frame with a Fox DHX2 to a fully blinged $9,999 build. Within the stock builds, Orbea offers the ability to tweak some of the components, such as changing wheelsets, brakes, and dropper posts. If you really want to make it your own you can fully customize the paint-job through Orbea's "Mi-O" program for a slight premium.
Pros
- Great Build
- Solid Pedaling Platform
Cons
- Sluggish dropper post
- Odd sizing
Silent and Smooth Ride
Something I've grown to appreciate in a bike is a silent ride, I find that if the bike makes noise my concentration or confidence can be broken. In the past I've ridden bikes that rattle and creak and it is maddeningly distracting. The Rallon frame is equipped with solid internal cable routing as well as ample rubber chain-slap protection in the rear triangle.
There is also a downtube protector to protect from flying rocks. However the one on our sample quickly started to fall off, which was fixed with a bit of double sided tape. Not a huge deal in the grand scheme of things, but I expect more from a high-end bike.
Throughout my time riding the Rallon I never once noticed the slap of a chain or ping of a rock, bravo Orbea.
Ride Impressions
I like to earn my turns so the first thing I do on any enduro bike is climb. I was very happy to feel the firm pedaling platform of the Rallon. While I am not saying it's a rocket ship on the uphill, it is a pleasant pedaler that isn't afraid to accelerate when asked.
I was concerned at first because—despite ordering a large—the bike felt quite short at first, but that worry quickly faded. I found the riding position very comfortable—I didn't feel too far forward or back on the bike when climbing or descending.
Once pointed downhill the Rallon really shines, the bike is responsive to rider input at speed and happy to point it straight through a rock garden when needed, especially once the suspension is dialed. The Rallon changed lines when asked and the 29-inch wheels will helped smooth out some of the roughest, rockiest terrain I've ridden to date. Thanks to some relatively short chainstays but a longer wheelbase the bike feels lively yet stays stable at speed.
Braking is such a huge part of ride experience when it comes to mountain bikes and I never really find to have full confidence in the XTs. This is probably due to my distaste for the "off/on" feel of this set of brakes, though I know some riders prefer this sort of feel. Luckily for riders like me, Orbea offers an upgrade to SRAM's Code RSC in the M-Team's build options, though it comes at a $355 up-charge.
In summary, the Orbea Rallon falls into that ever growing category of a pleasant riding, do it all type of bike. If you're in the market for something able to rip around the local trails after work but also want to get wild at the bike park or race some enduros, the Rallon is a viable option.
If 35mm stems and 160mm of travel isn't your thing, still check out the Rallon because you just might be ditching your XC bike for race-day only use after ripping a few grin-inducing descents, and pleasant climbs back up, on the Rallon. While you can get very similar performance from more commonly seen bikes such as the Specialized Enduro, Trek Slash, or Santa Cruz Megatower, you may want to go for the Rallon strictly so you can have something your riding buddies do not. And if that's your choice, you won't be disappointed.
Trevor Raab is the staff photographer for Runner’s World and Bicycling, a CAT 1 cyclocross racer, and, occasionally, a product reviewer for the Test Team. He fits the typical “how I got in to bikes” story: his dad introduced him to mountain bikes when he was a kid, then he had a stint as a skateboarder in high school, and since 2011 he’s been riding every sort of bike he can find.
