We've already shown you the highlights of Felt's road, cyclocross, and TT/triathlon range for 2015 and now it's time to move on to the trail. This coming season will bring an all-new Compulsion 27.5in-wheeled aluminum enduro machine, overhauled carbon fiber Virtue 29er trail bikes, and upgrades to the Edict short-travel full-suspension line as well as the company's Nine carbon hardtails.
Check out more of our Felt 2015 coverage.
Meet the new Compulsion
Felt has completely redone its long-running 160mm-travel Compulsion range for 2015, giving it the expected 27.5in wheel treatment but also a substantially slacker front end for better stability at high speed and on steeper terrain. Carrying over is the company's well-proven Equilink six-bar rear suspension design layout but with revised pivot geometry that looks to provide a more active ride quality that's less influenced by pedaling forces than before.
The Equilink design may be confusing to many, but the takeaway is that it allows Felt to independently tune pedaling and wheel path characteristics
For now, the new Compulsion will only be offered in an aluminum frame, although given the company's history, we certainly expect that a carbon version isn't far off. That said, this alloy edition looks very well done with lots of forged bits and a neatly hydroformed top tube with an integrated brace for the extended seat tube. Durability and serviceability were clearly high priorities, too, with external cable routing for ease of servicing, a threaded bottom bracket shell, and grease fittings for the strut that connects the upper and lower suspension links.
Grease ports should ease maintenance, but rear tire clearance looks tight
Felt will offer the new Compulsion in three build kits, ranging in price from US$2,699 to US$4,499.
Carbon Virtue go on a diet
Headlining Felt's collection of Virtue 130mm-travel 29er trail bikes is the new Virtue FRD, which supposedly weighs just 2.30kg (5.06lb) for a medium frame and shock thanks to the ultralight UHC Ultimate TeXtreme carbon fiber front and rear triangles. According to Felt, this new flagship model doesn't sacrifice any strength in hitting that number, either. In fact, it sports a rear end that's supposedly about 20-25 percent stiffer than previous editions for more efficient tracking and a snappier overall feel.
That checkerboard treatment isn't just for show. It's the visual indicator that TeXtreme carbon fabrics have been used
That frame will only come on the top-end Virtue FRD (or as a bare frame) but Felt has made improvements to other carbon models as well. The addition of TeXtreme carbon fabrics to the second-tier Virtue 1 helps that version shave about 220g (0.5lb) from last year, plus all three carbon Virtues get updated internal cable routing and compatibility with Shimano's new Di2 electronic drivetrain.
Other key features are carried over, such as frame geometry, the 142x12mm thru-axle rear dropouts, threaded bottom bracket shell, and 1 1/8-to-1 1/2in tapered head tube. As with the Compulsion, the Equilink suspension system is used here as well although in this case it's tuned with more anti-squat for firmer pedaling characteristics.
The carbon rear stays flex open and closed slightly as the suspension moves through its travel
Felt will offer three carbon and two aluminum Virtue bikes for 2015 with prices ranging from US$1,999 to US$9,499.
Subtle tweaks to Edict and Nine
The more cross-country oriented Edict full-suspension and Nine hardtail ranges haven't been forgotten, either, although updates are decidedly subtle in nature.
The top-end 100mm-travel Edict gets RockShox's inverted RS-1 fork and SRAM carbon wheels in place of last year's SID fork and Easton hoops; the second-tier Edict 1 goes on a slight diet thanks to the use of TeXtreme carbon fabrics; and there's a new Edict 5 model with a more budget-minded spec that costs one-third that of the Edict FRD frame alone.
The top-end Edict FRD is said to weigh just 10kg/22lb as shown here - yowza!
Prices on the 2015 Edict models range from US$1,799 to US$9,499.
Meanwhile, the top two carbon editions of the Nine hardtail line now get thru-axle rear dropouts and Di2 compatibility; the second-tier Nine 3 gains TeXtreme fabrics to help reduce the weight; and there's a new budget-oriented Nine 6 for riders that want to start with a complete carbon bike and upgrade the parts as they go.
Carbon 29er hardtails get slight updates such as thru-axle dropouts and tweaked internal routing for some models
Prices for the complete Nine collection range from US$6,199 to US$4,999.
Key specs, claimed weights (where available), and retail prices for core US-spec Felt mountain bike ranges are as follows (UK models and prices are TBD):
Compulsion series:
- Compulsion 10 (US$4,499; 12.9kg/28.4lb): RockShox Pike RCT3 fork, SRAM X01 transmission and Guide RSC brakes, WTB KOM wheels
- Compulsion 30 (US$3,299): RockShox Pike RC fork, Shimano Deore/XT 2x10 transmission and SLX brakes, WTB Speed Disc wheels
- Compulsion 50 (US$2,699): Suntour Aion RL-R fork, Shimano Deore/XT 2x10 transmission
Virtue series:
- Virtue FRD (US$9,499): RockShox Pike RCT3 fork, Shimano XTR 2x11 transmission and brakes, Easton Haven Carbon wheels
- Virtue 1 (US$5,999; 11.5kg/25.3lb): RockShox Revelation RLT fork, SRAM X01 transmission and Guide RSC brakes, Easton Haven wheels
- Virtue 3 (US$3,499; 13.5kg/29.7lb): RockShox Sektor Gold fork, Shimano Deore/XT 2x10 transmission and Deore brakes, WTB Speed disc wheels
- Virtue 50 (US$2,399; 14.8kg/32.6lb): RockShox Sektor Silver fork, Shimano Deore/XT 3x10 transmission and M355 brakes, WTB Speed disc wheels
- Virtue 60 (US$1,999; 14.3kg/31.5lb): Suntour Aion LO-R fork, Shimano Deore 3x10 transmission and M355 brakes, aluminum double-wall wheels
- Virtue FRD frame kit (US$4,499)
- Virtue 1 frame kit (US$3,499)
Edict series:
- Edict FRD (US$8,999; 10.0kg/22.0lb): RockShox RS-1 fork, SRAM XX1 transmission and XX brakes, SRAM Rise 60 wheels
- Edict 1 (US$5,499; 10.6kg/23.3lb): RockShox SID RL fork, SRAM XO1 transmission and XO brakes, Easton EA70 XCT wheels
- Edict 3 (US$3,199; 12.4kg/27.2lb): RockShox Reba RL fork, Shimano Deore/XT 2x10 transmission and Deore brakes, WTB Speed disc wheels
- Edict 5 (US$2,599; 13kg/28.6lb): Suntour Raidon XC-LOR fork, Shimano Deore 2x10 transmission and M355 brakes, aluminum double-wall wheels
- Edict 60 (US$1,799; 13.9kg/30.6lb): Suntour Raidon XC-LOR fork, Shimano Deore 3x10 transmission and M355 brakes, aluminum double-wall wheels
- Edict FRD frame kit (US$3,999)
- Edict 1 frame kit (US$2,999)
Nine series:
- Nine 1 (US$4,999; 9.3kg/20.5lb): RockShox SID RL fork, SRAM X01 transmission and XO brakes, Easton EA70 XCT wheels
- Nine 3 (US$2,799; 11.1kg/24.4lb): RockShox Reba RL fork, Shimano Deore/XT 2x10 transmission and Deore brakes, WTB Speed Disc wheels
- Nine 5 (US$1,999; 12.3kg/27lb): RockShox XC32 Solo Air fork, Shimano Deore 2x10 transmission and M355 brakes, WTB SX wheels
- Nine 6 (US$1,499; 12.8kg/28.1lb): RockShox XC28 fork, Shimano Alivio/Deore 3x9 transmission, Tektro Auriga brakes, aluminum double-wall wheels
- Nine 60 (US$999; 13.5kg/29.8lb): RockShox XC30 fork, Shimano/Suntour/Sunrace 3x9 transmission, Shimano M355 brakes, aluminum double-wall wheels
- Nine 70 (US$749; 14.4kg/31.6lb): Suntour XCM HLO fork, Shimano/Suntour/Sunrace 3x9 transmission, Tektro Auriga brakes, aluminum double-wall wheels
- Nine 80 (US$619; 14.5kg/31.9lb): Suntour XCT fork, Shimano/SRAM/Sunrace 3x8 transmission, Tektro Novella brakes, aluminum double-wall wheels
- Nine FRD frame kit (US$2,999)
- Nine 1 frame kit (US$1,649)