Few things in the bike industry stand out more than the creations of US-based Jeff Jones of Jones Bikes (who should not be confused with the editor of this website).
His unconventional rigid frame designs and signature truss fork have moved things on from where everybody else left off, and offer a purity that's seldom seen these days. During last week's Interbike show the Oregon-based builder unveiled an entirely new bike – the Jones Plus.
Jones plus - prototype test riding
Video: Jones Bikes Jone Plus
The Plus is optimised for use with the chubby – but not fat – 29+ tyre size. It's a 4130 chromoly steel creation and its appearance isn't too far from the company's existing diamond frameset. Up front there's the signature Jones truss fork with its wide-stanced 135mm front hub. The Plus features entirely new geometry, chosen after years of testing and toying with heights, lengths, angles and offsets. An early prototype of this bike was being tested as far back as 2009!
The final figures include a super slack 67.5-degree head angle and a 71-degree seat tube angle. The former is combined with a 76mm fork rake/offset figure which stops low-speed handling being sluggish. The Plus is also equipped with an eccentric bottom bracket, so that if you want to use regular 29in tyres, the bottom bracket can be raised to the same height that it would be with 29+ rubber.
There's all the rear rack and fender mounts you could ask for, and the frame is fully compatible with Jones' frame packs. The Plus will be available soon, in two frame sizes. For more information visit the Jones website.
