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Santa Cruz Chameleon 27+

548K views 3K replies 365 participants last post by  laegrim 
#1 ·
#1,790 ·
New Chris King DropSet Headset!

Hey all,

Got a couple rides in on my new Chris King Ceramic DropSet Headset. It's my first CK headset and it replaced a Cane Creek 40. It's made significant difference in feel! My front end seems way more connected and stable, plus the rotation on the bars is so buttery!

So far each step of the upgrade process on this bike has been pretty awesome to experience. Hope everyone is still lovin' their lizards!!

A few more pics of its current setup... (Don't know why the first image rotated)

Cheers!
Keith
 

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#1,792 ·
Hey all,

Got a couple rides in on my new Chris King Ceramic DropSet Headset. It's my first CK headset and it replaced a Cane Creek 40. It's made significant difference in feel! My front end seems way more connected and stable, plus the rotation on the bars is so buttery!

So far each step of the upgrade process on this bike has been pretty awesome to experience. Hope everyone is still lovin' their lizards!!

A few more pics of its current setup... (Don't know why the first image rotated)

Cheers!
Keith
I like it. Very understated and cool
 
#1,801 ·
Finally...

Ordered in late July and my bike (large 29er R build) was just delivered to the LBS a couple days ago. Swapped the saddle, grips (need new some new extra chunky in the orange color!) and XT brakes from old Jet9. Bike feels great but haven't had a chance to ride in the woods yet. Really glad to be back on a HT after riding squish the past ~ 7 yrs. I was on an EMD9 then MCR9 prior to the Jet9 and have missed the feel of the HT

Here it is cuddling with the moto:

Tire Wheel Bicycle wheel rim Spoke Land vehicle
 
#1,802 ·
Ordered in late July and my bike (large 29er R build) was just delivered to the LBS a couple days ago. Swapped the saddle, grips (need new some new extra chunky in the orange color!) and XT brakes from old Jet9. Bike feels great but haven't had a chance to ride in the woods yet. Really glad to be back on a HT after riding squish the past ~ 7 yrs. I was on an EMD9 then MCR9 prior to the Jet9 and have missed the feel of the HT

Here it is cuddling with the moto:

View attachment 1224034
Nice collection of orange!

A 300XC is in my garage, where a Chameleon will be joining soon.
 
#2,017 ·
I'm used to slack bikes, so mine doesn't wander and it doesn't bug me. You may feel a bit of wandering, but I'm usually way over the front anyway on those climbs. I've ridden in Redding before, fun place. 140mm wouldn't be a problem for me there. But then again, i think 120mm would be fine on the downhills there too. I wouldn't get too wrapped on it "supposing" to have 130mm. It's all a range. Look at ratboy runing a 160mm fork with 27.5 tires on a 130mm 29er. :)
 
#2,019 · (Edited)
I think I would be back on a Chromag if i need 140-160mm. Same or similar chainstay lengths with slacker HT with the longer travel. Did that for awhile and determined it was more than I required which is why I'm back on a Chameleon.

I didn't care for the Chameleon at 140 with my Ribbon and 29" wheels but that's a riding area, style and preference situation. I had to almost slam the stem to get the front end feel I prefer and seated pedaling position got a little wonky. I have a lot of that to consider on our fast flowy XC trails... Goes to show that little changes can have a decent impact.

All that said, after sampling quite a few HTs as of late, I've come to really appreciate the Chameleon. The overall geo works really well for me. And we have lots of good options currently so all is good!
 
#2,452 ·
Another thing, if they are old stock, look to see which damper they have. I have one with the charger damper on another bike and a 2018 with the charger 2 damper on my Chameleon. There is a huge difference in suppleness between them. The charger 2 just soaks up the small stuff better. Both dampers are awesome for big stiff and drops.

Like stock.man says, the 130 and the 140 both come with the same uppers, so you can swap the air-spring if you need to change the travel. I ride a lot of chunky rocky technical stuff so I went for the 140 knowing that I could downsize if I wanted. The bigger fork also slackens our the geometry which also helps in the chunk and on downhill runs. I havent looked back. Love the way it rides with the 140. I ride it with 27.5+ wheels and 29ers depending on my mood.
 
#2,479 ·
Ok, reporting back. This bike with 29's (Dissector 2.4 F 19 PSI and Aggressor 2.5 R 21PSI) was a MUCH better ride for me personally. Fast like my HT2, quick and nimble, dependable and to be honest, SMOOTHER riding than the wonky 2.8 x 27.5.

I ended up on one of my favorite trails and felt really great on the bike for the first time. In addition we did some small gap jumps and drops up to 4 feet (with appropriate landings) and she felt confident the entire time.

Overall, this felt like how I envisioned the bike to feel for my intended purpose. She's a keeper for sure. Pumped that I found a set up I like and appreciate all the feedback on this thread to keep my brainstorming.
 
#2,480 ·
Ok, reporting back. This bike with 29's (Dissector 2.4 F 19 PSI and Aggressor 2.5 R 21PSI) was a MUCH better ride for me personally. Fast like my HT2, quick and nimble, dependable and to be honest, SMOOTHER riding than the wonky 2.8 x 27.5.

I ended up on one of my favorite trails and felt really great on the bike for the first time. In addition we did some small gap jumps and drops up to 4 feet (with appropriate landings) and she felt confident the entire time.

Overall, this felt like how I envisioned the bike to feel for my intended purpose. She's a keeper for sure. Pumped that I found a set up I like and appreciate all the feedback on this thread to keep my brainstorming.
Yeah, the 2.8" takes some getting used to.
It's my 2nd bike, first of which is a 29'er.

I'm pretty fast on my 2.8 but no telling if I'd be faster on a 29er Chameleon. I noticed at first how much I labored to go slowly...even pedaling on the down-slopes with slight coasting wasn't as fast as my friend in front of me, and we are usually same speed.

Glad you found the sweet spot for what you were after.
 
#2,772 · (Edited)
I moved 13 months ago, and my new trails are way less rocky and rough than where I used to ride..... old trails were outdoor nationals, new trails are Supercross.

I have grown beyond tired of the slow, sluggish, always feeling like I'm riding in sand ride of my 27.5x2.8 Rekon plus set up and ordered a 2021 DT Swiss XM1700 29er wheelset, as well as a pair of Rekon 2.4WT 3C 120TPI tires to go front and rear.

I will not be changing the 27.5 plus dropouts, and I will be running a 29er 130mm 2021 Pike up front. I welcome a little higher riding bike as well as a faster one too.

I'll update this post in a month or so with my thoughts on how it feels once I get some real time on the bike.
 
#2,773 ·
I moved 13 months ago, and my new trails are way less rocky and rough than where I used to ride..... old trails were outdoor nations, new trails are Supercross.

I have grown beyond tired of the slow, sluggish, always feeling like I'm riding in sand ride of my 27.5x2.8 Rekon plus set up and ordered a 2021 DT Swiss XM1700 29er wheelset, as well as a pair of Rekon 2.4WT 3C 120TPI tires to go front and rear.

I will not be changing the 27.5 plus dropouts, and I will be running a 29er 130mm 2021 Pike up front. I welcome a little higher riding bike as well as a faster one too.

I'll update this post in a month or so with my thoughts on how it feels once I get some real time on the bike.
My setup is 130 fork with 27+ dropouts and 29er wheels. Works great. I'd like to try a 140 fork, but probably won't bother.
 
#2,823 · (Edited)
I just installed the Slack-R Echo kit (1.8 degree) on my size large 2018 Chameleon frame. No sanding was required - it dropped right in. I was prepared to sand so it was a pleasant surprise. For the guys concerned about sanding, just do it. It will not in any way affect the structural integrity of the head tube. If you want to go back to stock, the headset bearings will drop right back into the races no different than before.
1926507
 
#2,824 ·
Been wanting to do this on my orange 2019 Chameleon . Looks like they only have the "India" model in stock. (-1.5deg). What length fork and wheel size you using? Been running mine as a mullet for the past year, which has been fun.
 
#2,831 ·
Quick update on my SLACK-R Echo kit - I changed the travel on my fork down to 130 mm from 140 mm at the same time as the SLACK-R install. The bike feels awesome. It regained the sharper handling I lost when I originally bumped up the travel to 140, but it retained the, even gained, confidence it had while pointing downhill. My only complaint is that there is a slight gap between the dust cover of my CC110 headset and top of the SLACK-R cup. I'll have to check the bearings after a while and see if the gap allows dirt in there. It may require more frequent cleanings. I remember reading a comment on youtube of another user having the same problem while others did not. It may depend on the make/model of headset used. It would be nice if 9point8 included a plastic spacer to sit below the dust cover. I would still highly recommend the SLACK-R to any chameleon owner especially if you like to get rowdy on it!
 
#2,836 ·
RE:9point8 Slack-R

Got a response back from SCB:
Just using the headset wont void your warranty, but if any issues were to arise from using it those issues wouldn't be covered under warranty. I'd say its unlikely anything would happen though.

A bit vague but I am reading it as....strictly using the headset won't void the warranty and they'd need to determine something with the headset directly caused whatever happened to the frame....anyway good enough for me.

Cool!
 
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