MERIDA ONE-SIXTY FR 600
£3,500 Burly mullet bike built for the big hits
Merida have taken their One-Sixty enduro bike, increased its fork travel and given it a burlier spec to create a bike-park specialist. This aluminium-framed ripper rolls on mixed wheel sizes and dishes out 180mm of front and 171mm of rear-wheel travel to tame the trails.
THE FRAME
The FR uses the standard aluminium One-Sixty frame, made from Merida’s ‘PROLITE 66’ tubing, aka triple-butted and hydroformed 6066 alloy. Dualpass welds smooth the lines, making it look closer to a carbon fibre chassis.
One of the most interesting features is the frame’s ‘P-Flex’ design, which uses specific tube profiles to turn the seatstays into ‘flexstays’, which can bend during suspension compression, replacing the usual pivot at the seat/chainstay junction. Normally only found on carbon fibre bikes, Merida claim this design saves weight, reduces maintenance and improves rear-triangle stiffness. The single-pivot swingarm is combined with a shock-driving rocker link to give control over the leverage curve.
While the FR 600 has a 29in front wheel and 650b rear as standard, a flip-chip lets you keep the geometry the same should you prefer to turn it into a full 29er. This does reduce frame travel to 162mm, though. Merida’s headset cable routing delivers a cleaner-looking cockpit. There’s space for a water bottle and additional mounts for tool storage on the down tube.
Geometry is in line with what you’d
