The Snabb name is shared across two platforms; a longer-travel E model designed for enduro, and a shorter, tighter T bike built for trail riding. There are two price points for each and the Snabb T1 tested here is the top-end trail bike.

Need to know

142mm-travel trail bike with 27.5in wheels

Custom aluminium frame with internal cable routing

Ultra-stiff Magneto stem

1×10-speed drivetrain with a 42t cassette extender

Front and rear-specific tyres and rims

Suspension performance improved after a number of rides

Underneath the luminous paint is a clean aluminium frame with both the dropper post and rear mech cables routed internally. It’s also bomber solid, especially at the rear end, where there’s a 142x12mm bolt-thru axle. No quirky European geometry either — it’s slack, long and there’s plenty of reach for a size medium bike.

NS fits RockShox suspension front and rear, but the Revelation RL fork is the longest available, and, at 150mm travel, it feels a little flexible. It also gets the basic Motion Control damper, which can get overwhelmed when you start to push hard on rougher terrain.

Also, I had to pump the fork up pretty hard to stop it diving, which didn’t do the small-bump performance any favours. Fitting some Bottomless Tokens to the Revelation would really help, especially on a fork this long.

On the very first ride, the rear suspension on the Snabb T1 felt sluggish and slow to return, even with the rebound on the Monarch RT3 Debonair shock set wide open.

To lower the stem you’ll need to cut the steerer

NS did say there was an alignment issue on some early bikes, which could cause some binding, and when I removed the shock to check, although the top eyelet wasn’t perfectly in line with the upper links, it wasn’t way out. I just think the bike needs time to bed in, because after a couple of rides the rear suspension started to feel a lot more responsive. I’m still not running any rebound damping, but it’s freed up loads.

For a £3k bike, the build on the Snabb T1 is functional rather than flashy. The 1×10 drivetrain is a budget SRAM X7/X9 mix, but it does come with an in-house 42t cassette extender, which is dead handy for steep climbs. The X-Fusion Hi-Lo dropper is welcome for the trip back down.

The NS Snabb T1 definitely grew on me. Lacklustre initially, once I dialled in the riding position, and bedded in the suspension, it really came to life. You probably get more bike for your money from the likes of Canyon and YT, but the Snabb T1 is a solid trail bike to build on.

For more information click here