SQlab’s ONE10 isn’t like most serious mountain bike gloves, at first glance it looks pretty normal but peer closer and you’ll see a waterproof lobster mitt clever discreetly tucked away…
Guy Kesteven
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Night riding season is upon us, but you can do a lot better than Cateye’s AMPP2200 mountain bike light
Cateye has been making bike lights for longer than most, and the AMPP2200 is the brightest of an 11 strong AMPP headlight range. The focused beam makes it OK for…
Manitou’s highly tunable Mattoc Pro fork delivers impressive trail bike performance with minimal maintenance
Manitou is one of the original MTB suspension fork brands alongside RockShox and Marzocchi. It’s been 25 years since it were a top choice for trail use though. Which is…
I’ve tested a dozen lights this winter and Exposure’s Six Pack is literally brilliant… I just wish the mount was more robust
Six Pack is the biggest of Exposure’s self contained bar lights and the MK14 Reflex+ is the equal brightest too. It’s not the smartest or most expensive light Exposure makes,…
The 7Mesh Spruce jacket is so good I’ve basically lived in it all winter
Fellow mbr tester Mick Kirkman rightly raved about the 7Mesh Chilco jacket after I tipped him off about its miraculous weather-beating warmth. For most of my high energy riding the…
No screens, no remote switches, no gimmicks: Lezyne’s Mega Drive 2400+ is one of the best night riding lights I’ve tested this winter
The Mega Drive is the most powerful of Lezyne’s 14 strong bar light arsenal but it’s simple in terms of features. Deliberately so though, the idea is to prioritise brightness,…
In a year of endless tech developments and electronic gizmos, my 2024 MTB Gear of the Year goes back-to-basics with not a battery in sight
Considering how many thousands of bikes I’ve ridden since my first bike test in MBR issue #3 in 1997, the fact that a pair of no-frills trail bikes can still…
Boardman’s new MTR 8.9 is a fast and light hustler of a down-country bike, for less than £2,000
Boardman’s MTR range has been one of our top bargain trail bike recommendations for years. The older model had 150/140mm travel but this latest version drops that to 130mm both…
Hope’s new brake mash-up is an inspired down-country dream, pairing its lightest XCR brake lever with the enduro-ready E4 caliper
Hope’s minimalist XCR carbon lever started out mated to an X2 twin pot brake caliper, making it ideal for proper XC applications. Roll on a few years and that XCR…
The new Voodoo Canzo is a budget full-sus bargain, and I think it has better suspension than the Bossnut
Voodoo’s all new Canzo full-suspension trail bike isn’t perfect, but it’s a brilliant example of an affordable have-a-go-hero with future-proof upgrade features you won’t normally find at this price. Voodoo…
Cotic’s new Rocket e-bike made me swipe left when I first saw it, but the beautiful details and stunning ride quality turned me on
Cotic’s new e-bike stays true to its signature steel frame style of 21 years, and uses a wholly UK-built frame to minimise ecological impact and maximise build quality. Mounting the…
Nukeproof and Ragley are gone: step forward Merida’s new Big Trail, one of the few properly radical hardtails left
The original 2020 Merida Big Trail started as a collaboration between Merida and UK dealers wanting something more rad than the average trail hardtail. Four years later it’s become available…
The RockShox Pike is a flawed genius of a fork thanks to its Charger 3.1 damper
The latest RockShox Pike Ultimate literally reams out the QC problems of the old fork, which was beset by problems and often choked by damping and bushing issues when pushed…
I’m a huge fan of Trek’s high-octane Top Fuel 9, and the latest version is the best yet – but it could be even better
I was a big fan of the previous alloy Top Fuel from Trek, as were Danny and Alan when they tested the last Top Fuel 8, and this latest version…
Lizard Skins’ Gradient grips boast a subtle wing for palm support, and improved comfort on my longest rides
Before you even start counting colours, Lizard Skins have 23 different grip designs to try, and I’ve been working my way through a bunch of them recently. The ones that…
Viris might be a new name in eyewear, but the Raptor glasses kit impressed me with its scratch-resistant lens and prescription-compatible frame
Speculating in the biking spectacle space means going up against big, established global brands with massive marketing and ambassador budgets, such as Oakley, Smith, and 100% – the kind of…
Why the brilliant new Santa Cruz Bronson makes me feel sad… and safe, at the same time
Santa Cruz says it’s learnt a lot about mixed wheel bikes since launching the Bronson 4 as its first MX bike, and it’s loaded those lessons into the new Bronson…
I love the short-sleeve 7Mesh Roam jersey, but this long-sleeve version is even better for UK mountain biking
The 7Mesh Roam SS shirt has already been tested and highly rated, making it onto our rundown of best mountain bike jerseys. The LS version extends sun and scratch protection…
The Specialized Chisel FS is a cut-price Epic with the pace to go racing on a budget
Specialized has taken its latest carbon Epic XC/DC range and translated it into aluminium to create the new Chisel FS. The result is an affordable, but still seriously rapid, impressively…
I tested World Champion Tom Pidcock’s Pinarello Dogma XC and now I’ve got even more respect for his skills
Designed with the help of Olympic Champion Tom Pidcock, and ridden to victory in last summer’s World Championship XCO event in Glentress, you can’t deny the new Pinarello Dogma XC…