Carbon Wasp unveils new gearbox hardtail

Carbon Wasp has launched a new gearbox hardtail frame, hand made in Yorkshire.

Described by the brand as “the ultimate winter hardtail”, it has been a work-in-progress for several years.

Adrian Smith, chief designer and owner of Carbon Wasp, commented: “This is our take on the trusty winter hardtail; a gearbox bike for any conditions.

“We’ve been making gearbox bikes for years and we poured everything we know into this frame.

“It can be customised and tweaked in the construction and the set up to suit any kind of riding on any terrain.”

Carbon Wasp was set up several years ago and has been making components and frames for other brands for some time, as well as producing own brand parts.

The parts they have created have been used by world class riders on road, track and triathlon and have featured in the Tour de France, multiple World Championships and the past two Olympic games.

The company’s focus is MTB’s though and they have been developing this hardtail frame alongside full-suspension frames and other projects.

Carbon Wasp has allowed for plenty of customisation in the design of the frame, so the frame can be set up in the way that best suits the end use.

Utilising the low maintenance gearbox systems available from either Pinion or Effigear, this bike can be used on a bikepacking trek across the world, a short thrash in the local woods, or anything in between.

The frames are made entirely in Leeds, UK using pre-preg carbon fibre sourced in the UK.

That allows Carbon Wasp to keep control over quality and ensure shorter lead times.

The frames are compatible with gearboxes from Effigear and Pinion, including the new Pinion SmartShift with electronic shifting and can be fitted with Carbon Wasp’s own titanium Pinion cranks.

All frames feature internal cable routing and downtube storage, which includes access to the Pinion SmartShift wiring and battery.

The stays can be split, which means they can accommodate a belt drive, and the sliding dropouts provide belt or chain tension.

With ample tyre clearance, the internal stay clearance is 90mm at the tyre, so the frames can fit up to 29×3.0” tyres.

The frame is available in four standard sizes and features modern reach numbers (480mm on large), 30.9mm seat tube with space for the longest dropper posts.

But, customisation is at the heart of this frame, allowing riders to adapt the frame to your needs.

The headset is 44ZS/56ZS as standard but can be made with a 56mm upper bore to fit an angleset, allowing up to +/- 2deg head angle adjustment from the standard 65deg.

Likewise the rear dropouts can be customised to adjust the rear wheel position and tweak geometry.

Carbon Wasp are a small company and focus only on making the frames, so the hardtails are available as a frame-only or frame and gearbox, although a custom full build is available on request

As with its full-suspension frames, Carbon Wasp doesn’t use paint, opting to fit a coloured wrap instead.

Frames come with any custom colour of choosing (one-colour) with more elaborate custom colours or patterns available for an extra charge.

Frame only is £1,650 including custom wrap (one colour), with the frame and gearbox available for £2,550.

Available to order now, delivery around four weeks.

For more information, visit: carbonwasp.com