Giant Bicycles Introduces New Steerer Tube Standard & Seatpost

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Giant Bicycles Introduces New Steerer Tube Standard & Seatpost
By bturman
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OverDrive 2 uses an oversized, tapered steerer tube which is designed to work in conjunction with massive 1 1/4-inch top and 1 1/2-inch bottom bearing sizes. Giant is also offering a full range of new 1 1/4-inch stems to work with OverDrive 2 technology.
OverDrive 2 is an open standard that Giant developed in conjunction with major suspension manufacturers including Marzocchi, Fox Racing Shox and RockShox.
Giant also introduced the new Contact Switch Adjustable Seatpost, which is available now and features 4" of adjustment.
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While at Crankworx 2011, Giant Bicycles presented their OverDrive 2 steerer tube/headset standard and a new adjustable seatpost.
29 comments

View replies to: Giant Bicycles Introduces New Steerer Tube Standard & Seatpost

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Douglas_Feldewert
13 years ago
This is so unnecessary... Now its gonna be even harder to build up a bike the way one wants it. 1.5 is the way to go anyways.
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scriz
13 years ago
@joe Thanks, that was an thoroughly entertaining read I'm going on 6 years on my SX Trail and it still rips!
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Paul_Brush
13 years ago
It's not a new standard. It's new sized bearings that are forward and backwards compatible within the existing tapered headtube standard.
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Flatspin
13 years ago
A standard is something that is accepted across a range of manufacturers as the agreed upon size. This is not a standard, this is just a size. Unfortunately, Giant has run out of ideas and they asked the janitor for a real zinger. Now if we buy a Giant (I won't) we all get a 30% improvement in stiffness, compared to, um, the previous stiffness which was 30% less than, um, now. By the way, Giant, I'd suggest hiring someone more convincing to be your Internet spokesperson. That guy's embarassing.
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JCL
13 years ago
Who the hell are the Giant R&D guys? They're so out of touch with what customers actually want it's a joke. Dated geometry, regressive suspension on DH bikes, no ISCG on 6" bikes... And then they come out with total crap like this. How is this going to increase the stiffness on my 1 1/8" steerer tubed DH fork? I hope to hell the Specialized/Trek R&D guys don't adopt it and it dies.

scriz, the 2011 Demo has lips on the dropout for easy wheel changes (150mm axle) and they didn't need to invent a new standard. Just a bit of clever design.
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scriz
13 years ago
regarding the "new" 157x12 axle on the new Norco and Session 9.9.... here's a decent explanation: "Now, now, before you get too excited about a new standard, consider the facts. 157×12 is following in 142×12′s foot steps, in that in order to make installing the wheel easier, slots have been made in the frame for the axle to rest. In order to keep everything else the same, a total of 7mm had to be added to the axle so that the cassette would clear the chainstays. Just like Trek’s ABP convert, the Session’s system includes the hardware to run a standard 150mm wide rear hub. Not only can you take advantage of 157′s easier wheel changes, but if you buy the frame only, or have other wheels already you can still use them."
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N'Duro
13 years ago
Amazing! Certainly one of the stupidest inventions of the 21st century! Within 2 years they'll show up with new "research results" giving an optimized stiffness for a new standard they'll call Overdrive 3 and will be nothing else than a straight 1,5....
BTW, why Overdrive 2? Has there ever been an Overdrive 1??
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trailripper
13 years ago
I think Giant should worry about putting some sort of ISCG tab's on the 2011+ Reign frames before they start making a new 'standard' that probably won't take off.
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Surfwax
13 years ago
I run full 1.5 on my 2005 Prophet. According to my calculations it's 32.6% stiffer than any 1 1/4 tapered steerer and that bike is almost 7 years old now.

Just another marketing ploy, plain and simple. Cramming standards down consumer's throats sucks.

Might as well skip the intermediate step and go full 1.5. At least then anyone could run what ever fork they wanted and it's angle set ready.
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mtbfree
13 years ago
Awesome... another standard to mess everything up and make it even more difficult to find quality used parts that actually fit.
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mtbmtbmtb
13 years ago
on their headset tey are missing the rubber piece on the top part, between the frame mounted part and the spinning part... i think its good to introduce new things, you never know, it could be the future.
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cbd
13 years ago
You know what would be cool? Standardized MTB seatpost diameters within the next 10-60 years.
BMX standard size is 25,4mm since dinosaurs' extinction, MTB standard size.. could be like 30.9mm or whatever... Whoa.. never mind, i must be daydreaming.
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audeo03
13 years ago
Why try and dictate what the suspension pros do??? Does Rockshox come out with new frame dimension standards for DH bikes? NO.
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moosy
13 years ago
Well. Just what we need, another standard to mess things up again. I see absolutely no point in this whatsoever, it bugs me even more when Giant chose to 'innovate, they come up with completely unnecessary garbage. Stick to what you do best Giant, ripping off other people's design ideas (even when they do that they screw it up). Die Giant. Leave the cyclng industry to genuine innovators and maybe we will someday have and industry with some integrity. People of the world unite! Boycott this rubbish and everything else Giant do! The world will be a better place without it. Specialized and Trek should listen too with their stupid new bb standards. WTF is 84.5bb??? Come on... I would like to thank Syntace too for 12x142 and now 12x157. Please. 135mm and 150mm work just fine, just strap a thru axle in (maxle?) and off you go! I won't be 'upgrading' anytime soon thanks. Marketing? I'm not sold at all. Rant over.
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Arcturus214
13 years ago
30% increase of stiffness from what? Noodles? Flux capacitors? Full straight 1.5" head tubes? This comes off as complete marketing bullshit because the stuff they stay is drowned in numbers that make no sense. They probably just tossed these numbers into some differential equation to find a minute gain in stiffness and weight savings and compare it to something archaic to make it sound significant. But with the giant Giant is, this standard is probably here to stay...
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phlo
13 years ago
Way to go Giant marketing you continue to fake innovation as you have nothing new. Nice way to keep adding specific size parts, and moving the bike industry in the direction of unsustainable.

You can't talk stiff when you run suspension. So pointless!!!
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iceman2058
13 years ago
Yeah, why do we need this now again? Between this and the new 157x12 rear axle from Norco/Syntace....everybody please discard all your old frames, forks, and wheels immediately, they have been declared obsolete. Oh and if you are still on a 9sp drivetrain, you need to get rid of that old crap too. For now, you may keep your stems, handlebars, brakes, and grips - but not to worry, R&D have found an additional 30% of stiffness in all of those components as well, so keep some money in the piggy bank for more "upgrading" in the near future. Stay tuned!

Yours sincerely - Corporate Profit.
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Lukas
13 years ago
Oh great, another "standard". You can never get too many of those. Whats wrong with the 1 1/8" -> 1.5" or better, why not use full 1.5" like Cannondale?