After what seemed like a long wait the all new Banshee Bikes Phantom has turned up at our door! What can I say, well worth the wait, astealth black in large with Rockshox Monarch shock. Geometry to make any rider sing around the trails and encourage you to try what hasn’t been tried before.
The Phantom is a new breed of 29er. While it may be short travel at 105mm, it is no XC weenie. The frame is stiff and strong to take on everything from all day epic rides to rough aggressive all mountain. 29er wheels roll over obstacles with ease, and so less travel is required to help with traction and absorption of square edge impacts.
The Phantom with its short travel, stiff frame, and low, slack geometry breaks new ground for a 29er. Most bikes in this travel range are significantly steeper and a lot more flexy and incapable of giving the rider the confidence that they need to ride at their limits. The phantom is designed to do away with the convention that short travel means it is only capable of being an XC bike.
The reason I decided on 105mm of travel for the Phantom after lots of prototype testing was purely down to performance and enjoyment. With a bit less travel the whole bike comes alive and connects you more directly with the trail you are riding. Yes, you have to work a bit harder over rough sections than you would if you had more travel… but there is enjoyment in this. It takes some skill and tests to see how much you have while making you feel perfectly in tune with what you are riding. The other advantage of shorter travel is that it results in more efficient pedalling and faster acceleration.
However, none of what makes the Phantom special to ride would exist without the stiffness that the frame offers. It is the stiffness of the frame that inspires confidence by resulting in a bike that tracks better, rails corners and makes you feel in complete control. Combine this superior frame stiffness with the slack head angle and attack position the phantom naturally puts you in, and you will be inspired to ride faster and have more fun than ever before.
Short Travel 29er with attitude. The Phantom is intended to be ridden hard and fast while providing the rider with phenominal trail feedback and sensation of speed.
Sizes | Medium, Large, Extra Large |
Travel | 105mm KS-link suspension optimised for aggressive trail style riding |
Taper Headtube | 44mm ¦ 56mm (1.125″ zero stack top, 1.5″ zero stack bottom) allows angle sets and tapered forks |
Hydroformed 7005 AL tubes | Increases strength and stiffness, and reduces weight |
ISCG2005 | Latest standard in ISCG for chainguide mounting |
Full length seat tube | Maximum saddle height adjustability |
Internal dropper routing |
Option of running stealth dropper posts, as well as having guides for non stealth posts. |
Internal ribbed stays | Increase stiffness for railing berms and holding lines through the roughest of trail sections, as well as increasing pedal efficiency |
Front derailleur | Uses SRAM S3 low direct mount system |
Aggressive geometry | Slack angles paired with frame anti-squat keeps speed going down and the front end planted on steep climbs |
Tire Clearance | 29 x 2.4″ (135×10, 142×12, and 150x12mm dropout options) |
INA Bearing pivots | Fully sealed high quality bearings throughout |
KS Link pivot system |
Optimised suspension kinematics for a fast, efficient, aggressive and fun ride |
Warranty | 2 years [original owner] |
Crash replacement | Lifetime [original owner] |
Size | M | L | XL |
suggested rider height | <6’0″ (<183cm) | 5’11”-6’3″ (180-191cm) | >6’2″ (>189cm) |
Seat tube | 445mm (17.5″) | 483mm (19″) | 533mm (21″) |
Top Tube | 585mm (23.0″) | 615mm (24.2″) | 645mm (25.4″) |
Wheel Base | 1138mm (44.8″) | 1168mm (46.0″) | 1200mm (47.2″) |
Head Angle | 67.5° / 68.0° / 68.5° | ||
Effective Seat Angle | 74.0° / 74.5° / 75.0° (real seat angle varies with saddle height and will slacken as saddle height is increased ) | ||
BB Height | 13.2″ / 13.45″ / 13.7″ | ||
Chainstay | 17.5″ / 17.4″ / 17.3″ | ||
Head Tube length | 115mm (4.5″) | 115mm (4.5″) | 125mm (4.9″) |
Standover | 718mm | 745mm | 780mm |
Max Tire Clearance | 29″ x 2.4″ | ||
Rear Hub Spacing | 135×10 or 142×12 or 150x12mm | ||
Head Tube | 44mm ¦ 56mm (1.125″ zero stack top, 1.5″ zero stack bottom) | ||
Seatpost Dia | 30.9mm | ||
Seattube OD | 34.9mm | ||
BB | 73mm – ISIS 118mm | ||
Chainguide | ISCG 2005 | ||
Shock | 7.25×1.75″ (40x8mm shaft end, 25.4x8mm reservoir end) | ||
Shock Type | Air / coil | ||
Suggested Sag | 25% | ||
Reach | 420mm | 450mm | 478mm |
Stack | 616mm | 616mm | 625mm |
The Phantom is now in stock in stealth black with a Monarch shock RRP £1529.00.
Check out what Wideopen Magazine had to say about the Banshee Phantom here.
“It just feels like a bike that you can chuck around and that you want to ride really, really fast. The effect is that you get the ride-all-day ability of a short travel and lightish bike but you’ve also got the angles that mean you can have loads of fun on the way round. Yeah sure, loads of bikes do that already (the Nukeproof Mega we tested in the last issue for one) but unique to the Phantom is that you’ve also got the benefits of big wheels without too much of the downsides that you might see on other wagon-wheeled-whips. It’s up to you whether that’s ‘your thing’ or not, but I was surprised at how fast and fun and not-29erish the bike was”.
If you would like further info on demo, pre-order or a general chit chat on the Phantom feel free to give us a call on 01694 781515