The Radavist

You know that big bike shortage the world is going through right now?  It seems like Starling Cycles didn’t get the memo because they’ve got Starling frames and build kits available to order now. That means all of their Core frames are ready to order – that’s Swoop, Twist, and Murmur in Enduro (long travel) and Trail (short travel) options. Also, all of their Rare frames are ready to order – that’s the Murmur Stainless, Spur, Beady Little Eye, and full custom geo frames.

Starling’s Core bikes are being handbuilt to a 12 week lead time and their Rare bikes to a 16 week lead time. To top off your build, Starling also has a good supply of build kits to create your dream bike – that’s shocks, forks, drivetrains, wheels, cockpits. Pretty much everything you need. So, if you’re hunting for your dream bike, why not consider a beautifully built, brutally fast steel single-pivot?

If you’ve never thrown your leg over a modern steel full suspension, join the cult!

Packing 170mm of travel, 29″ wheels and the Effigear system, the Spur is the bike for big-terrain enduro racing, double-black bike park laps and hassle-free seasons in the mountains.

The Spur uses a high-pivot, gearbox design to offer an unprecedented ride on a steel chassis. During the design process, Starling worked closely with Effigear to build this steel frame around their 9-speed system, offering a 440% range, making any climb more efficient. Speaking of efficiency, the Effigear system uses a standard trigger shifter, not an annoying grip ship. Having the gearbox at the bottom bracket keeps the bike balanced, nimble, and provides a lower center of gravity. This translates to unprecedented traction, control, and an overall more balanced feel.

The Spur is available to order now from Starling Cycles and is built by hand in Bristol, UK using Reynolds 853 steel heat-treated tubing. There is a 16 week lead time on all orders and frames are available with or without shock and with a variety of components to help build your dream bike.

Specs:
Front triangle and swingarm hand-built in Bristol, UK, using Reynolds 853 heat-treated tubing
170mm travel
Effigear 9spd drivetrain with 440% range, including cranks, shifter and cogs
29″ wheels
2.6″ tyre clearance
Up to 200mm rotor
Designed for single speed 142x12mm rear hubs
Unique Starling dropouts system means rear wheel can be removed without adjusting tension
Seattube reinforcing strut on XL
Integrated seat-clamp
Stainless & numbered dropper port
Starling headtube gusset
Bottle mount in frame on medium & above

Available in Medium, Large, and X-Large. Pricing is £3330.00 for a frame. See more at Starling Cycles.

Starling Cycles, the maker of the steel Murmur 29er full suspension, just announced a limited edition Murmur with a stainless steel front triangle, made by Ora in Taiwan. Only available in size Large or XLarge, these limited edition frames can be bought as a frameset (£2330.00) or as a complete build through Starling direct. These bikes offer a completely different ride quality from their carbon fiber counterparts and remain to this day one of my personal favorites on the market. Check out my initial review of the Murmur and my personal Murmur build in the Related articles below…

A lot of people are offering up deals on their bikes and with their announcement of moving production back to the UK on their front triangles, Starling has a lot riding on this first season of sales. To spice up their already solid deals, they’re offering something special.

Frames are now £1,327.50, that’s 10% off and they’re offering a free custom paint upgrade, worth £120.

TO ORDER: A 25% non-refundable deposit is required to reserve your frame. Once frames are ready to ship, the remaining payment will be requested. Use the code starling2020, at checkout. This will reduce your basket total by 75%, allowing you to pay a 25% deposit.

They will then invoice you for the remaining 75% once frames are ready to ship.

See more information at Starling Cycles and check out John’s review of the Murmur Factory from 2019 and his own bike review to get a sense of what these bikes truly are.

Starling Cycles has been busy ramping up for the 2020 production year. When John bought his Murmur, there were two options: made in the UK front triangle or the made in Taiwan complete bike, aka the Factory Murmur. Joe from Starling decided to switch back to a made in UK front triangle for 2020, for various reasons which he outlines in this video. As always, Starling Cycles ships to the USA. Just don’t use the USPS. ;-)

Joe from Starling, the maker of that steel full suspension bike I loved so much, just got interviewed by Global Mountain Bike Network. They ask a simple question: is boutique best?

The Starling Cycles Murmur Factory is a 29’r built to shred. In this video, Starling lent the bike to Leo Sandler, Kiwi Shredding supreme, to see what he could do with the bike on a wet, wild and slippy day in South Wales.

When you think about what a downhill bike does, go downhill in bike parks, then a singlespeed makes sense. Starling Cycles tackled the DH SS problem with a truly unique suspension design… out of steel! See the full reveal at Starling and check out the video for Brett Wheeler from Wheelers MTB Holiday Portugal shredding this almost silent trail killer.

You may or may not have heard of Starling Cycles before. They’re UK frame builders of mountain bikes, including the Murmur 29’r, a full suspension, steel, made in the UK frame. Well, the UK brand has now offered a Taiwan-built version of the Murmur, called the Murmur Factory 29’r and it’s currently available to order. There isn’t much difference between the Murmur and the Factory, except cost. So if Made in the UK isn’t as important to the consumer, they can save some money. Head to Starling to see more information on the Murmur Factory 29’r.