ORBEA OCCAM M10 REVIEW

THE DIRT
I opted for the size Large Orbea Occam, which at 6’2″ is slightly “too small” for me based on Orbea’s size guide, however I’m not fully sold on the extra long reach movement. That being said, I found the Occam was on the smaller side but still very comfortable for me. A lot of my local riding involves very tight and technical trails, where long bikes can be quite a handful so I wasn’t all that upset at my decision to size-down.

Setting up the Occam is as simple as you like. Perhaps a stroke of luck, but after setting 30% sag with 280psi in the Fox DPX2 and inflating the fork to 92psi, the Orbea felt great from the get go and only required minor compression adjustments in the fork. With this set up being such a breeze, it was easy to hop on to the bike and focus on learning exactly how the Occam performed on a variety of terrain.

Climbing position is very comfortable, with the 77° seat tube angle providing a great, centered position on the bike and making it easy to balance grip on the rear with weight on the front wheel. There’s no need to touch the compression lever on the DPX2, thanks to a healthy amount of anti-squat keeping the Orbea Occam remarkably neutral under power. But the wheel isn’t driven into the ground hard enough to produce an uncomfortable ride on chunky climbs. It seems Orbea have produced a bike with minimal compromises in the climbing department.

The supportive nature of the Orbea Occam’s rear end is somewhat of a super-power in fact. I’ve never ridden a 140mm travel bike that manages to inspire pedaling energy quite like this bike, with riding buddies terming it the “E-Bea” as they watched me putting down maximum watts at any given opportunity. When standing and pedaling, the bottom bracket remains in a neutral position with no hint of wallowing, making it a pleasure to navigate through tighter trails where timing pedal strokes is critical.

With my initial ride being at a fairly mellow trail center, I was sold on the pedaling characteristics but left with a big question about the aggressive capabilities of the bike. It was, therefore, a pleasant surprise to find that when the going got rough, and the terrain challenging, the Orbea performed every bit as well as it should, giving a fine mix of forgiveness and support that took some fairly rowdy terrain to surpass its capabilities. The stiffness of the carbon rear end is not excessive, with a small amount of give that combines with the relatively compliant DT wheels to strike a nice balance. The hardware on the Occam is well-engineered with tolerances that create an extremely tight feeling rear end, without a hint of loosening throughout the testing period – a rarity for a bike under my control, and especially for a bike being used somewhat outside its intended purpose. I had the Occam on some of the gnarliest trails at two of Wales’ finest bike parks and only wished for a burlier bike on the chunkiest and most flat out trails.

The Geometry is of course not as progressive as many bikes that are coming out. If stability, speed in rowdy terrain and forgiveness are at the top of your priorities list then you may be better served by another brand. However, given the “all-mountain” intentions of the Occam, I feel that Orbea have done a good job with the geometry, with adequate stability for the most part, without the boat-like drawbacks that the most extreme bikes are suffering from. You can change direction and squeeze through tighter turns on the Orbea Occam with ease, yet there’s still a great deal of descending potential to be tapped into. The one minor quirk I found in the steepest of terrain was a slight tendency for the front wheel to “tuck” under heavy braking efforts coming through steep turns. A tad unsettling at first, but resolved with a less lazy approach in the corners. The use of a 44mm offset fork may be to blame here to an extent, with a longer offset possibly helping to neutralize this characteristic, but it really is a minor one in the grand scheme.

The stock configuration of the DPX2 (with a 0.2 spacer) creates a generous amount of progression, and as such there were only a handful of times where the bottom out bumper was noticed through my feet. There’s no mistaking that it’s a 140mm travel bike, but it is one that allows you to press send from time to time. On flow trails, the support in the rear end provides a generous reward of speed when pumping, and there’s adequate stiffness and tire clearance in the rear end to allow corner slashing to your heart’s content.

Braking generates a fair amount of firming of the rear, keeping a consistent body position but occasionally leading to a bit of feedback when breaking through the rough. Nothing unmanageable, but it can lead to a loss of traction under braking from time to time and can have flat pedal riders looking for taller pedal pins.

Out the box, the Orbea Occam’s striking two-tone colorway and smooth lines create a sporty look that perfectly matches the character of the bike. The component spec on the M10 creates a package that is a pleasure to ride. The Hyperglide+ Shimano XT gearing is incredible, allowing you to maintain power delivery to the rear wheel without the need to let off at all, and providing a perfect match to the pedal-friendly Occam. The 4-pot XT brakes combined with 180mm Freeza rotors provided consistent braking throughout testing, with no hint of the shifting bite point that has plagued many of its predecessors, and a surprisingly well modulated power delivery for a Shimano brake. The addition of the 150mm Fox 36 fork was a very welcome one, boosting the capabilties and control of the bike by a sufficient amount to justify the increased weight on the front end. There was only one issue with the rest of the Occams’ parts, in the name of the EXO casing rear tire, which suffered an ugly death at the hands of a piece of razor-sharp Welsh slate. Everything else performed well for the testing duration – a testament to the people who put together the parts package.

The Wolf’s Last Word

The Orbea Occam is one hell of a bike. Capable on a huge variety of terrain, well put together and well spec’d, the M10 is a true machine for all mountains. Few bikes have provided such a good time on so many different types of trail, be it mellow trail centers, flowy bike parks or natural gnar, the Occam provides a great tool for it all.

Weight: 30-lbs;
Price: $5,733 (as Tested);
Website: Orbea.com

SPECIFICATIONS

CHASSIS
Frame: Orbea Occam OMR 2020 140mm travel 29″ C-Boost 12×148
Fork: Fox 36 Float Factory 150 Grip2 RC2 QR15x110 Kashima
Shock: Fox DPX2 Factory 3-Position Adjust Evol Kashima custom tune 210x50mm

COCKPIT
Brakes: Shimano XT M8120 Hydraulic Disc, 180mm FREEZA CL rotors
Handlebar: Race Face Next R, 20 x 780 mm, 35mm
Headset: Acros Alloy 1-1/8 – 1-1/2″ Integrated
Saddle: Fizik Taiga Kium rail
Seatpost: OC2 Dropper 31.6mm, 170mm
Shifter: Shimano XT M8100 I-Spec EV 12spd
Stem: Race Face Aeffect R 35mm x 55mm

WHEELS
Wheelset: DT Swiss XM-1650 Spline 30c TLR CL, Star Ratchet, Boost
Front tire: Maxxis Minion DHF 2.5″ TLR EXO
Rear tire: Minion DHR 2.4″ (R) TLR EXO

DRIVETRAIN
Bottom Bracket: Shimano Hollowtech II
Cassette: Shimano XT M8100 10-51t 12-Speed
Cranks: Shimano XT M8100 32t
Derailleur: Shimano XT M8100 SGS Shadow Plus