RAAW JIBB REVIEW

A BIKE FOR RAAW SENDING

Words by Robert Johnston  |  Photos by Finlay Anderson

Following on from the success of their Madonna enduro mountain bike, RAAW added the Jibb to their product line. The Jibb is intended to be an option for riders looking for a shorter travel and more agile bike that still packs a punch. With their signature no-nonsense approach and well thought out details, I was excited to see how the shorter travel offering would compare. It’s safe to say it didn’t disappoint, leading to some rowdy times on the local trails.

ABOUT THE RAAW JIBB

The Jibb is RAAW’s shorter travel yet still very rowdy interpretation of a trail bike. With a 135mm rear end and 150mm fork, the burly construction of this 29er makes it very much a mini version of their Madonna enduro rig.

FRAME AND FEATURES | Sharing many similarities to their Madonna, RAAW continues to put durability and serviceability first with the Jibb. Just looking at the double-sealed and gigantic bearings used throughout the pivot points indicates where their priorities lie, and that’s before you get to the ridiculous sized lower pivot. The 6061-T6 aluminum frame has a tubeset that’s designed to be equally capable, and so the heavy 3.9kg claimed frame weight for a size small should come as no surprise.

Further supporting the no-nonsense themes of the Jibb are the full ISCG-05 tabs; bolt-on external cable routing guides for most of the line; 203mm post mount brake adapter as standard (180mm available separately); and clearance for 2.6” rubber in the mud. A trunnion upper shock mount plus bearing mount on the lower bolt makes for smoother suspension action.

SUSPENSION | The Jibb shares the same suspension platform as their Madonna, with some tweaks made to optimize the performance for the shorter travel machine that it is. There’s less progression in the Leverage Ratio (down to 15%), still allowing for both air and coil shock compatibility. RAAW slightly reduced the Anti Squat (roughly 125% at sag in the climbing gears) due to the reduced needs of the shorter travel. There’s still very low anti rise for unaffected suspension performance when braking, with the drawback of increased likelihood for the bike to pitch forwards.

GEOMETRY | The RAAW Jibb features slightly pared down geometry compared with their Madonna enduro bike, offering a more lively feel, but with frame construction that’s still absolutely up for some abuse. RAAW offers four frame sizes from Small to XL, all designed around a pair of 29” wheels with no provisions to adjust the geometry for a smaller rear wheel.

The Head Tube Angle sits at 65.5° and is paired to a 77.5° Effective Seat Tube Angle across the size range. Also consistent across sizes is the 35mm Bottom Bracket Drop, giving a 335-340mm BB height.

Reach numbers go from 420mm to 495mm, and Stack Heights from 608mm to 649mm. Chainstay lengths vary, with the Small and Medium sitting at 440mm, and growing to 450mm on the XL. The size Large tested has a 470mm Reach; 636mm Stack and 445mm Chainstay. The chainstay length can be adjusted fore and aft 5mm with some replacement inserts and a different brake mount, letting the rider tune the handling to their preference.

When all is added up, the Wheelbase on the size Large RAAW Jibb is 1240mm.

BUILD SPECS | RAAW doesn’t offer complete builds of the Jibb, instead offering the choice to purchase the frame only for $2,273/£1,793 /€2,440; frame with a selection of shocks; or a Rolling Chassis kit for $4,140 /£3,267 /€4,445 to get your build kicked off.

It’s no secret that a new generation of Jibb is on the way, with the same refinements as on their latest Madonna V3, and so RAAW has these discounted. If you want to grab a deal on what is very much still a relevant and worthy bike, now may be the best time.

I opted to spec my Jibb with many of the same parts used in my test of the RAAW Madonna V2.2 from last year. The total bike weight came in at 16.5kg (36.3lbs) for the build as you see it in these photos, minus the pedals. This has a very burly tire spec and no hint of carbon fiber anywhere, and you could easily knock off a few pounds without a notable reduction in capability.

That said, it’s by no means a lightweight frame at around 4kg without a shock. Instead, RAAW focuses on durability and long service life, with huge pivot bearings and chunky tube sets that should stand the test of time.

THE DIRT

I was provided a Jibb frame with Fox 36 Factory fork and both Float X and DHX2 Factory rear shocks. The rest of the build kit was left up to me to supply, so most ended up carrying across from previous enduro bike builds, ensuring I was using components I was very comfortable with such as the Hope Tech 4 V4 brakes.

Though the number on the scale is high for a bike in this travel class, there’s much more to a bike than its heft, and the Jibb’s character goes a long way towards justifying spec’ing it “properly”.

SETUP | I played around with both the Fox Float X and DHX2 shock options RAAW provided me with. With both I was able to obtain a balanced setup easily, but the Float X’s increased pep and progression suited my preference for this bike a touch more. The DHX2 had a calming effect on the Jibb’s mannerisms and helped to keep it glued to the terrain below, but I’d suggest that you would be better off looking at the Madonna if that is the character you’re seeking.

The Float X with 30% sag paired well with a hair over Fox’s air pressure recommendation for the 150mm 36 fork, leaving me balanced and comfortable to push the Jibb hard. Very hard. Too hard for the lower shock bolt as it turns out, but more on that later.

CLIMBING | The Jibb is no featherweight, but solid pedaling support in its kinematic paired with well centered and balanced climbing geometry mean it’s still a bike that’s happy to cover reasonable ground. I tested it with a full-bore gravity tire setup which unsurprisingly deterred me from doing any XC Marathons on it, but you could certainly build up the Jibb in a way that’d make short work of your typical trail center loops. It’s less of a stand-up pedal-masher than it is a seated spinner, but it’s far from a slouch.

DESCENDING | Aggressive, burly-built “mini-Enduro” bikes often lead me astray. With supple off-the-top suspension and reassuring precision in the chassis, you’re encouraged to push as hard as you would a longer travel bike…if not harder at times. The fairly low BB and well considered Head Angle and Chainstay lengths to maintain the weight balance make the Jibb a very easy bike to get along with. It begs you to attack corners and fairly gnarly rough and steep terrain. This seems to be a trait that RAAW is so good at nailing. Easy to ride means easy to push your limits.

The capability RAAW has obtained from the Jibb is quite impressive, but it’s still possible to get in way over your head before you know it. At this point, the 135mm rear end can only do so much to help. Less experienced riders would undoubtedly enjoy the Jibb on slightly mellower trails, but it’s experienced riders who are going to be best suited to riding the edge of the Jibb’s capabilities time and time again.

Ultimately the “please send it” character of the Jibb led to the demise of the lower shock bolt during the photoshoot for this review. It took a particularly harsh and flat landing to make it happen, where it wasn’t a total surprise that an issue was faced. I can’t say for sure that it’s not a potential weak point, but I can vouch that it held up just fine through plenty of riotous behavior beforehand. Sadly the planned photo wasn’t quite as exciting as expected, but Finlay did snap a qualifying shot of the severity of the bottom out upon landing, shown below.

FINISH AND VALUE | RAAW does a fantastic job at covering the details, and the quality of finish on the Jibb is excellent. Big, burly double-sealed pivots give great longevity and add to the overall composure of the bike when pushing hard. The cable routing is in some ways excellent – every single point of potential rattle or movement is clamped by either a bolt-on guide or a zip tie – however, initial setup can be a headache with so many points to tighten. Routing around the bottom bracket area is very tight, leading my brake hose to get a little distorted, but I suffered no issues in performance once set up properly.

In terms of value, the price tag is fairly high for an aluminum frame, but justified by the quality of finish and the reassuringly solid feeling on the trail. With 30% discounts on the frame right now, it seems like a good deal to me for a bike that’s likely to last for a long haul of abuse.

COMPONENT REPORT | As a custom build from the frame-up, let me touch on some products of note.

Hope Tech 4 V4 brakes | As in my review of these from a while ago, they are some of the very best in my eyes. The lever action is very light and the power is incredible, yet there’s no lack of control – so long as you’ve got the right pads in them for your preferences. They’re a little fussier in terms of their setup, but it’s worth it in my eyes.

SILT Enduro Alloy Wheelset | As “budget” hoops go, these feel like a killer option so far. I’m yet to fully test their long-term durability, but so far the rims are holding up pretty damn well. I had one issue with the hub mechanism, which appears to be a faulty spring that slipped through QC, but the replacement has been trouble-free since.

HOW DOES IT COMPARE? | YT JEFFSY

Though there’s 10mm of rear travel difference between the RAAW Jibb and YT Jeffsy, there’s little to tell in terms of the capabilities on the way down the hill. The Jeffsy is a sprightlier climbing bike and slightly more agile on mellower terrain, but on the way down the Jibb takes the cake for its encouragement to go hard. The Jeffsy would be the choice for slightly less aggressive riders or those looking for a more pedal-friendly machine, whereas the RAAW is going to suit riders looking to dance on the edge more often. Both are undoubtedly killer machines in their own right.

The Wolf’s Last Word

The RAAW Jibb is a bike that inspires RAAW sending and dancing on the edge of both bike and bodies’ limits. It’s on the heavy end of the spectrum for a bike in its travel category but inspires riding aggression more than your typical 135mm and even some longer travel machines. With incredible attention to detail in its design and some inspirational ride character, the Jibb is a very fun machine for the right rider.

Price:
$2,273/£1,793 /€2,440 (Frame Only)
$4,140 /£3,267 /€4,445 (Rolling Chassis)

Website: RAAWmtb.com