In the recent way back, I spoke of second (W)reckonings and some misgivings therein. However, let’s begin the new year on a positive note and see where some less than awesome situations can lead to better outcomes. As previously stated, I did not care much for Super Boost 157 spacing, but I eventually got the bike together and found it to have some superior attributes to its V1 ancestor. These included a better climbing position due to a slightly steeper seat angle, a more centered riding position from the now longer reach and a more poppy disposition even with the coil shock it came spec’d with. I had come close to achieving much of that with the mods I had on the Wreckoning V1, but the changes on the V2 meant I’d have less to futz with at least at first.
Music selections: The Hope Conspiracy: Tools of Oppression/Rule by Deception Look, I like melody and pop as much as anyone but for whatever reason I tend to favor hardcore and post hardcore that is more shall we say bleak, jagged, noisy, dark and/or brutal. That said, I really do not like the bro-ish, macho thug, “tough guy” element that crept into way too much of it. These guys could veer into that miasma easily, but thankfully do not. Tbh, I knew not of The Hope Conspiracy, but came across this ’24 album of theirs and just dig it’s solid classic Boston hardcore sound albeit with a generous helping of metallic heaviness. It’s a banger and nicely dropped into my assorted ride playlists.
Obliterations: Poison Everything Speaking of playlists and Boston hardcore (not actually from Boston though), Obliterations was a brief side project from members of Black Mountain, Saviours, Bluebird, Night Horse and Pink Mountaintops. They really do not sound like any of those bands. Instead take the most raging classic east coast hardcore ala SSD, have it fronted by John Brannon, sprinkle with some Hellacopters and you’ll get the idea. All of their output is blistering and incredible. Obliterations appear in all of my ride playlists, and they are my go-to when I need a tune to get up a climb or open it up on some rad-tastic descent.
In 2020, when the V2 Wreckoning came out, it was insanely popular. I had heard of its arrival via my pals before it hit publicly and put my order in only to have to wait due to the first two frame runs selling out in days. Evil had built up a big hype machine by that point due to rave reviews of their previous efforts and of course the plague bike frenzy added to it. The bike looked amazing and rode mostly great. However, beyond my SB 157 issues there were other less than stellar factors. The finishes on Evil bikes were okay but were prone to chipping. More concerning was that the front triangle of my new frame developed a crack by the main pivot after only a couple of rides. Evil promptly took care of it sending a new front end out, but this happened to many others at the same time.
What I found most curious was that that the editions prior to these had very few breakage reports. I have a theory on this, and maybe I am way off base but hear me out. When Evil reorganized following their DH bikes mishigas of the mid 00s, they had to make sure their new bikes were beyond bulletproof. That first series of bikes especially, the Calling, Wreckoning, Offering and Insurgent were built like tanks despite being full carbon frames. Evil even made a point to state that they used carbon for strength versus the usual weight-saving motives of most companies.
As noted above in late ’19 early ’20 Evil was riding a big popularity wave, and most had forgotten or at least forgiven their previous transgressions. Now they no longer had to prove themselves as much as before on the durability front. The DELTA suspension was a hit, their bikes were fun and held up, so they could perhaps stretch out. Whatever the case I later ended up breaking the rear triangle too. So, not great.1
Two additional factors have been ongoing for Evil bikes. These are somewhat interdependent with their use of ultra short chain stay lengths that are uniform on all sizes and very slack actual seat angles. In all honesty these were not a huge problem for me nor really anyone on a size small or medium frame. However, those short chain stays on the bigger bikes made them feel unbalanced. This geometry design point is mostly gone on current bikes where chain stay, or rear center lengths increase proportionally on larger models. Those slack seat angles, which again are okay with us little people feel awful for tall riders. This is due to the saddle moving further back behind the bottom bracket at full extension exacerbating an overly stretched out uncomfortable position for climbing.
An issue I did face as a vertically challenged rider was that the new Wrecker’s geometry made the rear wheel nearly buzz a lowered saddle on hard landings or G-outs. I got a little too close of shave on more occasions than I liked. Nevertheless, I was still having a lot of fun with my Wrecker. It was reading this article on NSMB.com that made me think about changing things up. I obviously had experience with 27.5 wheels, and this sounded like it could be what I was looking for. At this point Evil had barely released the updated Insurgent which would come with mixed wheels (or full 27.5 for park duties). Only the swingarm was different b/t the new Insurgent and the Wreckoning. Also, I figured I could probably “try it” inexpensively with a basic rear wheel. If I hated it, no big whup.
Hate it I did not. Going with a wee wheel out back had some immediately benefits. Gone was the fear of bit buzzing and the maneuverability ratcheted up as well. These changes especially the handling was clutch for me. That playful vibe I had with 27.5 bikes was back, but now I still had the roll-over/monster truck big wheel effect up front. There were some minuses to manage with the front end now being very slack making sketchy climbs tricky due to wander. Additionally, the bottom bracket height was now even lower and eventually I would move from short 165 mm cranks to even shorter 155 mm cranks to avoid pedal strikes. The change to 155 cranks has become my default though now so I’ll slot that into the win column. Over the remainder of the time I spent with the Wrecker set up like this I became mixed wheel/mullet devotee. Yet, I did begin to realize that maybe acquiring a frame that was built specifically for that versus my shoehorning efforts could be even better. I began to think that could solve some or all those issues. Not to mention, I was keen to get back to standards (like 148 spacing) that could work on other bikes I had.
I’d like to salute anyone that got to the end of this mountain bike nerd-gasm. Sorry, not sorry, but I am fascinated by whats, whys and hows of it all. I will likely lighten up next time. Maybe a little.
1 Evil still has all the same bikes they rolled out at the end of 2019 and through 2020. They’ve added UDH’s, some different color ways and a few other small changes, but they are all the same bikes. As of the end of 2024, they have complete stock of all bikes including alternate colors and build kits. Pushing past five years is a long run in the mountain bike world. I’ve poked around and heard rumblings both good and bad, but nothing official on what is next for them. I will say it again that the DELTA system is a fantastic suspension platform, and I hope to see Evil continue with some new designs.