Worth buying?
Rose Bonero Trailhardtail – Worth buying?
Party Hard – Testing the Rose Bonero Trail Hardtail
If you want to shred inexpensive trails, you can’t avoid trail hardtails when deciding to buy a new mountain bike. The Rose Bonero is one of the most exciting bikes in this class. We unpacked the video camera and took a close look at it.
The last few years for mountain bikers have not been easy. First the Corona-related bike boom led to sold-out bike shops, then one price increase after the other followed. A nasty mix of skyrocketing energy and transportation costs, extreme hassles to maintain supply chains, and generalised inflation has driven mountain bike prices up. But keep your head up: With the Bonero trail hardtail, Rose drops the anchor and stops the annoying price increase of the last few years. All Bonero trail hardtails from Rose impress with very good equipment at a fair price. But that’s not all. The frame also impresses with its first-class geometry and harmonious details. If you are looking for a mountain bike for trail shredding or touring for €2000 or less, you should not only watch our Rose Bonero 3 test video, but also read the entire article.
Trail hardtails are the punks among mountain bikes
With 140 millimeters of suspension travel on the fork, a rigid rear end and equipment geared towards descents, the Rose Bonero is a trail hardtail as you’d expect. And yet, the Bonero is actually a niche product. Because if you value having fun on the descent when biking, you usually go for a fully. (We explain more details about the difference between fully and hardtail here.) Because the damper in the rear not only provides more comfort, but above all increases grip on the rear wheel on the descent. Since the shocks hitting the rear wheel are largely absorbed by the rear shock absorber on a fully, the rear wheel always maintains contact with the ground. Braking manoeuvres or changes of direction can be implemented efficiently at any time by the rear tire. If the rear shock is missing, as with a trail hardtail, the rear tire loses contact with the ground much more often. Bumps such as roots or stones cause the rear tire to jump slightly in the air from time to time. The good news: the technical inferiority of hardtails can be partially compensated for by the driver.The Rose Bonero schools your riding technique
The shocks that the damper of a full suspension absorbs an experienced rider can compensate to a certain extent with their own legs, arms and the right choice of line. In our test with the Rose Bonero, the test riders not only developed a more active riding style after a short time, but also a cleaner choice of lines. Anyone who prepares for jumps in the air, which he absorbs in the landing with a knee bend, has won half the battle already. If you don’t act clumsily on every root, but choose the lines on the trail more skilfully or relieve the rear wheel significantly, you can also conquer angry trails with amazing speed. What sounds like a party pooper at first, can quickly becomes second nature. In the long term, the whole thing is reflected with very clean riding technique. But that won’t be the only advantage of the Bonero that we found in our test.
The Rose Bonero uses the advantages of Trailhardtails to the max
The missing damper compared to a trail fully or all mountain not only saves money, but also weight and annoyance. The general advantages of Trailhardtails, that we disclose in this article , the Bonero plays to its strengths. We weighed the bike with 12.6 kilos without pedals (in frame size L). Although the aluminum frame with 2300 grams is not a real lightweight, the complete bike is approx. 1,5 to 2 kilos lighter than a fully with similar travel and price. Who tries to put this weight advantage into perspective with just 12%, we advise: don’t count, ride! Because for a bike of this price range, the low weight of the Boneros can be seen on every meter of the trail. Regardless of whether you accelerate out of the curve, jump over a root with a bunny hop or climb up a steep hill. The riding experience remains wonderfully light-footed despite astonishingly good downhill capabilities. Uphill, the Bonero has another ace up its sleeve.This is how the Rose Bonero 3 goes uphill
In addition to the low weight, the seating position on the climbing of the Boneros is great. The combination with the long reach, short upper tube and a very steep 76 degrees of seat angle make you pedal very efficiently. ( Everything about geometry can be found here ) You can assemble the handlebars so deeply despite 140 millimeter travel on the fork A similar saddle increase to a Cross Country Hardtail. A deep handlebar increases the pressure on the wrists a bit, but the back works extremely efficient. Generally speaking, a racehardtail with a slower tire profile and again low weight climbs better, but the Bonero actually strikes a good balance for a trailhardtail. Most readers of this article should be interested in one thing: How does the Bonero fare in the descends?10 out of 10 points – the geometry makes the difference
Briefly you can say the following: The bike shreds! In the long version, however, there are some details that we have to get into. We evaluate the geometries of the bike market according to uniform criteria ( more precisely here ), which are based on the purpose of the bike. And at this geometry rating , the Bonero gets a high score. because the combination of a deep bottom bracket, a long main frame and a flat steering angle gives you confidence in the extremely steep or rough terrain. But there are much more playful bikes. Extremely fast change of curve or manuals, they require a clear physical effort from the rider. For this, the Bonero runs at high speeds like on rails. Larger riders in particular will love this fact. The chain struts grows with every frame size. The weight distribution between the rear and front wheel remains wonderfully balanced even with frame sizes L or XL. The feeling that the complete weight gets loaded only onto the rear wheel, even at a size of 185 Centimeters, is a great asset.frame standards of the Rose Boneros
All Rose Bonero models have the following features- pedal bearing: BSA (screwed)
- chain guidance: ISCG 08
- switching bullet: sram udh
- line management: partially integrated in the framework
- seat post: 31.6 mm
- tax rate: integrated, tapered 1.125 on 1.5 inches
- wheel size: XS & AMP; S 27.5 inches; M-XXL 29 inches
- wheel axle: boost; 110×15 mm (front); 148×12 mm (back)
- bottle holder positions: 2
- Special feature: Possibility to assemble luggage rack
- travel: 140 millimeters
equipment and model variants of the Rose Boneros
We rode the Rose Bonero 3, the top model for € 2199 extensively over the trails. And there is actually nothing to complain about in the equipment of the top model. The Rock Shox Pike Select + fork has a casting ventilation and a separately adjustable high and low speed compression level and actually works like a hot knife that you put on a butter block. Until recently, the above-mentioned features of the fork were only available on the absolute high-end forks and, above all, are for technology nerds. The Formula Cura brakes work very well with 4 pistons on the front wheel and large brake discs. And the SRAM GX Eagle circuit even has 520 % bandwidth. This is not the norm in this price range. The DT Swiss wheels with 30 millimeters width do their work on the trail inconspicuously. But the Bonero 2 and 1 also have very good equipment, even at significantly cheaper price. Here you can view and compare all three models. All Rose Bonero models at a glance
The sharpest competitors of the Rose Bonero
You can intuitively compare bikes on our platform. And of course there are bikes in the Trailhardtail segment, where the comparison is worthwhile. If price/performance ratio is important to you, you should check the Radon Cragger. An absolute classic in this segment is of course Commencal Meta HT. With 27.5 inch wheels and 150 millimeters of travel, however, it is a bike with a special character. The direct comparison: Radon Cragger VS Rose Bonero VS Commecal Meta
Unexpected all-round skills of the Boneros
First and foremost, the vast majority of bikers are interested in how the Bonero is on the trail. And the engineers from Bocholt in Germany have definitely reached the “riding pleasure” development goal. But the developers have not lost sight of the all -round capacity of the Boneros with skilful details. Because there are numerous options for a mudguard or a luggage rack at the rear triangle. If there is the opportunity for a long trip on the bike, the Bonero is definitely a candidate. The universal SRAM UDH derailleur hanger also fits into this. The thread for the rear brake intake are all in one adapter. If you break the thread, the complete frame is not broken. Nice.
