Sour Crumble 29er - Absolute Shredder

During lockdown, my friend George has been busy building a new rig that can tackle the single track and work well for bikepacking trips. I have known him for years and he has a great eye for bikes so knew any new MTB from him would be killer. For this new bike he went with a frame company that I only recently had heard of, Sour Bikes.

Sour Bicycles is a small company out of Dresden Germany that has a diverse range of bikes that are in a classic timeless style using steel tubing as their medium. George became attracted to their story and how they manufacture their frames offering functionality for multiple wheel sizes and custom paint for a personalized finish. George went with Sour’s Crumble hardtail MTB frame that is designed to be used with a 130mm suspension fork and also offers internal cable routing which is something he really wanted in a steel frame MTB.

All of my bikes have been custom builds, so I can appreciate the hard work that went into this new Sour Crumble 29er. Below he talks more about why he picked certain parts and how it rides. You know when you slap a Chris King headset and bottom bracket on a frame, it is there for life. He was building this bike to last so selected parts accordingly. The i9 Hydra hubs have the fastest engagement to the touch in the market – so was psyched to see those on this bike. For any questions on specific parts, leave a comment below.

Word's From The Rider

I had very specific attributes in mind for this build. 29er steel frame because ‘steel is real’ of course, hardtail, trail geometry, 130-140mm fork travel, boost hub spacing, and internal cable routing. Internal routing is rare on steel hardtails and when I came across Sour bikes they checked every box and even offered custom paint jobs, which I took advantage of. They are a newer company and I like to support blossoming bike companies that are trying to provide a bike that not a lot of manufacturers are offering.” – George Rigas

How Does it Ride?

“It is an absolute shredder. It has great trail manners – cornering and jumping are all improved over my previous steel 29er. It climbs like a goat and shreds the twisties and I’ve been breaking new personal bests on Strava every time I ride it. It loves to manual, and it loves to pedal.”

Why These Parts?

“The wheels were supposed to be the main attraction. I lusted after something with better hub engagement, and the i9 Hydra’s have 690 points of engagement. The wheels have fatter tires than I’m used to and they provide much needed traction for the sandy trails here on Long Island, NY. The rest was just a mix of research, reviews and good deals. Rock Shox Pike Ultimate is the best fork on the market in my opinion so I splurged on that.”

Parts List Breakdown

Pros

Cons

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About The Rider

George is a dedicated mountain bike rider at heart. He appreciates a nice full suspension bike and has a thing for hardtails. He can be found taking lines at some of Long Island’s local single track or out in Arizona. He’s keen to strap bags to his bikes to travel and explore new places by bike.
Instagram – @focusonyourabilities

This review is based on personal opinions and experience from the rider. All parts were purchased at the rider’s expense and links provided are affiliate partnerships with Amazon.