deubelbicycles

DEUBEL BIKES

Deubel  bikes are designed and made in Australia, something the Australian mountain bike community has lacked is a bike it can truly call its own.  The founders of Deubl, Sebastien and Gisella Deubel, have created a very unique 6” trail bike that has generated quite a buzz in a very short period of time.  Projects such as the Deubel 2UP, don’t just happen overnight, so we talked to the co-founders of the company to get some insight into the process.

It is pretty inspiring for someone to start a bike company from scratch, how long have you been into mountain biking? Did you come from a racing background? Sebastien: My passion for mountain bike riding was kindled in 1994, in the French Alps, Chatel.  In 1995 I raced in the Megavalanche Series. I went on to win the series in 1998 in the Expert category, on a dual suspension mountain bike I’d built at University.  Gisella:  I caught the mountain bike bug 12 years ago after a ride in the Blue Mountains. I've ridden DH and XC ever since.

Obviously manufacturing a bike is huge exercise.  Did you come from an engineering/technical background? SD:  I'm a qualified Mechanical Design Engineer.  After 13 years experience in 3D modelling and stress analysis, combined with 18 years mountain bike riding around the world, I've realised a long-held dream of designing an All-Mountain bike, the Deubel 2UP. We've partnered with talented local suppliers to CNC machine, TIG weld and heat treat our frames, allowing us to proudly call ourselves Australian made.

Why did you decide to make a 6” travel do it all bike for your first model? Was it the style of bike you were riding before or was it the easiest to make?  A well engineered 6” travel bike represents the perfect mountain bike, it's ready for anything.    The 2UP is good at both DH and XC.  We believe that’s what a lot of riders want – one bike ready for anything.  The design of the 2UP required extra attention in 5 key areas: pedalling, absorbing shocks, cornering, jumping and braking. He spent countless hours on CAD, analysing stresses and saving weight to optimise every detail and to guarantee the robustness of the frame. It is certainly not the easiest bike to make as it has to perform well in all situations and on all terrains.

You put a lot of emphasis on your suspension design, would you care to elaborate more on what makes it so different/special? The 2UP suspension is specifically designed to help the rider climb more efficiently, descend faster and handle rougher terrain - due to its unique suspension features: lateral stiffness, pedal bob, bump absorption, pedal feedback and brake jacking. The Deubel 2UP’s unique swingarm system sandwiches the lower tubes of the swingarm to resist the most lateral forces during pedalling and cornering. As a result, our Encapsulated Suspension System (E2S) provides 36% additional stiffness compared to standard suspension. Because more energy is transferred directly into the traction of the rear tyre, the rider can pedal more efficiently and accelerate faster. They can also corner and ride rougher terrain with greater precision and confidence because the rear wheel will be exactly where they want it. Pedal Bob, the unwanted suspension compression appearing during pedalling, has been minimised in the 2UP suspension system to transfer the maximum amount of energy to the rear wheel under acceleration. Bump Absorption, the wheel path, the absorption curve and the low-leverage ratio have been optimised to provide plush suspension in all situations. Pedal Feedback, when pedals rotate backward during shock absorption because the distance between the rear wheel axle and the bottom bracket increases, has been improved so the pedalling rhythm isn't slowed when the suspension absorbs obstacles. Brake Jacking, the unwanted compression or extension of the suspension under braking, simply doesn’t exist on the 2UP, because of its unique dropout design.

At the moment you have one model, the 2UP, are there any other models in the works?We are working closely with our racing team riders to develop additional models.  A Deubel 7” prototype will be racing the 2012 NSW State DH series. We are also in the process of designing a 29er. 

In the future what are the plans for the brand?  Our passion for designing and manufacturing high performance mountain bike frames in Australia is boundless. And we'll never stop racing - to learn, experiment and create innovative Deubel models.  Given positive customer feedback and the racing results we've achieved in our first year of racing, we're keen to expand our distribution footprint into retail shops. For the latest join Deubel Bicycles on Facebook and to book a est ride – visit deubelbicycles.com.au