Pivot Cycles Mach 5.7 2010
Reviews / Enduro Bikes
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At a glance
The Canadian brand Pivot is fairly new to the UK market, but they have a faithful following over the pond and their Mach 5 won much acclaim. For this year they have revamped the bike considerably and the Mach 5.7 is the result.
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Tech heads
Pivot has stuck to what they know which is how to make stiff, light bikes out of proprietary 6000 series aluminium. All tubes are triple butted and hydro formed and are put together using a combination of smooth and traditional welds.
The frame has a tapered head tube, a kinked top tube for generous standover height, a huge 92mm bottom bracket, a bolt on front mech and a solid rear triangle. This all equates to an impressively stiff frameset.
Suspension comes in the form of 145mm of DW link suspension controlled via a Fox RP23BV shock. The DW link is a position sensitive anti squat system that does a remarkably good job of eliminating pedal bob.
Up front a Fox 32 FIT RLC 140mm 15mm thru axle fork is responsible for calming the trail.
Numbers for our medium Pivot are a 68.7º head tube angle, a 73º seat tube angle. Effective top tube length is 589mm, chainstays are 428mm with a wheelbase of 1124mm.
Sram XO kit is present throughout the 2 x 10 drive train and also takes care of braking duties as well.
Wheels are from DT Swiss in the form of a set of X430 with an excellent set of Kenda Nevegals for rubber.
Finishing kit comes from FSA, the stem is an overly long 100mm which holds onto a carbon bar that comes in at 685mm, the FSA carbon seat post is topped off with a WTB Vigo saddle.
Our medium sized test bike came in at 27.2lbs on our scales.
On the trail
There was a tangible sense of expectation when getting on board the Mach 5.7, it is rare to ride a brand that we have not tried before and the Pivot looked like it meant business.
Straight away it is important to state that this bike needs to be set up bang on, a sag metre is supplied so use it as getting it just a little bit wrong upsets the way this bike rides.
Once things were set up the first thing you notice is the tautness of the suspension.
Pushing hard on the pedals brings a firm response that propels you forward with near hardtail pop, the flip side of this is that the rear wheel does break free on loose surfaces before it might with other systems and when pedalling up and over rock steps and logs a delicate balancing act has to be performed if you are to clear those particularly troublesome sections.
When sweeping through fast singletrack the bike comes alive and that taut suspension gives you something to push against making it a joy to pump hard into corners, the resulting pop is an outright joy.
It is a shame that the overly long stem slows the steering down as the bike runs fast, this meant that we found it difficult to stick corners without running out of the turn. We wanted to see what the bike could do so we popped a 70mm stem on and that sharpen up the handling just enough to allow us to give it some beans.
One thing that surprised us was the way that the bike smoothed out small bump trail buzz whilst still feeling taut and controlled.
Once heading down hill the ultra controlled suspension gives excellent feedback and we found ourselves pushing harder into turns in order to get the biggest boost possible out of them, all great fun.
If you get your timing right the Pivot will boost jumps hard, flying you high and long which is great once you are dialled into this bike but you do need to be on your toes as you adapt to it, once dialled in though it is a very rewarding experience.
For
The Mach 5.7 is a swift climber that comes alive on fast undulating trails where pumping is the key, the stiff chassis and eager character reward good technique and timing.
Feedback is top notch and the DW link does make for a solid pedalling platform that squirts you up all but the most technical climbs in a jiffy.
Against
The long stem threatens to rob the Pivot of its true nature, but that can be easily resolved with a little trial and error to find your personal sweet spot.
That rock solid rear suspension is not as active as some and it does give up climbing traction if not handled carefully, it can be mastered but it will take time in the saddle to tune into this bike.
The same is true of the overall ride which is not as instantly comfortable and welcoming as more forgiving rigs.
Overall
Pivot has produced a bike that is truly stiff and controlled, feedback is excellent and in the right hands it is a real blast.
With so many bikes in this category we would like to have seen dropper seat post guides and ISCG mounts, there is an ISCG mount adaptor plate available though.
The Mach 5.7 took a little getting used to, but once dialled in you can tackle pretty much anything out there just so long as you have the confidence to truly bury it into corners and launch off lips and drops, to do anything less would be missing the point.
This review was in Issue 11 of IMB.
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By Nigel Garrood
Nigel Garrood was one of the instigators of the IMB project and has been with us since the very beginning. This loveable rogue has more stories than the Bible and is known to enjoy a beer or two. On the bike, he’s fast and loose and often puts younger riders to shame. Equally he’s been known to suffer from the odd crash and carries the scars to prove it. He was once referred to as being a robot sent from the future to save us all!
