Under Test: Eastern Woods Research OWB29er
Posted: October 21st, 2008 by Karl Rosengarth
If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll recall that Eastern Woods Research is back in business, and that they have been working on translating the handling and heritage of their 26″ OWB (Original Woods Bike) to a 29″ wheeled platform.
And they’ve done it! EWR Bikes recently introduced the OWB29er. One of that first batch is in my hot little hands, for the sake of Dirt Rag product testing. As I type this report, I’ve had the bike for a grand-total of 24 hours, with that time spent building, photographing and documenting the specifications of this fine-looking steed.
EWR Bikes offers the OWB29er in medium or large frame sizes for $1,395.00, including a Salsa Liplock seatpost clamp. The front end is made from True Temper Supertherm heat-treated/double butted tubing, and the rear end is made from Dedacciai A.B.T. double butted stays.
EWR Bikes OWB29er Geometry
- Head Tube Angle: 70.75° (engineered for 100mm fork)
- Seat Tube Angle: 73.5°
- Top Tube Length: 23.7″ (medium), 24.6″ (large)
- BB Height: 12.25″
- Chainstay Length: 17.43″
The boyz at EWR Bikes tell me that my medium frame weighs in at 5.65 lbs. I was not able to verify that, as my test frame came dressed with a solid suite of trail-worthy components. My test bike tipped the Dirt Rag scales at 26.8lbs. outfitted per below:
- Fork: RockShox Reba Team 29″ with Maxle QR (20mm)
- Wheels: Hope Pro II F/R hubs laced to notubes.com ZTR Arch 29er rims
- Cranks/BB: Truvativ Noir
- Brakes: Avid Elixir
- Rear D: SRAM X9
- Front D: SRAM X9
- Shifter: SRAM X9 trigger
- Cassette: SRAM PG 990
- Tires: Kenda Karma 29×2.2 L3R Pro
- Headset: Chris King
- Seatpost: Thomson Elite
- Seatpost QR: Salsa Liplock
- Saddle: Selle Italia C2
- Handlebars: Truvativ Team Carbon Riserbar (oversized)
- Stem: Truvativ Team (Al)
- Chain: SARM PC 991
- Grips: ODI lock-on
No riding—yet. That’ll come soon enough, and I promise to blog my experiences as the miles accumulate. In the meantime, I’ll share a bunch of out-of-the-box photos. Click on the thumbnails below to view full-sized images.
 
October 24th, 2008 at 11:01 pm
The derailler cable routing and water bottle mounts look like they were an afterthought.
October 26th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
Skidder, I asked Jay de Jesus of EWR to address your comments. Here is his reply:
“Thanks for the input, Skidder. The cable routing is not an after thought — quite the contrary, actually. In the northeast where I am from, we ride in a lot of slop, mud and grit. Full-length housing makes so much sense as you always have perfect shifting. Case in point — I am on my original set of cables from when I build up my proto in June, and they still shift like new! No need for splits, clean and simple. They are nicely tucked up as well out of the way, especially from your heels and knees. Same with the bottle mounts. Low on the top tube, and out of the way on the DT. I personally only use the top tube mount. Not much else left for mounting options, but they’ve been this way since 1991. Works well.
Best Regards,
Jay de Jesus/EWR Bikes, LLC.”
October 30th, 2008 at 8:47 pm
[...] part one of this series, I ran through the specifications on my new EWR OWB29er test bike, and posted a [...]
November 9th, 2008 at 11:47 pm
Karlos, Jay, 29″ EWR…what a killer receipe for the hungry masses looking for the Ultimate Ride. I’ve been spining on my 29′er since the Spring. Wide-open desert sandstone slabs, above treeline alpine bony rock piles, winding secret singletracs..the bike just excells, in more ways than one. Although I have not to thrown a leg a leg over the new EWR OWB, I’ve ridden the 26″ geometry that flows like butter. I cross referenced my Moots angles with the EWR and I can only imagine how snappy this puppy must be. One of these day I’ll get back to the East Coast and throw down on one of these gems. Until then, I’ll be looking to the “Man” and words that come from the EWR experience!
Cheeers!
Griz
November 10th, 2008 at 11:51 am
Hey, Griz, thanks for checking in, brah. Sounds like some fine shreddin’ in the Rockies! Don’t worry, when you get back to PA I’m sure you’ll get the EWR hook-up for a test ride. In the meantime, here’s an update on my test experience:
http://www.dirtragmag.com/blogarific/ewr-owb29er-first-impressions/
Ride on!
January 6th, 2009 at 8:16 am
[...] #140—the February 15th, 2009 edition. In my prior installments I talked about the bike’s geometry and specifications, discussed my first impressions, and did my best to describe how the OWB29er rides. As I put the [...]
February 6th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
[...] Under Test: Eastern Woods Research OWB29er [...]