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Dirt Rag Articles
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Tester: Adam Lipinski
Age: 38
Height: 6' 2"
Weight: 200lbs.
Inseam: 34"
Vital Stats
Country of Origin: Andorra
Price: $4400
Weight: 34.76lbs.
Sizes available: S, M, L (tested), XL
Contact: www.commençal.com
Max Commençal has a long successful history in mountain biking, going back about two decades to the founding of the Sunn brand and their very competitive downhill racing team. The Meta line was introduced in 2005 and has progressed to three models: Meta 4, 5 and 6. The Meta 6 has the most travel of the series at 160mm, and is classified as a marathon downhill/enduro bike. For me, this translates into a bike that is tough enough for the tortures of bombing down hills, but that also pedals uphill decently. The Meta 6 is available in three versions: the 6.1 ($6000), 6.2 (tested) and 6.3 ($3000).
My first experiences with the Meta line were at the 2008 Crankworx Colorado, where I was able to play with all the bikes. For testing purposes, I choose the Meta 6 over the others for its easily adjustable headtube angle. Large and X-large frames are adjustable +/- 0.5° from the median 69° angle, while the small and medium bikes are adjustable to +/- 1°. All the bikes come with an extra 0° sleeve. Numerically this may not seem like much, but a change in headtube angle of 1–2° is significant and noticeable on the trail. Changing the headtube angle can be done in just a few minutes prior to a ride. For bombing downhills while shuttling, or using a chairlift, I chose the slacker setting. If I was likely to be climbing and tackling a lot of low-speed technical trails, the steeper setting benefitted me that day.
The rear suspension uses a single pivot located just above and forward of the middle chainring, a spot that is often used for pedaling efficiency in the middle ring. Commençal's "Contact System" joins the single pivot swingarm, rocker arm, connecting rod, and shock to the front triangle. The rocker arm and connecting rods are Commençal's approach to isolating the shock from anything but compression forces, and also aid in keeping the swingarm as stiff as possible. The overall size of the Fox Float RP2 high-volume shock is the same as in previous RP2 models, but the stroke has been increased by 0.25". The longer stroke and high volume add sensitivity to the system, while decreasing the chance of bottoming out. Quite a few bikes over the years have had super-plush travel that also retained great pedaling characteristics, but would easily tear through the travel with bigger hits. Not the case on the Meta 6. The lower leverage ratio and high volume shock are a huge factor in the bike's performance—they also allow the ProPedal feature on the Fox shock to be the most effective I've ever encountered.
All the suspension's bolts thread together and are seated in the frame through stainless steel inserts. The lack of direct threads into the soft aluminum greatly reduces the risk of stripped threads while servicing the bike. The main pivot for the rear suspension also rests on stainless inserts, lessening the chance of ovalizing the frame.
The fork is a Rockshox Lyric IS Solo Air with 160mm of travel, which works well with the 6.2's rear suspension. The left lower leg has a very accurate air pressure chart, for dialing the fork to your weight. My local park presents a fantastic testing ground for this bike with lots of technical climbs, descents, and drops—everything the Meta craves. The fork can easily be tweaked from the stiffer climbing-oriented setting, to downhill mode in seconds by adjusting the Motion Control compression damper from almost completely locked out to full open plushness, with ten very distinct settings. Rebound settings are made from the knob on the lower right leg. I love the simplicity of this fork—it functions well and is not complicated. The 20mm Maxle thru axle and 35mm stanchions do a great job of keeping the front end going where you point it.
Another feature that aids in the Meta 6's adaptability is the Crank Brothers Joplin seatpost, which allows you to drop and raise the saddle three inches with the push of a handlebar-mounted lever. This is my first experience with an adjustable seatpost, and I'm very impressed with its performance. I'll be getting one for my personal bike. It's greatest strength is when dropping the Meta off of rocks, or other drops. The confidence boost of dropping the saddle out of your way after pedaling to speed is huge. In really muddy conditions the post began to feel a bit sticky, but after a good washing and lube the post felt like new.
The Formula Oro K18 brakes do a fantastic job—it does not matter if it's a planned, or panic stop, finessed or slammed on, the overall power and modulation work very well together. The brakes have reversible perches, in case you run your brakes moto (front brake on the right) as I do. It's always pleases me to see brakes that can easily be swapped. The zinc-coated fasteners are also a very cool feature—the added hardness of the bolts and thread inserts will help prevent stripping.
The dazzling white Mavic EN 321 disc wheels are on the narrow side for some of the riding this bike could encounter, but I had no problems with them staying true for the entire test. However, heavy park riding, such as at Whistler, may require beefier rims for all but the smoothest riders. The rims are laced to Commençal's own Superlight front hub and a Ringle Demon 12mm rear, with its legendary click when the freewheel spins. The bike rolls on Maxxis High Roller/Larsen TT 26"x2.35" tires, which I ran until our local conditions required studs, or very aggressive mud tires.
The shifting on the bike is handled by SRAM's X.7 units mated to a Shimano Deore front, and SRAM X.9 rear derailleur. The drivetrain worked almost flawlessly, only getting a little sticky in the worst possible conditions in which any drivetrain would have stumbled a bit.
The handlebar is a 31.8mm Commençal 6061aluminum unit that is held in place by a Race Face Ride XC stem. The 593mm top tube felt spot-on for the large frame and the whole cockpit worked well for me—except for the SDG Bel-Air seat, it never felt right (and I usually love their saddles). The overall set-up is a bit tall for climbing, but a little body English and commitment got me pedaling up almost any hill.
Our annual Punk Bike Enduro was one of the circumstances the Meta 6 got to sample. Keep in mind this is a 35lb., very downhill-oriented bike. It was a blast to ride that day, especially when the trails pointed downhill. Most of the trails are predominately used by motorcycles, resulting in very nasty, rutted descents. Point and shoot, It did not matter what I hit. The wheels stayed glued to the ground, giving superb traction uphill, downhill, blasting through greasy corners. When the climbing started, hit the ProPedal and go. This Commençal has found a fantastic middle ground that allows the bike to execute all the desirable suspension traits well.
It's not the lightest of the all-mountain bikes, but it is also more downhill-oriented than most. A bike of this caliber is a great choice for the bike parks that are popping up all over the world. You could take this bike to any of the parks I've visited and not have any problems, and if you wanted to pedal to the top or do a cross country ride, you could still use the Commençal Meta 6.2.
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