The Stumpjumper is one of the most long-standing model names in the mountain bike world and has been realised as everything from an XC hardtail whippet to, in recent years, a range of full suspension trail bikes.
If Specialized is to be believed, the newly redesigned 2019 Stumpjumper has evolved once more and is now “the ultimate trail bike”.
We outline the changes to the new bike below and you can read our first impressions of the new bike here.
- Specialized Stumpjumper first ride review
- Specialized Stumpjumper vs Specialized Stumpjumper EVO
- Specialized Bikes reviews and buying advice
Short travel/long travel, alloy or carbon — take your pick
As in previous years, the bike is available in a huge number of builds with either carbon or alloy framesets.
However, for the first time, the Stumpjumper is also now available in both long travel and short travel builds.
The amount of travel is dependent on wheel size and the various options are outlined below. These figures relate to all builds in the range, from the Comp entry-level bikes right up to S-Works.
ArrayThe short and long travel versions of the bike use the same frameset, save for the linkage and the fork — this means that it would be possible for savvy riders to change a long travel version of the bike to a short travel and vice versa.
Note that the 27.5in and 29in frames are not the same.
No more Camber
The introduction of the short travel version of the Stumpjumper heralds the end of the longstanding Camber.
Specialized felt the Camber existed in a weird middle ground between the Epic XC bike and the Stumpjumper and that a short travel version of the new bike would likely meet the needs of most riders.
While some will bemoan the loss of the more XC-focussed 120mm travel bike, given the direction MTB geometry is moving in, it was only a matter of time until the Camber became so closely aligned with the Stumpjumper that the boundaries between the two would be even more blurred.
RIP in peace Camber.
Regular Stumpjumper vs EVO
Understanding that there will be those who are looking for a more progressive and rowdy bike than the regular model offers, Specialized has also released the Stumpjumper Evo — a considerably longer, slacker and overall more aggressive version of the Stumpjumper.
You can read more about the all new Stumpjumper Evo here.
Asymmetrical reinforcements
Specialized claims that improving stiffness in a bid to improve handling in rough terrain was its primary goal when redesigning the Stumpjumper.
The keen-eyed will have already spotted the new asymmetrical reinforcing strut that connects the top tube and the seat tube of the new bike.
This is a design that was first used on Specialized’s Demo downhill bike back in 2015.
Specialized claims that this design is an incredibly efficient use of material and improves stiffness at the rear end when the suspension is active.
As well adding the strut to the bike, Specialized has altered the layup of the frame; one of the more interesting test frames we saw was covered in additional carbon overwrap, highlighting where Specialized thought improvements needed to be made.
All of this work has resulted in a frameset that is claimed to be 8 percent stiffer and 100g lighter than the previous generation of the carbon Stumpy.
A bike that’s easy to live and fettle with
Specialized claims to have abandoned all “proprietary nonsense” with the new Stumpjumper in a bid to make the bike as easy to live with as possible.
To start, home mechanics will be delighted to hear that the bike is now built around a threaded bottom bracket — nobody hates a threaded BB!
The internal cable routing on the new Stumpjumper might just be the most impressively simple I’ve ever seen — through a mix of fixed internal polyester sleeving and funky layups, it’s possible to push the gear outer and brake hose all the way through the frame without resorting to using magnets, pokey sticks or swear words.
Plus tyres up to 3in wide can now be run on any Stumpjumper frame.
It should come as no surprise that the bike is designed around metric sized shocks and Boost spacing front and rear.
The new Stumpjumper features swappable chips that allow you to drop the bottom bracket by 6mm, which also slackens out the head tube by ½ degrees.
Specialized has dropped its autosag feature from the new Stumpjumper. Many testers found this to be a nifty addition, but not particularly useful in practice on the old bike.
Specialized has also decreased the length of the seat tube across all sizes so that droppers of a useful length can be used; on the men's bikes, small frames will ship with 130mm travel posts and 160mm travel posts on medium, large and extra-large frames.
On women’s models, extra small bikes will ship with 100mm posts, small and medium bikes will have 125mm posts while large will have 150mm.
SWAT to stay
All of the carbon versions of the Stumpjumper feature Specialized’s signature SWAT box, which sees a small storage area moulded into the down tube.
The latch of the ‘lid’ is now integrated into the frame, which makes it easier to use than before. Likewise, the bezel of old is gone, which makes the opening marginally larger and just that little bit easier to use.
According to Specialized, the funky new cable routing as previously described has increased the volume of the SWAT box by 20 percent. Even more space for burritos.
No more Ohlins?
Specialized has become well known in recent years for working with Ohlins, with a number of the brand's bikes sporting the distinctive signature gold shocks and forks.
Ohlins is conspicuous by its absence in the Stumpjumper lineup this year, but Specialized was keen to stress that it will continue to work with Ohlins in the future, just not for this particular bike.
Instead you'll find a mix of either RockShox or Fox components throughout the Stumpjumper range. Every shock and fork gets a custom RX tune courtesy of Specialized's in-house suspension team.
Women’s specific builds and tunes
The new Specialized Stumpjumper is available in two women’s specific builds: a carbon Comp 27.5in version and an alloy version.
These bikes replace the Rhyme, which was Specialized’s name for its previous women’s specific versions of the Stumpjumper.
The bikes feature the usual characteristics of women’s specific builds, with narrower bars, a women’s saddle, shorter cranks and a shock tune suited to the, on average, lower weight of women.
Specialized Stumpjumper price
The prices for the new Stumpjumper in the UK, the US and Australia are outlined below:
ArrayPricing is the same regardless of wheel size, suspension travel option, or men’s/women’s models. Note that the base model is only available in a short travel version.
Be sure to check out our first ride review of the Stumpjumper!
