A few years ago, Iron Horse sprung back on to the radar with their licensed DWLink technology slung under the Iron Horse/Mad Catz downhill team, Bryn Atkinson and Sam Hill. Now, they're spreading their wings and have added the 6Point range, their 6in aggressive allmountain sled, between the burlier freeride 7Point line and the long travel XC/trail MKIII family. The 6Point6 is sandwiched between the £3,999 6Point8 and the £1,999 6Point4.
The frame
The 6Point frame looks similar to the devoutly freeride 7Point, with the curved down tube dominating and a 1.5in head tube futureproofing the design. The DW-Link back end sees a CNC'd chainstay yolk to aid tyre clearance (there's oodles of space even with the 2.5s fitted). The shock and chainstay pivot is mounted on a one-piece CNC'd bottom bracket arrangement, into which the down tube and seat tube are tidily welded. The cable and hose routing run under the top tube and along the top of the down tube, keeping the lines clean.
The dropouts are a 150mm by 12mm through-axle bolted affair - possibly the only overzealous feature on the bike - but they keep everything super rigid. The frame also has integrated ISCG 05 chainguide mounts. The forged rocker plates did, however, make getting to the shock's valve with a wide shock pump quite a fiddle.
The detail
Almost all the kit on the 6Point6 is tried and true. Suspension duties are handled by the 160mm (6.3in) Fox DHX Air 3.0 rear shock and 150mm (6in) Marzocchi Z1 FR SL Doppio Air fork. A RaceFace Evolve DH 24/36-tooth duo crankset is bolted with e.thirteen's DRS chainguide, while a Shimano Saint front mech shunts the chain up front; XT does likewise at the rear over a SRAM 12-26T cassette.
DT Swiss' E540 rims are paired with WTB's Laserdisc Super Duty hubs, and Avid Juicy Five hydraulic discs provide stopping power via 178mm rotors. We would have preferred to see a 26in bar fitted for better control, rather than the 24in RaceFace Evolve DH, together with a shorter, stiffer stem. Also, the WTB Timberwolf tyres can be unpredictable when pushed hard.
The ride
Our 19in test bike had a 68-degree head and 71-degree seat angle, with a 13.8in bottom bracket height and an effective top tube length of 24in, to give a character that mirrors almost exactly - save for a slightly lower BB height - the longer travel 7Point for confident, speed-orientated handling and thrashability.
This bike, although capable of grinding the climbs (it pedals surprisingly well both in and out of the saddle), is held back by its 15.8kg (34.8lb) weight. The 6Point6 is a bike that excels and inspires confidence when the trail points down and gets gnadgery, cornering as though caught in a centrifuge and chomping at the bit to push it over techy and steep terrain; it has the potential to be something very special indeed.
We just feel that for the UK, the long travel all-mountain tag misses the mark somewhat: stripped of the marketing, its true nature is that of a 6in travel gravity play bike.
