Long-term Review: Carver ICB 03
Since mid-June, the top-of-the-line Carver ICB has been our loyal companion. The bike, designed by riders for riders, has been chased along countless kilometers on home trails in the Palatinate Forest and participated in five races, proving its performance and durability.
Carver’s components on the ICB 03 are top-notch: extremely light e.thirteen wheels, a highly sensitive BOS Deville fork, sharp Avid X.0 Trail brakes and an XX1 drivetrain by SRAM finish the package – you get a lot of bike for the money. Only the RockShox Reverb Stealth (125mm) was replaced by a Kindshock LEV with 150mm adjustment range before the beginning of the test period.
The RockShox Monarch Plus shock had to say its goodbyes quite early into the test period as well – however, it is now working nicely since its repair at the manufacturer. Rocky alpine trails, rough downhill routes with nasty root sections, or flowing single trails – the Carver’s potent chassis felt controllable on all kinds of terrain.
Rough bike park sessions on trails with one hit after another were, however, a little too much for the rear suspension and the superb BOS fork lagged slightly behind, causing unbalance in the bike. It was just those hits that decided the e.thirteen wheels’ fate, as they turned out to be quite prone to dents. We made use of the mandatory replacement and fitted the bike with 650B wheels, as the drop-outs were included. The larger wheels provide more traction, smoother running, and speed, but stole a little of the bike’s character: fast changes in direction and bunny hops now require a little more effort.
Throughout the entire season, the Carver ICB convinced at races as well as on local trails and proved to be very low-maintenance, with a well-designed geometry and a potent chassis – both uphill and downhill!
You can read an in-depth feature about the long-term test and our conclusions in the previous ENDURO issue! As usual it’s free & only digital for iPad, Android-Tablets and Online-Viewer: Issue #007
Text: Benjamin Werling | Fotos: Fabian Rapp
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