Review | Focus Raven 29R 3.0 Factory

Despite Focus declaring the Raven a race machine designed for long and laborious rides, we decided that we’d prefer an agile and playful bike for touring the trails after work. Would it be possible to make the a few small spec changes and turn the Raven 3.0 Factory into a sharp trail whippet?

As the workhorse of the Focus XC teams, the Raven has more than performed on the recent World Cup scene, as its many podium positions prove. Lighter, stiffer, faster – are we talking pros or the bike here? But for us mere mortals, there are probably other more suitable words to describe what us and what we’re after – so that’s exactly why we’ve made a few changes to the FOCUS Raven 3.0 Factory to fulfill our desires.

The spec

The striking hardtail frame comes with RockShox Reba RL 100mm travel forks, which can be locked-out by the Pop Loc bar-mounted remote lever. To make our bike more of an all-rounder, we swayed from the original spec and added Continental Trailking tyres, 760mm-wide bars and a 60mm stem from Focus’s own brand Concept and a RockShox Reverb dropper. That was it for the changes. The rest of the spec stayed as stock: the lovely Rotor 2.1 cranks with a 32-tooth chainring, shifters from SRAM’s X01 11x groupset, and the lightweight yet stable DT Swiss M 1700 Spline wheelset. The sum of these parts means that the Raven clocked in at 11.20kg with a large frame.

First impression

Looking as though it has come straight from the 3D printer, the exclusively grey frame appears to have been manufactured impeccably and the presence of ‘Factory’ in its name hits the nail on the head. The colour and parts of the spec have been rolled out through the whole ‘Factory’ collection from Focus Bikes, built to specifically meet the demands of the employees and each comes, for example, with a 1×11 drivetrain. Details like the distinctive head tube in which the cables are tidily routed, lend the frame yet more style. Optimised power transfer and pedal efficiency come courtesy of the roomy bottom bracket and head tube, which should guarantee great handling precision.

Uphill

Once in motion, the Raven’s comfy riding position is a welcome surprise with no sign of the typically stretched-out XC position that we’d feared. In fact, it’s playful, nimble, rapid and decisive, spurring you on to ride wildly, making it one of the most fun bikes around. Pedalling from sitting doesn’t take any undue effort, and power transfer is efficient.

Once power reaches the pedals the bike only has one thing on its mind: forwards! And fast! Both the bottom bracket and rear are really rigid so that any power you expend is immediately transferred into motion. This is a bike designed to be blasted up short climbs from standing, totally suited to energetic and dynamic riders.

If you’re more of a saddle-rider, then the pedal efficiency is still ample enough to tackle any long rides. Thanks to the 447mm chainstay, the front keeps planted on the ground on steep climbs despite the short stem, making climbing almost as relaxed as it could ever be.

On the trails

Don’t get us wrong; we were under no illusions when we set out on the XC hardtail. We weren’t expecting the comfort or the stability that we’d get from a full-suspension trail bike, but if you actually look at the downhill sections on the current XC World Cup series then you’ve got to admit that these modern XC hardtails surely have to have some sort of descending prowess.

And the Focus confirmed our suspicious. As the pilot is so central on the bike, it feels surprisingly responsive and capable. Naturally – as a hardtail – it doesn’t have the same comfort as a fully, but the slack seat stay at the rear offers sufficient vertical flex so that the frame absorbs chatter to a certain extent, which in turn builds up traction in the rear and guides the bike calmly through rougher sections.

You know what you’re getting with this bike, and it manages to perform super well on rough ground without throwing you any wild surprises. Thanks the RockShox Reverb dropper, the saddle is quickly out of the way and the RockShox Reba RL forks work reliably in delivering their travel. We were won over by the Raven’s maneouvability, response to quick inputs and the fact that it sticks like glue to the chosen line – although that could partly be thanks to the addition of our wider bars. However, its limits can be reached – and pretty quickly at that. As soon as the trails get tougher and faster, then there’s no denying you’re riding an XC hardtail. Remember though, you chose to leave its home turf far beyond you, so deal with it. There’s only one real criticism and that’s the RockShox Reverb Stealth’s cable. It is routed internally but the hydraulic line has to bend when the seat post is down. It’d be better in this case to have a seatpost without a head-mounted cable.

The Raven was super fun to ride on fast, flowy trails, cornering like a true trail whippet. As a rider, your weight is shifted towards the front rather than the rear, so the high agility essentially comes from your precise input, the 70° head angle and the compact 1134mm wheelbase. In short: fast, light and precise – we approve!

Conclusion

The Focus Raven 29R 3.0 Factory can’t hide its cross-country roots, but its beautifully-made and super efficient carbon frame means that once you push harder, speed is a given. With just a few small changes to boost comfort and stability, the bike has opened our eyes to just how much fun cross-country bikes can offer. The Focus Raven is a genuine all-round talent!

You can find more information about the bike at focus-bikes.com

Words: Martin Stöckl Pictures: Klaus Kneist

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