First Look: Norco Sight – this Canadian trail bike gets an overhaul
The Norco Sight has been on the market a while now and you could argue that it’s been gathering a little dust recently, so it was high time for Norco to give it an early spring clean. Just in time for a 2017 launch, their trail whip has had a fairly major overhaul for the coming season. Here’s the lowdown.
To get the Sight in tiptop condition ready for the new season, Norco went way beyond just giving it a facelift; just like their well-known Optic model, the revised Sight is available as a 29er or with 27.5″ wheels – regardless of frame size. One of the bike’s biggest draws is its adoption of chainstay lengths that are adapted to fit the frame size, which is something that Norco have rolled out across other bikes.
The Norco Sight and its frame
Just like its previous iteration, Norco have adopted the four-pivot rear end design on the Sight although this latest Sight has a Trunnion-mounted rear shock. Depending on wheel size, you’ll get 130 mm or 140 mm at the back. The cable routing has seen updates, and there should be less clattering than its former model now that they’re fixed at their entry ports onto the frame.
The Norco Sight and its geometry
The Sight definitely deserves a closer look given its geometry – not only is it now available as a 29er or with 27.5″ wheel, but the chainstay lengths get longer the bigger frame size (4420-440 mm for the 27.5″ model) to ensure that the rider’s weight distribution is optimized between the wheels. The rest of the geometry stats are all pretty much aligned with what you’d expect on a trail bike today: the 27.5″ model has a 449 mm reach for the large frame, and a very reasonable 66.5° head angle. The 27.5″ Sight comes in five frame sizes and the 29er in three sizes. Impressive stuff, and certainly enough to satisfy virtually every rider.
The Sight 27.5″ and its geometry
| Size | XS | S | M | L | XL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seat tube | 380 mm | 405 mm | 435 mm | 470 mm | 510 mm |
| Top tube | 532 mm | 562 mm | 592 mm | 622 mm | 652 mm |
| Head tube | 90 mm | 100 mm | 110 mm | 120 mm | 130 mm |
| Stem length | 60 mm | 60 mm | 60 mm | 60 mm | 60 mm |
| Head tube angle | 66,5° | 66,5° | 66,5° | 66,5° | 66,5° |
| Seat tube angle | 75,4° | 75,0° | 74,5° | 74,1° | 73,6° |
| Bottom bracket height | 339 mm | 339 mm | 339 mm | 339 mm | 339 mm |
| Wheelbase | 1094 mm | 1126 mm | 1157 mm | 1189 mm | 1220 mm |
| Reach | 382 mm | 404 mm | 427 mm | 449 mm | 472 mm |
| Stack | 578 mm | 587 mm | 596 mm | 605 mm | 615 mm |
| Chainstays | 420 mm | 425 mm | 430 mm | 435 mm | 440 mm |
The Sight 29″ and its geometry
| Size | M | L | XL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seat tube | 435 mm | 470 mm | 510 mm |
| Top tube | 601 mm | 632 mm | 662 mm |
| Head tube | 94 mm | 94 mm | 104 mm |
| Stem length | 50 mm | 50 mm | 50 mm |
| Head tube angle | 67° | 67° | 67° |
| Seat tube angle | 74,5° | 74,1° | 73,7° |
| Bottom bracket height | 337 mm | 337 mm | 337 mm |
| Wheelbase | 1159 mm | 1191 mm | 1222 mm |
| Reach | 432 mm | 458 mm | 480 mm |
| Stack | 611 mm | 611 mm | 620 mm |
| Chainstays | 430 mm | 435 mm | 440 mm |
The Norco Sight 2017 and its spec
Norco are confident that their approach – of varying the geometry and speccing the bikes almost identically – will mean that all the models (whatever the wheel size) will handle the same on the trails. They’ve all got a 1x gearing set-up and appear to have been wisely specced for trail riding good times and glory.
Here’s an overview of the three build specs:
Norco Sight C 9.1
Fork: RockShox Pike RCT3 140 mm, Boost
Rear shock: RockShox Deluxe RT 3 Debonair
Drivetrain: Sram X01 Eagle
Brakes: Sram Guide RSC, 180 mm
Wheels: Race Face ARC 30 rims with DT 240 hubs
Norco Sight C 7.1
Fork: RockShox Pike RCT3 150 mm, Boost
Rear shock: RockShox Deluxe RT 3 Debonair
Drivetrain: Sram X01 Eagle
Brakes: Sram Guide RSC, 180 mm
Wheels: Race Face ARC 30 rims with DT 240 hubs
Norco Sight C 9.2
Fork: RockShox Pike RC 140 mm, Boost
Rear shock: RockShox Deluxe RT 3 Debonair
Drivetrain: Shimano XT 11sp
Brakes: Shimano XT, 180 mm
Wheels: Race Face AR 30 rims with Shimano XT hubs
Norco Sight C 7.2
Fork: RockShox Pike RC 150 mm, Boost
Rear shock: RockShox Deluxe RT 3 Debonair
Drivetrain: Shimano XT 11sp
Brakes: Shimano XT, 180 mm
Wheels: Race Face AR 30 rims with Shimano XT hubs
Norco Sight C 9.3
Fork: RockShox Yari RC 140 mm, Boost
Rear shock: RockShox Deluxe RT 3 Debonair
Drivetrain: Sram NX 11sp
Brakes: Sram Level T 180 mm
Wheels: WTB STIP rims with Novatec hub (front) & Sram MTH 746 hub (rear)
Norco Sight C 7.3
Fork: RockShox Yari RC 150 mm, Boost
Rear shock: RockShox Deluxe RT 3 Debonair
Drivetrain: Sram NX 11sp
Brakes: Sram Level T 180 mm
Wheels: WTB STIP rims with Novatec hub (front) & Sram MTH 746 hub (rear)
Prices and availability: the Norco Sight 2017
Depending on the build spec, the Sight CF is available from mid-March with prices between € 3,599 – €6,499.
Our thoughts on the Norco Sight
On paper the revised Norco Sight looks like it’ll tick all the boxes for being a well decent trail bike in 2017. The spec leaves no wishes unanswered, and the concept of lengthening the chainstays to balance out the frame size makes a lot of sense. We’ve not had chance to test the bike but we’re working on it and anticipation levels are high. Stay tuned!
For more info head to Norco.com