Interbike: Jeff Jones Plus – 29er and then some
To say that Jeff Jones has a lot of fans on Mtbr is an understatement. His bikes, his brand and even the man himself have a cult-like following in our forums. Jones has been building for over 11 years and his distinctive Spaceframe and Truss fork designs are his signature. So, it was with much suprise that I ran across Jeff in the “Lab” area of Interbike showing his new Plus bike built around the 29+ tire size.
A true adventure bike, Jones talks about his new Plus with much excitement describing how the big wheels let you go so much faster and rougher even with a rigid frame. The Plus has a long wheelbase to keep it stable and comfortable at the same time. The fork on the Plus has a large amount of fork offset to help keep it from steering like a plow.
Jones describes the geometry, “The Plus goes against the trend of having the shortest chainstays as possible because it has long chainstays and a long front end, but with having the slack seat angle and short reach to the bars…I can still just pull it into a wheelie, still manual it…do a lot of things you wouldn’t think a long wheelbase bike can do. And you still get a lot of tire clearance, a lot of chainring clearance. When people see the geometry on this bike they are going to think one thing, but when they ride it, they will feel another.”
Jones goes on to explain how the Plus was inspired by a bike that he bought in Taiwan that was just a traditional utility bike with a long wheelbase but actually rode and handled pretty good. Jones’s previous model, the Long Ranger was a precursor to the Plus. Shown here is a pre-production version that has a 24″ top tube and a seat angle of 71 degrees. The Plus will be available in two sizes with either a 24″ or 25″ top tube.
Jones had drawing and designs of the Plus way before the Surly Krampus ever existed, but was hindered by a lack of a quality tire in the right size (29x77mm). He couldn’t get any tire manufacturers to help him develop his tire designs because they said they were busy with other people.
The Plus features Jones’ proprietary 4130 cromoly tubeset and the top tube has a larger diameter by the head tube and then tapers down to a smaller diameter where it meets the seat tube. The down tube is butted and very thick at the head tube due to the increased load from the bigger fork offset. Jones’ stressed that this was not a stock tubeset, but one that is unique to his frame. The frame has a 67.5 degree head tube angle with 76mm of fork offset (rake) for a short trail measurement to keep handling nimble even with such a slack head angle.
Also adding to the versatility of the Jones Plus is the ample pack options for those who like to adventure out and bikepack. Speaking of bikepacking, check out this video from Jeff showing an overnight bikepacking ride with the Jones Plus 29+ bike.
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mygdN85tcw
There is also plenty of tire clearance and chainring clearance. The Plus uses an eccentric bottom bracket (EBB) to give the rider the versatility to run regular size 29er wheels and tires. From Jones’ blog post: “When using the smaller 29″ wheels (tires) you put the BB at the top of the EBB to keep the BB height the same as when you have taller 29+ wheels and the BB at the bottom of the EBB. You can also run the BB at the bottom for a extra low BB with 29″ wheels, or run the BB at the top with 29+ wheel for a higher BB. BB drop: BB in top position – 76mm, BB in bottom position – 88mm.”
For those of you who think the Jones Plus might just be what you are looking for, the Plus should be available for purchase in about 90 days (mid December 2014). Pricing has not yet been set.
Jones Carbon H bar and Carbon Loop bar
Jones makes a variety of handlebars in alloy, ti and carbon. His H bar design is very popular and new this year is the Carbon H bar and the Carbon Loop bar.
The Carbon Loop bar comes in a 710mm size and weighs 275g (241g ligheter than the (516g) aluminum version). It passes the same strict EN/EU mountain bike standards as the aluminum and titanium bars. The shape is identical to Jones’ existing Loop H-bars and has all the same natural hand positions, control and comfort (but 47% lighter).
Jones Front Hub
Jones’ new hub has wider flange spacing than most hubs in the same category. It also has less material on the inside so it’s lighter. It can also convert from thru-axle to regualar 9mm quick release.
Jones Headset
Jeff Jones loves things that are simple and that work. His “new” headset looks a lot like the headsets of yesteryear. The Jones’ headset is machined aluminum and is easily rebuildable. It has an old school compression ring and will work with the Jones Truss fork. Pricing hasn’t been set but Jeff expects this to be a good value.
For more information visit www.jonesbikes.com
This article is part of Mtbr’s coverage of the 2014 Interbike trade show in Las Vegas. For more from Interbike CLICK HERE.
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