A STEEL XC bike?! Starling Cycles Mini Murmur | Workshop Chatter

Can a steel, full suss XC bike ever be any good?

We reckon so - and we just made the Starling Cycles Mini Murmur. It's a steel-framed, single-pivot Starling mountain bike with 120mm of travel.

Here's Starling's main man Joe to explain all about it and why we decided it was a good idea.

[tombowman]

I had the privilege of riding this very bike in the Starling 0:53 parking lot. It accelerates like a rocket. It’s so amazing that one frame can be build up is so many exciting ways.

[joshlarue]

I really like this bike, I've been drooling over a murmur for awhile. I'd really like to try it with a 52.5 stroke shock and a 140mm fork.

[Carriere]

Each time Joe talks about wheel weight, I remember the articles of Bicycle Quarterly and Jan Heine, saying that wheel weight doesn't matter that much because bikes don't accelerate (or brake) as fast as a car or a motorcyle ... but from my personnal experience they make a bike much more faster than the same weight saved on the other parts of the bike ... I don't know wich one is true :D

[los]

What I’d like to do: Murmur (or possibly Twist…) frame, 2 different sets of suspension and wheels for enduro/ XC. The minimal time it would take me to swap that out seems well worth it!

[MadeByMuel]

What a dream bike! Maybe one day…. But probably not 🤦‍♂️

[jugaloo]

I'll pinch that water bottle line, if you don't mind, xx

[Ammotive]

That looks rapids, looks like it can take a beating too

[Metal-Possum]

I remember when 100mm was your long travel bike... those were the days.

[niklassvensson]

How come ther is no mini twist? I gett the point with 29" wheels, but why no xc mullet?

[eXaviar]

Hi, could it work with a 150/160mm fork?

[SnootchieBootchies]

People are way too obsessed with weight. Even in xc. All you need is light wheels and tires, along with good geometry.

[tubularmonkeymaniac]

"Not an enduro bike". Brother it's steel, I would be throwing myself off cliffs on this thing 🤪. I used to ride enduro trails on a 100mm 'XC' bike. Anyway looks like a blast.

[meteormedia]

Sorry, but 14kg for an XC bike with a high-end build kit is simply too much weight. I love Starling bikes, but this one isn't for me.