Bikes Of 2024: OS Bikes Blackbuck

 It's another December here on the blog. You know what that means? Yep! Another round of my bikes I used in 2024. This round-up will not include some of the bikes I did not use this year much, or at all. I focus only on the bikes that played a big role in my riding during this year.  As always, any changes or future plans for any bike I feature will also be detailed. I hope that you enjoy this year's round-up.

The OS Bikes Blackbuck is a bike that barely made the list this year, and did so because it was pretty much the only MTB I used off-road all of 2024. It also represents the bike I've owned the second longest, the Karate Monkey being the leader in that category. At least as far as bikes I have that are rideable! I have a Mongoose All-Mountain Pro frame that was used on my self-supported tours in 1994 and 1995, but it hasn't been rideable for over 25 years. 

Anyway, a little history on the bicycle being featured here. You might be a newer reader here and you might find yourself thinking, "OS what-the-buck? I've never heard of this brand. What is the story here?" Well, if that is you, here's a brief history based upon what I've been told by the originator of OS Bikes, Mark Slate. 

Yes - that Mark Slate, he of WTB, and a member of the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame. The tire designer extraordinaire. THAT Mark Slate. Mark decided to hop on the 29"er thing after designing THE TIRE and started his own 29"er bicycle company called "Of Spirit Bikes", or simply "OS Bikes". Along about 2005 or so, Mark had - according to what he told me - about 500 frames and forks built up. He offered the OS Bikes first model, the Blackbuck, as a stylish single speed with a first generation Reba 29"er fork or with his radical non-suspension corrected 51mm offset rigid fork. 

In 2006 I purchased a Blackbuck from Mark with the rigid fork. These bikes are ChroMoly frames with parallel seat and head tube angles, straight 1 1/8th steer tubes, and a split eccentric bottom bracket for chain tensioning the single speed set up. You could gear a Blackbuck with a special hangar for a derailleur, but there were no provisions for a cable for shifters on the frame. 

The bikes did not sell all that well, but Mark did have a second run made around about 2010. These Blackbucks have the white "darts" over a black frame. I'm not sure how many of those were made but these are also pretty rare. The V2's were made at a different factory than V1's. I was told that V1's were made at Maxway while V2's were made at a place called "Mercury", but I may have that second factory name wrong. I know Maxway did the original run for Mark.

My Blackbuck with the original "short/steep" fork set up. 74° parallel tube angles!

I mentioned that the Blackbuck was OS Bikes 'first' model. There was at least one other model designed and made as a pre-production sample that I have seen an image of, but as far as I am aware, it never was released, and so I cannot say anything more about that. 

Mike Varley of Black Mountain Cycles did a really great overview of this bike on his site HERE. There are a lot of details on the bike and a great image gallery as well. 

An image of a v2 Blackbuck from OS Bikes Instagram

So, back to my Blackbuck, which I love for bashing around out in the woods and single track here. I don't do a lot of mountain biking anymore since I've been doing so much on the gravel cycling side the last ten years or so. But when I go off-road single tracking, the Blackbuck is the bike I'm grabbing.

I still love the way the Blackbuck rides and handles though. I have it set up with a 470mm axle to crown Bontrager Switchblade composite fork these days which yields a pretty nuetral ride quality. Perfect for single track here. I do happen to have an original Reba 29 fork also. It came off another bike, but I keep it around to complete the "set" along with the original rigid fork.  I let a friend borrow that rigid fork for several years to use on an Xtra-cycle project, but I have that back now, so the whole set up is complete. 

I don't see going in a different direction with this bike anytime in the near future. But there is a handle bar coming out soon that mimics the original Jeff Jones H Bar and is similar to the Titec H-Bar I had on this bike originally. If that does come out I may have to swap bars and see if I can create the "old magic". Ha ha! 

So, there is a bit more to this "Bikes Of 2024" post! I hope that you enjoyed that extra detail. Thanks for checking it out!