Empire is a partnership between two riders, Chris Williams and Craig Robertson (of Ride-On fame), who together have years of combined motorbike and mountain bike competition experience.
What is it that makes this bike different from the competition?
First of all, and most immediately obvious with the AP-1, is that it is not produced using traditional manufacturing techniques.
Instead, the frame is produced using precision sand casting. Now to many this may seem like an odd choice but it is not new technology, having been used in bikes for years, albeit those with engines, and so is tried and tested. the advantage of casting is that you can place material exactly where it’s needed. Despite a minimum thickness of approximately 2.5mm, you are able to create the exact shape required, with the material placed where it is most needed and without the risk of overly thin material in high stress areas that can become a problem when using extrusions or hydro forming. That is because changes in shape will usually be accompanied by a thinning of the wall as the material is in effect being stretched during the process. If that thinning occurs at a critical point like the headtube junction, then it can lead to the area being more susceptible to damage. There are of course other features which set this frame apart. Using the now almost standard fit of a zero stack headset (Cane Creek Double XC comes spec’d on all frames) inside a 1.5” headtube means that the front is kept nice and low. A 65 degree head angle then keeps things steady. This was based around the current Boxxer which has the lowest height of virtually all 8” travel forks as well as the least offset so if the bike feels stable with that then there is plenty of margin for adjustment when using other forks. The bike also has a wheelbase with 20mm adjustment inbuilt to tailor the bike a little to rider preference as well as course requirements...
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