Felt launched the new Edict Nine platform at this year's Sea Otter Classic.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The down tube runs the full width of the bottom bracket on the Felt Edict Nine LTD.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Stock tires on the Felt Edict LTD Race are Kenda's fast rolling 24Sevens.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
A carbon fiber seatpost and carbon railed saddle for the Felt Edict Nine LTD.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The kinked seat tube allows for a slightly shorter rear center.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Carbon fiber Felt Edict Nine frames use a curious mix of internal and external routing.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Felt's FAST suspension design relies on the chain- and seat stays flexing open and closed as the rear end moves through its 100mm-range of travel.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Links are made of forged aluminum on all Felt Edict Nine bikes.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The hubs on the stock Reynolds carbon fiber wheels feature sealed cartridge bearings and straight-pull spoke flanges.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Felt includes a tapered head tube on the new Edict Nine.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The top-end Felt Edict Nine LTD will come with FOX's new 32 Float 29 100 FIT CTD fork.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The rear derailleur housing is routed atop the chain stay, and the chain stay protector is then mounted on top of that.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Felt builds a chain keeper into the structure of the Edict Nine LTD.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
The top-end Felt Edict Nine LTD comes equipped with Reynolds carbon wheels.(Image credit: Jonny Irick)
Felt launched its first full-suspension 29er at the Sea Otter Classic, adding a big-wheeled variant to the current Edict cross-country platform. The new Edict Nine will offer the same 100mm of rear wheel travel and according to Felt, similar pedaling and handling characteristics for what should be a peppy-feeling machine.
Felt carries over the FAST rear suspension design from the standard Edict – effectively a single-pivot layout with a linkage-driven rear shock but with flex built into the stays in lieu of a conventional axle pivot for reduced weight and improved stiffness. Felt suspension engineer Mike Ducharme also uses that flex to help tune the rear end by setting its 'neutral' position right at the recommended sag point, working with the rear shock to boost pedaling efficiency.
Felt's marketing materials claim the Edict Nine retains the "agile feel of the original Edict" and a look at the geometry chart suggests that might actually be the case. The chain stays are expectedly longer than on the standard Edict but they're still a reasonable 450mm thanks in part to the kinked seat tube. In addition, a steeper head tube angle (71.5° instead of 71°) keeps the total wheelbase in check at 1,103mm for a medium frame – a gain of just 12mm.
Other features include asymmetrical, widely set chain stays for good tire clearance, alloy suspension pivot axles and titanium hardware, forged aluminum upper shock linkage plates, a tapered head tube, and a mix of internal and external routing for the derailleurs and rear brake.
Felt will offer the Edict Nine in three carbon fiber versions plus two less expensive models with aluminum front triangles. Carbon frames get an additional integrated carbon fiber inner chain watcher and are built using Felt's InsideOut dual internal-external mold technology for more consistent inner wall surfaces.
All of the new Edict Nine bikes should be available August or September save for the second-tier Edict Nine 1, which is due a couple of months earlier. Prices and brief spec are as follows:
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Edict Nine LTD (UHC Performance Carbon frame, FOX 32 Float 29 100 FIT CTD, FOX Float CTD-Adjust, Reynolds Carbon 29'er wheelset, Shimano XTR 2x10): US$9,799-9,999
Edict Nine 1 (UHC Performance Carbon frame, FOX 32 Float 29 100 FIT CTD, FOX Float CTD-Adjust, WTB Stryker XC 29 wheelset, Shimano XT 2x10): US$5,899-5,999
