• Climbing Ability 80% 80%
  • Downhill Ability 80% 80%
  • Overall Fun 80% 80%

Travel: 140mm rear/ 140 or 150mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 66

Seat Tube Angle: 77

Reach: 474mm (large frame)

Weight: 29.67 lbs

Price: $3,999

What We Like: Upgraded rear suspension, customized colour options

What We Don’t: Left hand only water bottle access

With a redesigned rear suspension system, the Orbea Occam has become a super versatile trail bike. With updated geo, it is a super fast climber, due in part to a steep seat angle and light carbon frames. The handling on climbs is responsive, and the riding position keeps weight on the front wheel to improve traction. The extra travel on the Occam helps immensely on the downhills letting you pick the lines you want to ride. It does feel generic, but that is never a bad thing when you’re picking up some serious speed. The custom paint job is only available on the higher end carbon frame build options, but it is cool to know that is possible.
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Compare to Similar Products

See Our Best Short Travel Mountain Bike Review 2021 Article HERE!

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Ibis Ripley - Gear Hacker

Buy Now at Ibiscycles.com

  • Climbing Ability 90% 90%
  • Downhill Ability 90% 90%
  • Overall Fun 90% 90%

Pros

Upgraded Rear Suspension

Cons

Bottom Bracket Has Had Some Issues

Travel: 120mm rear/130mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 66.5

Seat Tube Angle: 76

Reach: 475mm (large frame)

Weight: 28.87 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Santa Cruz Tallboy - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 80% 80%
  • Downhill Ability 100% 100%
  • Overall Fun 90% 90%

Pros

Downhill Ability

Cons

A Bit Heavy

Travel: 120mm rear/130mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 66.5

Seat Tube Angle: 76.2

Reach: 470mm (large frame)

Weight: 30.63 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Marin Rift Zone - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 80% 80%
  • Downhill Ability 80% 80%
  • Overall Fun 90% 90%

Pros

Budget All Day Rider

Cons

It Is Heavy

Travel: 125mm rear/130mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 66.6

Seat Tube Angle: 76

Reach: 480mm (large frame)

Weight: 32.25 lbs (aluminum frame)

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Revel Ranger - Gear Hacker
  • Climbing Ability 70% 70%
  • Downhill Ability 90% 90%
  • Overall Fun 80% 80%

Pros

Downhill Prowess

Cons

Seat Angle Could Be Steeper

Travel: 115mm rear/120mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 67.5

Seat Tube Angle: 75.3

Reach: 473mm (large frame)

Weight: 26.23 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Norco Optic - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 70% 70%
  • Downhill Ability 80% 80%
  • Overall Fun 80% 80%

Pros

App To Dial In Custom Suspension Settings

Cons

Slow On Climbs

Travel: 125mm rear/140mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 65

Seat Tube Angle: 76

Reach: 480mm (large frame)

Weight: 30.2 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Evil the Following - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 80% 80%
  • Downhill Ability 80% 80%
  • Overall Fun 90% 90%

Pros

DELTA Link Rear Suspension

Cons

Expensive Build Options

Travel: 120mm rear/ 130 or 120mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 67.9

Seat Tube Angle: 77

Reach: 480mm (large frame)

Weight: 28.3 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Yeti SB 115 - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 70% 70%
  • Downhill Ability 70% 70%
  • Overall Fun 80% 80%

Pros

New Rear Linkage

Cons

Not Different Enough From The Yeti SB100

Travel: 115mm rear/ 130mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 67.6

Seat Tube Angle: 74

Reach: 450mm (large frame)

Weight: 29.63 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Trek Fuel EX - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 80% 80%
  • Downhill Ability 80% 80%
  • Overall Fun 80% 80%

Pros

Down Tube Storage

Cons

Suspension Sag While Climbing

Travel: 130mm rear/ 140mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 66

Seat Tube Angle: 75

Reach: 470mm (large frame)

Weight: 28.94 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Orbea Occam - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 80% 80%
  • Downhill Ability 80% 80%
  • Overall Fun 80% 80%

Pros

Upgraded Rear Suspension, Customized Colour Options

Cons

Left Hand Only Water Bottle Access

Travel: 140mm rear/ 140 or 150mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 66

Seat Tube Angle: 77

Reach: 474mm (large frame)

Weight: 29.67 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Trek Top Fuel - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 100% 100%
  • Downhill Ability 70% 70%
  • Overall Fun 70% 70%

Pros

Super Lightweight

Cons

Knock Block in Headset

Travel: 115mm rear/ 120mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 68

Seat Tube Angle: 75

Reach: 470mm (large frame)

Weight: 26.08 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Banshee Phantom - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 70% 70%
  • Downhill Ability 80% 80%
  • Overall Fun 90% 90%

Pros

High Quality Components

Cons

Heavy

Travel: 115mm rear/ 120-140mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 66

Seat Tube Angle: 76.6

Reach: 470mm

Weight: 31.97 lbs (aluminum frame)

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Specialized Stumpjumper ST - Gear Hacker

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  • Climbing Ability 80% 80%
  • Downhill Ability 90% 90%
  • Overall Fun 90% 90%

Pros

New Rear Suspension Linkage, SWAT Bottom Bracket Storage

Cons

Price

Travel: 120mm rear/130mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 66.5

Seat Tube Angle: 74.5

Reach: 480mm (large frame)

Weight: 27.80 lbs

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Alchemy Arktos ST - Gear Hacker
  • Climbing Ability 70% 70%
  • Downhill Ability 80% 80%
  • Overall Fun 80% 80%

Pros

High Quality Build Components

Cons

Low Bottom Bracket, Under Bottom Bracket Water Bottle Attachment.

Travel: 120mm rear/140mm fork

Head Tube Angle: 66.1

Seat Tube Angle: 75.5

Reach: 454 (large frame)

Weight: 30.75 lbs

Based in Europe—Spain and Portugal to be precise, Orbea has essentially an all in-house production, allowing for testing and quality control to be closely monitored. Their in-house production also allows for a free customizable paint job for several of the Orbea bike models. The Orbea Occam high-end build is one of those bikes that can be delivered to your door with a fresh, true to you, paint job, and be ready to hit the trails. .
However, you did not come here to find out how rad you can make your bike look. You want to know how rad this bike can make you look while shredding brown powder. To answer that question quickly, it’ll make you look really rad. With 140mm of rear travel and an option of either 150mm or 140mm forks, the Occam is built for versatility, and depending on the model, it’s light too.
The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Orbea Occam - Gear Hacker

The Bike

Orbea has really redesigned the Occam to be a trail bike, but it will also hold its own against some of the shorter travel XC bikes. The rear suspension was redesigned, and the sag was reduced by 7% to make for a more efficient pedaling platform on steep climbs. On a large frame, there is 474mm of reach with a 440mm chainstay across the sizes. The Occam also comes with a 44mm offset fork as do most of the bikes in this category.

The seat tube angle is 77-degrees, steeper than the Ibis Ripley, with a head tube angle of 66-degrees, which is slacker than most bikes on our list. The geo does make you feel very comfortable while climbing but also keeps things well under control when the front wheel is pointed downhill and you’re picking up speed. The Occam also has a downtube guard, a chainstay guard, and internal cable routing to keep the ride quiet—always a nice feature.

The frame has main triangle support that does make the water bottle only accessible with the left hand. For myself being a lefty, not a huge deal, for other right-handed riders, it may take some time to get used to.
The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Orbea Occam - Gear Hacker

Climbing

With the improved sag ratio in the rear suspension, Orbea has made the Occam a climbing machine. During some tests, some riders had it second in time only to the Trek Top Fuel, essentially an XC racer, which is definitely not bad for a trail bike. The wildly steep seat tube angle on the Occam helps to keep a lot of traction in the front wheel while powering up steeps and keep the rider in a very strong position to put power into the pedals. With a 28 pound frame on the carbon models, it is light and will keep your legs fresh for long days in the saddle. It feels very comfortable over a whole day of riding and seems to be able to go for miles and miles.

There are a lot of comparisons made between the Occam and the Specialized Stumpjumper. The climbing feels snappy and well managed. The shorter fork offset with the slack head tube helps to keep the handling manageable on the uphills. The travel of the Occam won’t make it as spritely a climber as the Ripley or the Following, but the geo allows for good power and strong climbing.

Downhill

On the downhills, the Occam is well mannered, and the extra travel helps you pick the lines that you want to ride. The bike comes with a large volume spacer for the rear suspension if you want more progression, and some areas of riding may require it.

A lot of testers have said that it is best to go with the 150mm fork right off the bat because this bike will get you going fast on those bumpy downhill areas, and you’ll want the extra suspension. While it is a great all arounder and perfect for a generalist biker, the downhill riding does feel generic and not as steady in certain areas. It is a poppy bike and will inspire confidence on some of the bonus trail side kickers, so enjoy the air time.

The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Orbea Occam - Gear Hacker

Build Options

There are several build options for the Occam. Starting at the top of the line, the M-LTD model will set you back $11,499. This includes Shimano XTR brakes and drivetrain on their carbon frame. The Occam M10 is $7,599 still carbon with Shimano XT components. There are a variety of models after that ranging from $5,999 down to $3,499, helping a lot of riders have the chance to get on an Occam if they choose.

Finally, there is a frame-only option with the Fox DPX2 rear suspension for $4,499. The frame is carbon, which helps to explain the higher cost than some of the other frame only options on the list.
The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Orbea Occam - Gear Hacker

The Bottom Line

There really is not too much to say about the Occam. It is a great trail bike that is built for a wide variety of trails and riding styles. It climbs well with the upgraded suspension and will get you downhill with speed and style. If you want to ride all day, it is comfortable enough to do exactly that. It’s lightweight and won’t make an ice bath an absolute necessity at the end of the day either.
The customized frame coloring (on the top end builds) and massive component customization options will help make this bike exactly what you want, and you’ll stand out in the crowd (if you so choose). While there is not much to really drool over on the Occam, this is a bike that will take you exactly where you want to go and keep you grinning the whole time. What more can you ask for, really?
The Best Short Travel Mountain Bikes: Orbea Occam - Gear Hacker

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We participate in affiliate programs to help us fund Gear Hacker. Some of the links in this website are affiliate links, which means that if you purchase a product using our link, we will earn a small commission. Don’t worry! This comes at no additional cost to you, and we will never base our reviews on whether or not we earn a commission off of a product. With that said, if you find our review helpful and decide to purchase an item we review, we would be very appreciative if you use our links to do so. It will help us bring you more awesome content in the future!