Diamondback Scapegoat (2013)

Want the stability and ruggedness of a downhill bike with the agility and playfulness of an all mountain machine? Look no further that the Diamondback Scapegoat. The 2013 Scapegoat shares many of the pedal-efficient characteristics of the Diamondback Mission series and adds extra travel and reinforcement for a burly rip down the line of your choice.
Diamondback's Design Philosophy is a no-nonsense approach to building quality bicycles. We want our bike designs to be straightforward: their hardware accessible and their suspension simple. This is on full display with the Scapegoat.
The 2013 Scapegoat 6" frame is created from 6061-T6 Weapons Grade Aluminum and features a hydroformed top tube, a butted and formed downtube seatstays, seatstay bridge, a tapered headtube, ISCG 05 tabs, a 142×12mm E-Thru Axle drop out and Diamondbacks legendary Knuckle Box Suspension technology.
The Knuckle Box, or bell crank, is the core of our single-pivot four-bar suspension platform. Optimally placed pivots equate to a low leverage ratio, and ultimately to superior pedaling efficiency and small-bump compliance. This also allows the shock to work more efficiently and reduces pedal induced motion. It also reduces overall load on the system which will lead to improved shock and bearing life.
Placing the Knuckle Box low within the frame, situates the greatest weight of the bike closer to the bottom bracket, which lowers the bike's center of gravity and allows it to better track and corner.
Wheel-rate is also one of the most significant aspects of a suspension system. Wheel-rate is the effective spring-rate when measured at the wheel. A benefit of our four-bar linkage is increased control over the wheel-rate. Obtaining the spring-rate curves in shocks from Fox is necessary to allowing us to determine the wheel-rate. Working closely with Fox, we're able to optimize the wheel-rate to be linear-to-slightly progressive. This results in superb small-bump compliance, more perceived travel and excellent bottom-out protection. For this application we've chosen to run a 160mm (216×63) Fox DHX Air 5.0 Rear Shock with Kashima Coat. This keeps the rear riding plush without too much sacrifice on the pedal uphill. The DHX's patented Boost Valve technology provides a feeling of endless travel and plushness like that of a downhill rig, but with XC pedaling efficiency.
Where the Scapegoat initially started as a beefed up version of our popular Mission platform, a few tweaks have taken place over the years to define it more as a park/light freeride bike and separate it from its Mission brethren. We started by designing the bike around a 180mm fork up front which allows the front end to sit slack at a hill shredding 66 degrees. The slacker front end eats obstacles with ease and ads more stability on the descents. You can certainly run the bike with a 160mm fork if a steeper front end is desired.
We've also added a reinforced downtube to ensure a stable platform regardless of how big you go. By also increasing the size of the hardware, we put less stress on the bearing sustaining their life.
For 2013, we've kept our promise to give the Scapegoat the ultimate build one that is perfect right off the showroom floor. And it's there that we started with an Easton Havoc UST compatible wheelset. The only thing that can stop these bad boys from spinnin g is the set of Shimano Saint 4 piston Hydraulic Disc Brakes with servo wave and tool-free reach and stroke adjust (8 front/7rear). Pair that with the Shimano XTR Radipfire drivetrain including short cage rear derailleur and 10spd cassette (11-34) and you've got the ability to crush any descent. A Gravity Lite single ring crankset and guide offer simplicity and strength to the mix. Easton comes back to round it out with a Havoc Post, Handlebar and 50mm stem (secured with an FSA No57 sealed cartridge headset), and what you've got here son is pure gold (or blue - depending on how you wanna look at it).