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Orange ST4 Pro

See an ST4 out on the trails and you'd be forgiven for looking twice to check that it did in fact say 'Orange' on the downtube. The ST4 is something of a deviation for Orange. Although technically still a single pivot, gone are the folded/welded downtube and swingarm that have dominated Orange full suspension bikes for almost 10 years now.

Instead you'll find a conventionally-round but still rather chunky downtube, and a positively anorexic looking rear triangle which now drives the shock via what Orange call a 'ROCKR' link. That's right, a linkage driven bike from Orange that has more than one moving part! This is nothing new to the market though; the similarity of this bike to Commencal's Meta range raised a few eyebrows when we first saw the bike back in late 2007. 

this will tear most 5" bikes to pieces…

The frame is a classy and well built item. It's definitely a burlier bike than it looks in the brochure, but next to the other Orange full suspension bikes, it's more subtle and elegant. The chunky welds are still there to remind you this is one of Halifax's finest, but the hydroforming in the top tube coupled with those flared and tapered seatstays make the ST4 look almost modern! The ST4 gets a slightly redesigned rear end in the form of square sectioned chain stays. These are less chainsuck prone and serve to stiffen the rear end up a little. 

Swing a leg over the ST4 and while it might not look it, it feels classic 'Orange'. It's instantly comfortable and confidence inspiring, sitting you snugly inside the bike thanks to its roomy cockpit. Start riding though and things start to feel a little different. It's noticeably quieter than the usual 'throwing a bag of spanners down the side of a mountain' soundtrack you get from the monocoqued Oranges, and the linkage driven rear shock gives a really plush 'squish' out back that is noticeable even when messing about in the car park.

Into the first hill and you notice that the ST4 is a great climber - not in an xc-racer explosive kind of way - but it's efficient, calm and comfortable. It will have you cleaning sections that many bikes might have convinced you were beyond your ability! The ultra-low bottom bracket is both a blessing and a curse though, and while it makes for a sure footed and secure feeling bike, you need to watch your pedalling on really technical sections. There's a little pedal bob noticeable on smooth fireroad climbs but it's easily neutralised with a flick of the propedal lever. 

Point the ST4 into some pedally or downhill singletrack and the beast within it awakens. You'd never believe there was only 110mm of travel out back and while it's ultimately less capable and safe than its older brother - the Five - if you've got the skills and balls to hang on and keep it on the trail, this will tear most 5" bikes to pieces. We had it flying past a couple of 6" bikes while we were out as well!

In flatter sections, the ST4 will have you quite literally heaving as your lungs and legs try to keep up with the turn of pace this bike can offer. The ST4 is pure and simple singletrack weaponry. Far too often we found ourselves going into tight, twisty high-speed sections, convinced we'd overcooked it only to skirt through with the kind of precision found only on laser guided missiles!

it will have you cleaning sections that many bikes might have convinced you were beyond your ability…

When things finally do get too gnarly, you are gently reminded this isn't the big travel bike you've been treating it as. The shock ramps up to catch the bigger bumps and the back end shows some hint of flex. This isn't a criticism but more a complement that this bike somehow manages to convince you that 90% of the time, it's way bigger than it is and it never wants to slow down! It never bottoms out harshly and it's as if there's always a magic extra 10mm to catch you when it all goes wrong.

As mentioned, we originally had some reservations about rear end stiffness, which is something that has always plagued the identical looking Commencal Metas. But while it's in no way Orange Five 'stiff', and doesn't have that 'pick the rear end up and slam it where you want it' aggression about it, when it does start to get bumpy, the ST4 is never phased or overwhelmed. Just hold your line, and your nerve, and it will track straight and deliver you out the other end of that rock garden just as quickly as you came in.

The Rock Shox Recon fork is a Race Solo Air model with Motion Control damping. It certainly looks out of place on a £2,400+ bike but to be fair to it, it never lets the ST4 down. It tracks well, is controlled and is reasonably light. That said, the classy chassis is crying out for a bolt-through, top-end Reba or Fox 32 Float which will only open up even more speed. Orange's upgrade scheme is popular with punters and offers a Float 120 FRL FIT2 with 15QR for an extra £180 - we'd take it although personally we'd like to see the ST4 fitted with a standard 32 Float 15QR (travel adjusted) and priced inline with the Five Pro.

The ST4 isn't going to sell on its spec sheet alone. The Recon fork will have kit snobs already running to bigger mainstream brands. But the XT/SLX groupset, RaceFace Evolve cranks (take the Hope bottom bracket upgrade though), Hope Tech X2 brakes, Hope headset and the Mavic XM317/Hope Pro II wheelset are all classy, common sense, dependable kit. Tyres seem to change depending on supply and while our test bike had 2.2 Continental Mountain Kings - the spec sheet at the time of writing is offer 2.2 Maxxis Advantages. We personally felt the chunkier, harder-hitting Advanatages would allow you to get more out the ST4's playful nature - but the Mountan Kings do keep things fast and light.

Orange's in-house finishing kit also looks out of place at this price point but it's well made, reasonably light stuff and easily a match for the entry level RaceFace and Easton kit that many riders 'upgrade' to. The stem is a nippy and direct 70mm long and the bar feels good in the hands. Our 18" test bike tipped the scales at 28lbs, not too unreasonable considering how the ST4 rides, and that it's built for bigger things than the travel suggests. Orange also offer a wide range of paint options - around 22 shades in total - and you can even have the wheel rims colour coded to match! The paint on the Orange bikes tends to lose its shine and go a bit dull over time, but they're probably one of the toughest and most enduring paint-jobs around.

While not stellar value for money, this is one of those bikes where the whole is very much greater than the sum of the parts. While it lacks fancy kit, what you're buying is a really sorted ride. The ST4 rides exceptionally well and it's a scarily fast bike if you've got skill and fitness to keep it on the boil. If you live for flat out all-dayers and riding on the ragged edge - be it up, flat or down - and you don't want to lug around a lardy, bigger travel bike, you won't go far wrong with an ST4. For £3,300 there's an SE spec model for those feeling flush. If you can afford it, we really believe this could be the ultimate UK singletrack bike!

Ferocious, pin-point accurate, short-travel trail bike that rides way beyond its modest spec.

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