Last year Cane Creek introduced the Climb Switch to their popular Double Barrel Air shock. Many riders enjoyed this new function and Cane Creek has answered the call for those riders looking to adapt Double Barrel technology to even more bikes in their quiver.

Photos: Jason Nixon / Derek DiLuzio

Video: Double Barrel Inline

• MSRP: $495
• Available: June 16
• 295 grams (165 x 38mm no hardware)
• Twin-tube independent compression & rebound in two high-speed and four low-speed damping circuits
• Four-way independent adjustment: High-speed compression, Low-speed compression, High-speed rebound, Low-speed rebound
• 165 x 38mm (6.5” x 1.5”) BAD0430 184 x 44mm (7.25” x 1.73”) BAD0932 190 x 50mm (7.48” x 1.96”) BAD0431 200 x 50mm (7.87”x 1.96”) BAD0432 200 x 57mm (7.87”x 2.24”) BAD0433 216 x 63mm (8.5” x 2.48”) BAD0944
• Standard (all lengths)
• High performance low friction bushing 1/2” universal axle
• Handbuilt in North Carolina, USA

Cane Creek invited us to visit their revamped North Carolina facility and experience their new Double Barrel Inline shock. We learned more about how they are assembling their Double Barrel range of shocks in-house as well as some updates to their layout to improve efficiency.

The North Carolina area is filled with quality trails within a stones throw of their Fletcher, NC home. As an employee owned company each worker has a vested interest in seeing the company succeed and it showed during our visit. We rode this new Double Barrel Inline shock on the local trails including samplings from Pisgah, Dupont, and Bent Creek.

Introduced in 2005, the Double Barrel Coil Shock has evolved into new products that we’ve thoroughly enjoyed. The heart of the Double Barrel lineup is its external 4 way adjustability (high&low speed compression&rebound) made possible through their twin-tube damper.

If you’ve rode a Double Barrel you certainly are aware of the vast ways in which it can be setup. Cane Creek has been working hard to give riders a wide range of adjustability with their shocks. They’ve been including base tuning guides for most of the bikes out there to help get riders into a great spot to begin with as their shocks are highly adjustable externally. They’ve been working with OEM’s as well on the DB Air CS and Inline shock to not only provide a quality base setting recommendation for the adjusters but they can tweak the orifice sizing as well if needed.

All adjustments to the external adjusters are made with the help of a 3mm allen wrench. Love it or hate it, this is the way it is currently. The CS switch can be activated by your finger or a soon-to-be-available remove lever system.

Double Barrel Inline

Design Intention – Develop a smaller profile and lighter weight, twin-tube shock to expand the Double Barrel suspension family. This shock improves the performance of shorter travel bikes by offering the same features – performance, reliability, and unparalleled adjustability for which Double Barrel shocks are known.

Climb Switch (CS)

When first introduced in the DBAir CS, Climb Switch technology advanced the way riders interacted with their bikes during climbing. By altering the compression and rebound damping simultaneously, CS allows riders to utilize the advantages of full suspension bikes when climbing without experiencing the typical drawbacks. The DB Inline brings game-changing Climb Switch technology to an inline shock. Unlike other inline shocks that modify only compression damping in climbing mode, the DBInlIne’s CS function uses dedicated damping circuits for compression and climbing rebound, completely tailoring the damper for the dynamics of climbing.

The Double Barrel Air CS shock offered riders wanting that Double Barrel Coil descending capability into a more viable all-bike shock. Given the DB Air CS’ larger profile there were things to consider like fitment in frames, accessibility, and weight. Enter the Double Barrel Inline to save the day.

Unlike traditional inline shocks, the Double Barrel Air CS and this new Inline shock alter not only the low speed compression, but low speed rebound as well once the Climb Switch is activated. Additionally the CS lever can be rotated anywhere in-between on and off to achieve a milder effect if desired. We found this quite enjoyable in the Inline as it has a firmer CS in comparison to the DB Air CS as the orifice sizing is different between the two.

Aimed at the shorter travel bikes, this new Double Barrel Inline shock is available in stroke sizes from 1.5″ to 2.5″. The slimmer profile size allows it to be ideal for bikes in the 100-150mm range and can really open up the suspension performance of these shorter travel bikes without a weight penalty that was once unachievable in the Double Barrel range.  New volume spacers also allow the air volume to be easily added without much disassembly or messy complete tear-downs. The snap ring is a cinch to remove and pop the air can off to access the area to install the updated volume sleeves.

Monotube shock vs twin tube

Observing the graphic above illustrates some of the differences between the two systems. The Double Barrel Inline shock, like all Cane Creek Double Barrel shocks is a twin-tube design. Their system provides a variety of benefits such as 4 way external compression adjustability, increased oil volume, and a neat membrane design for the Internal Floating Piston.

When pointed downhill this shock is just as impressive as their DBAir CS shock but in a more svetle package for shorter travel bikes. The implementation of the CS is a bit firmer than the DBAir CS is more pronounced as we mentioned earlier and offered a much firmer pedaling platform. As we rode the shock on the Ibis Ripley throughout the week we experimented with using the lever in between the range to achieve a more subtle locked out effect to increase traction while climbing as many modern bikes often have some efficiency built into the suspension kinematics system.

Fitment

Cane Creek has worked with many OEM’s to ensure this shock fits your bike as well as designing the eyelets to cooperate with other popular shocks to ensure any clevice or similar setup will work with your bike. The shock is slimmer in profile compared to the DBAir CS and resembles a traditional non-piggy back air shock profile much closer. The result is a shock that fits much nicer into smaller travel frames.

Stay tuned for more details soon on our visit to Cane Creek and on this impressive new shock.  Additional photos in the gallery below and more details can immediately be read at http://www.canecreek.com/thedisruptor