Stumpy Evo Alloy adds to the growing list of awesome trail bikes from the Big S

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The 2022 Specialized Stumpjumper Evo Alloy looks to offer all the performance of the highly acclaimed but enormously expensive 2021 Stumpjumper Evo S-Works without the price tag.

The two-model range starts at £3,250 / $3,800 / €4,000 for the Stumpjumper Evo Comp Alloy and lifts to £4,500 / $5,600 / €6,000 for the Stumpjumper Evo Elite Alloy.

This alloy version shares all the features of its carbon fibre sibling, including suspension travel, kinematics and RX Tune rear damper, 29in wheels (switchable to a 27.5in rear with an aftermarket linkage), integrated SWAT down-tube storage and adjustable S-sizing geometry with Rider-First Engineered frame tunes.

It appears Specialized has been on a roll over the past year, launching a host of top performers such as the S-Works Turbo Levo and Turbo Kenevo SL electric mountain bikes, standard carbon fibre 2021 Stumpjumper, the more affordable alloy Turbo Kenevo SL Comp, and the Stumpjumper Comp Alloy.

So the introduction of the Stumpjumper Evo Alloy came as no surprise given the brand’s recent trend.

Headlining the launch of the Stumpy Evo Alloy is its more affordable price tag, owing to the frame’s aluminium construction.

The M5 Alloy frame has the brand’s iconic sidearm design – where an asymmetrical driveside bridge spans the top tube and seat tube shock mounts – and SWAT down-tube storage.

SWAT storage capacity has been increased to accommodate enough space for a 625ml (22oz) SWAT Bladder, along with the usual room for tools, snacks or whatever else you fancy putting in there.

Unsurprisingly, the Stumpjumper Evo Alloy is built around the brand’s S-Sizing, where bikes grow in reach (the horizontal distance from the bottom bracket to the centre of the top of the head tube) without a corresponding increase in seat-tube length.

The brand says this means smaller people can size up to a larger bike if they want a more stable ride.

The Rider-First Engineered frame tune also remains – so smaller or lighter riders of an S1 bike should have the same experience as a bigger or heavier rider on an S6.

Like the carbon fibre version, the Alloy Stumpy is 29in wheel and 27.5in wheel compatible, should you wish to transform it into a mullet bike (29er up front, 27.5in at the rear). This is done using an aftermarket shock link, but the change doesn’t affect the suspension kinematics.

Elsewhere, cables are routed internally from front to back, it has in-built chain slap protection for the chainstay, and a 73mm threaded bottom bracket. There’s a Boost 12×148mm rear axle and a 34.9mm seat tube diameter.

The 150mm of rear-wheel travel also shares its traits with the Alloy’s carbon fibre stablemate.

It’s been tuned to have roughly 19 per cent progressivity through its travel, where it’s plush at the start for small bumps, transitions to plenty of support in the mid-stroke, and finally has end-stroke ramp for bottom-out resistance.

Specialized has given the rear wheel 3mm of rearward movement in the first 40mm of travel in a bid to absorb smaller bumps even better.

Continuing the list of features taken from the carbon fibre bike, the alloy version has an adjustable head tube angle and bottom bracket height.

The head tube angle is adjustable from 63 degrees to 65.5 degrees using headset cups, and the bottom bracket height is adjustable by 10mm with a Horst-link pivot flip-chip.

The three headset cups and two-position bottom bracket height mean the Stumpy Evo has a total of six geometry settings.

With the Stumpjumper Evo Alloy Comp model priced at £3,250 / $3,800 / €4,000 and the Stumpjumper Evo Elite Alloy a reasonable £4,500 / $5,600 / €6,000, the alloy version of this bike represents great performance and spec for the money.

Both models feature Fox suspension, with the Elite getting Factory-level dampers front and rear. SRAM 12-speed drivetrains are specced, with GX Eagle on the Elite model, and NX Eagle on the Comp

The majority of the finishing kit on both models is taken care of by Specialized-branded and in-house brand Roval parts, except the dropper posts where a OneUp V2 Dropper Post is specced on the Elite and an X-Fusion Manic on the Comp.

I’ll be honest, when this press release came through I got a bit excited.

As someone who doesn’t like parting with cash in all walks of life (including but not limited to putting the heating on in winter, buying clothes, going ‘out’, etc), trying to find a high-performing, well-specced and relatively affordable bike can be a headache.

The 2022 Stumpjumper Evo Elite Alloy isn’t a steal by any stretch of the imagination, but at £4,500 / $5,600 / €6,000 it’s significantly more affordable than quite a few bikes on the market – and is impressively specced.

The 36 fork has Fox’s GRIP2 damper, it’s got SRAM Code RS brakes and SRAM’s 12-speed GX Eagle drivetrain. Top that off with OneUp’s V2 Dropper and Roval’s Traverse Alloy wheels and it looks like a bike I would have specced myself.

Factor in the adjustable – and arguably, very progressive – geometry and impressive suspension, and if I was in the market for a new bike, I would almost be falling over myself to get my hands on a Stumpjumper Evo Elite Alloy.

Of course, the only caveat to that is that it needs to ride as well as the S-Works Stumpjumper Evo I tested previously, but if it does, it could be one of the best trail mountain bikes yet.

Confined within the limits of the £4,500 / $5,600 / €6,000 price point, the super-progressive Evo geometry does limit the Stumpy’s competitors.

One of the closest competitors is Marin’s Alpine Trail Carbon 2, which retails for £3,995 and has 150mm of travel and a 63.5-degree head tube angle.

We reviewed the more affordable Alpine Trail 1 and were impressed by its geometry and suspension.

The Nukeproof Mega 290 Elite Carbon is also a close competitor, costing £4,349.99.

Although the Mega 290 Carbon RS has more travel (160mm) and a steeper head angle (64 degrees), and it doesn’t get Fox Factory suspension, when we tested it we were impressed by its appetite for big terrain, but it lacks the adjustability of the Stumpjumper Evo.

Arguably, the Stumpy is also in a category of its own, bridging the gap between trail bikes and enduro bikes, which means direct price, geometry and travel competitors are thin on the ground.

Alex Evans is BikeRadar's mountain bike technical editor. He started racing downhill at the tender age of 11 before going on to compete across Europe. Alex moved to Morzine in the French Alps at 19 to pursue a career as a bike bum and clocked up an enormous amount of riding. Riding those famous tracks day in, day out for eight years, he broke more bikes than he can remember. Alex then moved back to the UK and put his vast knowledge of mountain biking to good use by landing a job working for MBUK magazine as features editor. Since working for MBUK, Alex's focus has moved to bike tech. He's one of BikeRadar's lead testers, knows how to push bikes and products to the limit, and wants to search out the equipment that represents the best value for money. Alex is also a regular on the BikeRadar Youtube channel and BikeRadar podcast.

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