Competitive Cyclist

TURNER 5 SPOT

Dave Turner is a competitive guy. Like way competitive. He does not like to lose. In fact, he has a great disdain for it. He recognizes that complacency is for losers, and losing ain't for him. That's why scrapping his all-time best selling model's design, and switching to the dw-link was almost easy. Sure, he had great bikes that hoards of people love, but he's taken his designs to the next level -- and it affords him the handling characteristics for which he's been searching.

The Turner 5 Spot has long been the undisputed champ of the Turner bike line. Its 140mm (5.5") of travel and balanced geometry have made it the bike to ride. With the addition of the dw-link, Turner cranked things up. Turner was drawn to the dw-link because of its anti-squat characteristics. By virtue of Newton's Third Law of Motion, when something accelerates, its mass is transferred rearward. The dw-link design both counteracts this transfer and allows the axle-path to change to meet the demands of the trail while doing so. The result? A bike that glides over rocks, roots and ruts, yet still remains firm while hammering out of the saddle. And it provides active braking -- meaning the suspension can still cycle while modulating the brake -- providing you unparalleled control in the sketchiest of terrain.

The Turner 5 Spot doesn’t just ride like a dream, it’s engineered to take a pounding. A reinforced head tube gusset ensures the frame will withstand the stress of the 140mm travel fork recommended by Turner for use with the 5 Spot. Its CNC-machined bottom bracket shell, integrated lower shock mount and girder-like rockers provide oodles of torsional stiffness. The new dw-link rear still features the super stiff boxy stays that allows the bike to corner like an Indy Car. All this is done without sacrificing one iota of the trademark Turner tire clearance.

From "the more things change, the more they stay the same department", the 5 Spot still uses Turner's trademark bushings with zerk fittings at the pivots, not bearings. The zerks are now crafted from stainless steel, and they screw into the frame (as opposed to past iterations which pressed in), which means that your zerks will stay put. Turner enthusiastically touts the benefits of their proprietary bushing system over bearings, citing the incredibly tight tolerances, low and easy maintenance, long life, all of which translate into a torsionally stiff rear swingarm that pivots smoothly.

The disc-specific Turner Five Spot is powdercoated in Sangria Red or Charcoal Metallic stock finishes in XS, Small, Medium, Large, and XL. For those of you 6’5” +, an XXL size is available for an additional $200 (includes custom color charge.) Or for those of you that are weight weenies or looking for a stealth aesthetic, with a short wait and no upcharge, you can get it raw -- that's right, no finish whatsoever. Twenty custom colors are available with the following upcharges: $150 (front triangle only) and $225 (both front and rear triangles.) The 5 Spot comes stock with a 7.5 x 2.0" Fox Float RP23 shock (View our set-up video) . It requires a 30.9mm seatpost and a 34.9 mm Traditional Top Pull Front Derailleur. Post-mount disc brake tabs now provide a clean, direct fit for the brake caliper.

Please note: SRAM XX is compatible, however we recommend only the Q166 crank with 28/42 front chainring configuration due to the height restriction on the front derailleur. Simply put, the derailleur clamp won't slide down the seattube far enough to position the cage as closely to the big ring on the 26/39 as you'd need it to deliver the amazing shifting performance that you could normally expect from XX. The Q166 is necessary to clear the stays on the dw-link Turner bikes.

 Share this Page

2010 Turner 5 Spot Pricing