RAAW MADONNA V2.2
My first:
FULL SUSPENSION 29ER
FULL BUILD, BRAND NEW EVERYTHING, FULL-SUSPENSION BIKE
After the death of my 2017 Patrol, and the temporary status of my 2018 Patrol, I knew I was in the market for a new main bike. Waiting for the 2022 Patrol to come was on the table, but I was unsure about its mullet status and wasn't quite sold on it. With that unsureness, my allegiances were up for grabs.
Somehow getting a sense of that, my great buddies Franz and Stefan did some high quality preaching about their RAAW Madonnas, and I was thoroughly impressed by the bike. Time that up with a perfectly timed release/availability of some new frames, and I made the gut choice to buy me one. Needless to say, it was one helluva quality decision.
| Year | 2022 |
| Make | RAAW |
| Model | Madonna V2.2 |
| Frame Size | L |
| Headset | Cane Creek Hellbender 70 |
| Stem | Syntace MegaForce 3 - 50mm |
| Handlebar | Spank Oozy Trail 780 Vibrocore |
| Wheel Size | 29" |
| Gearing | 1 x 12 |
| Drivetrain | SRAM GX Eagle / X01 Mix |
| Brake Type | Hydraulic Disc |
| Brakes | SRAM Code RSC |
| Rotors | SRAM Centerline 203mm |
| Fork | Rockshox Lyrik Ultimate - 180mm |
| Shock | Rockshox Super Deluxe Ultimate - 160mm |
| Rims | DT Swiss FR560 |
| Hubs | DT Swiss 350 |
| Dropper | OneUp V2 - 210mm |
| Tires | Maxxis DHF/DHRII |
| Inserts | CushCore XC |
The Build
First choice was the frame. RAAW makes it pretty simple with a straightforward ordering process - size, with/without shock, headset, and color. Rather than the silver, I opted for the matte black, and that set the theme for the whole bike. As soon as the frame was ordered, I went on a spree of getting everything else, and soon enough had a mound of boxes ready to go, just waiting for that frame to arrive. Then, as soon as that big beautiful box with RAAW sprawled over it arrived, I was ripping and ready to build!!!
Step 1 - Mount the frame, then tear it apart, regrease everything, and put it all back together. That came as recommendation from Stefan and Franz, just to regrease the bearings so there's extra lubricant inside the seals. Really good advice, so that's what I did. Easy enough tearing the frame apart and packing everything with a fresh dose of grease. Soon enough the frame was all set. While it was still bare, I also took the time to add on the frame protection tape that came with it, so that frame was protected and ready for build.
Step 2 - Mount the shock. Or so I thought. Long story short, I tried to remove the lower eyelet by unscrewing what I thought was a set-screw. Turns out it was the oil reservoir drain. Really woulda helped if I'd've read the owners manuals, huh... That pissed me the fuck off. Brand new shock and it already had to be sent in for a full new rebuild. Damnit. That took place while I was back home in the US, and once it and I was back, it was back to building.
Rather than listing out every other step, things went through in a pretty smooth order. Once I got back from the US, and the shock was back in my hands (I'm kinda weird that way, because the shock wasn't technically the next step, but I was at a bit of a mental road block not having that at hand ready to build for when the time came...) I was able to dive in and really get this thing hammered out.
Got the fork installed and cut the stem down to size. Mounted the handle bar and got the front brake mounted and cut to size. Then the rear brake mounted and cut to size. Then got the derailleur installed and installed its routing and cut to size. Got the dropper post installed and ran its routing. Then added the rotors to the wheels and the rear cassette. Installed the bottom bracket then the cranks and made sure to file down the bottom bracket so the rear brake line wouldn't rub. Then, soon enough, I had pretty much everything else bolted on and the zip-ties cut, and this baby was looking like a real ready-to-shred bike.
I had visions of making a cool gif or stop-motion where each image frame showed the bike frame in the same spot with a single new piece/part screwed on, but that didn't pan out. Either way, soon enough this mad steed was fully built and really read to tear up some trails. I give you, my RAAW Madonna V2.2.
All Black - Everything
Once I decided on the color of the frame, and it being all matte black, I knew I had myself a killer motif/theme, and I was really egging to stick with it. All black, everything, and needless to say, I was looking forward to it.
For everything that went on the bike, I made sure what I was getting was coming in black. And as soon as I got it, any stickers or emblems or things not-black (other than a few screws) were getting taken off or swapped out. The fork - decals gone. The shock - decals gone. The wheels - peeled those stickers off real quick. Everything was debadged to get the motif and color scheme in line.
At the end of the day, other than the tires, it all holds pretty damn well. I'll never have it as clean as the picture above, but damn that all-black color looks fucking good.
Original Publish Date: June 17th, 2022