Having firmly established itself in the world of road cycling, the Lando HT is Factor’s first move into the world of cross-country mountain biking and represents its first hardtail. The brand’s prowess in making some of the most renowned road bikes hasn’t gone unnoticed in its foray into MTB as the Lando HT is sorted with a contemporary geometry and carbon layup that makes for a competent ride that will be appreciated by those in pursuit of lightweight excellence. However, some componentry choices let down an otherwise superb package.
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Factor Lando HT SRAM XX1 - Technical details
Seeing a road bike-focused brand dip its toes into the world of knobbly tyres and cross-country mountain biking is no longer considered taboo with brands such as Cervelo and Pinarello producing very well-received products. The Factor Lando HT comes as one of the new breeds of mountain bikes from a primarily road-based brand. That said, Factor isn’t messing around here and that’s evident in the bike’s design.
The proof is in the geometry as it stacks up very well against its rivals. The bike pictured here is a large frame and comes sorted with a respectable 476mm reach which is combined with a 68.5-degree head angle and a 73.5-degree seat tube angle. The chainstay comes in at a short 430mm which results in a 1,184mm wheelbase. Compared to Merida’s latest Big.Nine, the Factor stacks up well with its head tube half a degree steeper, its reach a smidgeon longer. It’s also not too far off from BMC’s cutting-edge Fourstroke.
With its modern geometry, the Lando HT’s TeXtreme Toray Nippon Graphite Pitch-Based fibre frame is designed to balance stiffness, weight and strength. To push these philosophies, Factor has given the bike a flat-mount rear brake, citing that it’s enabled the designers to make the chainstay completely out of carbon, without the need to mould alloy parts into the material and add weight.
The Lando HT as it’s equipped with a fat downtube and a T47 85.5 bottom bracket for nothing but stiffness.
It’s not all about stiffness, however, as the brand has formed the seat stays with a very thin profile to add some compliance to the rear end and boost comfort. Factor also says that its kinked design leads to discontinuity, thus providing increased vibration reduction in tandem with the 31.6-seat post. Even the top tube has been designed to offer a bit of flex. It’s very flat and wide and has been shaped to deform under the highest of loads such as large front-end impacts.
As all good cross-country bikes should, this one rolls on 29-inch wheels and it’s designed to run a fork with 110mm of suspension. However, Factor’s in-house componentry brand, Black Inc can provide a rigid fork that can point this XC ripper towards a gravel-based sensibility.
There’s plenty of tyre clearance, too, as it can accommodate up to a 2.4in tyre and then some. Then as for cable routing, it’s all internal, however, the Lando HT offers cable routing either through the headset or through the side of the head tube, pleasing aesthetic junkies everywhere. Other cool features include CeramicSpeed coated bearings across the whole bike and the handlebar can accommodate a bolt computer mount that’s included in the box.
Factor Lando HT - Componentry
Here, we've got the Lando HT in SRAM XX1 guise. It comes with SRAM’s XX1 Eagle AXS wireless shifting. That’s complete with carbon cranks and SRAM’s carbon-bladed Level T Ultimate brakes. Carbon fibre is the underlining theme here, which includes the Black Inc Twenty-Seven wheelset, integrated bar and stem (which measures 760mm in width, and the seat post. That wheelset is wrapped with a pair of Goodyear Peak tyres in 2.25in widths.
Its 110mm of front suspension is provided by a DT Swiss F 232 ONE fork that’s sorted with a remote damping control for on-the-fly lockout, a staple of any race-focused XC bike. All of that weighs in at a rather competitive 9.37kg. While that’s certainly light in the grand scheme of things, there are lighter bikes around.
Handily, this isn’t a set specification from Factor as the brand offers a small level of customisation before checkout. Potential customers can choose to spec the Black Inc rigid fork and between a choice of crank lengths, which is a very nice touch for those who take their riding and bike fit much more seriously.
But before getting into the ride impressions, it must be noted that this bike requires complete assembly if bought from Factor direct. We’re not talking about a simple put-together that you’ll see from the likes on Canyon. No, I’m talking about cutting the steerer tube to size type of level of assembly, as well as seating the tubeless tyres and setting up the brake cables. This is typical of Factor, I’m told by our road-going sister site’s staff but it’s certainly unusual in the mountain bike world. You’ll either need a good chunk of bike-wrenching experience or it’ll need to go through a dealer or bike shop before riding.
Something that deserves a mention is the DT Swiss fork. It's not commonly found on bikes from stock but the F 232 ONE does a commendable job of front-end suspension damping. It's supple off the top while providing plenty of support throughout its midstroke. While its name doesn't carry the same gravity as other brands and it might not be as light as other forks, it certainly stacks up in terms of performance.
Factor Lando HT SRAM XX1 - Performance
As a brand with a rich catalogue of road bikes and with this bike being its first step into mountain biking, it’s easy to meet the Lando HT brimming with preconceptions. However, it impressed and has shown that the road brand’s head-first dive into performance MTB is far from a flash in the pan. But one thing is for sure, it’s a total looker. It carries cues from Factor’s skinny tyred bikes such as its angular head tube but it’s obvious that the brand has gone for weight savings, giving its raw carbon frame just a clear coat which then shows off the beautiful folds and joins of the carbon throughout.
Factor has used its existing tech and philosophies that are cemented in its portfolio of road bikes but to great effect in the Lando HT and that’s most noticeable in the bike’s rear end. Factor has put a lot of effort into the carbon layup of the frame. In some areas, such as the top of the downtube, the carbon is paper thin but around the bottom bracket, it’s thicker and more built up. This adds stiffness to the bottom bracket area which directly results in immediate power transfer to the rear wheel.
The rear end is incredibly communicative. Because there’s so much stiffness around the bottom bracket and in the chain stays, the bike tells you exactly how much traction is available. It’s almost like a sixth sense in that I’ve been able to confidently predict when the rear wheel is going to lose grip under pedalling and adjust my output to drive the wheel just under the limit of traction. This heightened level of immediate communication is further enhanced through the Lando’s short chainstay, which works to remind you exactly where the rear wheel is, helping with line placement and making it easier to weight when climbing.
But the rear end isn’t all about stiffness because the brand’s efforts to introduce some compliance through the employment of flat and kinked seat stays, as well as its standard seat tube diameter does exactly what it is supposed to do. When seated, these elements work to dampen vibrations and make for a more comfortable time when pedalling hard. This hint of flexion is also noticeable when landing drops and rattling over tech as there’s just enough give to absorb the sting of such impacts. On the other hand, this flex does little to influence the bike’s impressive ability to get up and go out of corners with nothing more than a hard push on the pedals.
This compliance also aids grip when climbing, as it allows the rear wheel to track the ground more effectively and the Lando HT has proven to be rather impressive up a hill. Its excellent proportions make uphill endeavours as effortless as possible. Its seat tube, chainstay, reach and stem length evenly distribute weight over the bike which provides excellent traction at both the front and rear. Then, as a result of its not-too-slack head angle, steering is responsive but controlled which makes short work of uphill switchbacks, and technical climbs, feeling as if it climbs itself, as it doesn’t require serious management to keep it behaved. Instead, the rider can just work on getting the power down and pointing it in the right direction.
It’s a ride that’s all about balance as it’s a very confident descender. The longer front-centre works surprisingly well to encourage stability in a straight line. Over fast and flowy trails I’ve happily held off the brakes because of the confidence that the bike produces, which is high praise given that I frequent trail bikes. But then, as the wheelbase isn’t hugely long and the head angle isn’t massively slack (even compared to the Berria Bravo) steering remains lively and sharp.
While fairly stable in a straight line, the 430mm chainstay pulls the rear wheel almost directly under the rider which, in turn, fosters a lot of agility. It almost corners on a dime and to the point where I felt as if the rear tyre was flat and sliding around corners but instead, the rear wheel pivots with minimal delay.
Where descending is so admirable, the handlebar comes as a bit of a letdown purely because it’s so stiff. I’ve experienced similar issues with one-piece handlebar and stem combos on bikes like the Scott Genius where the heft of stiffness leads to hand fatigue very early into a ride. This isn’t helped by the very firm SRAM grips that come as standard but it’s taken only an hour of riding before I’ve had to pull over to give my hands a break.
Factor's pursuit of all-out efficiency has come as a detriment to this bike. Specifically, the CeramicSpeed bottom bracket isn’t up to the job. Of course, it’s a selling point coming with such posh and potentially hard-wearing tech as standard, but it doesn't cope well with mud. After only a few kilometres of wet riding and only the odd puddle crossing, the BB starts grinding.
The CeramicSpeed BB isn’t bad at all, it’s more that Factor’s bottom bracket area isn’t well sealed. Reducing the number of seals within a bottom bracket poses one benefit and that’s less friction which means more watts are transferred to the rear wheel. And CeramicSpeed is known for creating some of the most frictionless bottom brackets available but it must be noted that the brand’s products also have a reputation for needing regular maintenance.
From a mountain bike perspective, a bottom bracket must last more than half an hour’s riding before allowing water and dirt to ingress. Even then, reducing seals to minimise friction doesn’t make sense even in situations where every watt counts because, when moisture and muck are introduced to the bearings so quickly, the resultant grinding paste will create even more friction. I’ve never ridden any bike, be it gravel, XC, trail or enduro with a bottom bracket that’s so frail. Where this bike is great in the way it rides, and ticks many of the boxes even the most discerning of XC racers require, this dodgy bottom bracket is a huge stain on an otherwise clean record sheet.
However, this is another area of the bike that raises eyebrows and that’s the flat-mount caliper at the rear of the bike. Even though it’s allowed the brand's designers to go crazy with the design of the Lando’s rear end, and even to great success, it limits the rider to two-piston calipers (unless they’re happy to go full Macgyver or buy Hope’s RX4 caliper).
I must admit that I am nitpicking here as the enhanced braking power of a four-piston is of arguable use on the featherweight XC hardtail where the rear end simply can’t summon the grip that’s needed to take full advantage of a more powerful stopper. Regardless, I’ve found the performance of the brake setup to be perfectly adequate.
Factor Lando HT SRAM XX1 - Verdict
Not only does the Lando HT bear the name of a prolific road bike brand but it comes with a price to match. At £7,200, it represents a lot of money. The price doesn't look too bad when comparing it to the £8,500 Cervelo ZHT-5 comes with a similar kit, including Reserve wheels wrapped with Maxxis Recon Race tyres and a RockShox SID SL Ultimate fork.
It occupies the middle ground with fewer Gucci brands such as the £6,500 Scott Scale RC World Cup. The Scale gets the brand’s highest-end carbon build but SRAM XO1 shifting and a RockShox SID SL Select+ fork. Canyon’s top-end Exceed offers a similar build but with a Fox 32 Factory fork for £5,249. It’s long overdue an update with its comparatively conservative geometry, which is something to consider.
The closest competition to the Lando HT is Mondraker’s range-topping Podium RR SL. It costs a little more at £7,700 but you’re getting more for your money, such as a RockShox SID Ultimate fork and SRAM’s XX SL Transmission drivetrain. It’s also fresh out of the box with Lizardskins DSP foam grips and comes with a much more reliable SRAM DUB bottom bracket. Mondraker says that this bike weighs 8.8kg. Its geometry is almost identical, too, apart from the shorter reach but, importantly, it’s ready to race.
Regardless of its disappointing bottom-bracket performance, the Factor Lando HT is a very valid entry into cross-country mountain biking. Its contemporary shape produces excellent support when climbing, as well as plenty of confidence when the trail points down. The brand’s experience in crafting road frames certainly shows through its reasonably lightweight frame and its blend of vibration-reducing compliance and momentum-gathering stiffness. The bottom bracket will just need swapping if you’re looking to point the bike towards anything even slightly damp.
3 comments
First: "Specifically, the CeramicSpeed bottom bracket isn’t up to the job."
Then:" The CeramicSpeed BB isn’t bad at all, it’s more that Factor’s bottom bracket area isn’t well sealed. "
This doesn't make any sense to me. AFAIK, the seals are part of the bearing, not frame ("area"), in all BB standards, T47 including. I am reading the text as if Factor is to blame here for a sealing problem.
It's a T47 x 88.5
What's the actual bb shell size on the bike - bb92/dub PF?