nolipoli Posted November 12, 2013 Share Those that know me will know that I have been waiting for this bike to arrive for a while, and I thought it only fair to give a quick review after my first ride... So how is the new Trance?I have to say that it is as if Giant were listening every time I criticized something on one of their bikes. I love this bike! Whether you want to believe Giant's marketing BS for 650B wheels or not, this bike is amazing. It feels just like my Reign, except faster, smoother, sleeker - just better. It wastes no energy wallowing under the pedals, accelerating hard out of corners like a XC machine, and changing direction in flowy singletrack easily, urging you to aim for that barely bar width gap in the trees without sitting up and braking. And when you hit the choppy rocky stuff, it just floats smoothly and quietly over the top. Spec? Fox Float goodies at the front and rear work better, especially the rear end, which no longer suffers from the "Blow through" that had previous Maestro owners shimming their own shocks. The SLX derailleurs work as expected, with Shadow Plus at the rear keeping things quiet on the rocky stuff. The Deore Shifters work perfectly, and I can't see myself rushing out to upgrade them. The brakes are still bedding in, so I want to reserve judgement, but I suspect that I will want more powerful ones. It needs a Dropper Post. Internal routing only for this puppy. Should you get it? Hell Yes! ...and you shouldn't let a size prejudice stop you from trying it out - the middle ground is pretty convincing in this form.The price is quite reasonable (probably around the 22-24k mark) and leaves some space to bling it out with your own choice in upgrades. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
usxorf Posted November 12, 2013 Share How does the ride compare to the 29er? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted November 12, 2013 Share Very very nice .... BTW that bike is 20.5K at Action Cycles Cape Town! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer4Recovery Posted November 12, 2013 Share NICE! Should be perfect for Enduro! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caerus Posted November 12, 2013 Share Very nice looking bike, love the all black, my next purchase will be one of these badboys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nolipoli Posted November 12, 2013 Share How does the ride compare to the 29er?I had a Trance X 29er 1(for those that didn't know) which I tried really hard to love after my Reign died. It always felt a little ungainly, and I couldn't get confident on it. The steeper 69deg head angle felt bad, even after I replaced the stem with a shorter one. The wheel size just doesn't make sense for hard riding either. I have a mate that rode his TX29er hard, but he had a mechanic that trued his wheels weekly. This new Trance is very different, and I was immediately comfortable to play around on it, boosting off bumps and drops.It also grips very well, dare I say almost as well as the 29er...so corner speeds are great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gummibear Posted November 12, 2013 Share What's not to like 14omm travel with 27.5 wheels Hope you have many happy miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DJR Posted November 12, 2013 Share I was so hoping you were going to say it is a real horrible lemon, because my budget is not in a good state at the moment. Ah well, old faithful (26er Trance X) will just have to soldier on a little longer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caerus Posted November 12, 2013 Share I was so hoping you were going to say it is a real horrible lemon, because my budget is not in a good state at the moment. Ah well, old faithful (26er Trance X) will just have to soldier on a little longer. I'm gonna give some new life to my Trance with an upgrade to 650b wheelset Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oscar Chavarria Posted November 17, 2013 Share Internal routing for the "dropper seat" ??? I have a 27.5 2 but I check and all the "holes" in the frame are used, only one in the bottom but I cant figure what's that for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis for real Posted November 17, 2013 Share I'm gonna give some new life to my Trance with an upgrade to 650b wheelset I was thinking the same thing but...With the brace in front of the back wheel, will there not be a clearance issue? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dob Posted November 17, 2013 Share I have to agree. We have stocked these Trances for our rental fleet down in Cape Town (we still have the 29ers too) and while I have only ridden it twice, it feels like a super playful do-it-all bike. The Trance 29er was fast as hell but it seemed to lack the lively character I get from 26" wheels . Very nice to have the playfulness put back in the bike by 27.5 wheels and the while the spec on this bike is basic it is well thought out and the brakes are actually quite good once settled in (though no where near as powerful as slx/xt). You didn't mention that it comes with a MRP chain device (which I think is probably unnecessary but quite cool to have, though I would have preferred a dropper post to be fitted stock), and nice wide bars, a much shorter stem than Giant normally stocks and the angles are much slacker than the old Trance 26ers. To me, this Trance is way more DH oriented than they have ever been before but it still rides just fine on the ups and flats. Will see how it goes on next weekends Dirtopia enduro and report back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevief Posted November 17, 2013 Share I was thinking the same thing but...With the brace in front of the back wheel, will there not be a clearance issue?I tried to convert my old trance to 27.5 but the clearance at the back made it impossible unfortunatley Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis for real Posted November 17, 2013 Share I tried to convert my old trance to 27.5 but the clearance at the back made it impossible unfortunatley most definatly agree, especially if your running high volume 2.3 or 2.4 tires.650 front 26 back maybe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis for real Posted November 17, 2013 Share I was so hoping you were going to say it is a real horrible lemon, because my budget is not in a good state at the moment. Ah well, old faithful (26er Trance X) will just have to soldier on a little longer. haha about the lemon...i have this same itch but will have to ride the old faithfull just a few months longer...not that im complaining i love my trance and it will still beat a lot of other bikes for ability though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capricorn Posted November 17, 2013 Share most definatly agree, especially if your running high volume 2.3 or 2.4 tires.650 front 26 back maybe? 2.1 profile or less. but that will explode in the first berm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.