2014 Giant Revel 0 29er

[Rouxenator]

A week ago I had to buy a bike in a hurry after cracking my 3rd GT frame in three years. Of those three bikes the one that lasted the longest was my first one, an entry level Karakoram 3.0 trail bike. With that in mind I started looking for a new bike

 

Since I would buy the new bike on debt I wanted it to cost as little as possible, my requirements were simple : large frame 29er with disc brakes. The Giant Revel 0 29er fit these requirements perfectly and the LBS less than a kilometre from my house had one at the right price, they retail for R6895 but I got some discount.

 

First impression in the parking lot was positive except for the Tektro HD300 brakes. Having used Tektro Draco II brakes for more than 10,000km on my GT's I have come to expect more from Tektro, the HD300s are usable and functional but a little too soft for me. This was the only part I changed on my new bike and it was replaced with 9 month old Deore brakes from my old bike.

 

The next day I took it off-road for the first time on the 53km Hex Valley Autumn Splendour ride. It was my 4th time on the ride so I had a good idea of what to expect from the route. The bike feels very solid on all surfaces, even in loose sand and gravel it feels surprisingly in control for an entry level trail bike. This is most likely due to the weight of the bike, with tool bag fitted it weighed in at just under 20kg.

 

Dealing with the first climbs on the ride was very hard for me, I was used to a lightweight 6069 Aluminium "Speed Metal" GT Zaskar with Raidon X1 air shock. The Girant required plenty of effort to get it up the hills. The 9 speed Shimano drive-train could just as well have been an 8 or 7 speed because it only goes from 11t-32t. I found myself working hard in granny gear on a few climbs. A Deore 12t-36t cassette was promptly ordered after the ride.

 

On the single track this bike is sure footed and gives you some level of confidence to take on switchbacks at acceptable speeds. The Suntour XCM travels the full 80mm as claimed but it is a chubby fork and you do feel the weight of it when manoeuvring fast turns.

 

The stock Giant tyres offer acceptable levels of grip, more than enough for the novice or beginner riders which this bike is aimed at. The seat is comfortable and you will often find yourself having to sit down firmly on it as you pedal up lose gravel roads and the rear wheel spins without grip.

 

At the price the Giant Revel 0 29er is a very good bike and while it is easy to complain about the heavy XCM fork it does an honest job. I took it over a fairly long section of river rocks on the North bank of Eersterivier and managed to ride the entire stretch with ease. Coming down the rocky path at Coetzenburg was also a pleasure and I did not have to use the brakes too much.

 

If you are looking to get into mountain biking and have close to R7k to spend, this is what you want. Even if you have been riding for a few year and want a backup bike that won't break the bank I can recommend this Giant.

[boristheblade]

nice write-up.

i still need to weight my new mtb. dont have a clue what it weighs.

 

but i am much more concerned with my own weight than the bike's weight.

with more/continuous exercise and a good diet, i should be able to loose another 5kg+ in the next couple of months.

if i was looking at "loosing"/cutting 5kg off my bike, it will probably cost me a small fortune (probably more than the bike's initial cost)

spending thousands to save grams on the bike is not something i want to get involved with.

 

ons moet gaan ry een of ander tyd ! maar ek dink ek gaan jou dalk bietjie terug hou op die stadium.

[Breezer]

Ek het so een vir my pa gekoop. Baie lekker fiets en jy kry waarvoor jy betaal, maar hul verf is baie swak en krap verskriklik makilik. Ek het ook die voor rotor vervang met n 180mm.

 

Maak hom tubeless en jy ry baie lank met hom.

[Rouxenator]

Tubeless is high on my list of upgrades, hopefully is shaves of a few 100 grams.

[bj horn]

Good write up.I have the 2012 and love it.Fork siezed up but was replaced by Giant with Suntour with remote lock out which makes all the difference.

[BenReaper]

I'm currently deciding between a Revel 0 2013 and a Anthem X2 2011,think i'm going to opt for the Anthem.even though its a 26er its better specced than the Revel and that revel sounds quite weighty.

[Rouxenator]

The more I ride the the Revel 0 the more I like it. Today on the 20km home it was a lot less taxing to go uphill so I think my body has started to adjust to the extra weight. The whole bike just works seamlessly.

[BenReaper]

I also did the Autumn Splendour on my hardtail 26er,it was only my second race and first full distance and it killed my back.also motivation for the full-sus Anthem.

[Rouxenator]

Very good to see you are keeping the long term in mind.

 

Personally I have done 3 Transkaroo and Karoo2Coast rides, all on GT 29er hardtails. I bought my Giant with the idea of riding my 4th of those on it, pahaps even more.

[El Scorcho]

Just a note on the Tektro HDC300 brakes, I got a set on my last bike, also did not like them at first - but they definitely get a lot better once the pads wear in.

 

I planned for that to be my first upgrade and have since not found any fault with them, and upgraded shifters instead.

[Rouxenator]

Tektro makes some pretty good brakes. I was surprised at how well my Draco IIs lasted. Perhaps if I kept the HDC300 and let them bed in it would have been a different story. Thanks for the assurance on them.

[Rouxenator]

Let me write a closing review on this bike. I had the bike for a total of 248 days and in that time it covered 9157km. Ideally I would have liked to hit 10,000km in under 300 days but sadly the bike was stolen from me before I could.

 

Here is a break down of what the bike cost me in terms of upgrades and fixes (services excluded)

 

Purchase price R6200

 

500km : Fitted a Deore 9sp 12t-36t cassette (R700), made climbing with the bike a lot easier. 

2000km : Rear free body broke, cost R700 to fix. 

Upgraded to a Rockshox X32 which brought down the weight and improved the ride a bit R3900. 

7000km : Rode my fastest K2C yet (4h28) on the bike and then upgraded to a ZTR Crest wheelset (R3000 used) with tubeless tyres (R1800). 

7800km : Rear Hope hub is a write off, replaced for R2500

8000km : Replaced front and rear derailleurs with Shimano Deore Shadows for R1000

8800km : New BB (R175) and fitted a Kitted 32t narrow wide chain ring

9000km : Replaced one tubeless tyre after rusty nail goes through sidewall R1000

 

Total repairs on stock items : R1875

Total upgrades : R12900

 

In it's final form the bike was amazing, handling was superb thanks to the grippy Suguaro Tyres and XC32 shock. The 1x9 drivetrain with Hope Pro2 Evo hub was crisp and very efficient. I never imagined I could ride a 1x setup but it was really easy on this bike. Max speed I ever did was on the very last day I had it, 72 km/h.

 

So the bottom line still is you can get an excellent MTB for around R7000, and it has loads of potential if you have the time and budget to upgrade parts as they get older. Even if you don't this bike will handle a lot of hard riding.

 

Really a pity I don't have it anymore.