
DREAM BUILDS
Duelling Evils of Vince L. and Trevor M.
Dream Builds is a new series that highlights two-wheeled passion projects among our fellow riders. Turning a Dream Build into a reality takes time, passion, and commitment. The folks at RideWrap want to help you protect your own Dream Build because it's an investment. If you've got a bike that fits the series, we'd love to feature it, and give you a chance to win a Tailored Protection Kit from RideWrap. You can submit your Dream Build photos in one of two ways:
Send us some photos and a description of your build. Make sure to include 'Dream Builds' in the subject line.
Or simply post a few bike photos and details to Instagram and use the hashtags #dreambuilds and #nsmb.
We'll pick two winning submissions and feature them on the site. The two winners will get a Tailored Protection Kit, courtesy of RideWrap.

Vince's Mixed Wheel Wreckoning V3 in Blackout Drunk.

Trevor's 29er Evil in Coral Reefer.
Vince L.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and your bike.
My name is Vincent, I have been riding mtb’s since 1999, but took a 12 year hiatus from 2004 to 2016. My bike is a 2021 Evil Wreckoning. I live in the lower mainland and I am 175cm tall, weigh approx. 82 kgs, and I am 34 years old. I enjoy riding high speed big mountain types of trails, but I am also growing to like the jank that the North Shore mountains provide.
Why the Wreckoning?
In order to explain the buying decision of the Wreckoning and all of the iterations I put it through, I need to first explain what I was looking for in a bike. I was in the market for a bike that would fit my riding style of maximizing the amount of fun per every minute of riding. The issue that I faced was that in the “Enduro” genre of bikes it seemed that most of the R&D was going into racing. This meant longer, slacker, bigger wheels, and speed at the cost of everything else. I was looking for something that was nimble, poppy and could also take some big hits, and I was ok with sacrificing some speed for fun. Thus at the time a 29’r was definitely not in my buying pool, that was until I test rode the Evil Wreckoning.
I was convinced to demo the Wreckoning last summer and I agreed because I was intrigued by the delta link suspension system. I went out that day with no intentions of buying the bike, I thought it would be cumbersome and essentially a plough sled. Long story short, I was completely wrong and at the risk of sounding like a fanboy it was the best bike I had ever swung a leg over. I had never ridden a bike that tracked the ground like a DH sled but still popped like my ticket S ( a little exaggerated ). Furthermore, I never previously cared about how well a bike climbed because I always thought there was a negative correlation between fun on the down and climbability, but this bike climbs better than any other mid to long travel trail bike I have ridden. To my own surprise I placed an order for the Wreckoning that day.
Now about the different iterations that the bike went through over the past few months. I am normally the kind of person that once I have the bike set up I don’t really modify it or make component changes unless something breaks. However due to the supply chain issues that are going on I ended up with a 3 month wait for the bike. During this wait time I developed a habit of constantly reading about what was the latest and greatest in bike tech, then convincing myself I needed it for the new bike; on top of that I was still set on running a 650b bike. By the time the bike showed up, I had accumulated a ton of parts which caused the build to become a bit of an experiment (Shoutout to Obsession bikes and Topher for entertaining all of my ideas). I initially tried dual 650b’s and quickly realized that the bb height and the changes in geo had a negative impact on how the bike rode so I went back to the stock dual 29rs. I then tried the bike set up as a mullet and that is where it has been ever since. This remedied the issue of getting butt kicked from the 29r back wheel and it made the bike feel more nimble in high speed corners, I did lose a bit of pop but the bike is inherently so poppy that the benefits outweighed the slight cost.
The one upgrade that I made that impressed me was the TRP DH-R Evo’s brakes. I have never owned a set of brakes that has a lever feel like this, consistent power, and modulation. I have been on big DH descents on Mt. Prevost and haven’t noticed any brake fade or movement in the bite point. I was getting tired of dealing with the reliability/ performance issues I had with my previous brakes made by the big S’s.


Not your stock Wrecker here. The Push shock has a special tune.

Vince likes to jump, and his Push has the " Dude who likes the airtime" tune
How did you set your suspension up, what did it take to reach those settings?
My suspension is set up more on stiff and fast side of things (all settings measured from fully closed):
RockShox Zeb :
70 PSI // 4 tokens
Rebound I run 13 clicks
HSC 2 clicks
LSC 1 click
Push Industries 11/6:
Spring: 450lbs
Rebound: 10 clicks
Firm valve: LSC 2 clicks // HSC 10 clicks
Bump Valve: LSC 10 clicks // HSC 8 clicks
I felt pretty comfortable on the Wreckoning quickly after I decided on a wheel size, but it did take a handful of rides to have it fully dialed in.
Tire pressures?
Fluctuates +/- 3psi based on types of trails and weather conditions. Front 26 psi, Back 28 psi.

Clean setup.

TRP DH-R Evo in goooooldd.

Machining detail on the master cylinder body.


Updated paddle on the XO1 AXS.

The unmistakable Evil Headtube.

There is nothing cookie cutter about the design of Evil frames.

Custom torx T30 Ti bolts for Vince's Wrecker. The stock alloy ones are a little too soft for an avid tinkerer.

Burly chainstay protector.

No wires. XO1.

10-50t. Only the best.

Gold, everywhere.

Predictable, raptor-like grip.

Grippy tire out back...

...and a dual compound Maxxis DHF up front. It works for Vince.

Coral Reefer. Creative colourways with Evil frames.
Trevor has a more conservative approach to building his bikes. He is a 'one-bike guy' who likes to build a relationship with his rides.
Trevor
Age: 34
Weight: 165 lbs
Height: 5’8”
Bike
Frame: 2021 Evil Wreckoning 166mm // RideWrap Tailored Protection & Shuttle Armor // XT i9 hydra build
Shock: RockShox Super Deluxe Coil Ultimate Trunnion 205 x 65. 350 or 400-lb spring depending on the season and the ride
Fork: RockShox ZEB Ultimate 170mm
Brakes: Shimano XT 4 piston
Rotors: Shimano Ice Tech 203 front // 180 rear
Wheels: Industry 9 Enduro S Hydra
Tires: Maxxis Assegai 29 x 2.5 Exo+ MaxxGrip // Maxxis DHR 2 29 x 2.4 Exo+ MaxxTerra
Inserts: Tannus tubeless
Drivetrain: Shimano XT 8120
Cranks: Shimano XT 170mm 30T chainring
Chainguide: E13 TRS plus bash
Bar: OneUp carbon 20mm rise 780mm width
Stem: Race Face Turbine R 32mm
Pedals: Time Speciale 8
Seat post: OneUp v2 dropper 150mm
Saddle: WTB Volt pro
Grips: OneUp grip
Weight: ~ 35lbs
Why the Wreckoning?
My previous bike was a 2018 Trek Slash. For my new bike I was looking for more travel, longer reach & wheel base, and a steeper seat tube angle. Last summer I had the opportunity to try the new Evil Wreckoning for a day. This bike ticked all the boxes in what I was looking for. After a day of riding I was super comfortable on the bike. The Wreckoning crushes the descents and is a surprisingly good climber. It also comes with a solid build package with top of the line suspension, not many changes were needed.
Suspension settings (clicks measured from fully closed):
RockShox Zeb: 65psi // 1 token
HSC 3 clicks LSC 14 clicks
Rebound 9 clicks
RockShox Super Deluxe Coil Ultimate: 350-400lb spring
LSC 12 clicks
Rebound: fast - not sure how many clicks because the rebound knob is hard to reach.
My approach to setting up the suspension is to start at recommended settings and adjust from there. Over about 5 rides I increased the pressure to 65psi and dialed in the compression settings after trying a few different combinations. With the shock I was going between the 350lb and 400lb spring, with more LSC when running the 350. I decided the 400lb spring was better suited to my riding style.
Tire Pressure: Front 20psi // Rear 23psi // Tannus inserts in both wheels
RideWrap: This is my first bike that has RideWrap. Having the protection on the frame and fork is great to keep the bike looking like new. It also makes the bike super easy to clean, the dirt just sheds off. I also installed the shuttle guard on the downtube.

RockShox Super Deluxe Coil Ultimate.

Evil's Delta Link is easier to see on the bright frame.

Burly rear triangle.

Gorgeous.

Perfect length cables shrink wrapped by Topher at Obsession... perfection.

Matte paint with matte RideWrap.

Trevor opted for OneUp bars for ultimate on-trail comfort.

Stubby stem.

Shimano XT.

Shimano XT drivetrain.

As well as XT stoppers.

Tilted down for steep climbing on the Shore.

Time pedals and XT cranks. My perfect platform as well.

RockShox's ZEB Ultimate is a fantastic bouncer!

Maxxis MaxTerra for the rear.

And the Grip factory for the front - MaxxGrip compound.


There is no right or wrong way to set up a bike these days. Unique requirements are catered to by a wide range of manufacturers in the bike industry. These two Evils started their life on an identical point straight out of the box, but took two very distinct paths to end up where they did.
Comments
hotlapz
3 years, 8 months ago
Make every bolt a torx in my opinion.
Reply
Deniz Merdano
3 years, 8 months ago
Agreed 100%
Reply
earle.b
3 years, 8 months ago
Agree.
Reply
AndrewR
3 years, 8 months ago
Torx only works better if you can get a totally straight tool into the bolt (which is easy in this case). There is still a place for high quality hex bolts (and I'd rather have a high quality hex than a silly putty torx) and hex plus tools do a great job of looking after them.
Reply
IslandLife
3 years, 8 months ago
Vince... was your tire choice based on availability, or....? Dual compound DHF up front?! And MaxxGrip in the rear... that set-up for me would mean my front tire would last about two years while my rear about two weeks. I'd really like to hear why you prefer riding a skating rink up front... or maybe you just ride this bike backwards?
Otherwise... beautiful build!
Now Trevor.. solid tire choice and +1 on the Tannus inserts. Also beautiful build!!
Love these bikes and love these articles!!
Reply
Deniz Merdano
3 years, 8 months ago
According to maxxis, under 6°c dual compound has the same amount of traction as any 3c compound.
These photos are a couple of months old and Vince didn't seem to have any issues with Grip.
He is also running 26+psi up front . An anomaly..
Reply
IslandLife
3 years, 8 months ago
Hmm, so as soon as it's above 6 degrees, which on the south coast is close to 365 days a year, you change your tire? "Shit, it's 8 degrees today, where's my Maxxgrip!" And if that's the reason, then why a MaxxGrip out back?
Also, not "having any issues" with grip is quite a bit different to all of sudden realizing you have wayy more grip with a different compound. It's been pretty well documented how much a difference the MaxxGrip makes over wet roots and such during the winter here... and that's just comparing it to a MaxxTerra.. nevermind a Dual Compound!
I'm going to assume it had to do with availability at the time the shots were taken. Lots of people were/are having the same issues. Including me... still running MaxxTerra's on both ends when I'd like a MaxxGrip out front.
Reply
Deniz Merdano
3 years, 8 months ago
I'm not saying you are wrong, but I'm saying that it's not that big of a deal for alot of people.. DC DHF still produces a ton of grip on dirt and rocks ..
Reply
IslandLife
3 years, 8 months ago
True, true... different strokes.
Reply
Vince Liu
3 years, 8 months ago
At the time these photo's were taken I was still experimenting with what wheel size I was going to be running so I put the tires I had laying around on.
Reply
Eli Lorimer
3 years, 7 months ago
Question on mulleting the Wrecker: did you make any other changes to account for this? Do you still enjoy climbing it with the slacker STA you get from mulleting it?
Reply
Cr4w
3 years, 8 months ago
With suspensions settings like that it's not surprising Vince isn't crazy about riding slower jank.
Reply
Jerry Willows
3 years, 8 months ago
with 4 tokens on a Zeb you are probably using 60% of the travel on a dh track
Reply
Ryan Walters
3 years, 8 months ago
I run 4 tokens, and I get 98% of full travel on Jerry-tracks ;)
Reply
Morgan Heater
3 years, 8 months ago
I'm curious how the rear triangles are holding up.
Reply
Raymond Epstein
3 years, 8 months ago
Built mine back in October and it has remained bulletproof. It is crazy how poppy it is despite it's ability to crush descents. It is an amazing climber as well. The Wrecker does everything well. Believe the hype.
Reply
Vince Liu
3 years, 8 months ago
Agreed, the bike has been flawless so far!
Reply
Raymond Epstein
3 years, 7 months ago
Sorry to bug you, but I am going to try a 27.5 wheel on mine and was curious whether you have yours in the X-Low or Low setting?
Reply
Angu58
3 years, 8 months ago
Where did trevor find a maxxgrip, exo+ assegai? That would be a perfect tire for a trail/enduro bike.
Reply
Bushpilot
3 years, 8 months ago
Comor in North Van had a billion of them last time I was in there (week or two ago). I saw a bunch at Dunbar recently too.
Reply
Mark
3 years, 8 months ago
Prediction - sold out by Saturday
Reply
Deniz Merdano
3 years, 8 months ago
He bought the tires long before his bike even showed up.. that's some forward thinking..
Reply
Vince Liu
3 years, 8 months ago
This comment has been removed.
Mark Halpin
3 years, 8 months ago
If you like the Evil Wreckoning, you will love the Nukeproof Giga!
Reply
Deniz Merdano
3 years, 8 months ago
I'd love to throw a leg over one for sure!
Reply
Mike-E
3 years, 8 months ago
I have always been a fan of Evils. What sizes are those bikes?
I am guessing they do not fit north shore racks
Reply
Deniz Merdano
3 years, 8 months ago
They are both size Mediums.. and in my opinion, no bike you care about should be put on a north shore bike rack...
Reply
Please log in to leave a comment.