2011 Giant Reign 2

I'm seriously considering buying a new bike this season and not much has caught my eye aside from the 2011 Giant Reign 2 - I like to climb and descend and would like to do a few road trips which would involve more XC type riding - last season I spent most of my time on a 2007 Reign built with a 160mm fork and it's been a perfect bike for me.

Does anyone have any saddle time on one, can you shed any light on the newest generation of the Giant Reign?

How does the proprietary PowerCore bottom bracket work? I'd like to run my SLX cranks on there - is this possible?

How is the 150mm Fox Float 32? Stiff enough for some abuse or is it going to be a wet noodle when things get hairy? I'm 165lbs and a smooth rider.

Any idea on complete bike weight?

My only complaint about that line of bikes is the seat tube. You can only get 6" of post in to the tube, so if you're looking to pedal the bike with full extension, you can only lower it 3" from the top unless you use a dropper or telescopic post.

The other complaint about that seat tube (which is not just Giant's problem) is that the seat tube angle is measured theoretically from the bottom bracket to the top of the seat tube, while the actual seat post angle is slacker than that. So it's a 73.5 seat tube angle with the post slammed all the way in, but gets slacker the more post you have showing. Fortunately, the claimed seat tube angle is pretty steep already, so it probably pedals just fine even with the seat all the way up.

I've spent a lot of time on my 32 Talas 140 with the 15QR doing mostly Shore riding, and have no complaints about its stiffness even compared to my 36 Van with 20QR.

How about the Devinci Dixon with the Split Pivot? I see the Sacred Ride has some on the floor and a frame or two hanging around.

I have a couple friend on the older one, and one on the 2011 Reign 2. They all love the bikes.

How well a 150mm will hold up when things get hairy really depends on what that means. If it means doing a 20 foot gap, then I'd say you might want something a bit more….

I had a 140mm float last year and it was great. I rode it mostly on trails in squamish and the sunshine coast. I did a couple rides on the shore as well. I found it a bit flexy, but nothing that made me upset or question it's ability's. I know one fellow who pushes his really hard - gaps, drops, rock gardens at mach4 etc. and it has started 'ticking' in the steer/crown area. This is apparently something earlier foxes were known for.

The SLX crank should be fine. The one thing you may miss is running a chainguide. So far I haven't seen a solution to mounting one on that bike.

It's really tough to beat the value of that bike.

Hey, thanks for the input guys.

I don't do any drops or gaps worth mentioning, but my concern is that I like to ride big rock slabs and steep technical lines and am somewhat worried the fork can't handle that type of abuse (for anyone who hasn't ridden nelson style trails, think pemberton or the valleycliff area in squamish but with even more vertical). I've briefly considered upgrading the fork to a 36 with 20mm axle just to be safe, but then I'm going well over my budget.

The seat tube length is a big concern, I had forgotten about that. I will definately need full leg extension and flat out refuse to run a dropper or telescopic post.

Any other input? Will my SLX cranks fit into the stock BB?

SLX should slide right in.

The fork should be fine for that type of riding. At 160lbs you aren't going to be stressing it too much. The 15mm axel is nice and the fork comes with a taper steerer, aiding in the stiffness.

Seat post shouldn't be too much of a problem unless you are used to slamming you post all the way down when descending. I've found that it's not necessary to do that, in fact its kinda nice being able to maneuver the bike with the seat.

If you're not totally set on the Giant another really nice lower price point 6" bike with great looking geometry is the Specialized Pitch. It has a traditional threaded bb and your SLX cranks will definitely work.

http://www.specialized.com/ca/en/bc/SBCProduct.jsp?spid=52804[HTML_REMOVED]scid=1000[HTML_REMOVED]scname=Mountain

I was seriously considering buying one of these after I cracked my current frame and found out that the stock bike weighs almost exactly 30lbs (without pedals). Looking at the spec sheet I think with some minor changes you could pretty easily get it down close to 29 with pedals (cassette, headset, saddle) or even lighter if you want to spend a bit more money and invest in a new wheelset.

http://www.bikerumor.com/2010/07/15/2011-specialized-mountain-bikes-actual-weights/#more-19935

Pay the extra for the Reign 1. Well worth the upgrades.

I've got the 2011 Reign 1, and I absolutely love it. I've got 1 good ride on her, and she handled everything I threw at it. You wont be dissapointed.

And yes, SLX will fit.

noticing that none of those giants come with the RLC fox. I've heard a lot of people complaining that the RLs tend to be kinda divey.

Still havn't sprung for a new bike, but the Specialized Pitch Pro is really catching my eye - full seat tube extension is critical and the part spec is nicer.