|
|
Dirt Rag Articles
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rider: Maurice Tierney
Height: 6’4”
Weight: 235lbs.
Inseam: 35”
Maestro is Giant’s latest contribution to the realm of rear suspension design. While it’s tempting to refer to Maestro as a “floating” or “virtual” pivot point design, it’s harder to define than that. While virtual pivot point bikes have an “S” shaped axle path to steady the rear end at an optimum sag point, Maestro’s axle path is an arc with a much larger radius than a simple single pivot design. More like a four-bar design? Maybe the pivot point is “virtual” in that it’s somewhere in front of the bottom bracket. This is how Giant minimizes chain-induced movement of the rear end, with the help of a modern-day shock like the Swinger 3-Way SPV.
The Maestro line is represented by the 4.2” travel Trance trail bike, the 6” all-mountain Reign, and the 8” Faith freeride bike. I picked the Reign since I ride XC with a propensity for bigger riding and the occasional small stunt. Six inches seems perfect for this.
The Reign One is the top of three Reign models at $3300, with the Two and Three following behind at $2200 and $1650. They all share the same double butted aluminum frame and shock.
My size large Reign One came out of the box looking good in a dark, warm color called Black Cherry. No harm came to the eyes. The trend in “tribal” markings is not over, and yet, I still have no problem with it.
The next thing that struck me was the lack of regular, round tubing. There isn’t a tube or piece of aluminum on the frame that isn’t hydroformed, roll formed, forged, or otherwise sculpted into the optimum shape. This gives the bike an organic look, with the top tube flowing nicely into the suspension area and a buttress rising up to the seat tube. Oodles of standover, methinks.
The One is drenched with fine componentry—Mavic CrossMax XL wheels, Hayes 9 Carbon brakes and a Shimano XT drivetrain with a SRAM cassette. Cranks, stem, seatpost and handlebar are by Race Face with a Manitou Nixon 5.5” fork handling the front suspension duties, along with a WTB Rocket V saddle, Hutchinson Bulldog 2.3” rubber and an FSA Orbit Z headset rounding out the package. Don’t forget the generic seatpost quick release, key for those downhill runs. Total weight of 32 lbs. is good for a bike of this nature and size.
Further examination revealed a full run of cable and housing under the top tube. Nice, but when the rear hydraulic line and the rear derailleur cable reach the upper pivot, they don’t know whether they want to be zip-tied to the pivot or ran upwards, against the paint. So I tried one of each.
When it came time to inflate the Nixon and the Swinger, I had to confess my ignorance. The fine print on the shock itself was too hard to read without a magnifying glass, and the owner’s manual was less than helpful. Eventually I got a calculator out and calculated a starting point for proper air pressure based on my weight. Conclusion? Just follow the directions and dial it in good. Experiment later.
My first ride on the Reign was through the January snow. While perhaps I should have put on the cross country skis, the Reign did quite well in the white stuff, with the Hutchinsons providing good flotation, and the 20” sized bike feeling like a good fit with its 24.1” top tube.
Ride two was to be a cold winter urban ride in sub freezing temps. I pulled out of my house and headed up a very steep road hill, activating the Nixon’s Infinite Travel (IT) trigger. This locked the fork in the bottom inch of its travel, lowering the front end for enhanced climbing. But all was not well. After a few bumps the shock went down but not back up. The fork was then sent back to Manitou (twice) for replacement of the IT Valve.
Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania is a good place to throw yourself down a field of baby head sized rocks. The Reign takes it all in stride, the slack 69.5? head angle, long 17.2” chainstays and 44.5” wheelbase providing awesome stability.
But Jim’s got tight, technical stuff up there on the Coal Cracker. And the Reign proves itself no slouch there either. I’m thinking the high bottom bracket helps, but there’s also something about the way this bike gets through corners. Braking into tight corners, and accelerating out of them—prowess is the word that comes to mind. Maybe I’m learning about the dreaded “brake jack” associated with many less-sophisticated suspension designs. Never really thought about it, but this bike “reigns” in tight corners.
I’m also thinking about air pressure. I’ve gone from 180 to 200 in the rear shock, and this affects the way the bike sits. Higher rear air pressure raises the bottom bracket height and steepens the head angle, plus the shock is stiffer, so it’s working well in the tighter sections of trail. By also lowering the front shock half way with the Nixon’s IT switch, I’ve effectively created a shorter travel, tighter turning bike.
Time to rant. Giant has done a good job of putting suitable braze-ons in the right places—the braze-on for the front derailleur cable stop is correctly positioned above the mech. But it looks like fork manufacturers have completely forgotten that people need to route the hoses somewhere. I’m again left with added zip ties. And that hydraulic hose next to the upper pivot? It’s worn clean through the frame paint, while the rear derailleur cable on the right side, which I zip-tied to the pivot, is becoming frayed due to kinkage.
Mavic wheels, while admirable, reach their limit on bigger drops with my 238 lb. frame causing a little flex. These are really nice wheels, as throughout the entire test they’ve shown no need for truing. My only other beef might be with the Bulldog tires. While performing admirably, the rear is wearing a tad fast.
As parts go, everything works. XT pod shifters are key. They are not of the Dual Control variety, allowing the use of Hayes brakes, making for fewer worries. The Nixon fork is providing a full 5.5” of travel, while being adjustable down to an infinite variety of shorter travel settings. Just fine since I got it back from the factory. And I’ve been unable to detect any flex in the Nixon; it’s up for heavy duty use for sure. The shifting’s still fine going into the fifth month, so I’m pleased.
How can I sum it up? This bike is doing everything well for me. Climbing, descending, turning, braking, it’s all there. Filling all my mountain bike needs.
But how about one last ride in the park? Home sweet home. Logs to hop, little jumps to jump, stunts to stunt. Oh, darn, I’ve blown a suspension bearing, one of the small cartridge ones. Further examination reveals a couple other bearings that are tight or grindy. Looks like this test has reached fruition. A call to Iceman at Giant revealed that more than one rider has had this issue, and that a higher quality bearing would be spec’d for 2006. With deadline looming I’ll leave it at that. I still really like this bike and I’d like to keep riding it if I can get some replacement bearings.
|
|
 |
