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2014 trance sx DH upgrades???

2K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  mtnryder56 
#1 · (Edited)
I have a stock 2014 27.5 Trance SX. I mostly ride local up/down root/rocky ST. I finally took it to Highland Park last week and plan to go more often. I am very new to DH (been twice) and had a freakin BLAST!! I rode all the beginner and intermediate trails for 2 days. I also took a private 3 hour lesson. My coach, Chris, helped my dial in my bike suspension and taught me the basics of berms and jumps. Funny, with all the beastly DH bikes available my coach chooses to ride a Trek Slash which seems built similar to my SX!?


Even tho I'm stoked on my SX, while at Highland a few things about my bike/me stood out:
1. my brakes felt underpowered
2. my hands hurt like a mutha
3. rock gardens were much more difficult than the 8" travel DH specific bike I rented last year.


I know many people think the SX and similar bikes fall into the "do nothing well" category. Eventually, I will get a DH dedicated bike. I also know there is a thread on "SX setups" but as a newb it's difficult to understand the terminology and few give reasons for their upgrades.


So, I am curious what upgrades would help make my SX more DH friendly without sacrificing too much on my short local climbs and ST???
 
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#3 ·
Well, there's my short answer. The 2015 Reign's do look sick!

Reality being what it is, I have 2 months of peak DH in front of me and a purchase/swap like that is not likely.

Anyone have some real advice for gearing up my SX?
 
#4 ·
I am afraid, that making Trance SX ride at least as Reign 2015 may involve serious amount of money and/or converting the bike to something weird.
So, you could make you HA a bit slacker with some special angleset for tapered steerer fork (unless there is no angleset for Giant's OD2). So, you would have to switch the fork for 1-1/8" straight steerer. Use i.e. FSA Option -1,5* (from 2012 Glory), but you would end up with very low BB, which is not that good.
As for brakes, Deore are really good. There is just tiny difference between them and XTs or XTRs. Going for Saints on Trance SX is not a good idea.
As already mentioned... switch the bike for Reign :) If you can't afford it, now, just wait a bit, get one in on year. In the meantime, work on your skills on less demanding trails :)
 
#5 · (Edited)
may involve serious amount of money and/or converting the bike to something weird.

In the meantime, work on your skills on less demanding trails :)
Ha ha, I guess there is no easy solution. I surrender.

This makes sense as I am still a newb. Thanks.

I will look into the Deore's

While i def dig the Reign, I'm leaning toward having 2 bikes. Anthem for local ST and Glory for DH.
 
#7 · (Edited)
For the hands, try ODI Rogue grips, they are super compliant and have made a noticeable difference for me. Also, you can run lower psi, and practice using those hand strengtheners during the week at school/work, or while driving.

You already have the trance, keep it for singletrack, start saving for a dh rig.
 
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