Trek Rail upgrades, what have you done?

Haha, they aren't going on straight away, tbh the single track I am riding on initially always drains well, I raced on RRs near enough all year round until it got proper muddy. They def won't suit the more demanding trails I am going to explore (moved to a new area). So they were a good deal on black Friday. Going to check out the OE fit ones first before I decide on a winter tire.
 
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Got my 9.7 XL about 2 months ago and is and absolutely dreamy.

Upgrades made so far:

Ohlins ttx22m
Shigura brakes (saint levers and mt5 estop calipers, uberbike steel braided hoses, disco pads carbon ceramic pads)
Full Saint 10sp 11-36 groupset
Race Face sixc 35mm bars and the 35mm knock block stem off my old Slash
Bikeyoke revive dropper (not pictured)

She absolutely rips, brakes are the best, have done the same setup on my trail and DH bikes, pure aggressive power with solid lever feel. The 10spd saint group (despite being 8 years old) is in my opinion the absolute best shifting out there. The double upshift is awesome, the 10spd chain is thicker and more robust, the derailleur is smaller and tucked away more, and the ratio is really no issue at all on an ebike. Granted I live in the Surrey hills and not the Alps, but I haven't found a hill here yet I can't get up..

Upgrades to come:
Damper/fork upgrade - fast damper looks good. Have push acs3 in my trail bike and love it, but I think damping solution in this fork is more needed than spring for now. What has everyone else done?
Wheels - bontragers work well for now but the ones on my slash gave out fairly quickly, have some hunt endurowides that I could swap over when needed.

All in all, best bike I've ever owned.
 
I like mine. Running 170mm fork and the Mino Link in high with a 2.6 e-Wild it's still slacker than @Zimmerframe's work ethic. No problem with pedal strikes unless I'm asleep on the trail.
 
Rob Rides EMTB said:
How’s it run in mullet?
Click to expand...
Only had 1 ride so far but it was good, have a 2.8 dhf on rear and chip flipped. Def easier to move rear in air (not that I can jump), still stable as on quick downs, somehow the rear felt even more plush but responsive, huge grip over roots etc, so far no issues at all. Just need to get wheelsize changed in Purion, maybe look at a 36t front to allow for smaller wheel.
 
Hi, let me introduce myself: I am Maxime, CEO of Novyparts suspensions from France.
I ride on a Trek Rail 9.7 a bit customized for a practical “downhill training”.
-27.5 rear wheel
- DH tires
- 234x67 shock to compensate rear wheel size
- rear travel 175mm
- Rockshox Zeb 180mm fork with prototype air-kit and hydraulic kit
- kit prototype to move the Purion to a less exposed place behind the handlebar or front the handlebar
- height of the bottom bracket identical to the original = 345mm
- front angle -1.5 degree = 63.5
profil.JPG

purion.JPG
 
meca06 said:
Hi, let me introduce myself: I am Maxime, manager of the company Novyparts suspensions from France.
I ride on a Trek Rail 9.7 a bit customized for a practical “downhill training”.
-27.5 rear wheel
- DH tires
- 234x67 shock to compensate rear wheel size
- rear travel 175mm
- Rockshox Zeb 180mm fork with prototype air-kit and hydraulic kit
- kit prototype to move the Purion to a less exposed place behind the handlebar or front the handlebar
- height of the bottom bracket identical to the original = 345mm
- front angle -1.5 degree = 63.5View attachment 46094
View attachment 46095
Click to expand...
Nice. How’s it ride?
Do you just keep it in a single mode? Can’t see it being easy to change assistance levels when riding.
 
meca06 said:
- kit prototype to move the Purion to a less exposed place behind the handlebar or front the handlebar
Click to expand...

Please make this! Desperate to buy one that gets the display out of the way!

I rarely use the modes anyway, 90% of my riding is tour at the most. If I could set it internally & throw away the whole control unit I would :)
 
Hob Nob said:
Please make this! Desperate to buy one that gets the display out of the way!

I rarely use the modes anyway, 90% of my riding is tour at the most. If I could set it internally & throw away the whole control unit I would :)
Click to expand...

Agree. Bosch really needs to rethink the strategy they have going on with big bulky controls and displays. Please Bosch - we want cleaner cockpits!
 
Rob Rides EMTB said:
Nice. How’s it ride?
Do you just keep it in a single mode? Can’t see it being easy to change assistance levels when riding.
Click to expand...

with mullet version, it ride a way better. A lot more dynamic. More easier to change direction.
For the mode, i ride essentialy in tour (shuttle) or emtb (technical climb for shuttle). For me there is no problem to take my hand off the handlebar 3 seconds to push a button. But i understand some guys need to always change modes...
@Hob Nob @dochabanero yes it's a prototype and there is an other model to put the Purion before the bar. I'll give you a picture soon.
Right now, it weight 19grams. Not to much :ROFLMAO:
the final model will be alloy CNC made. I hope receive it for january 1st.
 
Hob Nob said:
@meca06 That would be great to see - for a 35mm handlebar please :)
Click to expand...
I second this! Please meca06 make this happen. I've been thinking about rapid prototyping a bracket too, to place the control in the same place. I would buy one January 2nd....
Cheers
 
Tony Bonanno said:
2020 Rail 5

GX rear derailleur in place of SX
Tubeless Maxxis Minion DHF tires
ISM saddle
Specialize handgrips
Bontrager Elite pedals (same color as bike)
FiftyCycles 7050 double butted 780mm handlebar
NiteRider front and rear lights
85nm and eMTB Lite motor updates

View attachment 46285
Click to expand...
Looks great and nice upgrades. Did yours have the Lite mode already installed? Does it still say Tour on the display? No idea if mine has it.
 
Rob Rides EMTB said:
Looks great and nice upgrades. Did yours have the Lite mode already installed? Does it still say Tour on the display? No idea if mine has it.
Click to expand...

Lite mode was not installed at purchase (Aug 2020). Just had it installed about 3 weeks ago. The 85nm software was already on the bike when delivered. The Purion display still says "Tour", but you can feel the difference for sure! Prior to the Lite install, I was riding mostly in eMTB mode, but now I'm using the Lite mode for most of my miles. Battery life and range has improved noticeably without much loss of power. Lite mode seems to duplicate about two thirds of the regular eMTB mode.

BTW Rob, the paint job on your new Rail 5 really looks great!
 
Here mine. For now, only 170mm dropper post,Ergon GE1 Evo Factory grips and Ergon SM E-Mountain Sport saddle.
Planning to set XT 4 pots brakes,Fox DPX2 230x60 shock, Race Face next carbon 35 diameter handlebar and doubting among Zeb or upgrading Yari with charger 2.1 RC2 damper. Not sure

IMG_0409.jpg
 
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Stray cat said:
Here mine. For now, only 170mm dropper post,Ergon GE1 Evo Factory grips and Ergon SM E-Mountain Sport saddle.
Planning to set XT 4 pots brakes,Fox DPX2 230x60 shock, Race Face next carbon 35 diameter handlebar and doubting among Zeb or upgrading Yari with charger 2.1 RC2 damper. Not sure

View attachment 46292
Click to expand...
I'm thinking similar regarding the fork upgrade, Ive seen a few rails with regular sized crowns and it looks a little silly.. thinking of a damper upgrade on the yari is the way to go, it doesn't flex unduly or anything.
 
d7e8wd said:
I'm thinking similar regarding the fork upgrade, Ive seen a few rails with regular sized crowns and it looks a little silly.. thinking of a damper upgrade on the yari is the way to go, it doesn't flex unduly or anything.
Click to expand...

Not sure. I come from a Fox 36 Grip 2 and I notice a huge difference in terms of stiffness and comfort. In the past owned a Lyrik and not sure if Yari is running same chassis as people say.
Maybe,the best bet is to sell the Yari and buying a Zeb.
 
meca06 said:
Hi, let me introduce myself: I am Maxime, CEO of Novyparts suspensions from France.
I ride on a Trek Rail 9.7 a bit customized for a practical “downhill training”.
-27.5 rear wheel
- DH tires
- 234x67 shock to compensate rear wheel size
- rear travel 175mm
- Rockshox Zeb 180mm fork with prototype air-kit and hydraulic kit
- kit prototype to move the Purion to a less exposed place behind the handlebar or front the handlebar
- height of the bottom bracket identical to the original = 345mm
- front angle -1.5 degree = 63.5View attachment 46094
View attachment 46095
Click to expand...
Hi. What width 27.5 tires did you manage to fit your bike?
 
dochabanero said:
Agree. Bosch really needs to rethink the strategy they have going on with big bulky controls and displays. Please Bosch - we want cleaner cockpits!
Click to expand...
I agree. Bosch has the worst display and least ergonomic controls. Very simple buttons like those of Shimano or Specialized, with the KIOX display. I would buy them right away.
Are there any companies that make them compatible?
 
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