Review 2020 Felt Redemption 50

[Gspot]

I fitted a DVO 29er fork and feel it is pretty dialed. May fit a topaz eventually and still sorting out some new 4 piston brakes. Also a 50mm riser much better fit. Did experience the dreaded decline in output from the e7000. Seems to only happen in Trail mode? I did source an e8000 so will do a motor swap.
I also CAN NOT find the serial number? Anyone know wtf it is?

 

[cegli]

The serial number is on the frame near the rear of the motor. It's really hard to see without taking the rear wheel off.

Let me know how the E8000 swap goes! The power drop off on my E7000 seems to be heat based. I was riding in the desert for a while when it was about 34C and the motor was half useless. Would go for about 3 minutes on trail mode from cool before needing a 2 minute break. Would then go for 30 seconds, and need another 30 second break, and so on.

Now that I'm back to a cooler climate, I'm having less problems again.

 

[Gspot]

Is it under the bash guard? I may have to wash it.

 

[cegli]

It's not under the bash guard, it's on the rear of the motor mount, below the seat tube. You can see it if you look at the bike from behind with no rear wheel. It's engraved.

 

[Gspot]

So did the motor swap. Now my battery kicks off. WTF. Plugged into E-TUBE display and motor are recognized but won't power on with the battery? Cleaned all connections and double checked. I am
stumped

 

[Gspot]

Took off the cover and figured it has to be the power cable. Thought it might be kinked but the cover is pushing on the cables too much? Got it working but without the cover. Seems like it should mount OK if I can route the cable lower will have to see what I can do.

 

[Gspot]

Well got it working finally. Did some DIY around the plug to keep it centered. Not too bad. Got an E10 error after a lay down on my first short test. Took it for a proper 25 mile BOOST ride today. No issues. Hit some drops and rock gardens my normal loop. Also put on some 160 cranks and a code front brake. Will swap
the rear when it wears out. Other than a rear shock good enough for a while.

 

[GOTMTB?]

Sorry to interrupt the discussion but I thought I’d introduce myself!

What up Felt Fam?

Justin here.

After doing a ton of research earlier in the year I purchased a 2019 Redemption 50 off of eBay in April. Got it brand new from the wheel and sprocket and wow what a deal! I paid $3200 (including the 2 year eBay warranty lol). After doing all the research I realized the 2019 had the better drivetrain vs the 2020 option and in addition the 2019 came with a 35mm SR fork instead of the 32mm RockShox. Gotta say I love this bike.
It’s mostly stock, I did upgrade the shock though, I went ahead and installed the MegNeg kit and it’s amazing. This bike should be spec’d with that installed. No more wallowing in the travel, it feels bottomless. Waaaay less rock impacts and getting hung up. Seriously the best $90 you can spend on the bike.

Aside from that I’ve just added some vinyl graphics to protect the paint. I also installed some moto foam around the motor. I'd recommend doing that if you haven't already. I stole the idea from YT, they do that with their Decoy. I removed the bash guard and cut some down to size then reinstalled in and packed in additional pieces in any gaps in the frame I could find, like around the base of the shock etc. Hmm what else...I have a set of 170mm crank arms I need to install because the 175’s are just too long. I also have a new bar/stem combo I’m gonna install but I need to drill holes In the bar so I can keep the internal routing (I’m only a little sketched out about that). Oh and I purchased a crazy bash guard for a Merida ebike off of another user on this forum actually. It’s a great looking product, however I’m going to need to modify it slightly before it’ll install properlyI’ll share pics of that when it’s done.

Anyways, sorry for the lengthy post. I don’t usually even post on these sorts of forums but man I’m having way too much fun on this bike

 

[Gspot]

I dig the green. Did you do the shock yourself? Have you ridden the Decoy? It looks like a mullet setup?
I was surprised how playful the bike is. A bit of a pig in the air but that is Ebikes. ?

 

[GOTMTB?]

I dig the green. Did you do the shock yourself? Have you ridden the Decoy? It looks like a mullet setup?
I was surprised how playful the bike is. A bit of a pig in the air but that is Ebikes. ?

Yea I did the shock myself, took like 20-30 min. Super easy, just give yourself a nice clean work space. The hardest part is pumping the damn thing back up to 290psi
The decoy is sweet, feels a little small but definitely playful and of course the extra squish is nice. But I have no complaints with the Felt so far, i've taken this thing over some really gnarly terrain and love getting it airborne. I'm riding DH trails with complete confidence. And yea i'm considering two options, 1. i'll probably get a 29er wheel to toss in there for a mullet set up (since the fork is 29er compatible...) and 2. i'm probably going to get a Marz Bomber Z1 Coil 170mm 27.5 specific, that way I can get 20mm more travel and retain approximately the same geo and axle to crown height as the SR fork. oh and the red would look sooo good with the green

 

[Gspot]

Didn't think a longer shock would fit? Do you know the max size the frame will take?

 

[GOTMTB?]

Didn't think a longer shock would fit? Do you know the max size the frame will take?

oh no, sorry for the confusion, i'll be sizing up the fork to a 170mm. Definitely can't fit a bigger shock in there though. I was even a little nervous about the MegNeg kit, but no problemo...if I do anything to the rear end after that i'll probably swap for a cane creek coil

 

[cegli]

Thanks for the info about the MegNeg! I had been considering it... I was worried it might not fit, but looks like it just squeaks in there.

My shock came with 2 tokens in it already, and I kept bottoming it out off jumps/drops, so I put in a third token and I'm maxed out. I'm not bottoming out hard anymore, but I do feel like it might be better if I had more negative air, and more pressure to keep the overall spring curve more linear. What was your final setup for number of bands in the MegNeg? I'm curious to know how much negative/positive air volume you're using.

I don't think this frame's leverage ratio curve is very progressive, considering how many tokens I need, and the fact that you like the MegNeg so much. Considering the lack of progression in the frame design, I would recommend against putting in a coil. Since you can't manipulate the negative and positive air volumes on a coil to compensate for lack of frame progression, it's likely that a coil would run like crap on this frame.

 

[Gspot]

I feel the bike is pretty balanced with the 29er 160 up front. Will do the megneg unless I can find a Topaz for a decent price.

 

[GOTMTB?]

Thanks for the info about the MegNeg! I had been considering it... I was worried it might not fit, but looks like it just squeaks in there.

My shock came with 2 tokens in it already, and I kept bottoming it out off jumps/drops, so I put in a third token and I'm maxed out. I'm not bottoming out hard anymore, but I do feel like it might be better if I had more negative air, and more pressure to keep the overall spring curve more linear. What was your final setup for number of bands in the MegNeg? I'm curious to know how much negative/positive air volume you're using.

I don't think this frame's leverage ratio curve is very progressive, considering how many tokens I need, and the fact that you like the MegNeg so much. Considering the lack of progression in the frame design, I would recommend against putting in a coil. Since you can't manipulate the negative and positive air volumes on a coil to compensate for lack of frame progression, it's likely that a coil would run like crap on this frame.

I went with the recommended two bands in the magneg and it feels great. I have the air set up around 290psi and I weight about 170lbs. Prior to this I wasn't bottoming out so much, but I felt like the bike would just stay down in the travel during sections with repeated hits, which would also result in a lower BB height causing more impacts. And yes, I think this bike has pretty linear feeling suspension movement so an air shock is ideal, but I like the look of those Cane Creek coils with the Valt spring...not to mention when I do top to bottom pulls my shock gets HOT

 

[cegli]

I went with the recommended two bands in the magneg and it feels great. I have the air set up around 290psi and I weight about 170lbs. Prior to this I wasn't bottoming out so much, but I felt like the bike would just stay down in the travel during sections with repeated hits, which would also result in a lower BB height causing more impacts.

Interesting... How many tokens do you have in the can, and roughly how much sag do you end up with? I'm running 203 PSI with 3 tokens on the stock shock. I weigh roughly 165 with my gear on. That puts me around 30% sag, and I still bottom the shock out from time to time. 203 PSI seems quite high considering my weight and the number of tokens.

And yes, I think this bike has pretty linear feeling suspension movement so an air shock is ideal, but I like the look of those Cane Creek coils with the Valt spring...not to mention when I do top to bottom pulls my shock gets HOT

You'll have to let me know how it feels if you do the switch!

 

[Gspot]

No issues with the new motor after a couple hundred miles. ? I did get a new battery cover. It is for a Scott Spark 2018 (#267293) Ordered from the EU BIKE24. Much better cover. Keeps out the dust and got rid of the rattle. ? Bike is even better and now I have two batteries. Anyway finally took some pics. Enjoy .

 

[cegli]

No issues with the new motor after a couple hundred miles. ? I did get a new battery cover. It is for a Scott
Spark 2018 (#267293) Ordered from the EU BIKE24. Much better cover. Keeps out the dust and got rid of the
rattle. ? Bike is even better and now I have two batteries. Anyway finally took some pics. Enjoy .

That's great info, thanks for sharing! I might eventually switch my battery cover out too... It's pretty bad. I have the stock one taped in place right now on the top with clear gorilla tape!

 

[Gspot]

That reminds me. The Scott cover only covers the battery NOT the keyhole. Right now I have the bottom Felt piece covering the keyhole. Not sure if anyone else has the "rattle" but the bike is quiet now. Probably should take an old tube and cover the cables running behind the battery. A pic of the cover

 

[Bernard Sanders]

Thought I’d join the thread as a newish member of the ebike cult...here’s my 2020 Redemption E-30 purchased from Wheel & sprocket in WI, was working thereabouts this past summer and got to test ride it, ended up splurging on this brute. Have already gotten to take it to Utah for a tour of the Wasatch, and can say I’m very happy with this deal - it’s a lot of bike for your money! super new to mountain biking coming from only one year on a hardtail, so I have next to no maintenance experience and it’s been a bit of a learning curve. It’s an intimidating machine at first, but after having to replace the dropper cable and then some issue with the proper tightening of the headset/bars, I’m feeling a little better about the internals. Let’s just hope the motor doesn’t break though, lol. Also, I’m still running tubes like a noob... gonna see how long I can keep it up for ease of use (I know how to fix flats, but not setup tubeless) and the cost. Not like I know anything different! To sum up; Probably not the best decision to get an enduro style emtb as a complete beginner, but hey it was a hell of a deal, and I’m looking forward to learning on this rig.

 

[Gspot]

Looks like the right bike for some BC trails. Look at that kicker. Gotta love the PNW. This is where EMTBs were made for technical climbs and rocky DH. Hey wait.
How did you cross the border? ?

 

[Gspot]

Update to the Scott battery cover. I ordered another one for my spare battery again from bike24. Perfect fit the cover sits about an inch away from the battery so better protection than some thin rubber. I also added some rubber to the cover to protect from rock strikes.

2pcs Large Self Adhesive Foam TPR Rubber Bumper Pads Protection Black 4" x 6" | eBay

Peel and Stick.

www.ebay.com