Which Bosch GEN4 bike, Cube, Orbea, Focus or YT?

[trovster]

My Orbea arrived this afternoon. I was planning on going out on a large loop today, but it didn't turn up until 2.30pm. Need to take some time to set it up and charge the battery! Looks like tomorrow will be epic.

 

[trovster]

First outing at 8am this morning. A full lap of Cannock Chase "Follow the Dog" and "Monkey Trail" plus the blue route to and from home.

According to the Kiox display, I did 27 miles, but Garmin said 23.5 miles. I also noticed the speeds where quite different. The last time I did a full-lap of Cannock was on a 2018 Levo and I don't know the last time before that!

 

[Jim25]

And how did the bike perform?!

 

[Jim25]

What model Wild did you get?

 

[natwilaniwartri]

hope you enjoy your new bike , am bit late into this topic , i my self went for cube hard tail 2020, at the time of sept 2019 bikes with kiox and latest motor and at 3000 price tag as used scottish government loan was not many to choose and ready by October so shop had it in for 2 months so i bought for dec 10th 2019 after all the loan was done money went in and out in same day haha ,......my reason for hard tale less can go wrong as am heavy weight and as said 3000 and kiok ,.........and i think as loco shop was now closed for lockdown so i doint think i would have got the bike or the loan if waited with in 2020 .............

 

[Don_Singer]

And how did the bike perform?!

Apparently he can't stop riding it long enough to post.

I am following a similar thought process and was chasing suspension spec per dollar value when I read on this forum the suggestion to get the cheap Yari fork and put a spring kit in it. Now I think the Trek Rail 7 or 9.7 are my choices. 2kg lighter vs. Shimano gears? The decisions never end...

 

[Doomanic]

2kg lighter vs. Shimano gears? The decisions never end...

I've got a Rail 7. If I was buying now I'd get the 9.7. It's easy to swap components, not so easy to loose 2KG.

 

[Doomanic]

I am following a similar thought process and was chasing suspension spec per dollar value when I read on this forum the suggestion to get the cheap Yari fork and put a spring kit in it.

Even the 2021 airspring upgrade and a new damper would make a hell of a difference.

 

[Stihldog]

I've got a Rail 7. If I was buying now I'd get the 9.7. It's easy to swap components, not so easy to loose 2KG.

I got the Rail 9.7 last Nov. 2019 (2020 model). Added a Kiox, carbon bar, magnetic peddles, custom seat and tools. I couldn’t be happier.
Since my purchase I’ve seen more and more emtb on our mountian But the rail 9.7 seems to pass them all. I’m not sure if it’s me or the bike but going uphill, over the rock gardens, roots etc, is as much fun as going down a trail. Today i came within 250m of reaching the summit. I didn’t run out of power. I ran out of time.

 

[trovster]

And how did the bike perform?!

It's the best bike I have ever owned. It's a great motivator when the weather was poor in February/March and it's amazing eating up the miles in the warmer rides. I am exporing a lot more – finding new trails all the time – and practicing a lot more and improving. It has definitely helped my progress due to the increased miles and the forgiving nature of the larger travel, that's not to say I haven't increased my crashing though!.

I have done over 1200 miles around Cannock Chase, 20-25 miles per ride from my door, usually two/three times a week. There is little reason to conserve battery, as 25 miles around Cannock Chase is enough. I am coming back with between 45 and 20 percent battery left – it all depends on how much "fun" I want to have, elevation gain and whether I'm with a group or not.

There were a few niggles in the first month, such as the dropper post wouldn't keep position and the battery got stuck and it was very frustrating, but these were resolved under-warranty in a timely fashion (especially considering the situation). Since then I've had a run a bad luck with my cassettes – everyone seems to agree they're not really made for the torque of an ebike. I wore the original Sunrace cassette after 250 miles and replaced it with SRAM NX as the Shimano 12-speed cassettes aren't compatible with the Shimano freehub! I managed to shear one cog around the freehub body, but I've just heard I have a credit note as a warranty replacement. I swapped over to a Shimano microspline freehub and SLX cassette… which got mangled somehow, with one of the rings bent over towards the lower rings! Now I'm on my second SLX cassette (and fourth in total).

There is a group of 9/10 of us who ride ebikes; there is a Cube, a couple of Treks, a Giant, a Specialized… even a custom made one! We're all covering way more singletrack than previous years and I am trying to persuade everyone else. I think any decent ebike you get will be the best bike you ever own.

 

[PetrD]

Carbon is very good for wheels and bars... but I dont think it is good for frame. Because of none elasticity. You need to check your frame after any impact or hits. Frame has too much folds and joints for checking. I dont do XC where the weight is on the first place. With ebike I prefer something between aggressive style of enduro and relaxed sightseeing ride but not XC.