Cube reaction pro 750 to be precise.  Chosen for the high level of spec for the price.  Top of the range bosch motor, 11spd on boost / thru axles, air fork. 750 megathingies battery.

In recent years I just have not been arsed to ride out to the pentlands so this bike has been bought to take the pain out of the climbing and thus make it fun / worthwhile to get back out there.  So off to the pentlands I went.

First thoughts on the bike.  Its heavy.  Very heavy. ( 25 kg ish).  I didn’t realise that a basic xfusion fork even with a 15mm axle and air spring could be so crap.  Not only does it have no damping adjustment it appears to have no damping.  There is a model above this in the cube range – for a couple of hundred more you get a rockshox fork.

Motor power delivery is great out of the box and can be adjusted via the app – which makes your phone the display for the bike.  Very clever.  No USB socket tho which seems odd.

I rode 30 odd miles with 2500 ft of climbing – half a battery which is pretty good considering I had it in turbonutterbarstard setting much of the time 🙂

You don’t half notice the weight on singletrack – my shoulders were aching when I got home from moving it around.  the bike is very stable but the steering is light – which is a good trick to play.  Big tyres on it at 2.6 wide and they went up tubeless easily.  It is really nice to ride apart from the whining

I’m well pleased with it.  It needs some different bars which are on order.  Will I use it to get out to the hills more?  We will see.  That was my first time for a year or two in the Pentlands

You’ve changed 😂. Glad to hear you areback out in the hills, it’s good for the soul!

Nice job… they’re certainly an interesting thing i agree… and in some ways a bit of a game changer.

If you want a bargain fork upgrade:

https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/p/rockshox-revelation-rc-debonair-boost-fork-2022

Use code SAVE for £20 off. You can get a new air spring for around £20 to shorten it from 150mm.

Good on you.

An assisted ride is better than no ride.

BikeDiscount.de have got some great fork deals atm.

https://www.bike-discount.de/en/bike/bike-parts/mountain-bike-parts/mtb-forks/29-suspension-fork/-1

wow, both of those are stonking prices on those forks !!!!! Jeez.

Shame about the x fusion, the higher end stuff is very very good IMHO, much preferred the mcqueens I had vs the revelations on another bike at the time.

Glad you’re getting out and hope the new bike enthusiasm stays with you

Good choice 👍

You won’t go far wrong with the Revelation as above from CRC and trying it at 150 mm to see

It will transform the ride. I had one on my old Turbo Levo and it was very good.

Thanks ( I think).  I just bought that fork!

Spot on Jeremy

Slightly surprised at the weight – my 180mm full bouncer (ally frame) Kenevo is around 25kg (I think).

You’ll get used to the weight though and like you say, the reward is getting out when sometimes you wouldn’t and also going places you often wouldn’t.

Where does that trail go, dunno, but I’ll find out, whereas on a normal bike you couldn’t be arsed with the hassle

Quick, someone post up a link to discounted jeans, he’s in a wild buying mood!!

That’s a great decision for just nipping out into the hills. Do you think you’ve got any trails still to find in the Pentlands?

Wayhey! Welcome to the club Jeremy!

I don’t drive, but I’m lucky enough to live about 8-10 miles south of some of Stirlingshire’s best trails. In the past few years though, I’ve seen my range and choice of trails shrinking due to illness and the struggle to get fit again afterwards. Not to forget the decline in motorists awareness and respect for others on the road!

Lemmy, my e-bike, bought two years ago, just after I’d had Trevor the Tumour removed, has opened up those trails to me again. The motor and battery let me avoid more of the 50 minute road bash to the trails by giving me the option to ride a significant part of it off-road, while on the way back, I can pop him into Trail mode and absolutely zoom up the long draggy climb out of Stirling. Even better, the ride home from these trails often saw me reduced to pushing because on long climbs it feels like someone is twisting a knife into my lower back. The wonderful legacy of a fractured spine when snowboarding a few years ago. The motor’s assist now reduces that pain to normal background levels. It’s a brilliant bit of kit and has brought me back to mountain biking when I thought it was all starting to get a bit too much for me. Even winter night riding, which I’d pretty much completely replaced with Zwift in my garage, has caught my attention again as what might have been a 4-5 hour slog through mud and rain can be bashed out in half the time if I feel like it.

Hope you have as much fun with yours, as I do with Lemmy!

Overcoming the “can’t be arsed” factor is one of the great bits about ebikes. Whether that’s making a boring road climb to the good stuff easy, or letting you ride with a group that’s a bit too quick for you, or knocking out a quick loop on boost when you’re short on time.

750Wh is loads for some big rides. Fork aside, looks great!

It is really nice to ride apart from the whining

If you put some earplugs in, you won’t hear the proper cyclists complaining about your motorbike. 😉

If you lived nearer to the Pentlands you’d not need an electric bike to reach them 😉

Do you think you’ve got any trails still to find in the Pentlands?

for sure.  Some of the further south stuff perhaps.

e-bikes are fun, no doubt about it, and that looks ace. New bike is always awesome

Awesome long overdue, I changed tyres from 2.6 made a lot of difference. Enjoy

Sweet, I absolutely love my Levo SL (went for the SL because I regularly need to throw the bike over locked gates, fences, ditches). It has meant I am getting out more even with my knackered knees. Also it also is meaning according to Garmin I am getting more benefits from my rides.

(Garmin seems to be correct because my non E riding has improved)

What people consider the norm for tyres though these days are slow and heavy. The ones on my Nukeproof are like lead but the forum judged them to be perfectly acceptable.

Even though it’s E you might prefer faster lighter tyres.

Should’ve gone full sus. You’ll understand after a few rides.

It is really nice to ride apart from the whining

Shut up then?

Boom and tish…

Seems a nice bike. I’ll be going full suss when I go ebike though. I can’t see any reason not to. Would make for a more comfy ride!

That battery is a monster! Father in law has just bought a Whyte E505 hardtail. He had looked at the Cube but the fork out him off. The Rockshox seemed more appealing. That and he found a bargain!

Enjoy!

Eeb it!

Congratulations!

Love my ebike as much as my acoustic bike

No damping? Do they actually have the proper (or any) amount of oil in them? I’d check that first before spaffing money on new forks.

Thanks ( I think). I just bought that fork!

Brakes would be next best upgrade.

My son and I tried a couple of Orbea Wilds last week at QECP as they were doing free demos. Such amazing bits of kit – it reduced our slog up from one of the trails to a proper giggle-fest. I realized that rather than doing the downhill/climb out once or twice like we normally do on analog bikes, the ebike would allow us to do that 5 or six times and probably put in the same amount of energy. So much more chuckable that I expected too. 9 grand though (they were the top spec ones) and I’d need 2 so we’re sticking to the analog ones (for now 😉

Does the fork feel like a pogo stick? That can happen if the negative chamber isn’t balanced so it may be worth releasing the air and pumping back up incrementally and cycling the fork as you go to make sure it’s working correctly.

There is no negative chamber, adjustments or anything.  Its just a very basic fork pretending its a bit posher.

I don’t mean a negative chamber with its own valve. It’s where there’s air pressure below the head of the air spring. It’s not a fork I’m familiar with but I’m guessing it will be a similar design to rockshox. Just thought it might be worth a try.

My Decathlon FS ebike came with RS 35 gold which literally go ‘oof’ after any kind of drop.
I was looking at the Fox 36’s from Merlin
https://www.merlincycles.com/fox-36-rhythm-float-grip-boost-mtb-forks-29-295558.html?fbclid=IwAR1xVynKWRezKErdJYEMHSJmZSiiEoBTP2nKeyiyMkuVWaT5XEuK_TjYboI&app_clickref=1101lxJvuEbf&source=PHG&utm_medium=Affiliates&utm_campaign=skimlinks_phg
Are these any good?
Would the revs be a better deal, or should I put the 36’s on the big bike that has Lyrics ATM, and pop them on the ebike.

I was looking at the Fox 36’s from Merlin

You can get an extra £25 off if you spend £350 with a loyalty code.

I was looking at the Fox 36’s from Merlin

They’ll be infinitely better than the shockshox 35, and better than the revs.

There is no negative chamber, adjustments or anything. Its just a very basic fork pretending its a bit posher.

Even Zocchi Drop Off Triples had damping, check the oil. There will be internal gubbins that deal with all that.

YOu can hear oil in it.  Its not dry.  Its just shit

9 grand though (they were the top spec ones)

Nah, £9k on a Wild ain’t even top spec, it’s the next one down 😭

<p style=”text-align: center;”>Do you think you’ve got any trails still to find in the Pentlands?</p>

for sure. Some of the further south stuff perhaps.

I made a Google MyMaps map of all the Pentlands and the tops with a plan to ride them all. There’s a target for ebiking.

As for Leith living. If he stayed in the suburbs he could be there pronto…. I’m 7mins away from the regional park,😜