Giant just announced major updates to two of their mountain bikes, the Trance X 29 and Talon hardtail.
2021 Giant Trance X 29
The updated Trance X 29 rolls on — you guessed it — 29-inch wheels. The aluminum alloy frame features a flip chip design that toggles the geometry between long, low, and slack and (roughly) shorter, lower, and slacker. Specifically, when moving from high mode to low mode the reach decreases from 19.4cm to 19.1cm; the bottom bracket drop increases from 1.2cm to 1.6m; and the head tube angle slackens from 66.2° to 65.5°. Check out the full geometry chart below.
| Measurement | Small | Medium | Large | XL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LOW | HIGH | LOW | HIGH | LOW | HIGH | LOW | HIGH | |
| SEAT TUBE LENGTH (inch) | 16.9 | 16.9 | 18.3 | 19.5 |
| SEAT TUBE ANGLE | 77.2° | 77.9° | 77.2° | 77.9° | 77.2° | 77.9° | 77.2° | 77.9° |
| TOP TUBE LENGTH (inch) | 22.3 | 22.2 | 23.5 | 23.4 | 24.8 | 24.7 | 25.8 | 25.7 |
| HEAD TUBE LENGTH (inch) | 3.7 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 4.7 |
| HEAD TUBE ANGLE | 65.5° | 66.2° | 65.5° | 66.2° | 65.5° | 66.2° | 65.5° | 66.2° |
| FORK RAKE (inch) | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 |
| TRAIL (inch) | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 4.7 |
| WHEELBASE (inch) | 46.2 | 46.1 | 47.4 | 47.4 | 48.8 | 48.7 | 49.9 | 49.8 |
| CHAIN STAY LENGTH (inch) | 17.2 | 17.1 | 17.2 | 17.1 | 17.2 | 17.1 | 17.2 | 17.1 |
| BOTTOM BRACKET DROP (inch) | 1.6 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 1.2 |
| STACK (inch) | 24.3 | 24.1 | 24.4 | 24.2 | 24.8 | 24.6 | 25.2 | 25 |
| REACH (inch) | 16.8 | 17.1 | 18 | 18.3 | 19.1 | 19.4 | 20.1 | 20.4 |
| STAND OVER HEIGHT (inch) | 28.9 | 29.3 | 28.7 | 29.1 | 29.7 | 30 | 30.6 | 30.9 |
| HANDLEBAR WIDTH (inch) | 31.5 | 31.5 | 31.5 | 31.5 |
| STEM LENGTH (inch) | 1.6 | 1.6 | 2 | 2 |
| CRANK LENGTH (inch) | 6.5 | 6.7 | 6.7 | 6.7 |
| WHEEL SIZE | 29″ | 29″ | 29″ | 29″ |
Giant increased the rear suspension travel to 135mm, and both of the current builds feature a 150mm fork. The frame is said to accommodate 29er tires up to 2.5 inches wide.
The Trance X 29 2 build comes with an SLX drivetrain and a Fox 36 Rhythm fork, while the X 29 3 build includes a more affordable SRAM Eagle SX drivetrain and a RockShox 35 Gold fork. Both builds include a pedal-friendly 30t chainring up front. Retail pricing was not available at the time of publication.
2021 Giant Talon hardtail
There’s not a lot of information about the Talon hardtail on the Giant website yet, but here’s what we know so far.
The 2021 Giant Talon is available with either 29er or 27.5-inch wheels, and depending on the size/build, comes with either a 100mm or 80mm suspension fork. This aluminum bike is geared toward budget and beginner buyers, but still offers nice features like internal cable routing, dropper post compatibility, and mounts on the rear stays for fenders or racks.
