2009 Giant Reign

[Olivie Inoue]

Iunderstand that to upgrade I will need a shock that is 205 x 60 (eyelet-eyelet & stroke), however the 146mm travel stumps me. Do I need to purchase a higher spec shock second hand that has been on a 2020, 2021, 2022 reign therefore already has 146mm travel, or can I run a shock that comes stock as 140 or 150mm travel - and will this different travel result in riding differences other than more/ less bottom out resistance.

I have read a thread where on a 2022 giant reign advanced someone had removed internal shock spacers on their existing shock resulting in 151mm travel, therefore I am thinking it is fine and I could buy a shock that is 150mm travel and 205 x 60.

If I can squeeze a bit more knowledge out of you I would be even more grateful - how do I match up the kinematics of the old factory tuned shock with an upgraded stock one? Is there online charts that I can research etc?

Ideally find out the shock tune (compression tune/rebound tune) of the current shock and see if it's same as one off a higher-end version of the same frame. If you can find a upgrade shock with that tune- you'll be good.

You can go to a different tune- just be aware that it will change the feel of the suspension. If you are heavier than average you might be good to go to a heavier compression tune for example. If you are lighter than average and you get a heavier compression tune it will likely feel harsh.

Just an FYI, unless you're on a small frame you can likely get away with a 205 x 62.5mm or 65mm if you want to bump up the rear travel a bit (should make roughly 152mm or 158mm based on the 2.33:1 average leverage ratio). I ran a 205x65mm EXT on my medium frame with no clearance issues.

I think often you're better off buying a used shock in the right size (I think all 205x60 and 62.5 are actually 205x65 with a travel limiting spacer so any of those should work) and then having it rebuilt and custom tuned at the same time versus buying a new aftermarket generic tuned shock. Fox Australia has a factory tuning center ( -factory-tune), or somebody like or the like could help you out with other brands.

Clearances is a big problem these days so a shock from a newer or higher level reign is an OK option as yo uknow it will fit, although Reigns don't usually have too much trouble. I would be very wary of used shocks though - depending on how its been used/looked after, anything older than about 6 months could be almost new or completely worn out if its been severely neglected. Then if you go down the custom tuning route, there are very few people who can reliably deliver what you need. As alluded to above, we don't exactly have access to charts with all of the tune info for every bike! If you were looking at those options I would find a Vorsprung EPTC and get their Tractive system for the Super Deluxe, thats about the closest thing you will find to a reliable tuning system that you get your money's worth for.

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