When Trek introduced the sixth generation Slash, it included a swath of possible adjustments to personalize the big high pivot bike or tailor it to your specific riding needs.
There’s no longer a Mino Link but there is a flip-chip to change shock progression. There’s also the option to run matching 29″ wheels instead of the mixed 27.5″/29″ (except for size small, which is 27.5″ front and rear only). And, finally, there’s an angle-adjust headset to make the Slash’s head tube angle one degree slacker or steeper.
Since these all, except for the progression flip-chip, require additional purchases on top of buying a new Slash, we’re reviewing them separately from our long-term review of the bike itself.
Parts and accessories sold separately
As mentioned, the parts needed to make all the changes Trek promises are sold separately from the bike itself. They’re not expensive, particularly. But the headset does require some tools (or a shop) to install.
To convert the Slash to 29″ matched wheels, it’s $54 for the lower shock mount brackets. This doesn’t work with the size small frame, which ships with matching 27.5″ wheels. It also requires removing the integrated rear fender from sizes M-XL frames. And you need your own 29″ wheel, the price of which is up to you.
Changing the head tube angle is a bit more involved. It’s $52 each for angle-adjust headset cup. But you need two (upper and lower), so that’s $104 to unlock this feature. And, unlike some other press-in options from other brands, you need a tool to install these cups.
The progression flip-chip is included stock and still works if you do switch to 29″ wheels.
Slack vs steep? Or just neutral?
The headset cups offer a separate or, as I’ll get into below, complementary change to the wheel size options. The +/- 1 degree angle cups give Trek a effective head tube angle range of 62.6-deg (MX, slack) to 64.3 (29″, steep).
There are theoretically six options, three per wheel size. But practically, I found the options were more limited. In MX mode, the angle set gives you a nice range from slack for super steep trails to slightly steeper for slower, more technical riding. The neutral setting in MX mode is already very good, though. In 29″ mode, I could only really feel comfortable with the headset in the slackest setting. Maybe this is different for other sizes or a matter of personal preference but, for the XL, the rest felt off. It’s still good that Trek offers this feature, though, is it gives better balance to the Slash in 29″ mode.
Trek Slash Gen. 6 29″
Changing the rear wheel from 27.5″ to 29″ obviously has the biggest impact on how the Slash feels. You can do this if you want the faster rolling speed of matching 29″ wheels for racing, or just for a smoother, more stable bike than the lively fun of the MX set up.
Trek was nice enough to send out a matching Bontrager Line Pro 30 29″ rear wheel and SE5 Team Issue rear tire to match the stock build on our 9.9 XO AXS test bike, making this a nice, direct comparison.
Set up and sorting out the wagon wheels
Slash Gen. 6 29″ feels like quite a different bike than the stock MX settings, but not in a bad way. Trek intends it to be a race bike when set up with matching wheels, and it does feel like that on trail. But, following that, it also feels best when combined with the adjustable headset installed and set to slack. I started with the headset in neutral and found the bike felt a bit awkward. Like it was too tall and, at the same time, too short for the big wheels, even though the effective HTA barely changed. But, again, once in the slack setting the bike felt balanced again and it was off to the races.
Riding the Slash 29″ on Squamish steeps for the High Roller III launch. Photo: Maxxis/AJ Barlas
Review: Trek Slash Gen. 6 29″
The 29″ Slash is, as you’d expect, faster rolling. The bigger back wheel does do quite a bit of work to smooth out bumps, especially at speed. It does lose a bit of the spicyness and agility that makes the MX Slash so fun in corners, and it is harder to move around in the air. You still can dig into corners if you really want but, true to intention, the matching 29″ wheels is very clearly a move to a more race/momentum focused design over “fun” mode.
Does the Slash 29″ work on its own? Absolutely. It turns this long-travel rig into more of an enduro race bike. I still don’t think it works in every headset setting and I do wish the add-ons were free given the steep entry cost of the bike, which is too bad, but in the slackest setting it feels balanced and fast. It’s nice that Trek sets the Slash up to be whatever its customers want it to be instead of trying to get everything out of one bike.
The post Trek Slask Gen 6 long-term review Part 2: 29″ and other options appeared first on Canadian Cycling Magazine.
