Interesting review Mike. I demo'd a Reign the other weekend. Was really looking forward to what I thought would be my ideal bike, but although there was a lot to like about the bike, it felt heavy and energy sapping to me. Great grip on short, sharp climbs but on long uphill slogs, riders normally slower than me rode off into the distance!
I'd recommend anyone thinking of buying a Reign to give it a good thrashing on their usual type of riding before splashing the cash.

Shock position - wrong, wrong, wrong!!

There are more good reasons to place the shock where it is than to bad reasons. So shock position is right and good,just get the mud flap.

TBH, the reign is always going to be a heavy bike, it is a 6" travel bike after all, my old one rides great, it just spends 30% of its time being fixed as all the shitty components on it keep dying. Mine was the "budget" Reign 3 though.

A screw for a shock protector but no protector. However, they put a saddle on the seat post. Odd.

Still a highly desirable machine though.

I've noticed with my (last years) reign 2 that the shock setup can make a huge difference to the ride. I had mine set-up with reasonable pressure in the SPV bit to keep bobbing to a minium and a fairly firmish main spring. The other day I reduced the pressure in both chambers to get a softer feel and it felt feckin awfull...bouncing up and down as I pedalled. Set up properly my reign (to me) feels fantastic and has stretched my riding capabilities beyond all recognition; I now regularly do fast 2/3 foot drop offs which I wouldn't have attempted on my old hard tail. However it's important to remember that a reign (like any 6'' bike) will feel much better on proper knarly terrain. My reign feels slow and sluggish on anything smooth and sandy yet take out to the big boulders in the peak district and its a revelation. If you only ever ride 'traditional XC' then it will feel dull and uninspiring. I would give it a chance (and a good thrashing over some big stuff!)

..then, after you've tried a Reign, try a Iron Horse MkIII. A bit less travel, similar weight, but the bike just eats up the terrain (up or down).

I'm yet to ride a 6" travel trail bike thats been a joy to pedal up hills. all have been hard work due to weight more than lack of traction.

Although I found the Reign to be an excellent performer for what it is and the Nomad is awesome too (if it fit you and you think the price tag is value), I just can;t see the point of anything with more than 4" or thereabouts.

Anything more and the machines start to make you feel like you're on the bikes rather than part of it.

Prophet climbs great, 5.5" front & rear.

I understand timxcrider's point about not feeling 'part' of the bike. However I think like any bike it does take time to feel truely matched to it; particularly when a 6'' bike can feel so different. I personally set up my bike so that I only ever use the full 6'' inches when i hit something really really hard and fast (as an emergency measure like) and find that usually I use 4/5'' with an inch in reserve. With regard to climbing, a 32ib bike is never going to feel particularly sprightly uphil, whether it has 4 '' or 6''. that said I ride my reign all day (8hrs or so) over long, rocky routes and dont lag behind my mates on light XC bikes...I think it depends on your weight etc as 5lb extra on a bike is nothing if your 15/16 stone , where as someone at 11 st might notice it more..

You've got a good point there Dan - if you're a larger rider (like yours truly) then a few pounds on the bike don't really matter. Also, if you're a bulkier rider then it's easier to throw the bike around because you've got more weight for it to react against.

I did have a pleasant surprise when I got back onto my XC hardtail when the Reign went back into be fixed (Yes - the Reign 3 is specced with some of the most sh1tty kit ever. Fortunately the LBS are happy to replace it under warranty, and with better kit). It's noticeable faster up climbs and for spinning along, but point it down and that all changes.

If you like your climbs aswell, then a shorter travel bike will be more to your liking, but if, like me, you get more enjoyment out of the downs then it's amazing. It's a very capable machine. Interestingly I rode a Reign 2 with Mavic Crossmax SL tubeless wheels and 2.2 Bonty tyres on the other week, and that climbed as well as my hardtail.

Agree with Karlos about the Prophet. Just didn't like the Lefty and busted my neck when it spat me off into a tree!
As for more than 4" of travel and you don't feel part of the bike, I don't get that feeling at all.
Oh yeah, the Whyte 46 is a great climbing 6 inch travel bike. Just a shame it looks like a Marin.

LOL, spat you into a tree. Do go on, how was that the lefty's fault...

BTW I like the look of those Iron horses too.

One thing about the Reign i do like is that it seems to get better the harder you ride it. Somehow it seems to get you out of those "Oh shit" sphincter trembling moments that you're almost sure you're going to crash on.

I had on tonight, a downhill i hadn't ridden for a while, let the speed get too high and hit a rough section at about 40mph, somehow the Reign just floated over huge jagged rocks and ruts despite the speed being 15mph more than i'd ever done before on that section, even on DH bikes.

Just a shame it isnt reliable...

Yeah - it's a real pity Giant have specced them up so poorly. Crackin' frame, crock of sh1te kit..

~Crackin' frame, crock of sh1te kit..~

Yes but what do you want for your money? They're very good value if you ask me, if you get a cheaper model its inevitable that you are going to have to replace parts over time.

Yeah, can't deny the Giant's are good value. Worth upgrading if you can't stretch to the "1". What am I talking about? I didn't like the bike! It still looks lovely though. MAybe I'll get one to put in my garage and look at. Iron Horses are good value too.
Maybe it wasn't so much the Lefty's fault I injured myself... the tyres were rubbisha nd it was wet... but when I told someone about the crash, he nodded knowingly and said "Did the bike have a Lefty fork?" .. like it happens all the time!!

I agree with steve about the reign saving your skin...on my 3rd ride out on mine I found myself at approx 35mph at 3 foot in the air with my bars turned 45degrees to the right. wheel landed in a rut almost sideways yet I still managed to land it, seriously thought I was off to A&E. problem is you become complacent as the bike eggs you on to go faster and faster until you crumple into the ground..

i found the reign 2 i rode to be sluggish on the uphill and when i finally got to the top i found it very low on the front end(with forks at full extension) coming down the other side almost twitchy ..certainly didnt inspire confidence and i felt much more comfortable on the gt id xc 2.0 we had with us or on my own hardtail

True - I admit that if you buy the bottom of the range then you expect to have to upgrade things sooner rather than later. However, I've had my bike 8 months now, 2 months of which it's spent in the bike shop. The only original parts left on the bike are the frame, saddle, seatpost, stem, shifters, cranks and rear mech. Everything else has been replaced on warranty. So that'd be both wheels, forks, shock, bars, BB, headset, cassette, chain and front mech. That sort of performance definitely falls into the not fit for purpose category. And I've ridden it less times than I can count on all my fingers and toes....

As I explained the to guy in the LBS, if you get a bike with a lower spec you expected to have to start upgrading bits after 12-15 months due to wear, but to pay £1250 on a bike and then have to have a large percentage of the components replaced on warranty because they fail is a measure of Giant missing the mark. If the components can't stand up to the workload that the frame can enable for the first 12 months then they shouldn't be on there.