YT Industries' 1990-inspired Jeffsy, Shimano GRX Di2, top clipless pedals and Giant's giant sale + more

New stuff from Shimano, YT Industries, Fox and more – your chance to tap into this week's top tech releases all in one place.

Liam Mercer

May 25 2024

Feature

We may nearly be mid-way into the year, but the tech releases keep rolling with the biggest of the week being Shimano's GRX Di2 and YT Industries' throwback to the 90s. But that's not all as we check out Gobik's summer clothing line, all of Fox's suspension forks while highlighting the top clipless pedals we've tested and a lot's happened in the wheel space.

Giant joined Specialized and Trek in offering huge discounts

Big bike sales have become common this year with Trek offering 30 per cent off some of its bikes, while Specialized slashed its price by up to a full 50 per cent. With Giant now announcing a sale that takes up to £2,600 off of bike prices, 2024 looks set to host a fight between brands to see which can sell their bikes for the least money and that's quite the change given the rise of bike prices since covid.

For Giant, potential buyers can purchase a Reign Advanced Pro 29 1, an enduro equipped with Fox Factory suspension and Fox Live Valve for a relatively mere £3,900. The sale stretches to e-bikes too as the brand is offering its Trance X Advanced E+ 0 for £6,749. That's another bike that comes with top-end suspension and Fox Live Valve.

The price drops also cater to those who prefer their tyres on the skinny side with the Revolt Advanced Pro 2 receiving a price cut, now being available for £2,700 and the £11,000 TCR Advanced SL Disc 0 can be grabbed for £8,800.

For more on Giant's crazy deals, head over to our Giant slashes prices story.

YT Industries Jeffsy Uncaged 13 throws back to the 90s

The latest iteration of YT Industries' Jeffsy launched late last year and now the brand has given it a touch of the Uncaged treatment and it's gone for it. The Jeffsy Uncaged 13 embraces the 90s, draped with one-off Renthal components and a colourway that harks back to the primary colours of the decade.

A lot about this bike nods to the 1990s, even YT's choice of Marzocchi suspension is a nod towards Marzocchi's freeride roots. The bike is equipped with silver anodised parts, such as the Renthal cockpit and the Crankbrothers Synthesis Enduro wheels. SRAM's GX Eagle 12-speed mechanical drivetrain hauls the bike back to 2024.

However, this Jeffsy build isn't just about the 90's as there's a little more than meets the eye. This particular model is the only Jeffsy to feature a mullet wheel setup and 150mm of rear suspension.

Here's more on YT Industries' 90s-inspired Jeffsy Uncaged 13.

Shimano's new GRX Di2 takes 2x electronic shifting off-road

Apart from e-bike drivetrains, motors and shoes, Shimano has been fairly quiet on the off-road shifting front until now. Just this week the drivetrain giant has unveiled its latest wireless entry into the off-road market with its GRX Di2 2x drivetrain, offering wireless 2x shifting to gravel bikes everywhere. Though, when I say wireless, I mean semi-wireless as this drivetrain still uses small cables to reach a battery but compared to mechanical gearing, it's wireless.

GRX Di2 brings some useful advantages on top of claims of consistent shifts. For this drivetrain, Shimano has brought in special levers that are textured for better grip, and the levers are designed especially to work with the greater flare usually employed by gravel-specific drop bars.

Another advantage is that the new levers get a third Di2 button to actuate an additional function, whether used as an auxiliary shift button or to help scroll through a cycling computer.

Check out our GRX Di2 takes 2x electronic shifting off-road story for a deeper dive.

Industry Nine's new Grade 300 wheelset comes with hollow beads

This week Industry Nine released its latest wheelset and it's one that's built to cater to the needs of downhillers and long-traveled e-mountain bikers but what's cool is that it gets hollow beads. I9 calls it a triple-cavity rim design. Not only does it use an internal cavity but also additional cavities that run inside the rim bead.

The brand has done this to dissipate energy under impact which should then reduce the risk of pinch flats. Industry Nine says these wheels are 65 per cent less likely to pinch flat than the brand's previous designs.

As well as the interesting rim design, the wheelset boasts I9's popular Hydra hubs with a lightning-fast .52-degree pickup and it's designed to seat 2.3in to 2.6in tyre widths. They are available in 650b and 29-inch sizes and prices start at £1,480.

Industry Nine's new Grade 300 wheels get hollow bead rims with a triple cavity rim design.

Hunt chases sustainability with its Sustainable Phase One range

Hunt, known for its top-performing but wallet friendly wheelsets, has announced three fresh wheelsets as part of its new Sustain Phase One range. These wheels are built using recycled carbon but the off-road going hoops in the lineup, the 4 Season All Road and Trail Wide 29 use an alloy comprising 75 per cent recycled aluminium from industrial and post-consumer sources. All wheelsets utilise spokes that haven't been anodised to reduce energy and chemical usage.

Hunt has done this as it plans to gain accreditation from the Science Base Targets initiative to meet net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Hunt makes a move towards sustainability with Sustain Phase One range

Your guide on all of Fox's suspension forks

With its new range of dampers, Fox addresses the over-complication of adjustments without holding back on performance, according to the brand. So in the article, we outline each Fox suspension fork and every sub-model to highlight what it can offer you to make buying your next Fox fork simple.

We also decipher each bit of tech that Fox employs for its suspension forks, so you know exactly what VVC does, or how many clicks of rebound a GRIP X damper comes with.

Fox suspension fork range 2024 - Your guide to all Fox forks

We collect the best clipless pedals we've tested

Unlike flat pedals, clipless pedals come in loads of shapes and sizes, and they mostly revolve around the variety of clipless mechanisms they employ. Because of that, one clipless pedal can be almost completely different to another in terms of how they feel to ride and the features they offer.

With that in mind, we've collected each pedal that's scored four stars or more to highlight the cream of the crop and make buying your next pair of clipless pedals simple. In this piece, there are also several handy tips so you can be sure of what you're getting yourself into.

Best clipless MTB pedals 2024

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Liam Mercer

Since beginning his mountain biking career while working as a resort photographer in Greece in 2014, Liam became a freelance contributor at off.road.cc in 2019. From there, he’s climbed the journalism job ladder from staff writer to deputy technical editor, now finding his place as technical editor.

Partial to the odd enduro race, heart rate-raising efforts on slim-tyred cross-country bikes, hell-for-leather e-MTB blasts or even casual gravel jaunts, there’s not a corner of off-road cycling where Liam fears to tread. With more than 40 bike reviews under his belt and hundreds more on MTB, e-MTB and gravel parts and accessories, Liam’s expertise continues to be cemented and respected by the industry.