Perhaps the most competitive segment of the MTB market is the ‘quiver killer’ trail bike. Trail bikes are today’s version of what the first-ever mountain bikes set out to be… bikes that can handle any kind of terrain. Since there will never be one perfect combination of travel, wheel size, and geometry for everyone, Devinci split their updated Troy trail bike into two models.
I’ve been riding the 150mm/160mm Troy, which is more suitable for my local trails than the shorter travel Troy ST. The Troy impressed me with its initial sensitivity and eagerness to absorb bigger bumps, while not giving up the support you’d want from a trail bike. The Troy’s short rear end and MX wheels also offer snappy handling and quick cornering, making this a capable and fun bike to ride.
Devinci Troy GX AXS 12S – Basic Specs:
For a full rundown of all the features, specs, and geometry for the new Troys and Troy STs check out my launch article. Here’s a quick rundown of the key specs on the Troy GX AXS 12S I tested:
The Troy frame is built from Optimum G04 6061 T6 aluminum. This 5th generation model gets a fully redesigned frame with new features like straighter tubing, internal cable routing, in-frame storage, and UDH compatibility. This trail bike is on the more aggressive side, offering 150mm of rear travel and a 160mm fork. All sizes of the Troy come on MX wheels but can be converted to full 29” setups.
The complete size medium Troy GX AXS 12S, including pedals, weighed in at 36.29 lbs.
Ride Impressions – Geometry/Fit:
At 5’10”, I rode a size medium Troy (and for geo reference, tested it with its stock MX wheelset). Devinci is up to date, but not pushing any boundaries with the Troy’s geometry. The Troy is big enough to feel like a trail bike of today, but Devinci has ensured it rides like a true trail bike, not a mini-enduro.
This bike does not offer any geo adjustability if you keep it on MX wheels, but luckily Devinci chose very appropriate angles and measurements for it. As the chart above shows, you do have two geo options if you run a 29” rear wheel.
The Troy’s 460mm reach is long enough to feel roomy, but not excessively lengthy. This allows the Troy to maintain a fairly playful ride feel and offer a degree of stability you’d want from a modern trail bike. The Troy’s rear end is quite short at 432mm. This combined with the 27.5” rear wheel makes for impressively agile handling and quick cornering. It’s also easy to lift the front end for wheelies and whip the bike around when jumping.
After testing bikes with longer rear ends, I found they offer great traction on really steep climb sections. Despite the Troy’s shorter chainstays, I never had any issues with rear wheel traction on this bike. While some bikes’ reach and chainstay lengths are closer by the numbers, the Troy still feels very well-balanced. I rarely felt the need to get out of the saddle while climbing, but when I did the reasonable frame proportions made it easy to throw my body weight forward or back as needed.
If I had to choose a fixed angle for a current trail bike’s head tube, it would be 64°… and that’s what Devinci gave the Troy. This angle is slack enough for confident descending on steep, fast, and rough terrain, but it still handles tight uphill switchbacks nicely. A seat mast angle of 77.8° leaves you in a great position for putting power on the pedals.
Devinci seems to have nailed an ideal BB height for the Troy at 343mm. It certainly doesn’t feel high, but it seems it’s just high enough to avoid most pedal strikes. After many test rides, I hardly remember tagging my pedals on anything, and I did notice them just clearing several rocks or roots I usually watch out for.
Suspension – Setup:
My suspension setup on the Troy followed my usual recipe for compression/rebound settings, and it worked out really well right away. Devinci’s linkage does require more air pressure than ‘body weight = psi’, so I ran 152 psi in the RockShox Super Deluxe Ultimate rear shock for my 135 lbs weight. That put me at the 30% sag intended for the Troy. Throughout my testing I never felt the need to alter the settings; I don’t think I could have improved upon the Troy’s ride qualities with further fidgeting!
Climbing:
The Troy proved to be a solid climber, and the one thing that stood out to me was its superb traction on bumpy singletrack trails. Like most bikes, I would use 40-60% of the travel climbing with the shock in firm mode. However, the Troy is very sensitive off the top, and that provided a comfortable ride and great grip even with the shock firmed up.
On smooth surfaces, you can see the Troy’s rear end moving with your pedal strokes, but that motion is limited to the first bit of travel. With the shock in firm, the bike only dips slightly before its support ramps up and keeps it rolling along with good momentum. I also noticed when you’re pushing hard on the pedals, the Troy’s linkage puts that power to the rear wheel very efficiently.
After climbing a particularly technical, rough trail I hit 60% travel in firm mode. Even on this rocky ascent, I was perfectly happy with the traction I got in firm. The Troy’s initial sensitivity keeps its rear wheel planted on the trail, so personally I would run the shock in firm for any climb. I liked the helpful level of pedaling support and was never left wanting more traction.
I did try bumping up the low-speed compression while climbing, but quickly decided using the shock’s firm mode is easier and more effective. Increasing the LSC did provide more support against pedaling forces and reduced bobbing while in the saddle, but not as much as simply flipping the shock’s switch.
There is a big difference between climbing this bike with the shock in firm versus open mode. With the shock wide open, the Troy willingly dips deeper into its travel with a linear feel for at least the first half of its stroke. While seated, I noticed a lot more bob rolling through dips in the trail, and the rear end moved more during standing sprints. In open mode, I hit 75-80% travel while climbing the Troy.
On smoother trails, the linkage itself still pedals fairly well, but on bumpy terrain, the open shock gives easily to impacts and doesn’t match the efficiency of climbing in firm mode. Traction is incredible with the shock left open, but the Troy feels a lot more eager to climb with the shock in firm.
Descending:
When pointed downhill, I still found the Troy’s initial-to-mid range softness was its most unique and impressive ride quality. It smooths out small bumps in the trail in excellent fashion, but also handles medium and large hits very well too. As mentioned above the open shock offers an initially linear feel that sucks up bumps willingly, but there is a point where mid-stroke support kicks in.
The Troy’s Split Pivot linkage does a great job of staying composed on rooty and rocky sections full of medium-sized bumps. The bike stays firmly planted through high-speed chatter and holds a line easily as the linkage absorbs and dulls the impacts of quick, repeated hits with ease. The Troy took the brunt out of almost every kind of impact very capably, making it an easy bike to keep on-line on rougher trails.
The progressivity of the Troy suited me perfectly. After many rides, I would find the o-ring right at the bottom of the shock, yet I hadn’t experienced any harsh bottom-outs or felt any cringe-worthy wheel impacts. I did manage a few hard knocks, but only on large, sharp-edged rocks and the bike still took those impacts well enough to keep me (and the rear wheel) rolling.
While I’ve emphasized how the Troy is soft off the top, it is still supportive at mid-stroke… but perhaps a few mm’s deeper into the travel than some trail bikes. I like this suspension feel, as it offers top-notch bump absorption yet also maintains ample support for hard cornering, pumping, and jumping. On flowy trails, the Troy’s rear end was easily supportive enough to give it the lively ride qualities you’d want from a trail bike. It just happens to eat up hits particularly well too.
While I’m not a very heavy rider, I found the Troy’s frame pretty stiff. One of my final rides was down a fast, rough run I love to use for suspension testing, and the Troy rallied straight through the roughest patches. This is not a bike that squirms or flexes noticeably, it stays pointed where you point it!
Shed Frame Storage:
The Troy’s Shed frame storage compartment isn’t the largest out there, but it will carry the basic essentials. The latch mechanism is a bit small, but I had no problem operating it with gloves on and it functioned perfectly. I am happy to report I didn’t hear any rattling from the Shed storage compartment throughout all my test rides.
Before one ride, I noticed I had the tool bag stuffed a bit too wide, and it held the bottom end of the storage door slightly off the frame. I simply rearranged my tools and got the door sitting flush, but that’s something riders might want to watch out for. The door is thin and flexible, so it can be latched but not sitting flush against the frame if something inside is pushing upwards on it.
Devinci’s zippered tool bag fit my large c02 canister, inflater head, valve core tool, plug tool, spare plugs, a spare battery for the AXS pods, and a small multi-tool with a little room to spare. Water aside, this is everything I’d normally carry for a typical ride.
Luckily, the Troy frames leave a lot of room for water bottles. With Devinci’s side entry cage, the medium frame fits a large bottle! There’s not much clearance to spare, but enough to easily access the bottle.
Components:
The Troy gets a 160mm RockShox Lyrik Ultimate fork, which performed great and provided more than ample stiffness for this bike. Dialing in the fork didn’t require anything special or unique, sticking with my typical settings got it running great for me.
The Troy’s SRAM GX AXS derailleur got slightly skippy on me during one or two rides but otherwise performed extremely well. I enjoyed precise shifting (even under load) and had no mechanical issues from the AXS shift pod or derailleur. I also think the bash guard included on the GX crank is a nice touch.
The SRAM Code Silver brakes were great. They were grabby by the end of the first ride, and with 200mm rotors front and rear, they easily offer ample power and great modulation. The brakes remained consistent and reliable throughout my testing, never overheating or requiring any maintenance.
I’ve ridden several sets of Race Face ARC30 rims, and they have proven their durability. I’ve never done any significant damage to these wheels, and the Troy’s held up really well. Both wheels are running round and true after all my test rides.
Devinci stuck with ‘tried and true’ Maxxis Minion DHF/DHR II tires. The double-down casings stocked on the Troy are ideal for rougher trail networks and kept me rolling with no pinches or punctures.
The SGD Belair 3.0 saddle was comfortable enough, and unlike the same saddle I rode on the Devinci E-Troy Lite I recently tested, this one didn’t creak at all! The 180mm travel SDG Tellis dropper post provided plenty of clearance for a medium frame.
As a final touch, Devinci gives the Troy GX AXS a Race Face Era carbon handlebar. I like the stock 800mm width, which can always be chopped down if preferred.
The Devinci Troy GX AXS 12S retails for $5549. Frames are available in Gloss/Matcha only.
