First Look: The 2023 Giant Reign Gets More Travel, Adjustments, & Storage

Compared to its predecessor, both the geometry and rear wheel travel have changed substantially. Giant called upon their Factory Off-Road Team members Youn Deniaud and Mckay Vezina for input on how to improve the Reign for enduro racing. The head tube angle can now tip back to 62.76 degrees in the slackest setting and a longer stroke shock boosts the travel from 146mm to 160 while still employing the Maestro, dual-link suspension design.

Following suit with their Trance trail bike series, Giant has designed the frame to hide tools, snacks or extra layers inside the downtube using a latched door that the water bottle cage bolts onto. While that’s not a huge surprise, this is the first time that Giant has incorporated storage into their aluminum frames.

Another feature that Giant has expanded on is the use of their flip-chip that lies in the seatstay and rocker link pivot. Instead of the usual two-position chip there are now three settings; low, mid and high. On the Advanced Pro models, Giant’s title for their carbon frames, the rocker link is also made from the composite material. Most riders will find that flip-chip settings will work best in the low and mid settings for a 29” rear wheel, while the mid and high will suit the smaller 27.5” option. However, the alloy Reign SX model is dedicated to a mixed-wheel setup and uses a tube set that is built for the rigors of a dual-crown fork.

Giant stuck with a press fit BB92 option, 148 Boost rear hub spacing, and adds a universal derailleur hanger to the frame specs. The usual rubber protection treatments are found under the downtube and on the chainstay and the cable management runs internally. All of the models come equipped with a chainguide and skid plate – a wise addition for those that choose the lower flip-chip positions.

Giant doesn’t look to be deviating from their Maestro design anytime soon. They’ve been fine tuning that system for some time to produce a near vertical axle path.

The amount of travel has also been increased to 160mm using a 62.5mm trunnion mount shock and aligns nicely with a 170mm single-crown fork. However, the SX model is aimed at gravity riders which sees the rear shock get boosted by 5 mm in stroke length to produce 165mm of travel via a Fox DHX2 coil shock.

Geometry

Adaptability is the underlying theme here, with six possible combinations between two rear wheel choices and three flip-chip settings. When a 29” rear wheel is used, the head angle and seat tube angle begin at 64.2 and 78.0 degrees, dropping roughly 0.4 degrees each time the flip-chip is lowered, going all the way down to 63.5 and 77.3-degrees. However, with the smaller rear wheel placed in the dropouts, the angles start at 63.46 and 77.26 respectively.

In terms of BB drop, the high setting places the crank spindle 25mm below the axle of the 29” rear wheel and 19mm lower than the 27.5”. Lowering the BB further results in 5mm and 10mm more drop.

One surprise with the sizing is that Giant has not expanded the number of sizes to include a XXL. This means that the XL frame tops out at a reach of 510mm in the mid-29er setting. The other reach numbers start at 430 for a size small frame in that same setting and move up to 460mm on the medium and 480 on the large. The chainstays are not adjustable here and sit at a length of 443 across the size range.

Reign SX – $4,600 USD / $4,899 CAD / $6,199 AUD / £4,699 GBR / €4,699 EUR

Specs

The Reign family is split between three Advanced Pro carbon models and three aluminum frame builds that begin at $3,600 USD. Depending on what part of the world you live in though, not all six models will be available. The Reign 1 will be excluded from the lineup in North America and the Reign Advanced Pro 2 from only the USA.

Stocked with Fox Performance Elite suspension, the Reign Advanced Pro 1 also comes with Giant carbon wheels and handlebars, a SRAM GX drivetrain with Shimano SLX brakes, plus, Maxxis EXO+ and DD tires for $6,800 USD or 6,900€.

Moving into alloy frames, the Reign 1 uses the same Fox Elite suspension, but with Shimano SLX/Deore/Praxis drivetrain mix, Giant alloy wheels and a Contact Switch dropper post. Sitting at €4,499 EUR, this is one of the models not available in the United States. The Reign 2, which consists of a similar components mix is offered at a price of $3,600 USD, but instead swaps the Fox suspension for a RockShox Yari RC and Super Deluxe Select+ rear shock.

Then there’s the $4,600 USD / €4,699 EUR Reign SX that is focused on bike park riding with a Fox 40 fork that is set to 190mm of travel, a DHX coil shock, compact gearing, and a solid seat post. Again, there’s a mixed drivetrain of Shimano Deore and Praxis parts, Giant alloy wheels, and SRAM Code R brakes with a 220mm front rotor that round out the freeride focused bike.

Pricing and components for the top end Reign Advanced Pro 0 are still being worked out with a launch planned in March 2023.