e*thirteen, Limar and Giant - Taipei Show 2015

e*thirteen's Prototype TRS+ Guide

It sometimes feels like e*thirteen has been in the chain guide game longer than there's been mountain bikes, and while that's obviously not the case, it's been neat to see their guides evolve over the many years that they've been producing them. The difference between the relatively clunky units from those early years that took a handful of tools, three people, a lot of beer and two large pizzas to install, to the prototype TRS+ pictured below is night and day.



e*thirteen is getting close to releasing their revamped TRS+ and LG1+ chain guides that we showed you from the last Interbike tradeshow, and the latest versions have seen a clever update that will be carried over into production: a metal latch that can be unclipped to ease installation and removal. Undo the metal latch and the forward section of the upper slider pivots open (it stays closed at the rear) so you can install the the chain without needing to use a tool. The latch parts are captured so that won't go anywhere, and it looks much sturdier than the original prototype's plastic assembly.

Other notable features include longer ISCG mounting slots that add a few more degrees of adjustability, something e*thirteen said is nice given that so many frames out there sport tabs that are clocked too far in one direction, and noise and reliability have also been addressed with co-moulded Shore A rubber on the upper slider that should help keep things quiet. The guide's lower assembly, including a roller on the LG1+ model that's smaller and softer than the 2014 version, can also be removed if you don't think you need the protection, and all three sizes of the bolt-on taco guard (30, 34, 38 tooth protection) are included so you can get maximum ground clearance for whatever size 'ring you're running. The TRS+ pictured here will retail for $159.99 USD when it becomes available later in the year.



Those who don't need the protection of a full sized chain guide can use e*thirteen's new direct mount TRS+ that sports a revamped aluminum mounting arm that helps to bring the price down from $110 USD to $79 USD. It also gets the same co-moulded Shore A rubber on its slider to help keep noise to a minimum, as well as the metal latch to make installation a cinch. In other words, it's less expensive and easier to use.

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Limar's new 949DR Helmet

A helmet company isn't a helmet company if they don't have some sort of enduro-style lid in their lineup, and Limar's new 949DR is maximum enduro.



As you'd expect, there's more coverage at the back of the head that extends lower down than what you'd see on a cross-country helmet, but it's the 949's visor that really sets it apart from the crowd. Word is that it was actually larger on early prototypes, but the visor on the production model pictured here is more reasonable. The blue fin bolted to the top of the helmet is actually a camera mount that lets the rider mount a POV camera facing in either direction, or even mount two cameras that face forward and back at the same time. While it's easy to make fun how many people use GoPros and then share the footage everywhere, the ability to mount opposite-facing cameras could make for some really cool split screen action.



The 949DR ticks all the usual boxes: the visor can be pushed up easily to make room for goggles, an adjustable band at the rear that can be set to four different heights, and a load of vents (twenty three in total) help to keep the air moving in and out of the shell. Limar will offer the $190 USD 949DR in two sizes, medium and large, with the former weighing 330 grams and the latter coming in 20 grams heavier. Colour choices include matte camo/blue/white, matte titanium/black, matte camo/black/red and the matte orange/blue shown here. Expect the helmets to be available within the next few months.

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Giant's Carbon DH Machine

While there's not much to see at the Taipei show in the way of new downhill bikes, Giant is showing their Advanced Glory 27.5 0 that had people stopping in their tracks.



The 27.5'' wheeled Advanced Glory 27.5 0 is a brand new model, and the frame is said to be 245 grams lighter than the standard aluminum version, with a claimed weight of 3,008 grams. Geometry between the aluminum and carbon frames is identical, though, with a 63° head angle and 439mm chainstay length. Giant's Maestro dual link suspension layout controls the 203mm of rear wheel travel, and some weight has been saved by the lower link pivot location also doing double duty as the lower shock mounting point, something that Giant has been doing for some time now.

The Advanced Glory 27.5 0 comes with a race-ready spec, including SRAM's new X01 DH 7-speed drivetrain, a coil-sprung RockShox BoXXer Team fork, Vivid R2C rear shock, and a set of DT Swiss EX 471 rims laced to DT's 240 hubs. MSRP is $8,500 USD.

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