First Look: Pivot Cycles Mach 429 Trail

Jun 23, 2015
by Mike Kazimer  




Pivot Cycles have added a brand new carbon fiber 29er to their lineup, the Mach 429 Trail. Designed to be an even more versatile bike than their popular, XC oriented, Mach 429, the Trail version gets a slacker head angle, more travel, and Boost spacing front and rear. In addition to slightly increasing rear end stiffness, the 12x148 and 15x110 spacing allows riders to run 27.5+ wheels without any issues. Even for riders not interested in experimenting with plus-sized wheels, that extra clearance ensures the meaty 29" tires fit with room to spare as well.

The bike's 116mm of rear suspension travel is still handled by a dw-link design, with two short links connecting the swingwarm to the front triangle, but the upper link has been redesigned, and the seatstay pivots are now located in a more forward position. There's also a new front derailleur mount that's less noticeable when riders opt for 1x setups, as well as being compatible with Shimano's new Side Swing derailleur technology, which has the housing exiting the derailleur horizontally, rather than vertically. A 120 or 130mm fork is recommended to complement the rear suspension - going the 130mm route puts the head angle at a relatively slack 67.5°.

The frame itself is incredibly clean looking, with plenty of room for a water bottle inside the front triangle, rubberized leather downtube and chainstay protection, and stealth dropper post routing. Interestingly, none of the build kits include a dropper post - don't forget to leave room in the budget for that must-have accessory.

Pricing for the complete bike starts at $3999 for the Shimano SLX equipped version, and goes as high as $7699 for riders that want to go all-in with an XTR drivetrain, Kashima coated FOX suspension, and DT Swiss carbon wheels. For riders interested in putting together their own build kit, the 5.9 pound frame and shock are available for $2499 USD. The Mach 429 Trail is expected to start shipping to dealers this week.


Pivot Mach 429



Pivot Mach 429
The 429 Trail's redesigned upper link takes cues from Pivot's Mach 6 and Phoenix DH bike.
Pivot Mach 429
The front derailleur mount is barely noticeable when not in use.


Geometry
Pivot geo



Visit the high-res gallery for more images of the Mach 429 Trail.



www.pivotcycles.com

Author Info:
mikekazimer avatar

Member since Feb 1, 2009
1,719 articles

129 Comments
  • 68 4
 Looks great, thank you baby Jesus for not allowing them to cover the bike 9000 times with the pivot logo.
  • 16 2
 Ya, pretty bike and better for not being sprayed with branding.

Am I the only one who doesn't think susp decal colors need to match frame color? Kinda like how a totally matched kit just reeks of effort.
  • 4 0
 Sure, they don't need to match, but black and orange forks don't look great on every bike. Myself, I eventually(over time) peel all the decals off my rims, fork, shock, etc.
  • 3 0
 I like standard decals this case the orange on every bike no matter what
  • 3 1
 When paying $7699 for my bikes, I like them to look good. Decals matched or peeled off. Anodizing removed if needed.
  • 5 1
 Hopefully they will stop putting 9000 sticker on the rest of their frames too.
  • 2 0
 @moturner I agree with you about matching decals. If the fork comes spec'd on a complete it might as well have matching decals.
  • 27 1
 Looked at the price of the XTR/carbon all the things model, and thought "$7700 isn't bad" WTF is wrong with me.

Cool to see more shorter travel aggressive trail bikes hitting the market, after riding a Process111, I'm sold on the concept. Now, if you all would please buy this new Pivot and sell me your 111 at a value, I'd be very much appreciative.
  • 12 0
 I prefer passive aggressive trail bikes myself. Instead of the brakes screaming, they let me know that I'd be going faster if I didn't brake so much
  • 23 1
 7700 and no dropper post? thats a miss.
  • 11 19
flag tsheep (Jun 23, 2015 at 9:26) (Below Threshold)
 Do you think people dropping $7700 on a new bike really care about having to buy a dropper as well?
  • 28 0
 They better care about it! It's a GAME CHANGER !
  • 25 0
 @tsheep it's insulting at this price point.
  • 23 1
 Putting "Trail" in the name and no dropper. thats a miss.
  • 3 5
 @ryan83 I agree it's an odd omission at this price point, but not sure about "insulting". The lack of a dropper doesn't imply you won't shred, just the the product manager couldn't justify including it in the final spec list (or, perhaps more likely, couldn't get a good OEM deal).
  • 19 1
 IMO at this point in the game the bike just looks unfinished without one. Would trade carbon cranks out for a dropper post any day.
  • 2 0
 Lol @ryan83... at this price point? This is middle of the road lately. It's not an element 999 or a nomad... it's like maxyedor said: $7700 isn't bad...(in case you didn't notice, this was meant to be dripping with irony)
  • 3 0
 It's just pivots way of saying 'buy your own, we gave you a sick bike already!'. Maybe
  • 2 2
 We do have a dropper options from KS, so you can DROP EVERYTHING! For those of you who LOVE Rock Shox, or the FOX, or the Thompson... or xxxbrand ... you can have the option of buying the bike, and picking your own.
  • 5 0
 @dan23dan23 thanks and I bet your job is pretty freakin' cool. I would tell my marketing/pr department to only distribute photos of their high-end mountain bikes with droppers. In my opinion trail bikes look out-of-date with that little carbon tube as a post.
  • 1 0
 Not sure everyone cares about droppers like the media and some riders think they should. I am about to pull the trigger on a 429C Trail and told the local shop to pull the dropper and add the carbon wheels or I wouldn't buy it. Tried 2 droppers over the years on my heavily upgraded Remedy, and I simply do not like riding with them. Maybe I am too old, but I learned to ride on rigid bikes in the 80s and can still keep up with most riders on the descents on my rigid SS 29er.
  • 12 0
 What no obnoxious Pivot logos on the chainstays and seatstays? Did the design dept finally get the message "less is more"?
  • 7 0
 Cost reduction measure.
  • 1 1
 Brilliant.
  • 10 1
 Wheelbase figures reveal that reach is actually not that long, just has a really slack seat tube. Steep SA please! For those who actually pedal up trails!
  • 1 0
 Personally, I have quite long femurs, so the slack seat angle is welcome. On road bikes and XC race bikes I always have to run a setback seatpost in order to get my saddle rearward enough relative to the bottom bracket (so I can pedal up trails!) Specialized makes a setback dropper post but it has questionable reliability and I don't care to support the big S, so with a sub 73 seat angle I can run whatever dropper I wish.

YMMV
  • 9 1
 Glad to see more of these slacked out 29ers on the market. It's crazy that it took the little guys like Banshee, Evil and Transition to show the big boys how it's done.
  • 9 1
 Is Pivot considered one of the big boys? I've always considered them to be a smaller mfg as well...

Nice Pivot bike, granted, the Evil looks way meaner!
  • 7 4
 Pretty sure the Spesh Enduro 29 kinda kicked things off in the slack 29-er direction.
  • 3 4
 Yea at 160 mm too. And they turn too. So why got to 120 or 111?
  • 1 1
 Pretty sure Specialized also has made the Camber Evo for at least two models years now
  • 3 0
 Funny how people overlook smaller builders like Devin Lenz, who's been building XC/Trail bikes with slacker geometry longer than some of the other smaller manufacturers listed above.

That said, I'd definitely give this bike a second look. Previous iterations of the Mach429 were twitchier than I'd like.
  • 1 0
 I love my Evil Following
  • 2 0
 Slack 29ers indeed are great but after riding quiet a few now I can't help but feel tha at 444mm chain stay length is just too long for this style bike
  • 6 2
 Holy exploding internets. Also the reach and stack portion of the geo chart is f$%'d. 42" Reach, talk about long and low. I suppose you could get a good fit with a -250mm stem.

Bike looks great though. I imagine people will be asking "only 116mm?", but I guess it is the 429 Trail, not 429 All Mountain.
  • 3 0
 And a 5 foot stack height??? Gonna need a XXXXS to even consider riding it.. I'm guessing that was huge marketing error. You know, by web designs and catalog people that don't ride. 42cm is more like it.
  • 1 0
 thought the same. reach and stack are clearly off.
  • 1 0
 Looks like they put the CM measurement in the IN bucket, and converted that number back from IN to CM.

43.53cm (XL) reach is 17.1 inches, which sounds about right.

And of course as with all Pivot bikes, I fall right in between L and XL for sizing.
  • 4 0
 Thats not very long for xl
  • 1 0
 Agreed, but Pivot is usually on the short side for ETT and Reach.
  • 1 0
 42 inch reach and 5 ft stack... Lmao. Custom built for Sasquatch.
  • 2 1
 The reach on the pivot in xl is like the reach of a mondraker in small haha
  • 8 2
 I read 'boost' in the first paragraph, and immediately scroll down to the comments.
  • 1 2
 boost - Yike...like we need yet another axle sizing. Ghee, What's wrong with the original 2 sizes: 135 or 150 ?
carbon rims are so stiff now, you might not even need wider than 135 on 29", and if you do what's wrong with the DH sizing...
  • 7 1
 lets hope it goes mach chicken
  • 3 0
 I just realized with that new rear shock linkage....you might be limited on shock upgrade choices....for me if i can't fit a cane creek on it....i don't want it. Guess we gotta wait to see...why...i hate fox shocks.
  • 1 0
 I noticed that as well. I don't see a DB Inline fitting with the shock mount being recessed like that.
  • 2 1
 Personally, I'm super excited about this bike. I'm loving the fact that we are seeing more aggressive, mid and short-travel trail bikes. Real climbers that can shred and be playful on the downs. Can't wait to try one of these out. Now if they would just offer another color... I'd love to see this in the murdered out black paint scheme with the hints of red like on the Mach 6!
  • 4 3
 After owning a Stupmjumper with mud magnet cable routing on the bottom of the down downtube, won't buy another frame with that set up. Sorry I may not be a frame designer, but its a stupid design by guys that don't ride in mud.
  • 5 2
 Just curious, did you continuous derailleur housing and hydraulic cable get contaminated on your down tube?
  • 6 2
 nope, it collected more mud than not having it there and made it a pain in the ass to clean the bike.
  • 2 0
 I've never had issues with mud. I did get a kink in the continuous shifter housing after hitting something. That sucked because it was between the 2nd and 3rd largest cog in the rear. It would ghost shift till the cable and housing matched up the kink. Total pain. I never had issues with the split downtube cables, just the top tube split cables (water/mud would run down into the housing) and full length housing, kinks in the middle somewhere.
  • 4 1
 With all those cables on the downtube it may not be too much fun to carry that bike. And gravel and stones thrown up by the front tire may cut in those cables (had that once on a bike, derailleur cable split).

Anyway, XL is way to short and the seat angle is silly.
  • 1 0
 I really like what Marin did on the Attack Trail. Option to run internal or under the downtube guard externally. Clever, slick setup.
  • 4 2
 So many companies get cable routjng wrong. Top of the downtube works best if the frame allows it (most do). Internal is great if you spend more time polishing your bike than riding it.
  • 2 0
 Are you kidding Bryce? It's a full cable run! I've ridden my bike in some terrible conditions and my shifting is still good as day one. If you have to change your cables more than once a season with a full internal housing run, you're doing it wrong. Half the people complaining about internal routing have never had a bike with it. They can be a pain in the ass yes, but you don't have to change it that often, cables and housing stay fresh longer. Plus once you have the cables in there, replacing them is stupid easy using the previous ones as a guide. For a pro racer, where the mechanic might have to change them out frequently, I wouldn't recommend it. I can easily get thousands of miles and multiple season on mine though, so I happen to really like how clean the setup is. Your comment is pretty ignorant.

Totally right though, I don't ride my bike, I just polish it...
www.pinkbike.com/photo/12399058
  • 4 0
 That blue and kashima coating is a marriage in heaven.... It looks bloody lovely.
  • 3 0
 It may be an aesthetic issue on mine, but why make a carbon frame with the cable management "braze-ons" if one runs cables within the frame?
  • 1 0
 anyone know the fattest tire you can run in a standard 26" or 27.5" Pike or Revelation setup? All the current 2.5" offerings are heavy DH casings, but wondering if I can't capture a bit of the "wider is better" mojo with a lighter carcass tire. Don't hate - asking for a friend, a newb who would benefit from a little more traction/stability.
  • 1 0
 It depends on rim width really... For example a Hans Dampf 2.35 is enormous while Maxxis is a little smaller. So you'll have to confirm on a tire by tire basis if it works (that said only something really extreme is going to not fit)
  • 3 1
 Glad they did away with there pitiful top tube cable routing. The engineer of that shoulda had bamboo chutes crammed up their pee hole
  • 5 1
 o.o Slack seat tube
  • 4 4
 72 degrees aint slack
  • 2 0
 For a 4.5" bike, it sure is. My 160mm AM bike is at 73. Not making any value judgements, just an observation.
  • 4 1
 This was the issue with mach6..slack seat a=wheelies up climbs. I rode one
  • 2 0
 It's an issue on my 429SL also... If/when I replace that it'll be an Evil Following with reasonable STA and a rear axle that will still fit all my wheels...
  • 1 0
 I have the same issue with my El Guapo... seat angle is similar. Can't you get away with a slacker seat angle the less travel you have though? A shorter Axle to Crown should help tame the wheelie effect?
  • 2 0
 @corvus1 The Following has a 72.7° seat tube angle with a 130mm fork. This is 72.8°. That's pretty damn close to the same thing. Big differences, other than suspension design, are that Following has shorter chain stays, so you'll be positioned more over the rear wheel, and it has standard 142 rear spacing. Either of those could be a positive or a negative depending on the user.
  • 2 0
 Shorter chainstays are generally not your friend when you're trying to keep the front end down though. People like 'em short because of the opposite, in fact. get that front wheel off the ground easy on the descents.

I wouldn't want to compare two wildly different bikes in this regard, since other numbers can change this a lot, but I'd guess the Following would tend to lift the front wheel more than the 429, not less, provided your numbers are correct.

Of course, where does the geo go on the two bikes when sagged? very different suspension designs, could end up with very different numbers with a rider on them, even more so when you account for the fact that each bike probably rides best sagged differently.

Just go ride bikes til ya find one ya like, then buy it & ride the hell out of it, I'm tellin ya.
  • 2 1
 Why don't xc bikes have longer back ends mimicking to a small degree the superlong stays on hill climb mx bikes? They'd climb amazingly wouldn't they? Is it just because they'd handle like the QE2?
  • 1 0
 @tobiusmaximum Yes, longer chain stays (within reason) can help with climbing, particularly in keeping the front end down. Going too long would have your weight too far forward of the rear wheel and wheel spin would be an issue. It would also handle like a barge.
  • 1 0
 Quite of few true XC race bikes do actually have stays that are "a bit" longer. Certainly most don't do everything possible to have the shortest ones they can, like you see in more playful bikes.
  • 1 0
 Chainstay lengths aside, slack seattube angles put you in a less optimal position over the bb for putting power into the cranks. Its tough to say at what seat height they calculated 72.8 but it does appear to get kinda slack with the seatpost fully extended for climbing.
  • 2 1
 You do realize that saddles have inches of fore and aft adjustment, right?
  • 2 1
 Yup, but even that cant make up for a slack st sometimes. Anyway, just noticed BOOST so I have zero interest here.
  • 4 5
 5.9# is a little piggish compared to the other frames in this segment. It's close, but noone has put the full package together on the modern 'trail' 29er yet- short CS by ditching 2x options, B+ capability, slack, lightish, and smart cable routing... Lots of close options, but no perfect ones. If someone can deliver a 5.5#, 17.25"CS, 68deg HTA, 120mm rear travel frame with NON-downtube cable routing (internal or otherwise), they'd murder this market segment.
  • 9 0
 Step one, run a 120 fork to get the HA to 68. Step two, take a shit in the morning to lose .4 lbs. Step three, ride faster to utilize a .2" longer chainstay. Step four, smooth it up a bit to accommodate 4mm less travel. There, now you have the perfect bike.
  • 2 0
 What's the story on these wheels (DT XMC 1200)? Can't seem to find specs on them...
  • 3 0
 I see Pivot still can get a good cable routing plan going. Sadness.
  • 2 0
 You meant "can't" right?
  • 2 0
 I did. Thanks for the catch. I am constantly checking, covering, rechecking, and recovering cable rub on the frame on my mach6. It's a pretty pathetic routing design.
  • 1 0
 I loved my Mach 6 but sold it just because the routing problem. Terrible rub on the seat tube. I actually drilled the cable stop out for the rear der because changing a cable was a pain.
  • 2 0
 Cool that marketing started only after bikes are ready for delivery! Intense does same.
  • 2 0
 This will be my gift to myself when I can ride again post surgery!
  • 1 0
 What surgery?
  • 8 0
 Caitlin, is that you?
  • 2 0
 They just rode all my favorite trails in Utah
  • 4 3
 These days it is a good idea to build a bike that allows you to pivot between wheel sizes.
  • 2 0
 LOL... 12x148 and 15x110, 27.5+ and 29er in all one.
  • 2 0
 I think we tanked their website... can't seem to get to pivotcycles.com
  • 3 0
 Dangit boost, go away
  • 2 1
 Who rides a trail bike without a dropper these days? Actually, who rides any bike without a dropper?
  • 2 0
 That is drop dead sexy Drool
  • 2 0
 dropper seat?
  • 6 2
 Thank you! All MTN bikes over $2000 should be stock with droppers.
  • 3 2
 Good looking bike. Cant wait to compare it to my Evil Following.
  • 1 0
 I love my Following!
  • 4 7
 "Interestingly, none of the build kits include a dropper post - don't forget to leave room in the budget for that must-have accessory."

Haha. No one pushes fads like Pinkbike. Don't have a 27.5er with a Pike, CCDB, Dropper post and X01/XX1? You need to get with the program! It's amazing that this site is even willing to review bikes from a company who's top offerings come with a Fox suspension.

On a serious note, I bet ALOT of buyers will NOT add a 1-2lb seat post to their brand new 4.5" travel XC/Trail bike.
  • 10 2
 Droppers are a fad on slack trail bikes? Really? That bike is not some xc race machine, it's way more in the mold of a Process 111. I have a hard time seeing why anyone buying this sort of bike would not hugely benefit from a dropper.
  • 2 1
 no doubt.

i think even if this was a carbon 29er hardtail i would still rock a dropper post unless i was racing it every weekend and intending to win haha.

who doesnt want the best decending experience possible?
  • 2 4
 To be more specific, I don't really think of the dropper post as a fad per se. I see the fascination. Same with the other items I mentioned...by definition, a "fad" eventually goes away. I don't believe any of the products I listed are going to "go away", as they are all excellent products. I use the term "fad" to describe the irrational "you must have this now" sentiment on this site in relation to those products. As I said, they are all excellent products...but despite that, they all have major drawbacks. The dropper post - a revelation for riders who do a lot of descending, but also explore new trails and sometimes get surprised by climbs they didn't expect. However, for guys like me who have always ridden 50/50 climb/descend, the dropper post is a very heavy, very expensive way to automate what my brain and muscles already automated for free over a decade ago. So for riders like me, there's pretty much no benefit at all, just added weight, cost, and complexity.
  • 2 0
 damn thats a beauty!
  • 1 0
 edited***
  • 1 0
 Disclaimer: Dropper post not included.
  • 1 0
 Two Pivots in two weeks? What gives?
  • 1 1
 Even tho I wouldn't buy it.. it's a great bike at great price..
  • 1 0
 nice bike
  • 1 3
 116mm travel? is that a thing that I'm not aware of? Why wouldn't they just go 120 so it would be compatible with other shocks?
  • 3 0
 The travel of a bikes rear suspension is a function of the shock stroke multiplied by the leverage ratio. They use a standard stroke rear shock that every suspension manufacturer produces. You won't be able to find true DH shocks because they don't come in a short enough stroke/length, but everything else is available.
  • 2 2
 woah
  • 3 6
 Waiting for a bike brand to bring back 26 inch wheels.....it will be soon (hopefully)!
  • 1 4
 Forsale lightly used banshee phantom frame with pike 120 fork
  • 1 3
 Literally an Ibis Ripley
  • 6 0
 You literally don't know the definition of literally.
  • 4 0
 I literally sprayed coffee through my nose when I read that. Figuratively speaking ofcourse, because I don't even drink coffee. I prefer water. Which I wasn't really drinking either, but I feel I am starting to go off topic now. Time to clean up this mess.
  • 3 6
 No internal cable routing, FAIL
  • 3 0
 Then you didn't see they're previous routing did you cause that was a fail.
  • 3 0
 I'd day it's a win given how HORRIBLE the routing is on the Mach6
  • 1 4
 It looks really cool but it's a 29er!...
  • 2 0
 Insightful!
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