Giant Talon 2 Mountain Bike Review

[@co19391]

I haven't had a problem with the trektro breaks.. that being said, I live in an area that does not have huge elevation changes. these breaks are either not engaged or fully locked up..

[@ShredBoyz]

After riding them in for a year or two they have gotten much better 👍.

[@sk8teallday1]

Just bout this bike 2 days ago as my first mountain bike $779 out the door. Couldn’t be any happier with my purchase definitely love it so far!

[@Tyrsblade]

I’m looking at getting one tomorrow after a test ride seems like a solid bike! How is it holding up for you?

[@jonthomas8487]

I just found an unsold Talon 2 27.5 model from 2021 at a local bike shop that I bought for my 14yr old son. The newer Talon 2’s aren’t spec’d as well as the 2021 as they have a 2x drivetrain in my opinion. The newer ones also don’t have Maxxis tires. Because the one I bought was a close out I got it for $499 which was a great deal

[@Libertà_sulla_vita]

I have this bike and have used it on black diamond trails in my area. Not stock but i bought a Rockshox Lyrik fork, i nine 270 wheels, renthal carbon fat bar, rock bros pedals, wtb tubeless tires and a range stem. All stock brakes and drive train. The bike does well. Really, any rider could just upgrade the fork, go tubless and do fine on most trails. I hang with riders on bikes that cost 10× what this talon 2 did.

[@ShredBoyz]

For sure! These are some solid upgrades, perfect for higher level riding.

[@franciscoayalaperez730]

That clutch comes in clutch

[@ShredBoyz]

Top tier comment.

[@co19391]

it really does. my last felt bike sent the chain through my rear spokes. total loss.. was not worth the money in parts to fix

[@ruthiechinery1245]

"Brakes are sort of important." (quote from Specialized Pitch Bike Review)

[@octogintillion]

I got one soon after it was released for $575, before shortages were as bad as they are now. Couldn't be happier for the price!

[@blockin9556]

mine was $720. Only bike that was in stock in my area before 6+ months

[@mattmonroe5680]

Thank you for the good review I just picked up a used 2021 talon 2 for $550 I'm a beginner and feel I got a deal on this bike since I couldn't find any other bikes without waiting a year I feel all I need to do is upgrades the brakes sometime in the future otherwise I'm super happy with mine in the clay red color

[@ShredBoyz]

Yeah, that seems to be a pretty good deal. Like you said, the shortages of bikes this year is crazy so being able to get that bike and for that price is awesome!

[@induction7895]

It’s 700-800 right now. Crazy!

[@mattmonroe5680]

@@ShredBoyz loving this bike so much still. I ended up putting a rockshox Judy air fork on it and one-up pedals. Absolutely a worthwhile upgrade was the shock highly recommend it

[@mattmonroe5680]

@@induction7895 yeah I saw that too. Crazy inflation plus the bike shortage causing the price of available bikes to go up

[@theadventuregamer6693]

@@induction7895 not worth it. Original price of that bike is 580$

[@lkeld]

peep the berm peak sticker on the seat post

[@ShredBoyz]

Haha yessir.

[@FetusK1cker]

this one or one of the cube AIM's?

[@SZAVIATIONa319]

I accidently took mine down a black trial once

[@twiztid133]

I upgraded my giant talon 2019 Ride well than it’s stock parts.

[@khanhmytran2321]

Can you tell me the size of the frame in 0:59 ?

[@ShredBoyz]

It’s a size medium!

[@lukeoetman7681]

Hey what editing app do you use? Do you edit on a computer?

[@ShredBoyz]

We edit with iMovie on a Mac.

[@minhthien5281]

Why are those Talon 2 at my Giant dealership have 2x9=18 gears ? Are there different specs for different countries ?

[@ShredBoyz]

That’s very possible. Also, sometimes different shops just put different parts on bikes. For instance on the Giant website, Kenda tires are shown to come with the bike but the shop we got it from put Maxxis tires on it. Another possibility is if they were different year models. The bike we have is a 2021 model so if that bike is a different year model it may have different parts.

[@octogintillion]

I think the US (maybe the includes Canada and nearby countries, idk) version was the only one that had 1X drivetrain, in other countries it had a 2X.

[@shirlyiang969]

Is that 29ers small?

[@ShredBoyz]

It’s a medium.

[@harveyjh]

Is that a new sprocket or have you just taken the sprocket guard off?

[@ShredBoyz]

It is not a new one, everything on this bike is stock except for the pedals. This bike did not come with a guard either.

[@michaelsuk4654]

How do you change the pedals on this bike ? Seems like they have a plastic cap on where you need to put the Allen key? Anyone know how to get to that point ?

[@harveyjh]

Hi, is the front wheel rim a 6 bolt? Big help thank you in advance

[@Marc-vl9id]

Where did you find that gray fox mudguard? I can’t find it anywhere?

[@ShredBoyz]

It actually came as part of the packaging for some knee guards. Fox made it so you could reuse the plastic by cutting it into the shape of a mudguard.

[@Marc-vl9id]

Oh that’s why I can’t find it. Thanks

[@jacksonpick5073]

So do you think this bike can do downhill like greens

[@ShredBoyz]

Probably, yes.

[@celdo84]

I am confused when buying bikes we focus so much on their size. But here kids are randomly riding adult size MTB on trail jumps. I wonder if that's not dangerous.

[@kelleewinstead5037]

Could u consider it a xc bike? Because of the travel

[@ShredBoyz]

Yes, in fact I think it may be listed as that on Specialized’s website.

[@payiokadena2251]

I want to do some drops and jump which bike would u recommend Giant talon 2 or Marin bobcat trail 3?

[@ShredBoyz]

We don’t know much about the Marin Bobcat Trail 3, but the Talon 2 has been able to handle some jumps and drops pretty well.

[@mikaelmed7743]

Joya

[@copperstatefiremenpodcast]

Want one so bad brother just can’t find one to buy

[@ShredBoyz]

Yeah, there is quite the bike shortage right now.

[@houstonrockets6707]

Go to Mack cycle they have it for 720

[@flossin5025]

Just bought mine yesterday, I paid $799 OTD

[@shredgirlz6797]

This was super helpful, thanks for the vid! If only there wasn't a bike shortage :(

[@Kubi.0]

Giant Talon 2 (this same) or Trek Marlin 5 2021 Aquatic?

[@ShredBoyz]

We have never ridden any Trek bikes so we don’t really know what they are like. This Giant Talon is a great bike though!

[@falk9918]

Tubeless?

[@ShredBoyz]

This bike did not come with tubeless tires but it is tubeless ready.

[@Blackhawk556.]

when you say tubeless ready, what do you mean? I’m new to bike so I’m not sure what I need to convert this bike tubeless. I’ve had fun with my talon 2 over the last 11 months

[@ShredBoyz]

It’s probably easiest to convert to tubeless by bringing it into a shop and having them do it for you. Basically, tubeless tires just don’t have the inner tube, instead they are just the tire with sealant on the inside, so if a puncture occurs it will be filled in with that. The biggest benefit is being able to run different tire pressures and they won’t go flat as often as tires with tubes.

[@ShredBoyz]

We have never converted to tubeless before.

[@giantfatpug8838]

bro it goes for 980 now i am soo jealous of all the people getting it soo cheap

[@ShredBoyz]

Haha yeah the bike market is nuts now.

[@giantfatpug8838]

@@ShredBoyz i have been riding for like 3 years but cause of price i bought a talon 2 for like 800 at my local bike shop

[@giantfatpug8838]

​@@ShredBoyz oh wait i was saying 980 for the talon 1

[@MrBojem3a]

Nice looking bike but poor quality control or poor transport.Rear wheel has major issues right out of the box. kzbin.infoUgkxHL1v1R3NE5x4KiYfyt8dnQmyNYz7qi5L Rear axle is bent! Derailleur is misaligned.Since the rear wheel comes assembled I would have expected better.Assembly instructions poorly written, but that was not unexpected...just annoying.I just had the bike checked at a shop and was told that I should contact the seller about getting a whole rear wheel assembly with cartridge. (The bike shop could not do anything to help me).Not a good experience with this bike, so lesson learned.Added 3 stars for excellent customer serviceUpdate Sept 8 2020Just received a complete replacement wheel for free. Great service and an otherwise fine bike.