Lapierre overvolt 727i first impression.

[More-read-than-ride]

My local lbs loaned me a overvolt 727i. It is a shimano powered 160mm enduro/all mtn bike set up to be relatively lively with shortish chainstays and 65.5 angle.

I loved how the bike rode in general. Excellent all round bike with great suspensión and really good brakes. (I had never tried the guide RE, and didn’t expect much from them. They are almost as good as the saints on the cube I rode, so great value for money.).

I like the shimano motor, but i must admit I prefer Bosch for climbs and trails, except for on fast straights. I can confirm that the really big advantage of shimano as everyone knows is that is is low or almost no drag. However, the big tires (2.8) create a lot of drag themselves.

Finally, it is the first time I tried the shimano remote and the dropper on top, and as is also well documented here, it is not very ergonomic and I would also make the change to the wolf tooth and E6000 remote.
In conclusion, loved the bike, it can take anything I could throw at it, extremely well balanced and great fun. The only thing I didn’t like was the dropper post, a bit short and flimsy and the remote setup. Oh, and I really don’t like the paint job, too busy.

8/10.

 

[Kangr]

Similar to you I have just tried a Lapierre Overvolt but the 29er version the 729. I really enjoyed the bike, and must wright a review myself.
this being my first time on a 29er as well i was very impressed.

 

[More-read-than-ride]

Similar to you I have just tried a Lapierre Overvolt but the 29er version the 729. I really enjoyed the bike, and must wright a review myself.
this being my first time on a 29er as well i was very impressed.

I think 29’s would suit this bike very well. I would assume it would reduce roll resistance and take away that small inconvenience on an otherwise great bike.

 

[Kangr]

I think 29’s would suit this bike very well. I would assume it would reduce roll resistance and take away that small inconvenience on an otherwise great bike.

I did find this bike a lot faster than the plus tyre equipped pivot i tried.
This could well be down to the bigger wheels, but i lack the experience of 29ers to say.

 

[More-read-than-ride]

Here is the photo of the bike:

 

[Kangr]

I know what you mean about some of the graphics on there. If i get one of these im going to get some decals done to change the orange colour to something more subtle, maybe silver or grey

 

[More-read-than-ride]

Thumbs up for battery and fun, dropper still an issue.

Saturday I did 60km more on the bike, mostly fire roads, but also about 15km of rocky trails up and down. 800m elevation change. I used 3 bars out of 5 riding aprox. 70% eco, 25% trail and 5% boost. The battery life was quite impressive and the bike has a great allround geometry, really fun, spot on.

Spending more time on the bike, I realised that the Guide brakes are a little difficult to modulate, although they are incredibly powerful. A bit of an "on" or "off" kind of thing.
Also, the dropper is now completely broken, but I think that is just a specific issue on this bike.

I maintain that it is an 8 out of 10 bike and if it were mine I would change the dropper and perhaps also the brakes to make it an almost perfect trail bike. The more I ride it, the more more impressed I am with the geometry.

Since its a loaner, unfortunately I have to take it back to my LBS today...

 

[Kangr]

Thumbs up for battery and fun, dropper still an issue.

Saturday I did 60km more on the bike, mostly fire roads, but also about 15km of rocky trails up and down. 800m elevation change. I used 3 bars out of 5 riding aprox. 70% eco, 25% trail and 5% boost. The battery life was quite impressive and the bike has a great allround geometry, really fun, spot on.

Spending more time on the bike, I realised that the Guide brakes are a little difficult to modulate, although they are incredibly powerful. A bit of an "on" or "off" kind of thing.
Also, the dropper is now completely broken, but I think that is just a specific issue on this bike.

I maintain that it is an 8 out of 10 bike and if it were mine I would change the dropper and perhaps also the brakes to make it an almost perfect trail bike. The more I ride it, the more more impressed I am with the geometry.

Since its a loaner, unfortunately I have to take it back to my LBS today...

I would swap the dropper and saddle straight away, closely followed by the tyres. I've never liked nobby nics.

 

[mark.ai]

Thumbs up for battery and fun, dropper still an issue.

Saturday I did 60km more on the bike, mostly fire roads, but also about 15km of rocky trails up and down. 800m elevation change. I used 3 bars out of 5 riding aprox. 70% eco, 25% trail and 5% boost. The battery life was quite impressive and the bike has a great allround geometry, really fun, spot on.

Spending more time on the bike, I realised that the Guide brakes are a little difficult to modulate, although they are incredibly powerful. A bit of an "on" or "off" kind of thing.
Also, the dropper is now completely broken, but I think that is just a specific issue on this bike.

I maintain that it is an 8 out of 10 bike and if it were mine I would change the dropper and perhaps also the brakes to make it an almost perfect trail bike. The more I ride it, the more more impressed I am with the geometry.

Since its a loaner, unfortunately I have to take it back to my LBS today...

That is some good range Found your thoughts on temperature & range difference between Spain and UK in the Mondraker thread interesting!

I've had the Guide RE brakes on mine (same as 727i I think?) for a while now and have found them quite good. But currently I'm trying a Hayes Dominion A4 brake (as recommended by @Al Boneta) on the front and it is definitely feeling better! There is a shorter lever pull to first activation and then better modulation, plus the lever itself feels better (and placement works better on my bars). I plan on switching the rear brake over to Hayes as well now.

 

[More-read-than-ride]

That is some good range Found your thoughts on temperature & range difference between Spain and UK in the Mondraker thread interesting!

I've had the Guide RE brakes on mine (same as 727i I think?) for a while now and have found them quite good. But currently I'm trying a Hayes Dominion A4 brake (as recommended by @Al Boneta) on the front and it is definitely feeling better! There is a shorter lever pull to first activation and then better modulation, plus the lever itself feels better (and placement works better on my bars). I plan on switching the rear brake over to Hayes as well now.

The temperature discussion in the mondraker thread opened my eyes a lot. I realized it was important, but until I saw the graph I had no idea how important. For those interested:
Poor battery Range - Mondraker. - EMTB Forums

I think your explanation with the brakes is exactly right. The issue with the Guide RE is that it takes too much movement before it starts braking and when it does it is too sudden. However, they certainly have enough power and I do like them. I will take a look at the Hayes once I get my new bike.

(Still waiting for the flyon allmtn 8.0 I reserved, which I will either buy or at least try before buying something else).