Fezzari Wire Peak

[Nasty Nick]

I hear you MattyB. Since the ebike will be used on a wide spectrum of trails, not just the point and shoot plow kind, makes sense to keep it a bit more nimble for more fun and the not so steep, rolling type (and maybe even uphills?). I’ve been interested in mixed wheels sizes for a long time. Long before canyon started doing it, but until recently this was not viable because seat tubes were too slack, especially with a smaller than stock rear wheels or a taller than stock front wheels. Have you guys tried it? Do you think setting up this fezzari with a 29” front and 27” rear wheel would add some rear end snap and general playfulness without making things weird?

Dirtnvert, good point of referencing current bikes and that fezzari uses a fairly short seat tube making long droppers and sizing up possible. But it’s still a little confusing for me: My large ‘19 GT sensor, has similar reach to the XL WP (L Sensor: 475mm) but a similar top tube to the large WP (L Sensor: 620mm). I love the fit and 76.5 deg sta. I also have a large Wreckoning, it’s the opposite, slack sta, the reach is exactly equal to the large WP (452mm) and top tube is exactly the XL WP (647mm). On the wreck I have a unique Thar saddle that slides an extra 40mm forward of most saddles, and it’s slid all the way forward to the max, fit is pretty good like this but a little cramped. I can’t decide.

 

[Dirtnvert]

I don’t know how the head tube lengths stack up with your quiver but if you run your bars higher because of a shorter head tube that shortens your reach a touch, as would a 29 o front or longer travel fork. So many personal preference situations. I like a short stem. Not so much for fit as I prefer to size my frame for my preferred stem. You can have longer reach and with the short stem to quicken lane changes and counter act the more stable longer bike, and obviously tame wheel flop climbing steep switchbacks.
I haven’t tried 29f/27.5r but I did run my old demo 8 27.5f/26r for a couple days to see. I liked that it rolled faster , especially through the rough but overall I didn’t like the different feel between the wheels. Often wonder if I should have tried it more to see if it’d be more intuitive. It might make more sense(27.5/29) for a taller l/xl rider/bikes I guess but then at l/xl wouldn’t 29/29 be an option? 27.5 is my happy place overall and sometimes miss 26 so take my feedback w a grain of salt. I’d be more inclined ,for the incline , to make thefork longer travel eh?

 

[MattyB]

...I’ve been interested in mixed wheels sizes for a long time. Long before canyon started doing it, but until recently this was not viable because seat tubes were too slack, especially with a smaller than stock rear wheels or a taller than stock front wheels. Have you guys tried it? Do you think setting up this fezzari with a 29” front and 27” rear wheel would add some rear end snap and general playfulness without making things weird?

You clearly have way more experience than me so I can’t really answer that. Don’t forget though that all the ebikes running mixed wheel sizes are using 27.5+ tyres on the back for traction on climbs, normally in 2.6-2.8” width. That means the tyre diameter is not so far from a 29er 2.3”, but it will be harder to get the back wheel to break traction. I’m guessing that may not be your desired handling balance...

 

[Nasty Nick]

Good point! All the ebikes with mixed wheels sizes I have seen are running plus in the rear. I would definitely run 2.3-2.5 range.

 

[Dirtnvert]

I forgot about that as well. It could be strange running my planned 27.5+ rear/27.5 front

 

[MattyB]

Running anything less than a 27.5+ tyre is also going to lower the BB and make pedal strikes more likely. Personally I would stick with the recommended tyre combos, I’m sure they tested lots of mules before settling on these designs. The fact no manufacturer has gone for a 29” front and a non-plus 27.5” rear kinda speaks volumes (pun intended ).

 

[Nasty Nick]

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Running anything less than a 27.5+ tyre is also going to lower the BB and make pedal strikes more likely. Personally I would stick with the recommended tyre combos, I’m sure they tested lots of mules before settling on these designs. The fact no manufacturer has gone for a 29” front and a non-plus 27.5” rear kinda speaks volumes (pun intended ).

The uci banned mixed wheel sizes for competition in the 70s. It’s another example of road bikes negatively influencing mountain bikes. The uci just last year lifted that ban for mountain biking. Manufacturers are only going to make what people will buy and because nobody is familiar with mixed wheel sizes most people would write it off. I know two small bike manufacturers that have done it: Foes with the Mixer and Liteville, not sure on the model. We all know the benefits of big wheels and the perceived drawbacks, liteville did a lot of research and found something like 80-90% of the added rollover 29ers provide comes from the front wheel. We all know 29er have a lot more traction. 29er front wheel makes sense. But a big 29er rear wheel constantly buzzing your ass and resisting your steering inputs doesn’t make as much sense. Look at every dirt bike made in the last 40 years, they all have mixed wheel sizes.

Bringing it back to the Fezzari, they have the flip chip to help sort out the problem you mention of dropping the bb too low and the problem of slackening out the sta too much. But at the end of the day we’re only talk a rear axle drop of about 18mm, bb drop of 10mm and a sta slackening of 1 degree.

I’m pretty sure I’ll be ordering up a wire peak soon. Hopefully I can get someone to loan me a rear wheel to experiment.

 

[Dirtnvert]

Their bikes do get a lot of praise.

 

[Nasty Nick]

Their bikes do get a lot of praise.

I wish the wire peak had the 78 degree sta and extra 25mm reach. Oh well. I hope Fezzari takes off to help with resale. The value is sick on that bike.

 

[Dirtnvert]

Ya that SA does sound good. I like that position. So quick from seated to standing and back too. Wire peak isn’t bad at 76? I think. I stand over doesn’t vary a ton between sizes. I guess a person could upsize and slide the seat forward to get close to the 78 and extra 25mm tt length. I’m kind of doing that now with my transition scout. I see a few of the xc racers doing that as bike companies catch up to these sa’s. Emily Batty springs to mind. She has her trek race bike with the seat as far forward as possible despite the bike already being a purpose driven rocket . You’d think they’d be closer to the sweet spot at this point

 

[Nasty Nick]

I know, weird they haven’t all figured it out. The crazy part too is on most designs there is no interference constraint to make a steep seat tube hard to manufacture. But the industry seems to be catching on.

I have a bike with 74 sta, I did like you: sized up and slid the saddle all the way forward, I even bought a unique saddle with 40mm more rearward rail length to get an extra 3 degrees, but it looks crazy and I think overstresses the dropper. I have another bike with a 76.5 sta and with a normal saddle slid all the way forward it is perfect. But with 78 you could have the saddle in the middle of the rails, which I think puts less stress and wear on the dropper post bushings. The wire peak sta is acceptable for sure.

 

[Dirtnvert]

Hope it works out for you. They sound like they have it going on. Seen a few reviews now. Be interested to hear your feedback on it or see more emtb reviews on the wire peak. Price is in the same ball park as Commencal so I guess I’ll getting one of those two. Contacted fantik (USA) and they were good with responding and apparently they have a shop in Canada . A little more $ though. Waiting on the geo chart for those

 

[Nasty Nick]

Thanks! Yea the commencal and fezzari are pretty much matched for value. The differentiator would be resale value, but I’m not sure who would win. I personally like the fezzari geo much more for a lot of reasons and I think the integrated battery is much more aesthetically pleasing. But pretty much a toss up as the commencal also seems great.

 

[Dirtnvert]

Yes, I do like the Fezzari geo a bit better as well and I like Horst link bikes. On the fence with the battery. I like the clean look of the Fezzari but I like the quick change of the external. Guessing but I’d think the external Shimano battery might be cheaper , to have a back up. I also like the additional travel on the commencal . Wish they both made longer travel versions TBH

 

[Nasty Nick]

Fezzari said they sourced their own battery from a supplier that Shimano supports. It’s $500 for a spare, which seems good. I know that’s less than Shimano but not by much and there’s no chance of getting it on sale. It’s another $100 for a spare alloy battery cover. They said the battery they designed is smaller and light, so should be easy to pack for an epic.

 

[Dirtnvert]

Fezzari looking better all the time. Win win on that. Lighter cheaper

 

[rsilvers]

This bike looks like a good option. I feel bad for them that they are not more well known.

 

[Mr-EPIC-3]

Late to this forum, but I own a Fezzari Wire Peak Comp, so here my review. I have owned the Wire Peak Comp for 9 months (1200 miles) now. First off this is not a ding on the Wire Peak, but the RS Recon fork just won't handle the type of riding you will be doing on the Wire Peak or any eMTB, the X-Fusion O2 RL works great once you get the air pressure and rebound dialed-in. I decided to upgraded to a RS Pike 160mm fork and a RS RC3 shock, made a big different in overall ride quality and handling. The RS Level brakes needed a good bleeding and I installed sintered metal pads, made a great improvmenton with the stock barkes.The other changes I made were ODI girps, Charger Spoon saddle, DMR v6 pedals and Maxxis DHR 2.6" rear tire, all others parts are stock. I have the GA link in the slack position, which give the Wire Peak the best ride position feel for downhill riding. One of the cool thing about ordering from Fezzari is you can customize your ride, you will pay a little extra, but get it how you want it. Also the Wire Peak frame will work with 27.5", 29" and 29"x27.5" wheels, I am running the 27.5" x 35mm wheels, with 2.6" DHF & DHR.

I have demo couple different brands of eMTB (Giant, Norco, YT) and the Wire Peak can hold its own with any of the current eMTB on the market. After 9 months riding the Wire Peak I made the right choice, it was worth every $$$$ I spent.

 

[Dirtnvert]

Nice set up! I like those guys. Hopefully they expand their offerings. 170/180 bike would a great option together with the wire peak

 

[Flatslide]

I’m actually your same height 6’4” and really like the 435mm chainstays. It helps liven the bike up and make it feel like a trail bike, in my opinion. Is there a particular reason you like the longer chainstays? I love hearing feedback from riders.

Let me know

I'm 6'2" and like the short chainstays of my XL Trek Remedy (435), and XL Altitude PowerPlay (426mm).
The long-ish front-end on both bikes gives room for us longer folks to be comfortable and the short arse keeps it lively as you mentioned. I used to ride a short-arse long-nose hardtail before going full-suss too.

 

[ottoshape]

Late to this forum, but I own a Fezzari Wire Peak Comp, so here my review. I have owned the Wire Peak Comp for 9 months (1200 miles) now. First off this is not a ding on the Wire Peak, but the RS Recon fork just won't handle the type of riding you will be doing on the Wire Peak or any eMTB, the X-Fusion O2 RL works great once you get the air pressure and rebound dialed-in. I decided to upgraded to a RS Pike 160mm fork and a RS RC3 shock, made a big different in overall ride quality and handling. The RS Level brakes needed a good bleeding and I installed sintered metal pads, made a great improvmenton with the stock barkes.The other changes I made were ODI girps, Charger Spoon saddle, DMR v6 pedals and Maxxis DHR 2.6" rear tire, all others parts are stock. I have the GA link in the slack position, which give the Wire Peak the best ride position feel for downhill riding. One of the cool thing about ordering from Fezzari is you can customize your ride, you will pay a little extra, but get it how you want it. Also the Wire Peak frame will work with 27.5", 29" and 29"x27.5" wheels, I am running the 27.5" x 35mm wheels, with 2.6" DHF & DHR.

I have demo couple different brands of eMTB (Giant, Norco, YT) and the Wire Peak can hold its own with any of the current eMTB on the market. After 9 months riding the Wire Peak I made the right choice, it was worth every $$$$ I spent.

I'm going into 18 months on my Wirepeak Pro and it's been a trouble-free, exciting journey.