Issue #009 Review

Grouptest Trailbikes: Radon Slide 150 E1

21.04.2014
by

The Radon Slide E1 came to the party dressed in black. It doesn’t need fancy lettering or stickers to impress us, preferring to achieve this with a well-conceived, high-quality specification, consisting of flawless RockShox suspension, a classy Syntace cockpit, and solid Elixir 9 Trail brakes.

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The 26” bike’s geometry feels good as soon as you sit on it: compact but not cramped. The rear end remains stiff without bobbing on climbs ‒ we didn’t need to use the compression damping switch on the Monarch Plus. On really steep terrain it is a good idea to reduce the travel of the fork to keep the front wheel on the ground.

Die Geometrie des Radon Slide 150 E1.
The Geometry of the Radon Slide 150 E1.

The balanced suspension is impressive: the RockShox Pike works in harmony with the Monarch Plus shock. Both gently smooth out even small bumps whilst remaining high in their travel, with a nice amount of progression at the end to prevent harsh bottoming out. On undulating trails, good speed can thus be maintained by pumping the bike.

The 26” wheels make the Slide 150 frisky. It reacts eagerly when steered without being over-sensitive and can be accelerated effectively out of turns, in part thanks to the steady rear end. The bike is agile and lively; only very steep descents expose its weaknesses. A slacker head angle would improve it here: 67.4° is a little out of date in this respect.

The Monarch Plus has sag indicators anodized on the shaft, which makes it a piece of cake to set the right sag. We recommend 25-30 % sag on the Slide’s rear shock.
The Monarch Plus has sag indicators anodized on the shaft, which makes it a piece of cake to set the right sag. We recommend 25-30 % sag on the Slide’s rear shock.
The reduced travel option on the RockShox Pike was more than welcome, especially on steep climbs.
The reduced travel option on the RockShox Pike was more than welcome, especially on steep climbs.
No other can match its power! The Avid Elixir 9 Trail is by far the best brake on test.
No other can match its power! The Avid Elixir 9 Trail is by far the best brake on test.
Other Versions: The Radon Slide 150 8.0 and the Slide Carbon 160 650B 10.0
Other Versions: The Radon Slide 150 8.0 and the Slide Carbon 160 650B 10.0

Conclusion:

The Slide E1 150 has great suspension and a top spec. Look no further than the Radon if you want an agile and playful trail bike with 26” wheels.

Go back to the article: “Grouptest Trailbikes: Eight Entry-level Trailbikes”

You can read an in-depth feature about the group test and our conclusions in the actual ENDURO issue #009! As usual it’s free & only digital for iPad, Android-Tablets and Online-Viewer: Issue #009.

Text & Pictures: Christoph Bayer

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