Transition brand fans can now benefit from Shimano EP8 assistance, with this new enduro offering.
Transition has become the latest boutique bike brand to introduce an e-bike.
The Bellingham company has added Shimano’s proven EP8 system to what is essentially the Transition Sentinel frame. And named it the Repeater.
Rolling 29er wheels and featuring 160mm of frame travel, the Repeater is a dedicated enduro e-bike with frame details and angles to match.
Read more: the best e-bikes you can buy
Repeater long – with big chainstays
Although the similarities between Sentinel and Repeater are obvious, Transition’s design team reshaped crucial aspects of the 160mm 29er frame. The result is a slightly steeper head angle of 64-degrees for the Repeater, compared to the Sentinel’s 63.6-degrees.
This new e-bike is long, a feature of Transition’s interpretation regarding progressive geometry over the last few years. A size large Repeater measures 480mm of reach.
Longer wheelbases create greater stability, especially when pinging through rock gardens or across rooty trail sections. Enhancing the Repeater’s stability are 455mm chainstays, which are a healthy 15mm larger than a Sentinel’s.
All-carbon frame keeps it light(ish)
Power for the Shimano EP8 mid-drive motor sources from a 630Wh battery. All you need to access and remove the battery is a 4mm hex key.
How much does it weigh? A premium Repeater build is 50lb (22.7kg) due to its carbon-fibre construction.
Transition offers three grades, all with the same Shimano SC-EM800 display unit. The £7 199 NX build uses SRAM’s value drivetrain, with Magura MT5 brakes and a RockShox ZEB-R fork – with Fox’s Float X Performance shock, at the rear.
Schwalbe rubber and the potential for huge rotors at the rear
The mid-range £8 499 Repeater upgrades its drivetrain from NX to GX. That RockShox ZEB-R fork also improves to Ultimate grade – with a Fox’s Float X Performance Elite at the back. Stopping power upgrades from MT5, with Magura’s MT7 brakes.
Transition’s premium £9 199 Repeater features AXS wireless shifting and trick Fox suspension bits. A Float 38 Grip 2 Factory fork pairs with a Float X2 Factory shock.
All three of Transition’s new enduro e-bike build options roll Schwalbe tyres, sized 29×24”. At the front it is a Magic Mary, with a Big Betty at the rear. One-Up supplies droppers in 150-, 180- and 210mm sizes for the Repeater, corresponding with small-medium, medium and large/extra-large frames.
The Repeater frame can accommodate a 223mm rear brake rotor for riders who want the most possible stopping power.