I bought the SwitchGrade 2.0 EVO for my 90% of the time hardtail. I live in an area where there are access roads closed to public motor vehicles, but accessible to bikes. At the top of a long grind of a climb, trails weave and drop their way back to the start of the access road below.
The last few times I made the climb, I noticed numbness and tingling which made me re-evaluate my setup. I saw the SwitchGrade as an obvious upgrade to help curtail this issue.
I have had one day of laps with the SwitchGrade installed and I have been very impressed. It is easy to use, easy to set up and the build quality is stellar. I think I might want to add one to my other bikes.
I didn't use thread locker on day one, while I sorted out my desired setup, so my seat did loosen up as I rode. Now that I am happy with the angle of the 3 positions, I have thread-locked all the connecting hardware. Now my bike is ready to rip!
I’ve been imagining a device like this for over a decade, due to health issues related to long uphill mountain bike climbs. The older I get (in my late 60’s), the more I need this. Thanks!
Excellent design. Be prepared to adjust the screws so you get all three positions where you like them and maybe a little blue Loctite when you’re finished as these seem to come loose. Otherwise fantastic highly recommend.
Seriously the best thing ever. Do yourself a favor and get one!!! Don’t think twice, just get it, no regrets.
Within one minute of use on a steep climb in my neighbourhood I was sold and told all my friends to get one. After my last two days of 500 M climbs I’m over the moon with the improved comfort and added weight over the bars on the grunt up. My friends now know they’re missing out since I had them try it! They all said they’re going to the local shop (Calgary Cycle) to get one!
Very cool well built product. Took FOREVER to deliver. Prepare to wait.
Communication regarding delays could have been better. Overall, the product is phenomenal
The saddle tilting capability really helps when climbing very steep sections.
On my set up, I had to decrease the travel of my seatpost from 210mm to 190mm due to the fact that I had no margin over the saddle tube to lower it to compensate the saddle height increase due to the switchgrade installation (+17mm). It was anticipated and hopefully possible thanks to the 2x10mm OneUp dropper seatpost adjustment capability.
Thus, the saddle backwards tilting for DH is then welcome to recover the right clearance for negative slopes or jumps.
So, finally satisfied, and still getting fully accustomed to it.
An incredible improvement would be the ability to tune the angle of the tilted positions (using shims?). For example, a bit less would be sufficient for me when climbing.
Thank you for your innovation !
Loving it so far! Easy installation. The only small issue I have had is with my SQ Labs seat, the rails are a bit to tight under the nose, it catches the Switchgrade lever. So I have had to push my seat forward a tiny bit but nothing to bad. And clearly this is only a result of the seat I have chose. It has been an incredible mod to have on my E-bike, with how much I enjoy climbing now.
It’s a good product. I’ve ridden it a few times now. I like it. I have a command post on my Levo I absolutely love it that why I tried your product
Thx Tim
Ymir
Perfect for charging up the road to the top of the local enduro trails. Definitely nice to get the weight off the boys.
I havent had any issues with it.well made product. Comfort is a click of a lever away...wish it would work on my "Specialized Command post WU, dropper post..." I bought the "Gold fusion Ti, pack A" the color combo works well with the gold titanium bolts dress up on my Daily bike...
Product is very good, working really well !!! Hi class CNC machining !!! The most big difference is in « climb mode » , means the swichgrade optimize for real your climbing position.
The only cons is that the top of switchgrade interfere under the seat and blocking the seat to flex so the ergonomic of my seat change a lot. I’ll probably need the change my seat because of that or selling my switchgrade 😩
I can send you pictures of what interfere if you want
Honestly had one of my better rides after installing this piece of hardware: the long grind climb was more comfortable, I was able to clean the techy climbs more easily, and my saddle was noticeably more out of the way on descents. I thought I was just getting another piece of bike bling, but I was telling everyone on the trail to get one of these.
Absolutely 5 stars for climbing comfort; my lower back is so much better. At 64 with a bad back (L4-L5) . The climbing angle forward is awesome. For descent however, I find the tilt back too pronounced, it may be ok for super steep descent, but for the most part I find it to much.
Turn your park bike into a DJ instantly. Seriously tilt it back and go BMX mode over the big jumps and then when you get to the bottom switch back to MTB mode for the very comfortable ride back up the hill. Truly a well engineered product worth every penny.
One of my favourite places to ride involves a lengthy fireroad back up the top of the hill. I don’t enjoy the climb. I usually get 3 or 4 laps in before I’m done. It just becomes too uncomfortable to enjoy any more, purely because of the climb. The Switchgrade has taken that discomfort out of the equation. Tipped forwards, that pressure on the soft tissue areas is greatly reduced. I’ve not needed the tipped back option yet but feel it will come in useful at some point. The actual quality of the product is truly impressive. Well engineered and fabricated. Straight forward installation and feels very robust in its usage. Takes a little getting used to but soon becomes second nature. Nice piece of kit. 🤓👍
The first time using this is up there with the first time I used a dropper post! The power I could put down on the climbs made me feel like I was on an e-bike. Nothing but respect and admiration for the team behind this. As others mentioned the craftsmanship is very evident and certainly a case of you get what you pay for. Will be singing its praises and benefits to other riders and putting an order in now for my second bike.
I recently mulletized my bike and increased the fork travel. I love the result, but as expected, the ride feel when climbing was worse. Felt like I was slipping off the back of the seat when climbing steeply. Just added the Switchgrade 2.0 and with the saddle tilt control my bike feels better when climbing than it did before the mods. Feels like my power goes straight into the slope. Has been a great upgrade.
