Reviews

When we test, we do it right. Everything you can read here has been thoroughly tested on our tours for our lifeCYCLE magazine. Hundreds of kilometres have gone into every single one of our reviews. Therefore, you can read about our real experiences with bicycles and cycling accessories. We don’t do huge comparison tests, just in-depth bike reviews. Because sometimes less is more.

Finn cargo bike: innovative cooperation between VSC.Bike and Pendix

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Lastenrad finn, eine kooperation von pendix und vsc. Bike

In Zwickau, e-motor manufacturer Pendix and e-bike specialist VSC.Bike are working together on the future of urban mobility. Pendix, known for its unique e-bike retrofit drives, and VSC.Bike, a pioneer in the field of commercial cargo bikes, are pooling their expertise. Find out more about the exciting background to this partnership and how they are creating a completely new cargo bike experience with Lastenrad Finn.

Merida Silex 2024 review: gentle model update or everything new?

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Martin donat silex7000 0002 | lifecycle magazine

In our Merida Silex 2024 review, we take a close look at the recently presented new edition of the gravel classic from Taiwan. What’s new compared to its predecessor? What features has it adopted? From an after-work ride to a bikepacking trip with tent & co: Our Merida Silex 7000 had to prove itself under all kinds of conditions…

Basic Monster gravel bike test: too much of a good thing or just right?

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Basic schnee 21 | lifecycle magazine

The frame of the “Monster” is actually a classic mountain bike cross-country hardtail frame made of carbon. With typical gravel components, however, Basic Bikes from Berlin has “tinkered” a proper gravel bike. Will this concept work? In our Basic Monster gravel bike test, we get to the bottom of this question!

Cargobike tires from Maxxis – the MetroLoads Pro test

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Maxxis urban shooting 2023 lifecyclemedia. De 74 | lifecycle magazine

Maxxis has positioned itself well in the gravel sector with new tires such as the “Rambler” and the “Reaver”. The MetroLoads Pro was specially developed for use on cargo bikes – what it has to offer sounds excellent, at least on paper. That’s why we strapped a set of new tires to our cargo bike and took a look for ourselves. Here is the result of our Maxxis MetroLoads Pro test.

Maxxis Rambler vs Maxxis Reaver test – which tire is Martin’s 1st choice?

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Maxxis rambler vs. Maxxis reaver test

Maxxis is the house brand of one of the world’s largest tire manufacturers from Taiwan. Maxxis is totally well-known in the mountain bike sector and there are tire models that have a kind of cult status. The Maxxis MTB tire “Minion”, for example, has been around for more than 20 years – it is one of THE tires in downhill mountain biking. What you can’t deny Maxxis is a lot of experience in tire construction. And that’s why I was very excited to be able to take a close look at two gravel tires from the Taiwanese company: Here is my Maxxis Rambler vs. Maxxis Reaver test.

Tern NBD test: How good is the super compact & lightweight urban e-bike in everyday use?

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Tern nbd–©lifecyclemedia 15 | lifecycle magazine

In our Tern NBD test, we want to find out how the compact urban e-bike performs in everyday use. Especially for this test, we organized a riding safety workshop for older people or “newcomers”, where participants could try out four Tern NBD test bikes for a month. This gave us authentic feedback – exactly from the target group that the new Tern compact bike with 20-inch wheels is aimed at…

Chain wax or chain oil – which is the better choice?

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Optimize wachs 2023 foto lifecyclemedia. De 23 | lifecycle magazine

If you’ve landed here, then you’ve probably stumbled across the topic of chain wax for your bike drive. And now you’re asking yourself: Which is actually better – chain oil or chain wax? In this blog article, we get to the bottom of this question. With the information in this article, you can then decide for yourself whether chain oil or chain wax is the better alternative for you.

Ass-Savers Win Wing – the ingeniously simple gravel splash guard gets an update

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Ass savers win wing | lifecycle magazine

Some products are so simple that you ask yourself: Why didn’t someone think of this 20 years ago? The Win Wings from Ass-Savers are one such product. They are for anyone who doesn’t fancy a full pack of mudguards but still wants to have a dry backside when it’s raining cats and dogs outside. Last year, Ass Savers introduced the ingeniously simple (gravel) splash guard. Now there is an update.

Gravel shoe from SIDI: The MTB Dust in test

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Gravel schuh von sidi

SIDI stands for top quality and has earned a good reputation especially in the road and MTB sector. We wanted to know if the MTB Dust is a good gravel shoe from Sidi. And we wanted to know: How sustainable is the Italian shoe specialist?

Rocky Mountain Solo 2023 Review

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Rocky mountain solo 2023 test

“Old” mountain bikers know Rocky Mountain. The Canadian brand is a true mountain bike pioneer and known for absolute high-end bikes. Rocky has always been on the “harder” side of MTB sport: when we think of Rocky Mountain, we immediately have images of daredevil jumps and breathtaking North Shore trails in the Canadian forests in our minds. So by Rocky standards, the Gravel Bike itself is a lamblike ride, isn’t it?

Mechanical disc brake or hydraulic disc brake? TRP Spire C in the test

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Velocio 12 | lifecycle magazine

Can a mechanical disc brake ever be an equal alternative to a hydraulic braking system? This was the question I asked myself – more forced than voluntary. This was due to the supply problems in the bicycle world, which did not stop at individual accessories in the trade. In other words: the new brake system that I actually wanted to build on my “bike for life” was simply not available. After a long search, I decided to expand my “search radius” to mechanical systems… You can find out which brake it was and how satisfied I am with it in this article.