Propain Sresh SL
Wheel Sizes: 29’’ or 29’’ front / 27.5’’ rear
Suspension Travel:
- Frame: 150 mm
- Fork: 160 mm
Geometry Highlights:
- Sizes offered: S, M, L, XL
- Headtube angle: 64.5º
- Reach (size Large): 480 mm
- Chainstay length (all sizes): 453 mm
Drive System Highlights:
- Motor: TQ HPR60
- Torque: 60 Nm
- Power: 350 W
- Battery: TQ 580 or 360 Wh
- Display: TQ HPR In-Frame Color Display
- Remote: TQ HPR Remote
Frame Material: Carbon fiber
Price: Complete bikes from about $6,968 to $12,205 USD (price at time of publishing for stock builds; customized options vary)
Intro
Propain has been in the eMTB business for a little over six years now, sticking to the full-power category — that is, until now.
Propain’s new Sresh SL is their new weight-conscious eMTB, and only the second mountain bike so far to integrate TQ’s HPR60 drive system. Call it light-assist, call it mid-assist — but whatever you call it, the new Sresh SL eMTB is designed to be lighter, quieter, and more “natural feeling” than Propain’s other pedal-assist offerings.
Propain has mostly stuck to the same formula as their mid-travel Sresh CF, while also designing the Sresh SL to be a different spin on a versatile eMTB. Let’s get into the details.
The Frame
The Sresh SL frame is only available in a high-modulus carbon fiber, and it keeps the same 150 mm of rear travel as its full-power sibling, the Sresh CF. Additionally, this new eMTB uses Propain’s standard PRO10 suspension layout, which is a dual mini-link design that compresses the shock from both ends, instead of using a more conventional fixed mount at one end of the shock.
Propain’s PRO10 suspension gives the Sresh SL a leverage curve with 25% progression, which is on the more progressive end of the spectrum while certainly remaining inside conventional standards for today’s eMTBs. Additionally, liveliness and efficiency appear to be a goal with the Sresh SL, accentuated by its higher anti-squat numbers, sitting at around 125% at sag (30% of rear suspension travel) with a 34-tooth chainring up front, and on a 50-tooth cog in the rear. Propain states that the Sresh SL’s suspension kinematics are designed with air and coil shock options in mind.
The Sresh SL has water bottle and tool mounts inside the front triangle, 12×148 mm rear axle spacing, a decent bit of frame protection, and a SRAM UDH. Additionally, it’s worth mentioning that the Sresh SL integrates the TQ HPR60 drive system very cleanly into the frame — more on this next.
The Sresh SL is available in three colors and has a ton of different head badges and decal options that provide a considerable amount of personalization.
Drive System
As I mentioned earlier, the Sresh SL is only the second eMTB to integrate TQ’s HPR60 drive system, which launched a few weeks ago as of publication. Propain refers to HPR60 as a “mid-assist” system (sure, why not), designed to provide a quiet and natural-feeling ride. I’ve been testing HPR60 on the Yeti MTe, and so far, I’m a big fan of TQ’s latest drive system.
As the name suggests, the HPR60 has 60 Nm of torque, paired with a max output of 350 watts. In short, this system is designed with power delivery and heat-shedding in mind, with cooling fins aiding in the latter. Additionally, HPR60 comes with an integrated color top tube display. The HPR60 is controlled via a simple remote on the left side of the handlebars. TQ makes a range extender for their drive systems that adds 160 watt-hours of battery life and mounts to standard water bottle bosses.
Integrated into the Sresh SL frame is a battery door that can be removed without tools. Behind this door is a place to store a multi-tool, and the Sresh’s TQ battery can be removed with one Allen key by loosening a bolt near the top of the underside of the down tube. Propain is offering the Sresh SL with two different battery sizes, 360 Wh and 580 Wh — more on this in the “Build Kits” section.
Fit & Geometry
The Sresh SL uses strikingly similar geometry to the full-power Sresh CF. It’s available in four sizes, Small through Extra Large. A glance at the geometry chart shows modern numbers with a few details that stand out. With full 29” wheels, the Large Sresh SL has a reach of 480 mm, which is pretty average for this class. In the same wheel size configuration, the Sresh SL has a 64.5º head tube angle and an effective seat tube angle of 78º.
Propain uses the same length chainstays for all sizes of the Sresh SL, and they’re long ones. At 453 mm in the full 29er configuration, these chainstays are on the lengthier side of their class. The stack height of the 29” Sresh SL is at 632 mm for the size Large, which is pretty average for bikes with 160 mm forks.
As I’ve alluded to a few times, the Sresh SL is available as both a full 29er as well as a mixed-wheel bike with a 29” front wheel and a 27.5” rear wheel. A pair of flip chips where the rear triangle meets the upper linkage handle the swap. Switching the orientation of these chips allows you to run either size wheel out back. But, compared to the Sresh SL with 29” wheels front and back and the chips in the “29” setting, running a smaller wheel out back, even with the chips set to the “27.5” setting, does alter the geometry slightly. Doing this shortens the reach by 5 mm, increases the stack height by 4 mm, slackens the head and seat tube angles by 0.4º, shortens the chainstays by 3 mm, and lowers the bottom bracket by 6 mm.
Interestingly, Propain also condones running the Sresh SL with a 27.5” wheel out back, but leaving the flip chips in “29” mode — a “secret menu” setting they call “Shred Setting.” Propain states, “If the low position (marked ‘29’) is used in the mixed wheel setup, this results in a more downhill-orientated geometry, but it works well and is even preferred by some of our athletes. The head angle is slacker, the reach is more compact, and the bottom bracket is lower.”
The full geometry for the Sresh SL is below:
The Builds
Propain offers five different build kits for the Sresh SL, as well as two additional kits only available in the North American market — the “Signature” kits. Additionally, as with all PROPAIN bikes, their online configurator allows for extensive customization on the Sresh SL in case one might want different suspension, brakes, wheels, tires, etc. From the cockpit to wheel size to cable routing, several details can be tailored independently from each other.
All five standard build kits come with the 360 Wh TQ battery, while the two North American “Signature” kits use the heavier, higher capacity 580 Wh battery. Conveniently, the TQ battery can be swapped with a single Allen key, meaning you aren’t married to whatever battery size comes on your Sresh SL, though you will need to purchase the other size of the battery aftermarket.
The full build details are as follows:
Base (€5,994):
- Drivetrain: SRAM Eagle 70 Transmission
- Brakes: SRAM DB8 (200 mm rotors)
- Fork: RockShox Psylo Gold RC (160 mm)
- Shock: RockShox Deluxe Select
- Wheels: NEWMEN Performance 30
- Dropper post: OneUp V3
Bomber (€6,629):
- Drivetrain: Shimano XTR Di2
- Brakes: Magura MT5 (203 mm rotors)
- Fork: Marzocchi Bomber Z1 (160 mm)
- Shock: Marzocchi Bomber Air
- Wheels: NEWMEN Performance 30
- Dropper post: OneUp V3
Swedish Gold (€7,939):
- Drivetrain: SRAM Eagle 70 Transmission
- Brakes: SRAM Maven Silver (200 mm rotors)
- Fork: Öhlins RXF 38 (160 mm)
- Shock: Öhlins TTX 22 Coil
- Wheels: DT Swiss EX1700
- Dropper post: OneUp V3
Ultimate (€8,239):
- Drivetrain: SRAM GX Eagle Transmission
- Brakes: SRAM Maven Silver (200 mm rotors)
- Fork: RockShox Lyrik Ultimate (160 mm)
- Shock: RockShox Super Deluxe Ultimate
- Wheels: NEWMEN Beskar 30
- Dropper post: RockShox Reverb AXS
Factory (€10,499):
- Drivetrain: Shimano XTR Di2
- Brakes: Shimano XTR (203 mm rotors)
- Fork: Fox 36 Factory Grip X2 (160 mm)
- Shock: Fox Float X 2-position
- Wheels: DT Swiss EXC1200
- Dropper post: Fox Transfer Factory
Signature 1 ($7,399 USD):
- Drivetrain: SRAM Eagle 70 Transmission
- Brakes: Magura MT5 (203 mm rotors)
- Fork: Marzocchi Bomber Z1 (160 mm)
- Shock: Marzocchi Bomber Air
- Wheels: Crankbrothers E-Bike Alloy
- Dropper post: OneUp V3
Signature 2 ($8,799 USD):
- Drivetrain: SRAM GX Eagle Transmission
- Brakes: SRAM Maven Silver (200 mm rotors)
- Fork: RockShox Lyrik Ultimate (160 mm)
- Shock: RockShox Super Deluxe Ultimate
- Wheels: DT Swiss EX1700
- Dropper post: OneUp V3
Some Questions / Things We’re Curious About
(1) With pretty long chainstays and not a very high stack height, will the Sresh SL feel like it biases the rider’s weight aggressively forward?
(2) How different will the Sresh SL feel in each of the 3 possible wheel size / geometry flip chip configurations? Will we find ourselves preferring one over the other two?
(3) With a fairly progressive suspension leverage curve paired with long chainstays, how playful versus planted will the Sresh SL feel on the trail?
Bottom Line (For Now)
Propain’s latest eMTB looks like a promising venture into the light/mid-assist category for the brand, building off of their existing Sresh CF. We have a Sresh SL coming for a long-term review, so stay tuned for our on-trail thoughts as we begin spending time on this new bike.