Hi everyone!
When we first talked about this redesigned frame from Trek, the Trek Marlin,
I mentioned to you that it's very versatile and
I showed it to you with 27.5+ plus tires installed.
Now I have cyclocross tires, 35 mm, 700c tires on it.
I used it on the rollers, I used it on the road,
but I'm planning to take it a bit off-road or
a bit more serious mountain biking,
and definitely a few of the components on it,
starting with the drivetrain,
they're too flimsy to withstand that.
So why don't we take a closer look
and see what kind of upgrades I have in store for it.
I already have a lot of videos on my channel talking about upgrades like this,
but in this video I'm gonna bring everything together
and show you what steps need to be done.
In the TREK Marlin lineup, the 6 or 7 model are worth considering,
and I said that because
they come with 8 or 9 speed drivetrains
that bring you this:
a standard Shimano HG freehub body, that you see over here,
and you will be able to install right on that wheel,
something like what I have in mind to install here:
this is an 11 speed drivetrain,
based on an XT M8000 cassette,11-42t,
and together with it, I'm gonna have an SLX M7000 shifter, and derailleur.
I have a video covering in detail how to install an 11 speed drivetrain,
I'm not gonna repeat that here,
so for now I'm just gonna remove the 8-speed components,
and put the link to the installation video in the description below.
All the tools that you need for this upgrade
would probably be in a cheap tool set like this that you can find online.
On top of that,
you're going to need some sort of a torque wrench.
It would be highly recommended
especially if you don't have a lot of experience wrenching on your bike.
Use a chain tool to remove your chain
and hex keys to disconnect everything else.
If you want to look like a pro, make sure you remove that dork disc that's behind your cassette.
As much as I want to minimize cost,
the crankset that comes with the bike uses these riveted chainrings,
so you can't really replace them.
Also, the bottom bracket is a cartridge bottom bracket that's square taper,
so you cannot just replace this crank set with one that would have a standard spider.
I need that because I want to have a 1x drivetrain,
with, you see an oval chainring here.
This uses 104 BCD,
so I have decided to replace the whole crank set
with this Shimano one, that is old.
And that comes with what's called a Hollowtech II bottom bracket.
So I'm gonna have to replace both.
Turning a tripple into a single chainring crank set.
I already have that video on my channel
and I'll make sure to put the link in description below.
To remove the cranks, you are gonna need an 8 mm hex wrench,
and what's called a crank puller,
but I'm gonna have all these details documented in a separate video
with the link in the escription below.
And that brings me to the fork.
This uses a straight steerer,
and I plan to replace the stock Suntour,
with this Rockshox Recon RL.
I already have a video, a quick check of this particular fork on the channel.
With it, I am going to use a Cane Creek 40 headset,
a straight 1"1/8,
and the installation of the fork itself is not that complicated,
and I have it covered entirely
in the "How-To build a bike from scratch" series of videos.
And probably the only tools are not mentioned in that video,
are a mallet, and a dowel,
that you're going to use to bang out the old cups from your frame
in order to install the new ones.
Some of you also asked me if it's possible
to install a tapered fork here on this frame.
The frame is for an 1" 1/8 head tube
but with the proper headset adapter that's gonna sit here at the bottom,
you can actually install a tapered fork on this bike, no problem.
So after all that work, what did we end up with?
Let's take a closer look.
I mentioned that the wheels are perfectly fine, and you can see that Shimano splined freehub,
but I decided to keep these for the road and trainer,
and on the bike I installed some spare wheels,
with the same 160 millimeter rotors,
just like the original ones came with.
One thing that I couldn't get away from is obviously the QR front and rear
that this bike uses.
And that's gonna probably be the only negative that I can find.
But moving on from that why don't we start with so...
Seat and seat post they're perfectly fine didn't touch that.
I reused the handlebar, I have replaced the 70 mm stem with a shorter one,
this is a 50 mm.
You know that I've installed a Cane Creek headset,
together with the fork, and that is still a 100 mm fork,
so I kept the geometry the way it was designed.
Here I have Shimano Deore M615 brakes
but the Tektro hydraulics that the bike comes with are perfectly fine.
I installed some different grips but the original ones are fine if you like them.
This is an SLX SL-M7000 11 speed shifter
and with that SLX 11 speed shifter,
I have the following:
First, this was a triple, I turned it into a single.
Obviously I have a video about that you were wondering.
That's an oval chainring, a 32 tooth
That is a SRAM PC-X1 chain,
and in the rear I have an 11 speed XT 11-42t from Shimano,
and the mech or rear derailleur is a GS, SLX 11 speed from Shimano as well.
The cranks that I installed are 170 mm to give me a bit more clearance
if I am to use the bike with the 27.5 plus tires.
Pedals here are Shimano PD-M520, the cheap ones
but indestructible ones.
And in this configuration with bottle cage and everything, all the changes,
the bike comes up to 26 pounds (11.8 Kg).
I started with 32 pounds (14.5Kg)
so we lost 6 pounds in the process.
The Bontrager tires were pretty good, actually similar to these.
And for early riding impressions...
the fork and the drive-train definitely make a big difference.
The fork because of its plushness,
the drivetrain because you don't have a front shifter,
and you don't have the chain slopping around
because this is a clutch derailleur,
like all 11 speeds from Shimano.
The other things that I've done,
you can see a little bit of protection here,
and yeah I'll put the link for that, it is a 3M tape.
And I'm probably also going to protect the frame a little bit here,
and underneath, and maybe the top tube a tiny bit
with 3M Scotchgard tape because it's fairly easy to do.
So what do you guys think about this upgraded TREK Marlin?
I'm really excited the way it turned out
Looking forward to using it for years to come.
What do you plan on upgrading on your TREK Marlin?
2020s are out the only thing that's changed is the color so
so everything we've done here would apply to those models as well.
In my original video I talked to you about
why Marlin 6 is probably the best bang for your buck
and I'm gonna reiterate the fact that you can reuse the wheels
This is going to keep your costs down,
and Marlin 7 doesn't improve much on the original fork that it comes with.
And that is pretty much all I have for you folks!
If you have any questions,
let me know in the section below.
If you like this don't forget to like, subscribe,
keep an eye on social media,
and until next time,
I will see you folks on the trails.
Cheers guys, cheers!