Spotted in 2018 ridden by Aaron Gwin, then launched in Feb of 2019, the current 29in YT Tues is now officially 5 years old. That’s the same year that YT launched its Decoy e-bike, which hasn’t received an update either. Has YT’s development team been sitting on its hands for all that time, or did it just get both bikes right, straight out of the gate? Having spent two weeks testing the top-end Tues Core 4 29 in Morzine, France, it’s clearly the latter, even compared to the much younger Propain Rage and Canyon Sender that it’s up against in this three-way DH shootout.

The YT Tues is a mighty fine looking downhill bike, with the ride quality to back up the flawless finish.

YT Tues Core 4 29 need to know

• Full carbon frame with 200mm travel
• Available in 29in or 27.5in, but not MX
• Three size options based on reach
• Tues Core 4 is the flagship model
• Fox Factory suspension
• E13 DH Carbon wheels and 9-21t cassette
• SRAM Code RSC brakes
• Zero geometry adjustment
• Entry level alloy Core 2 £3,499

Frame and geometry

Wind the clock back to 2019 when 29er downhill bikes were still being referred to as wagon wheels, and brands were scrambling to get new designs under racers, some hasty designs were more successful than others. Looking at the geometry and sizing of the Tues 29 through a 2024 lens, the numbers haven’t dated one bit. The 62.6º head angle, 349mm BB height and 1,272mm wheelbase on the Regular size Tues 29 puts it right in the mix with the most modern DH bikes. Even the 442mm chainstays are short by current 29er standards.

On the YT Tues you’re simply sizing for your preferred reach measurement

The frame comes in three sizes, Regular, Long and X-Long and all have the same 420mm seat tube height. So essentially you’re sizing for reach and head tube length. And what’s most telling is that even five years on, we opted for the Regular size with its 460mm reach. Yes, that puts us right at the upper limit of YT’s sizing recommendation, but it’s still in line with the dimensions of the size M Canyon Sender, which is the most current bike our Direct Sales Downhill bike test.

There’s no chainstay length adjustment on the YT Tues, so 442mm it is then

And it’s a good thing that YT nailed the profile of the carbon Tues first time round. Because there are zero geometry adjustments designed into the frame. So other than raising or lowering the 40mm Kashima coated stanchions in the fork crowns of the Fox 40, you’re stuck with those numbers. There’s also a full 27.5in version of the Tues Core 4, and if anything dates the platform, it’s the distinct absence of an MX build. We’ve seen riders using 27.5in rear wheels, but given that the geometry really is optimised around a 29in rear wheel, you’re going to need some other custom modes to make that work on the current design.

Suspension

We’ve already mentioned that the Tues does not have hard point geometry adjustments on the frame. But that doesn’t mean you can not manipulate the dynamic geometry and handling of the bike. Best of all you can do so in seconds. With the air-sprung Fox Float X2 shock on the flagship Core 4 build, you can fine tune the static sag with just a shock pump.

The Fox Float X2 was the only air-sprung shock in test

And the emphasis really is on fine tuning the 200mm of available rear travel. Standard coil springs, like the ones supplied with the Canyon Sender, come in 50lb jumps, so on a 500lb spring the next step is a whopping 10% increase in spring force. With the Fox Factory level air shock on the Core 4, you still get the 4-way adjustable damping, but you can increase the spring pressure by as little as 1psi. You also have the ability to bend the spring curve by changing the volume spacers in the air can and manipulate how the V4L suspension behaves.

The YT Tues Core 4 uses a classic 4-bar suspension design and pumps out 200mm travel

The real beauty of the Tues though, is that YT has nailed the baseline damping settings, so even with all of the available adjustment on the shock, setup was as easy as one, two, three. Need more pedal clearance for flatter tracks and want to make it easier to keep the front end weighted? Simply add a squirt of air to the shock. Surfing steeps, with the tyre buzzing the seat of your race pants? Drop the pressure, increase the sag and don’t use too much front brake.

With Fox 40 forks on all three test bikes, we could easily transfer settings

With the Fox 40 Factory fork we started out with the two volume spacers, but quickly noticed that we weren’t achieving close to the full 203mm travel, even though we’d got used to riding steeper terrain and weren’t just hanging off the back of the bike. We also really liked the overall riding position on the Tues with the fork sag we’d settled on, so we simply removed one of the volume spacers. This simple change allowed us to gain access to more fork travel without experiencing any harsh bottom outs. We then implemented the same change to the Fox 40 on the Propain Rage and Canyon Sender – the other bikes in this test.

Components

Rather than simply sticking a shorter cassette on a standard freehub like SRAM has done, E13 has designed its dedicated DH rear hub and freehub body around its own 7-speed DH cassette. Not only does this increase the distance between the hub flanges, it helps balance spoke tension on both sides of the wheel, boosting both stiffness and strength, even with the narrower 150mm hub spacing. And that extra stiffness does not result in a harsher ride or a loss of traction on off-camber sections of track, at least on the YT Tues. If anything, the Tues benefits from the stiffness boost of the hub design and the carbon E13 rims, because the way the back end of the frame is laid out, it’s not a super stiff design.

E13’s compact 7-speed cassette and dedicated DH hub are a nice touch, but the rear mech knuckle slaps against the Horst link in the taller gears.

That’s not to say the E13 LG1 cassette is perfect though. Sure the more compact 9-21t gear ratio is neat and combined with the 34t chainring, offers more clearance and potential weight savings. In fact, the YT was the lightest bike in this test by almost a kilo. Shifting feels more clunky than on the SRAM cassette, and when you shift down the cassette, the knuckle of the SRAM derailleur starts to knock on the underside of the chainstay pivot when you land a jump or skip across the tops of braking bumps. And that’s even with the generous rubber protection YT has added to the underside of the frame. So you really need to crank the b-tension of the derailleur right up and stay up the cassette to minimise it. Which is probably why YT didn’t go with smaller chainring, even if a lower gear would have been useful just for cruising back up to the chairlift.

Renthal’s oversized 35mm bar and stem help keep the YT on track

At the opposite end of the frame, YT fits an oversized 35mm Renthal FatBar and Integra 50mm stem to the Tues. And while Renthal bars have been criticised for being overly stiff, again they seem to complement the overall ride-vibe to the Tues frame perfectly. You need to consider the overall system stiffness, and in creating the Core 4, YT has put together a bike that feels great, rather than just assembling a random array of fancy components.

Nowhere to hide with the SDG I-fly saddle

Actually that’s not 100% true, the ODI grips are pretty thin and lack cushioning, much like the skinny SDG I-Fly saddle that sits atop the carbon I-Beam seat post. Small details though that don’t detract from the overall ride feel.

Performance

For a bike that’s just turned 5 years old, the YT Tues Core 4 shows no sign of slowing down. And if anyone doubted its current race pedigree, Oisin O’Callaghan put those doubts to rest by winning the 2023 World Cup DH in Snowshoe, USA, on a stock Tues frame, in full 29er mode.And after spending two weeks in the Alps testing the three DH bikes in this shootout, the standout trait of the Tues has to be just how easy it is to ride. From the get go, it felt balanced and safe, without ever feeling dull. And as a result, it was the bike that we spent the least time tweaking.

Like we said, this bike is so easy to ride it just makes you want to get loose

Okay, so it has no geometry adjustments, and yes, you could argue that maybe we got lucky with a good initial suspension setup. But we took the exact same approach with all three bikes, so we feel that it’s fair to say that the Tues is easier to set up, or at the very least, has a bigger setup window than the other bikes. In fact, the only real setup tip you need is to push the SDG saddle as far forward as possible on the head of the I-Beam post and don’t run the saddle height too low, or the rear tyre will buzz the saddle on every drop.

Bigger rotors are needed to keep the YT’s raw speed in check

Other minor criticisms of the build kit are the 200mm rotors and the Maxxis Assegai rear tyre. So let’s address both separately. With a 29in rear wheel and SRAM Code RSC brakes a DH bike really should have 220mm rotors as standard, especially for heavier riders. And that’s because bigger wheels generate less braking torque. More stopping power, require less effort, which in turn helps save your hands on longer runs.

Hold it wide open and and the YT Tues Core 4 29 delivers

Now for the rear tyre. The Maxxis Assegai is a great front tyre, and in the Maxx Grip compound with a DH casing YT had nailed the specification. In fact, we used it as our control tyre on all of the bikes, due to its inherent predictability in a wide range of conditions. It’s draggy as a rear tyre though, and is why you don’t see any pro races running out back. The fix is simple then, is to whip it off and keep it a spare front tyre and slap a Minion DHR II on the back.

Steep or deep, the YT Tues can handle it all

Okay, so the specification isn’t perfect, but the ride quality of the YT Tues Core 4 is first rate. There is plenty of support in the rear suspension, so even with 200mm of travel, the bike never feels wallowy and is really well balanced when hitting jumps, big or small. And that composure carries over to faster, rougher tracks too, without the bike ever feeling overly harsh. If anything, it’s only when you start pushing the YT to shave time off your run, that you notice it offers less pinpoint precision than the Canyon Sender CFR. And as a DH race bike, that’s an important differentiator.

No need for adjustment; the YT Tues Core 4 29 is totally dialled. Just needs an MX wheel option