First ride review: The new 2023 Propain Tyee

For 2023, Propain introduced a revised version of their MTB all-rounder, the Tyee, which drifts into the new season with a fresh new look but relies on the same, proven PRO10 rear suspension system as its predecessor. As usual, the Tyee is available in countless wheel size and travel variants, while the spec can be customised using the German manufacturer’s extensive online configurator. We tested the new Tyee for you to tell you what it’s capable of.

The Propain Tyee has changed a lot over the past decade, rolling through the transition from 26” to 29” wheels, with some 27.5” and mullet options along the way, plus new looks and frame materials. For 2023, the German manufacturer has redeveloped their proven all-rounder from the ground up, ushering in a new era for Propain. The latest descendant of the Tyee features not only a new geometry and revised kinematics, but also a new frame silhouette with an adapted shock link and internal headset cable routing. The rear suspension was designed to be stiffer and to offer more tire clearance, while the rear brake mount now sits between the chain- and seat stays instead of on top of the chainstay.

As usual, Propain allow you to customise the spec of your Tyee using their extensive online configurator. The rear suspension generates 160 mm of travel across the board, which can be combined with either a 160 or 170 mm fork. The frame is available in both carbon fibre and 7075 aluminium versions, and can be configured with several different wheel size options. Depending on the frame size, the new Tyee rolls on 27.5″ or 29″ wheels, with the latter option allowing for a mullet conversion.

The new Propain Tyee 2023 in detail

As mentioned above, the new Tyee forgoes cable ports in the head tube. Instead, the rear brake line and shifter/dropper post cables disappear into the frame through Propain’s in-house SixPack headset, which routes them through a small port at the bottom of the stem directly into the headset. The proprietary two-piece spacer system ensures a tidy look and allows you to fine tune the cockpit, though making adjustments is a little more time consuming than with a conventional headset. The cables are routed through the frame and securely clamped at the ports, ensuring a tidy look and quiet ride. Moreover, they no longer run below the bottom bracket and only reappear briefly at the transition between the main frame and swingarm – awesome!

Propain also revised the chainstay protector, as the previous version was too hard, causing an annoying rattling noise on the trail. The updated protector is softer and longer, preventing chain slap more effectively. In addition, there’s enough room for a big water bottle in the main frame, while two bosses under the top tube serve as a tool mount. That said, you’ll have to choose between a big water bottle and your trail essentials, simply because there isn’t enough space to carry both at the same time, even with the biggest XL frame size. This is forcing you to come up with a custom solution or to use a conventional tool strap. For bike park sessions, however, you could just leave the water bottle in the car and carry a tool strap with a spare inner tube or a mini tool.

Propain’s in-house configurator

As usual, the Tyee is available in several pre-configured builds that can be customised using Propain’s extensive online configurator. However, this year’s version comes in a total of 4 spec variants – one more than its predecessor. All variants are available in three different colours and, depending on the frame size, can also be ordered as a mullet bike.

The Price2Ride model is the gateway to the Tyee dimension and is supposed to offer plenty of performance for little money. It comes equipped with Formula suspension and Formula Cura 4 brakes. Although the suspension provides a solid basis, it can’t compete with FOX and RockShox’s top tier suspension components. However, it’s a whole different story with the Formula Cura 4 brakes, which have already convinced us on several occasions in the past. A SRAM GX drivetrain, BikeYoke DIVINE dropper post and NEWMEN Performance 30 wheelset round off the overall consistent spec. Prices for the alloy version start at € 3,599 while the carbon models retail from € 4,199.

The alloy version of the SHRED² variant retails at € 4,484, its carbon counterpart sets you back € 5,084. The spec includes a beefy RockShox ZEB Ultimate fork and matching Super Deluxe Ultimate coil shock, which both deliver impressive performance on the trail. SRAM supply a reliable GX drivetrain and powerful CODE RSC brakes, while fellow Germans NEWMEN provide the EG30 alloy wheelset. The choice of dropper post and tires doesn’t leave anything to be desired either. The SHRED² model is definitely our top recommendation if you’re looking for a solid spec for a reasonable price.

The Phantom variant costs € 6,109 or € 6,709 depending on the frame material and served as the basis for our test bike.

The name alone of the Goldrush spec variant says it all. The FOX Factory suspension comes with a fancy Kashima coating, which might look great, but doesn’t bring any tangible advantages to the trail compared with FOX’s Performance series with black stanchions. A brand-new SRAM Eagle Transmission XX drivetrain ensures smooth shifting while powerful MAGURA MT7 brakes provide reliable deceleration. American manufacturer Crankbrothers supplies the Synthesis carbon wheelset, which was designed with compliance in mind. Prices range between € 7,644 and € 8,244, which isn’t all too bad considering the high-quality spec.

Our 2023 Propain Tyee test bike

Our test bike is largely based on the pre-configured Phantom variant but has a longer-travel, 170 mm RockShox ZEB fork instead of the standard 160 mm Lyrik. At the rear, we kept swapping between the air and coil versions of the RockShox Super Deluxe Ultimate shock. This setup offers countless adjustment options (i.e. high and low-speed compression damping), allowing you to fine tune your ride to suit your needs and riding style. The American component colossus also supplies the SRAM CODE RSC four-piston brakes, which are paired with 200 mm rotors front and rear. The new Tyee comes standard with an integrated rear brake-mount adapter, which allows you to swap the standard disc for a smaller 180 mm rotor at the twists of a hand. In our opinion, it would make more sense to be able to swap between a 200 and 220 mm rotor, because 180 mm discs don’t do justice to the character and intended use of the bike.

Our test bike also features a 170 mm RockShox Reverb AXS electronic dropper post. While this ensures a clean look and butter-smooth operation, it could do with slightly more travel. Long-legged riders should choose a longer-travel, cable operated dropper (i.e. BikeYoke) from the configurator, which offers more freedom of movement and also saves you some dosh! Our Tyee features SRAM’s brand-new Eagle Transmission X0 drivetrain, which attaches directly to the frame thanks to the UDH mount. SRAM’s new pods take a bit of getting used to, but Propain already use their Infinity clamps, which make it easier to set up your bike to suit you.

Our test bike rolls on a NEWMEN AL30 alloy wheelset, which has worked flawlessly throughout this test. A few laps into the test, we swapped the standard Schwalbe tires for heavier, more robust MAXXIS rubber. The additional rotating mass gave the Tyee a tad more high-speed stability and suited our test tracks better. We combined a 2.5” MAXXIS ASSEGAI in the soft MaxxGrip rubber compound and EXO+ casing at the front and a 2.4″ Minion DHR II in the tough DoubleDown casing and harder MaxxTerra compound at the rear. This combo is a great choice for all-round purposes. For the cockpit, Propain rely on their in-house components, combining a Sixpack stem and matching alloy handlebars, which we cut down to 790 mm. The only things we didn’t like were the ultra-thin grips, which offer very little cushioning. Riders with big hands should invest a few euros to upgrade the grips.

The geometry of the new Propain Tyee 2023

The new Propain Tyee is available in 5 sizes, XS to XL. All sizes feature a flip chip to adjust the geometry, but on sizes M to XL this also serves to adapt the frame for a mullet setup. Sizes XS and S are 27.5” only, while L and XL are designed for 29” or Mullet. Medium is available as either a full 27.5” build, or a 29” / mullet spec.

With a longer 170 mm fork, our test bike in size XL combines 500 mm reach and 480 mm seat tube, which is pretty long. Unfortunately, that’s also the case with all other the sizes, which makes it hard to choose the size based on your desired reach. As usual, the bottom bracket is pretty high, which has a greater influence on the character of the bike. We recommend playing around with different flip chip settings and stack heights. Chainstay length is 430 mm on all variants with a 27.5″ rear wheel, and 445 mm on all models with a big 29” wheel. Countless manufacturers adapt the chainstay length to ensure consistent handling across all sizes.

The geometry of the 2023 Propain Tyee (170 mm fork)

Size	XS (27.5″)	S (27.5″)	M (27.5″)	M (29/Mix)	L (29/Mix)	XL (29/Mix)
Top Tube	528 mm	559 mm	588 mm	592 mm	620 mm	647 mm
Seat Tube	380 mm	400 mm	425 mm	425 mm	450 mm	480 mm
Head Tube	90 mm	110 mm	125 mm	105 mm	115 mm	125 mm
Head Angle	64.1°	64.1°	64.1°	64.1°	64.1°	64.1°
Seat Angle	77.5°	77.5°	77.5°	77.1°	77.1°	77.1°
BB Drop	7.8 mm	7.8 mm	7.8 mm	23.8 mm	23.8 mm	23.8 mm
Chainstay	430 mm	430 mm	430 mm	445 mm	445 mm	445 mm
Wheelbase	1157.3 mm	1190.3 mm	1222.3 mm	1235 mm	1264 mm	1294 mm
Reach	400.5 mm	425.5 mm	450.5 mm	450.5 mm	475.5 mm	500.5 mm
Stack	579.3 mm	597.3 mm	610.3 mm	624.4 mm	633.4 mm	642.4 mm

The new 2023 Propain Tyee 2023 on the trail

For this test, we hooked up with the people from Propain in Santa Coloma de Farners, Spain, which is exactly where we produced our Light-eMTB group test a couple of months ago (and also the humongous eMTB test for our sister magazine E-MOUNTAINBIKE). As a result, we were already familiar with the local trails. We also spent a day at the local bike park, Pure Riding, where we were able to put the Propain through the wringer and test it thoroughly in all its different settings on the fast, rough trails.

When making your way to the trailhead under your own steam, the Tyee places you in a front-heavy pedalling position, which puts a slight pressure on your hands on level ground, but keeps the front wheel planted as the gradient gets steeper. Especially with the coil shock, the rear end bobs slightly, making it worth reaching for the climb switch on long climbs. However, this isn’t easy because the shock is mounted upside-down, and as a result, you’ll have to reach a long way down to flick the lever, or even get off the bike if you’re not a contortionist.

When you drop into a trail to shred your way back down into the valley, the Tyee strikes with agile, playful handling from the get-go. Even with the coil shock, the rear suspension is surprisingly stiff, providing bags of pop and support, making it easy to flick the rear end from one corner into the next, and to really turn the heat up on flowing trails. The suspension provides insane amounts of reserves, gobbling up nasty hits without abruptly passing them on to the rider. However, the stiff rear end translates into a major lack of traction, especially in off-camber sections and with sudden braking manoeuvres. Switching to an air shock makes little sense, because the light shock tune exacerbates the super-progressive nature of the PRO10 rear suspension system. During this test, we used a more robust rear tire with the tough Doubledown casing, which has better damping qualities and allows you to run lower air pressures for better traction.

With its high bottom bracket, the Tyee positions you on top of the bike rather than integrating you between its wheels, which makes it easier to spontaneously change your line on flowing trails but at the same time robs you of confidence on steeper, faster trails. Once again, the higher rotating mass of the tires inspires more confidence, albeit at the expense of agility. However, this was still the best choice for our bike-park session. Furthermore, when the going gets rough, the long seat tube can get in your way. When swapping to a smaller rear wheel, you’re integrated deeper into the bike. If you do so, you should also adjust the stem height accordingly, to prevent having to shift your weight too much in flatter sections – turning the flip chip into the lower setting increases this sensation. The choice of wheel size and geometry adjustment should allow you to adapt your bike well to the trail conditions.

Who should take a closer look at the new 2023 Propain Tyee?

The Tyee is the all-rounder in Propain’s portfolio and continues to fulfil this purpose. If you’re looking for the one bike for everything, the Tyee might be exactly what you’re looking for, provided you’re happy to take it down a notch on very steep, fast trails. Despite the generous travel, the new Tyee is more of a conservative trail bruiser than a rowdy enduro banger, but at the end of the day that’s exactly what makes it the versatile, practical everyday bike it is. Propain’s extensive configurator allows you to customise the spec of your Tyee down to the smallest detail. In a nutshell, the new Tyee proved an excellent companion for all sorts of riding, from flowing home trails to the occasional bike park session.

Our conclusions about the new 2023 Propain Tyee 2023

The new 2023 Propain Tyee drifts into the new season with a fresh new look and countless clever updates, some of which make it a lot quieter than its predecessor. The four pre-configured builds are well thought-out and as usual Propain’s extensive online configurator allows for countless customisation options. On the trail, the Tyee proves an excellent companion in a wide range of riding situations, from flowing trails through the local woods to the occasional rowdy bike park session – provided you’re happy to make a few sacrifices!

For more info, please visit Propain’s website.