First ride on my Specialized Fat Boy Comp; picked it up last night, and rode for an hour from the door on bridleways and tracks, which needless to say were very muddy and cut up.
Bit weird on the tarmac initially as steering felt sluggish (i have hardly been off road this year, mainly on the dark side) but once into the mud and we were off! sliced through the deep dark puddles (mini lakes) shot down a sketchy track the horses and rain have cut up, struggled on the short grass section, very greasy and traction not good, probably got too much pressure in tyres. Dealt with the 100m of “technical” section (rocks, ankle deep mud, stream) like it didnt exsist, just ploughed through everything. Then screamed down the last section of bridleway.
Firts impressions; im in love!! As everyone on here has said fat bikes are grin inducing and just make you want to ride.
Plan is to get some bivvying on Dartmoor and take it over the open moor, i think it will excel.
And yes YOU do need a fat bike.

You’re me, aren’t you? I feel just the same. I’ve ridden my Carbon Jekyll twice since buying a secondhand Fatty 7 weeks ago.

worst kept secret in cycling, Fat is the future 8)

Just give us a bloody picture if you are going to start posts like this.

I need a fatty to lose my fatty belly, way too much food and drink over the Christmas period 😳

I haven’t ridden any of my other bikes since buying my Pug 6 weeks ago.

I really, really enjoy riding it.

i found mine has affected my mileage, 620 miles down on last year, but then 10 miles on a fatty is probably worth 15 on a normal mtb effort wise

Dartmoor is perfect fat bike territory. We live in Okehampton and got the fat bikes last year. It’s made the local riding a lot more fun!!

Photos please

I’m nearly there also

Felt DD30
On One Fatty Trail
or Spesh Fatboy Pro

All with Bluto, and 1×11
But the Felt does’nt have the Dropper post. My finances tell me Fatty Trail, but something is shouting Fatboy!

Did’nt fancy the Jumbo’s on mud (Felt)
Need to understand how the Floaters will do on mud
and the Spesh Control tyres, at 4.6 inch, i hear are pretty good

Like everyone, we got loads of mud up North!

Another request for photo’s right here!

Need to understand how the Floaters will do on mud

They’re pretty good in the mud, however in wet sludgy mud you still need to be ready for loss of traction, flat pedals reommended 🙂

The Floaters are miles better than jumbo Jims in sticky mud….bit of drag but hey in mud clag and off road I still swear it’s easier going than a standard HT MTB……haven’t ridden any other bikes since having the fatty.

The price for the On One is a grand less than the price of the Spesh. I’ve been trying to get some idea of how the floaters perform, so above comments appreciated Suggsey

Looks like a trip over to Sheffield on Saturday…….

I did a 22 mile mud slog the other day, could have done another 8 or so before needing to refuel on them…..my mate was on ground control 4.6 on his Fatboy and had no more grip than me and it was proper over the rims clay based deep stuff…… I only had one technical dismount 😆
They’re heavier of course but then I’ve put a gallon of slime in the tubes too for thorn punctures……..run at 8psi for grip, 20psi to seal the thorn punctures 😆

I really didn’t need to click on this thread :(.

Also live on Dartmoor and have been thinking lately how well suited a fat bike would be to local conditions.

Problem is lack funds and time to ride the 2 bikes I own already…

Have been eyeing up a fat front set up for my karate monkey, but wondering whether I should just weigh in and flog one of the bikes to go full fat

Careful – you’ll end up selling them both (like me).

That’s an option I’m considering!

Floater fine on the rear but Bud on the front makes a big difference. Front end grip now appears to be infinite.

Yeah, I’ve gone for the nuclear option of 2 Buds, I expect to be able to ride on the ceiling. Way I see it with tyres is there’s not often much point in trying to cut corners, a less good tyre handicaps the entire bike so you get less out of your £1000 for the sake of saving £50. Or less out of your ride.

Also I am a tyre fetishist so that comes into it a bit. MMMMM tyres

There was some 120tpi v tyre hillbillies on ebay, they’re supposed to be alright.

Surely Lou on the rear, can’t imagine Bud being great up a muddy hill on the rear.

Folks who’ve tried the Bud on the rear say it works well

Floaters are half price at the moment, £20 and I think there is a tyre code out there which will give you another few pounds off that too!

Re floaters
Use the code PR12DWHEETYRES and get them for £17.59 (today only!!!!).

I now have one more fat bike than I expected to have and now a total of six tyres. This is madness. But at that price, keep them as spares/possible sledge! I have a 120TPI v tyre Hillbilly on the back and a 3.8 Nate on the front. Seem to be working fine. Jumbo Jims sealed in a box marked ‘DO NOT OPEN UNTIL SUMMER’

I really don’t need a bluto. £375 tho….

I would REALLY like to try a fat bike. Just to convince me that I don’t need one. Possibly.

Dear MCTD .

You really don’t need one.

Like I didn’t.

Hope that helps.

😉

Where are the bloody pictures?

Ive got an OO Fatty thats a year old, I didn’t think I needed another one, but I was wrong!
I am now building a Fatty Trail for racing/fast road rides because the frame was half price :/

I would love to have a spin on one.

Anyone in the Cambridge/Ely/Cambs area fancy a spin out one day?

I would REALLY like to try a fat bike. Just to convince me that I don’t need one. Possibly.

[quote]I would love to have a spin on one. [/quote]
Depends what you’re used to.

Take the wheels away and you have an efficient and sharp-steering but sometimes brutal 26″ rigid.

But the wheels + tyres make a difference. The rolling diameter is huge so trail chatter just disappears. The tyres are so wide there’s no need for clever tread patterns or super tacky/vertstar compounds that drag everywhere. The fat tyres grip because there’s so much rubber in contact with the ground – and yet they don’t drag. A true game-changer (at least it was for me). Thin tyres are just all wrong for MTBing 😕

So you have all the advantages of a stiff + efficient rigid bike but without the harshness. It only works up to a point of course when conditions overwhelm the fat tyres and you’re abruptly reminded that you are in fact riding a bike without any suspension. The moment when this happens is entirely up to you and where/how you ride but don’t let that put you off – the rest of the time it’s an addictive experience.

@Rocketman, you’re really not helping…

Loving Surly Wednesday! Nate tyres are great in the current sludge!

rocketman – Member

So you have all the advantages of a stiff + efficient rigid

I’ve had stiff and efficient rigid bikes. My fatbike has absolutely none of the advantages of that. It’s slow, it’s heavy, it’s draggy, it’s anything but efficient. Well… Unless you redefine advantage. The only real “advantage” of my scandal was that it was brilliantly shite offroad, the only thing good about it was its badness. It made easy trails harder and hard trails ridiculous, and all trails different from riding them on a good bike.

And the fatty is similar. It’s a much less good bike at practically everything I do (and the few things it does better are things I don’t really care about), and as a result it’s great fun. It’s like the difference between a great gig by your favourite band, and getting drunk and doing Danger Zone at karaoke even though the only words you know are Danger Zone.

My fatbike has absolutely none of the advantages of that. It’s slow, it’s heavy, it’s draggy, it’s anything but efficient

Unlucky 🙂

It’s just how they are, there’s not enough koolaid in the world to change that… Though by all means though show me your 18lb fatbike with the rolling resistance of a rapid rob 😆

Er, I think I agree with Rocketman rather than Northwind. Its definitely closer to a rigid singlespeed in riding terms, but with the benefits of the big tyres for grip and (small) bump absorption. And you can ride them ANYWHERE 😀

Anyway, have some Fatboys on me. Mines the one on the right.

[url=https://flic.kr/p/BkPoa2]PC057310[/url] by Allan, on Flickr

Just added some extra mud protection as billys had a sale on. Can’t test it out just yet but it fits well and looks like it’ll provide decent cover. Fat gut on front and fat Face on rear tyre

I’m with Rocketman on this, it’s not as fast to accelerate, but rolling resistance isn’t increased much over a normal bike with similar tires, it’s certainly better than riding a normal bike with supertackies.

The exceptions are deep mud where you’re constantly trying to climb onto it, so it’s like riding uphill, through treacle. The upside is, all the normal bikes are off an walking a long way behind you so you’ve got time to kill. And headwinds.

I would have added photos but i have been to busy riding my fatty through all this mud and dampness while whooping and shouting for joy as it ploughs through everything.
Also the comments people make; “is it electric” as i grinded up a wet muddy bank, “like your tyres” “nice bike mister”, in fact most people stare and grin as you go past.
Going to try it at Haldon tonight, first time on a trail centre so will be interesting, see if i can punish some of my old strava times!!

I’ve pegged some top 3 strava times on mine – downhill rather than uphill! but quite surprised given that most of the time I’m on a geared hardtail, and the fattie is SS 32/19 and spun out.