Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 173 total)
  • Has the fatbike bubble finally burst ?
  • roverpig
    Full Member

    “It’s been a tough season and the fat bike bubble finally burst”

    John Fleck, Surly’s global sales manager (July 2016)

    zilog6128
    Full Member

    Hope so, would love to pick up a decent one dirt cheap to see what all the fuss is about!

    ton
    Full Member

    no idea, test rode one, didn’t like it. bought a 29+ which is not a million miles away from fat, but it just seems to feel better.
    so i reckon + might be fashionable now.

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    trail_rat
    Free Member

    it was over when on-one got in on the action.

    how ever bought in early and discovered the fun – sold that after a few years due to changing standards and dont see me selling my new one any time soon.

    might be unfashionable but it never stopped being fun !

    smell_it
    Free Member

    I think the guy from Surly is in a far better position to say than most STW’ers.

    But I would think context is needed, in terms of growing or expanding sales the bubble may have burst, plus size wheel’s offer a lot of choices in competition with fatbikes. But I doubt the bubble has burst for those owning and enjoying riding their fatbikes! And I’m sure more will be sold, and for some it might always be the right bike.

    I guess, I wouldn’t be looking to set up a company solely selling fatbikes in light of the comments if I wanted to make my millions. But to be fair, if a tyre gets wider than 25mm, I’m out 🙂

    zippykona
    Full Member

    Was there ever a bubble?
    I won’t be buying another bike but I’ll certainly be buying tyres.

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    But I would think context is needed, in terms of growing or expanding sales the bubble may have burst, plus size wheel’s offer a lot of choices in competition with fatbikes

    Or at the very least has the bubble burst for someone who used to be one of the biggest sellers in the market, mainstream has hit and the smaller players will not get as much of the pie anymore.

    5thElefant
    Free Member

    Or has gone mainstream. Why would you buy a surly when go outdoors and halfords offer the same for less?

    Edit: too slow. Mike has it.

    PJM1974
    Free Member

    Quite a few manufacturers seem to be hedging their bets with 2.75+, giving you the option to swap to 29″ wheels if you so wish.

    I’ve not seen a single fatbike on my local trails, not one. The last time I saw one outside of a bike shop, it was being pedalled by an intrepid commuter around Piccadilly Circus a couple of months ago.

    ndthornton
    Free Member

    No its just having a break for Summer
    Wait till the slop reappears

    kayak23
    Full Member

    I rode mine xc last night, so no.

    scotroutes
    Full Member

    I’d suggest there have been more fatbikes sold this year than Surly ever manufactured.

    neilsonwheels
    Free Member

    I’m late to the table and loving it. I live next to a big old stretch of beach and dunes so it makes perfect sense for me.

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    Why would you buy a surly when go outdoors and halfords offer the same for less?

    although this arguement is funny .

    ive seen many people on here declare all fat bikes are shit because the one that they bought that was only availible in one size from halfords/go outdoors a.n.other shite brand that had chainstays 2 weeks long and heavier than dark matter – means all fat bikes are useless/pointless – but it was cheap.

    Denis99
    Free Member

    I just bought an Alpkit Vir Fortis, so its not over for me.

    Been a bit of a revelation really.

    Stopped using Strava, and just going out to ride.

    Must be my old(er) age, but I appear to be enjoying riding more again.

    perchypanther
    Free Member

    ive seen many people on here declare all fat bikes are shit because the one that they bought that was only availible in one size from halfords/go outdoors a.n.other shite brand that had chainstays 2 weeks long and heavier than dark matter – means all fat bikes are useless/pointless – but it was cheap.

    Perception is everything it seems.

    My overwhelming impression ( rightly or wrongly) based on being fatbike curious and following the various fat bike threads on here over the past year is that almost all of the folks who’ve bought a Dune / Wazoo are pretty thrilled with them and that a few tweaks to the setup and a change of tyres is what’s required to make them usable for a bargain price.

    Might have got the wrong end of the stick though. Still going to buy one.

    thepodge
    Free Member

    PJM1974 – I’ve not seen a single fatbike on my local trails, not one. The last time I saw one outside of a bike shop, it was being pedalled by an intrepid commuter around Piccadilly Circus a couple of months ago.

    I see one almost every week going into Sheffield centre, no idea where he’s going as occasionally I see him on other bikes so I guess its not being used as a commuter.

    clodhopper
    Free Member

    “Why would you buy a surly when go outdoors and halfords offer the same for less?”

    Now that you can buy a ‘fatbike’ for just £500 or so, why spend twice that or more on what, for most folk, will just be a short-lived fad? Surly etc rely on their products being sufficiently ‘niche’ to be able to command the relatively high prices their small production requires. As soon as the big players get in on the acton, it’s more or less game over for the little fish. So they have to come up with more new ideas, if they want to stay in the game. Which is great for innovation, as small companies are more flexible and can try out new ideas more easily than larger ones, but not so great for people who need to feel ‘exclusive’.

    Tricycles. They’re the next big thing. You heard it here first. 😉

    5thElefant
    Free Member

    ive seen many people on here declare all fat bikes are shit because the one that they bought that was only availible in one size from halfords/go outdoors a.n.other shite brand that had chainstays 2 weeks long and heavier than dark matter – means all fat bikes are useless/pointless – but it was cheap.

    Posters on the 1k fat bike thread seem to say the opposite. Endless on one fatty love seems at odds too.

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    Posters on the 1k fat bike thread seem to say the opposite. Endless on one fatty love seems at odds too.

    they sell on-one at go outdoors/halfords now ?

    i regard on one as the start of representitive of actual fat bikes approaching useful and fun as opposed to being an lookie likey compromised bucket of a bike.

    im talking the 300 quid market “bargains”

    chestrockwell
    Full Member

    The only one of my pals who threatened to get one has stopped talking about them so the answer is ‘YES’.

    roverpig
    Full Member

    I’ve not seen a single fatbike on my local trails, not one.

    At the risk of derailing my own thread, I’d not seem another one on my trails either* until last weekend when I was riding (my fatbike) on a trail where I’ve never previously seen another soul. There stopped on the trail ahead are a couple on a pair of Genesis Caribou fatbikes! Unfortunately the midges were too active for a long chat, but it was a pleasant surprise.

    * I have spotted a few fat tyre tracks though and I don’t think they are all mine 🙂

    5thElefant
    Free Member

    im talking the 300 quid market “bargains”

    Fair enough. 500 quid seems to be the good enough level. Anything more is taking the piss really. A rigid fat bike is about as cheap and simple a thing as you can get.

    Sam
    Full Member

    + bikes burst the fat bubble. And as others have noted, Surly was an early adopter (in fact inventor) so are now feeling the heat from the mainstream producers – I expect it’s more the Treks and Specialized which are hurting their sales more than the el cheapos.

    stevenmenmuir
    Free Member

    People on here buy £300 bikes? Heard it all now.

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    “cheap and simple a thing as you can get.”

    who makes decent cheap knobblies as oppose to larry copies ?

    whitestone
    Free Member

    I’m in the process of getting (a second hand) one. Fat bikes are the only “category” where my current bike can’t scratch the N+1 itch.

    I also run B+ tyres on my 29er and they are a hoot. They turn a hooligan of a bike into Begbie 😯 I can’t see the fat bike becoming my go-to bike but for a bit of “different fun” I’m sure it will be fine.

    scotroutes
    Full Member

    I’ve posted this before (and apologies to borrowing it from Gartner who developed it with regards to IT)

    I think it’s pretty relevant to many consumer products. You can decide for yourself where you think the fatbike market currently is.

    jambalaya
    Free Member

    Nirvana (Westcott) guys seem to be enjoying theirs taking them on the freerides and doing the gap jumps etc

    As above I think the emergence of the plus 275/29 eats into their market too as for a set of wheels and tyres you have a fat bike.

    fasthaggis
    Full Member

    Trough of Disillusionment,brilliant for that alone .

    Northwind
    Full Member

    Depends what you mean by “the bubble”. Industry wide, the bubble’s obviously not burst, it’s been inflated many times over. It might be slightly in decline now after the early surge but that’s normal with “new” products (obviously fatbikes aren’t new but they are to a lot of the new customers)

    But before, Surly and other fatbike innovator brands were in their own bubble- it was small but it didn’t have many manufacturers in it so they could charge a lot and not worry too much about competition, fast product change etc. That bubble’s burst, now they’re competing with everyone from Halfords to Specialized and Trek and that’s a very different game. And likewise for parts, I suspect sales of Whirlys fell through the floor as SRAM and Raceface got into it, Larrys as soon as Jumbo Jim came along, and so on.

    It’s a shame for them tbh, but it’s the nature of the beast when you make a niche succesful, you reap the benefits for a short while then the big guys move in.

    faustus
    Full Member

    Think the gartner cycle is a good illustration of it. Rather than the bubble has burst, it is just that a peak has been reached. I don’t have a fat bike but think it’s great there are lots of good buying options, and that it’s beneficial to be a potential buyer in a more mature market. The plus bike market may well supplant some of the demand, but think it is now just an established part of mtbing.

    PeterPoddy
    Free Member

    People on here buy £300 bikes? Heard it all now.

    Damn straight I do!

    whitestone
    Free Member

    Who is the original quote aimed at? Sounds like investors so translates as: “We’ve not done as well this year so the dividend is down”. However there’s no context so the above is as much guesswork/cynicism as anything.

    As @Northwind says, if you own/define the market then you can basically charge what you think you can get away with especially if you are seen as a superior product.

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    No its just having a break for Summer
    Wait till the slop reappears

    Are they really any good in the slop? Saw some fat bikes racing over the winter. Flew past them with my skinny xc tyres cutting nicely through the slop while they were trying to push wheels that had become huge heavy doughnuts of sticky mud.

    jekkyl
    Full Member

    fatbikes should be able to ride over any ‘bubbles’ shirley?

    scotroutes
    Full Member

    mrblobby – it very much depends on the type of mud and tyre choice. A Nate will pick up lots of clay, a Larry would ride across it.

    FWIW I see fatbikes (or evidence thereof) on most local rides.

    Lawmanmx
    Free Member

    couldn’t care 2 figs about bubbles, all i know is, i Love my Fatty, i really like my 650B+ norco too, but if 1 had to go, i’d still be Fat 🙂

    more companies are making Fatbikes these days so Surly’s monopoly on fat has burst, saying that, i do have a hankering for one of their Lovely Wednesdays 8)

    rocketman
    Free Member

    I’ve not seen a single fatbike on my local trails

    Come to Cannock there’s loads of serious-looking STWers on fat bikes

    whitestone
    Free Member

    Will see someone on a fat bike in The Dales on a reasonably regular basis, not common but certainly not in the rocking horse poo category.

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