Been looking a little at getting me a FF29 frame and build on.

Anyone with experience of it, how is it to ride? I’ve read some reviews which praises it, but also read some that some people think it’s “unforgiving”, what do you mean by that?

It’s also suppesed to be a “fast frame” (race?), does that mean the riding position is very forward leaning? ie gets tiring on longer rides? Also seen comments about it being optimized for speed rather than comfort?

Also I found a Specialized Carve Pro frame (cheaper) which seems to have similar geometry. Can’t find any weight of that frame though, just a complete bike with it.
Perhaps anyone has ridden both?

I had an FF29 for a bit, main reason for selling was the slight lack of standover which is a bit of a bugbear of mine.

It was fairly stiff but not particularly uncomfortable, certainly had no problems with longer rides. I ran it with 120mm forks but flat bars and it was a good trail set-up, not too forward leaning or anything.

It is quite a fast feeling ride but I also found it to be one of the only bikes I’ve ridden which have made me want to try and jump of small rocks etc and play around whilst descending rather than just go for the most efficient descent.

If there was an inch more standover or I didn’t have relatively short legs I wouldn’t have sold it.

I’ve made a few comments on the FF29 on my own Buzzard or Solaris thread, but I just wanted to address the issue of comfort here.

It’s a hardtail, so virtually all of the cushioning comes from the rear tyre. Any give in the frame probably doesn’t amount to more than the difference of a few psi in the tyres. If you want comfort then run a big tyre at low pressure. If you want more speed on smooth surfaces then pump the tyre up a bit.

After tyres the next biggest effect is the length of the chainstays. The longer they are the less your saddle moves for the same deflection of the rear wheel, which equates to more comfort. At 445mm the chainstays on the FF29 are already a bit longer than is the current fashion.

The longest rides I’ve done on mine are 5-6 hour day rides, but comfort has never really been an issue. Mind you, I’m used to doing that on a road bike with 23mm tyres at 100 psi, so all these off road machines feel pretty plush to me 🙂

If it’s any use I’m selling a medium FF29 – no issues but I wanted a ss-specific frame.

Thanks for the replies.

@IvanDobski: How long are you, and what was your framesize if I may ask?
I’m 174 cm (or 5’8″ I think with that system 🙂 so I’m not so long myself, looking at a medium frame.

I’m going to answer that question as if you mean tall if that’s ok?!

I’m 6’2 / 6’3 but with a longish back, shortish legs build. was on a large frame. was ok but for standover.

I’m 6′ tall and the large felt good to me. So I’d say that a medium would be fine for 5’8″. Maybe even a small, but I prefer a bigger frame on an XC bike like this.

Reading all the comments with interest as I am also thinking of buying one.

I bought a Kinesis 5T cx bike last year and have been massively impressed with it, this is why I’m looking at the FF29.

What diameter seat post does the FF29 have?

The Carve has a 27.2 which limits dropper post choice (mine is set up for xc mile munching so no concern to me) but that size is meant to take the sting out of the ride a bit.

I’ve only seen the FF29 in pics on here but own a Carve Expert and love it. It is quick but I find it fun too. Although I own a fs 26er that is set up to play about on the 29er is my ‘go to’ bike more often than not.

FF29 uses a 31.6mm seatpost, so very dropper friendly. I’m currently using a 27.2mm Gravity Dropper with a shim, which seems to work OK.

Billys may still have some 2013 Salsa Mamasita 29er frames left. I paid £250 for mine (half price). Mine is a large and came in at 1,700g on the nose.

Just finishing the build today… Will post up pics later, but it is luuuuuurvly!