- This topic has 28 replies, 18 voices, and was last updated 10 years ago by mattjg.
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Oh, I give up.
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roverpigFull Member
So, I hop on my Kinesis FF29 and this bike is amazing. The way it climbs up hills and rolls over stuff has to be experienced to be believed. OK, so it is not particularly comfortable and it’s hard to move the front wheel around, but that’s a small price to pay for the efficiency. I just need to get a bit tougher and work on my skills, but a 29er HT truly is the best possible bike and I’d never want to ride anything else.
Then, I hop on my 26″ Trance and boy is that fun. The way the front wheel pops over stuff, the way you can just steam through rocky sections. OK, it’s not the fastest bike in the world and those 26″ wheels do get stuck in rocks from time to time, but that’s a small price to pay for all that fun. I just need to get a bit fitter and work on my skills, but a 26″ full suss truly is the best possible bike and I’d never want to ride anything else.
But there are 29er HT bikes that are more playful than the FF29 but still more efficient than the Trance. There are full suss 29ers that are more comfortable than the FF29 but still roll over rocks better than the Trance. Then there are all these in-between 650b jobbies that I’ve not even considered yet.
Oh, I give up.
NorthwindFull MemberI came to the conclusion that my 2 main bikes are the 2 best bikes I’ve ever ridden. I’ve not ridden a 29er as good, so 26 inch wheels must be better… Except I’ve never ridden a 26er that’s as good either.
In conclusion, I’m fairly confident all my bikes for the immediate future will have wheels.
trail_ratFree Memberi dont get it …. what are you giving up ? fags / booze /chocolate ?
gonzyFree Memberi dont get it …. what are you giving up ? fags / booze /chocolate ?
by the looks of it….bikes…
mattjgFree Member@roverpig this way lies madness, there is no best. Sometimes I like a pint of ale, sometimes I like a glass of wine. Either can be brilliant, neither is best.
You’re lucky enough to have space and funds for more than 1 bike, relish that and I say “vive la difference”.
On the other hand, clobber’s on the right track IMO!
roverpigFull MemberNo, not bikes. What I’m giving up on is the idea that I’ll ever be able to decide that one bike is better than another. Apart from a few real clunkers I’ve never ridden a bike that I didn’t love. They all have some feature, something they do really well or something that just makes you smile and you can always work around the things that you don’t like.
I’ve got an XC HT and a Trail FS. You’d think that I could decide between those two which I prefer. But not a chance. They are both great, but so is just about every other bike out there too. Yes, I could try and find a bike that sits in-between my two bikes (e.g. the Buzzard). I bet I’d love that, but it’s missing the point. I bet I’d love a long travel enduro-sled too.
From now on I’m only going to consider who makes the bike and what it looks like 🙂
ps. Of course this isn’t a serious problem. Or even a problem at all. I just fancied a rant 🙂 But you have to wonder whether choice really does improve our lives sometimes. Yes, I’m lucky to have the funds and space for a few nice bikes. But where does it end? I could buy 20 bikes and still be lusting after something else. Equally I know that I’d be perfectly happy riding any one of my bikes for the rest of my days. OK, maybe not the Brompton, but even that has its moments.
gonzyFree Memberroverpig – you’ll never be able to decide which is better…and thats where the fun begins!! just go out and ride them as much as possible and enjoy them for what they are…at one point i had 2 full sus and 2 hardtails and i couldnt decide which was best either…the only thing i was sure of was that i loved riding them all (not at the same time)…
i suppose its kind of like having 4 kids…you love them all the same, but each child has characteristic that makes them unique…patriotproFree MemberAnother over-thinker…Just go ride yer bike, (whatever it may be) and ENJOY it.
tonydFull MemberI have 4 fantastic bikes – 1 FS, 1 HT, 1 road, and 1 kiddie transporter. My favorite is the kiddie transporter because that’s where I have the most fun. It’s 20 years old this year.
IMO it’s not the bike, it’s how you use it.
flangeFree MemberI’ve been a lot happier since I reduced my bikes to just a hardtail and a road bike. And a cross bike. And a posh road bike that I don’t ride. And a posh HT that I don’t ride…where was I?
Oh yeah – I live away during the week and can only have one bike with me. I find I’m much happier having the choice removed – if I want to go ride, I ride the only bike I’ve got – rather than deliberating whether I’m going to go out on the road bike, cross bike, MTB or whatever.
Just ride one bike lots.
ads678Full MemberI’ve just fitted suss fork to my Inbred 29er, it’s fantastic. Took it out on a ride I usually do on my Five and I’m now thinking I should get rid of the Five and buy a bigger bike for DH days and use the Inbred for everything else!!
My missus will not be happy……….
robdobFree MemberOK, so it is not particularly comfortable and it’s hard to move the front wheel around, but that’s a small price to pay for the efficiency.
If I ever started riding a MTB with so many downsides just because it was “more efficient” I think I’d give up altogether…
rOcKeTdOgFull MemberBuild a 69er best of both worlds…possibly
What would a 29″ front 27.5″ back be called or 27.5″ front 26″ rear?
roverpigFull MemberIf I ever started riding a MTB with so many downsides just because it was “more efficient” I think I’d give up altogether…
They aren’t really downsides though. The HT being more efficient but less comfortable than a full suss is just a statement of fact. It doesn’t make one better than the other. Similarly with the ease of lifting the front wheel. A bike where the front wheel pops up easily isn’t better than one where it stays planted. It might be better going down but it is a pain when you are going up. In practice both work just fine, you just need to develop different skills i.e. lifting the wheel or keeping it down on the climbs.
Build a 69er best of both worlds…possibly
Funnily enough I have thought about putting my 29er fork in the Trance. It would fit and it might actually work OK. Lots of people put 140mm forks in a Trance and claim that it improves things, so why not a 120mm 29er fork?
CheezpleezFull Memberroverpig, I know what you’re saying but you’ll never be truly happy till you have a Buzzard 😆
cbmotorsportFree MemberSomeone should start a 26 vs 29 thread.
Has it been done already?
roverpigFull MemberIs this some kind of Buzzard conspiracy 🙂
Not that I’d entertain such a daft idea, but why a Buzzard? Surely a Yelli Screamy would be better. Similar geometry but lighter and no problems with running a front mech. Also, if you shorten the chainstays to make a 29er more playful doesn’t that just make it even less comfortable as the wheel is right under your ass?
roverpigFull Memberflange: I find I’m much happier having the choice removed
I think this is the heart of the matter. Choice sounds great and of course I’m not really complaining, but there is a part of me that recognises how daft it is to have multiple bikes when they all do the job just fine. OK, I can justify keeping the Brompton. That fills a very specific niche. The road bike is OK. I could even justify a good weather and a bad weather road bike as it’s obvious when I would want to use one rather than the other. But it’s much harder with mountain bikes. The variety of terrain that you encounter on a single ride is so great that it really is impossible to say which option is better for most rides.
cookeaaFull MemberIgnorance is bliss, just try to avoid any information or knowledge on the whole wheel size topic…
The simplest solution is to stop reading about bikes in mags and on the interwebz, Ideally you should try to “un-learn” reading and become illiterate if you can, just to be sure you’re never tempted to even try and read about the bastard round gits…
Then You’ll have more time to ride your (already perfectly good) bikes and because you’ve not read thousands of words in MBR of on this forum contributing to the dull, non-debate on “This size Vs That Size Vs The other Size” you’ll be a better, more well rounded Human being…
Obviously our species doesn’t just communicate via text so if, God forbid, someone actually starts to talk to you about bicycle wheel sizes in real life, first try to display a really glazed-over, disinterested appearance, if they still persist, interrupt them by screaming like a distressed chimp and hurling any objects or small pets you find close to hand in their direction…
Thus a lack of toss giving can be maintained, and you can once again function like a normal.
mattjgFree MemberIs this some kind of Buzzard conspiracy
Absolutely. You’re now in the sights of the short-chainstay-slack-head-angle evangelicals!
You’re dead meat. We know you’ll crack in the end.
Not that I’d entertain such a daft idea, but why a Buzzard? Surely a Yelli Screamy would be better.
Not much in it really, both are good.
Also, if you shorten the chainstays to make a 29er more playful doesn’t that just make it even less comfortable as the wheel is right under your ass?
Can’t say I’ve noticed that as a problem on my Yelli.
ClobberFree MemberNot that I’d entertain such a daft idea, but why a Buzzard? Surely a Yelli Screamy would be better.
Why would the yelli be better? Buzzard is designed for the UK, made of steel, you don’t need eye bleach after you’ve looked at it. They’re aren’t any front mech problems given the direct mount adaptor that is supplied.
Also, if you shorten the chainstays to make a 29er more playful doesn’t that just make it even less comfortable as the wheel is right under your ass?
I was worried about this, but the buzzard is very comfortable especially with a 2.4″ rear tyre in the back (which there is plenty of clearance for)
Anyway, buy one, end of…
nickcFull MemberI’m fairly confident all my bikes for the immediate future will have wheels.
this
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