Call me a sucker for the marketing hype, but I am curious about a fat bike as an n+1. That Jones video has really sparked my curiosity. Lots of idiosyncratic but seemingly sensible ideas.

But, try as I might, I just don’t ‘get it’.

1) they are heavy

2) a lot of this weight is in the worst possible place (rotating)

3) I get the appeal for fannying around on snow, but we don’t get real snow much over here

4) surely a suspension bike is more comfortable and efficient than what is effectively undamped cushioning from the tires?

5) surely the rolling resistance is awful?

So, can some of the converts sell it to me in the real world, or conversely reinforce my view that fat is not the future.

All of those things are kind of true, but to a much lesser extent than you’d expect, and it’s all fun.

Dunno if I’d buy one myself, but you really need to tey one.

Go to a nice dealer, blag a half day ride……….sorted

1. Not too bad
2. Yes
3. True
4. Depends on terrain
5. Bit as bad as you may think

Love mine. Love full sus too,. Try one.

So far mine has been a low maintenance winter bike with lots of grip. You don’t need suspension in mud.
I’ve ridden suspension bikes for over 10 years now so to get back on a rigid bike has been surprising. I love the directness of the drive and I love climbing out of the saddle with no bobbing anywhere.
Come the summer no doubt I will be back on my Spearfish but it’s no hardship to have a £500 bike waiting for next winter.

Tonight I equalled a Pb, put in a 2nd and was right up on all my segments using 4.8″ tyres. Compared to a carbon Scott Spark…

I have no idea this works.

Grip is off the scale, that can counteract your points

In my experience, having owned a Trek Stache 9 29+, and a Jones Spaceframe bike.

1. Weight , yes the Jones did weigh a bit more than I expected, the Stache 9 wasn’t too much of a shock once it was converted to tubeless tyres.

2. Weight in the wrong place…. Most of my riding is at Afan with long climbs. This is ultimately what made me sell both bikes.
Well documented about bit wheels climbing slowly, I just couldn’t get on with the loss of inertia when technical slow climbing.
Rolled really well everywhere else, but the extra effort uphill for 40 minutes or so (at a time) was ultimately the final nail in the coffin.

3. We don’t get much snow now.

4. Undamped bouncy(ness), more apparent on the Jones, but also some undamped bounced on the Trek.

5. Rolling resistance was more noticeable whilst climbing, once up to speed it actually helped.

It’s only my opinion , and a lot depends on what you want from a ride and where you ride will ultimately decide . It’s difficult , but owning and trying different bikes is the best , and only way to form an opinion is to ride a few bikes.

I’m glad I tried them, but not for me.

Thanks Denis99.

I think your experience would ultimately mirror mine. I am fat curious, but not sure it would suit my riding terrain or style.

Suspect I would try it and end up going back to more standard bikes.

Still curious though…..

All I can say is
My fat bike has been one of the best bike buys I have ever done in my life, and I can see me keeping it forever.
Everyone I have let ride thinks ….it looks ridiculous …..but it’s so much fun.

Try one…..you won’t regret it !! 😀

Heavy no 30 lbs aluminium Scott Big Jonwithout really trying
Rotating weight no more han a wire bead dh setup and completely offset by huge momentum and trail crushing unstoppability. As above grip is off the scale
2 kinds of terrain I hate – sand & snow. Modern fatbike completely at home on dirt
Tyres absorb a lot more than you might think although the limit tends to be rather abrupt
Rolling resistance is phenomenally low above walking speed. Get it rolling and it doesnt slow down for anything. Grip that thin tyres can only dream about without the drag. Reallly.

HTH

What are fatbikes like in powder snow? Like loose soft snow ?

I was fatbike curious for a long time but kept saying they’d be slow and only good for snow and sand (which locally I lack both).

In the end I hired one for a weekend and loved it. Ended up buying one because it just felt so right.

As all the threads on the subjects of wheel sizes and tyre widths recently seem to show, different things appeal to different people.

Ride and decide.

solarider – Member
Call me a sucker for the marketing hype, but I am curious about a fat bike as an n+1…

If you have more than 1 bike, then adding a fatbike is a good move. You’ll soon get enthusiastic about it. Provided you fit decent tyres with a high thread count. It’s the tyres that make the bike and bad ones will make you think fatbikes are crap.

You’ll soon find all sorts of interesting new places to ride that you wouldn’t/couldn’t consider with a skinny bike.

I’ve got two amazing fs bikes (Carbine/Tallboy LTC)…….my wife bought me a Pivot LESfat for my birthday,and!! Please don’t get me into that “if I could only have one bike” debate. My money’s on FATLes.

Just give it a go.

You need to try one really to “get it”. You get used to the slightly extra work to get one going and are rewarded with massive rolling momentum, huge grip and a child like satisfaction of being able to ride over anything 😀 got a spare Salsa you can try if any where near Reading 🙂