[Closed] Cheapest, lightest 29er race bike...

You'd need to define cheap and light. Guess you could plot a chat of weight against cost and there would probably be a sweet spot for you.

Edit: FWIW, I [url= http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/lets-see-your-29er-scandals/page/2#post-5510585 ]built one up[/url] on a scandal frame (Reba, Stans Crest wheels, XT/X9 drivetrain, and some light carbon bits from xcracer) to have a go at the 29er thing, a shade under 23lbs. I reckon you could do something similar for about £1500.

Cheapest, or lightest?

You might need to decide which one as you won't get both.

you've missed out strong...

[i]££ isn't mentioned so ignore accordingly if this doesn't apply.......[/i]

I was looking for similar earlier in the year.

The "best" I found in terms out out of the box spec/weight etc was this:

[img] [/img]

http://www.paulscycles.co.uk/m1b65s155p5204/CANNONDALE-F29-1-%28FLASH-ALLOY%29-2013

£1399 is a lot of money but considering the fork retails for circa £900 [i]seems[/i] GVFM IMO

Frame & fork are certainly worth of upgrade as parts wear etc

Ok I'll give my "wants" a go and see if something can be made to fit;

Carbon ideally though not essential
26lbs ish
Forks on the front
29er
Comfortable
£1000 or less

OR £2000 or less if it was FS and could replace the kind of all round duties of an 26lb ASR5. In this situation the sale of the ASR would help to fund so I can stretch a bit.

MUST NOT;

a) Compete with my 24lb Ti HT and hence why it must be specific to the job nor the ASR - i.e I don't want to spend £1000 on a bike which [i]just[/i] has bigger wheels if you see what I mean...

this is relevant to my interests.

[i]Forks on the front[/i]

Sounds radical, but it might just work.

Lol, "bouncy" forks...

my 24lb Ti HT

I am using that, but I was beaten by 29er's last night over a dry hoof-imprinted type of trails.

Or that could have been my lack of ability...

Sell the Ti bike then and get a Whyte 29C (ideally C - S).

Leave the ASR for what it's good at, upgrade the racin' snake.

I forgot to mention I can't sell the Ti bike - the frame is a 40th B'day present from my wife.

Would £1000 spent on the Ti bike make it appreciably better/lighter?

One of the Cube carbon Reaction series? Don't they start at a grand or so?

AlexSimon - Member
Would £1000 spent on the Ti bike make it appreciably better/lighter?

Maybe. It's XT with AC 1450g tubeless wheels with Ralph's, Sid RLT. Carbon post, lightweight saddle. I could ditch the Thompson stem and race face bar and go carbon I guess, and change my 520 pedals to something more trim.

But it wouldn't have the roll ability of a 29er though, or is that really just marginal?

Depends whether you think it is or not 🙂

It's different. Whether it's really real-world faster for non-pros...

Carbon ideally though not essential
26lbs ish
Forks on the front
29er
Comfortable
£1000 or less

Need a full build? Have you got much of a parts bin?

For a full build maybe a Boardman Pro 29er for a penny short of a grand. Dump the front mech and go 1x to drop a bit of weight of the claimed 12.08kg. Change the nobby nic's for something more racey and tubeless. Should get it down to 25lbs without much effort or cost (especially with some parts swapping off the enigma.)

But it wouldn't have the roll ability of a 29er though, or is that really just marginal?

🙂

Edit: bit more of a serious answer, having tried a 29er I'll not go back to racing on a 26.

[i]But it wouldn't have the roll ability of a 29er though, or is that really just marginal? [/i]

I think you'd be better off spending money on you than the bike. Pay for a trainer/training program, get some skills training. You'll gain more time int he technical stuff or climbing (especially climbing as you proportionally do more of it) by being good at those than having tyres that roll slightly better on bumps.

It's different. Whether it's really real-world faster for non-pros...

I'll let you know when the results are posted - I was one of only 5 26's I could see in a field of 40 or so riders.....

[quote=markrtw ]One of the Cube carbon Reaction series? Don't they start at a grand or so?
I had to take a 27.5 Reaction GTC for a wee test ride and I was stunned at how fast it felt. There's a steep brae up the back of the shop that is good for testing gear changes. The GTC was stomping up a couple of gears faster than normal.

So you want a 29er race bike, because it's faster. But it can't be as light as your ti hardtail...?

Chinese carbon (or cheap On One) frame, Superstar wheels, Reba fork, SLX 1x10 group, Mt Zoom finishing kit. Reckon you'll struggle for £1000.

Chinese carbon (or cheap On One)

No Scandals and the Dirty Harry would be pushing the budget, would need to be Chinese carbon. Reckon you'd be hard pushed to get a self build in under a grand unless you have a well stocked parts bin. Could you raid the Enigma for parts?

I sold a Scandal/Reba/Hope/Stans rolling chassis for less than £450 last year - was in mint condition. If found somethign similar and you got an XT groupset from Merlin etc you'd be nearly there for less than a grand.

It'll still be heavier than your Ti bike, though, and therefore maybe slower...

Was thinking about when O-O have their discounted frames, dodgy(er than usual) paint etc.

So you want a 29er race bike, because it's faster. [i]But it can't be as light as your ti hardtail...?[/i]

I didn't say that, I stated an approximate weight - the lighter the better. I don't want it to encroach on the "use case" of the HT vis a vis my idea was it should be "For Race Only".

I don't want it to encroach on the "use case" of the HT vis a vis my idea was it should be "For Race Only".

So what is the use case for a 24lbs Ti HT with SID forks and carbon bits? 🙂

Chinese carbon frame, Hope pro2/Crest, Merlin Reba/Sid, bikediscount.de XT groupset, Exotic bars/post/stem...
Should just sneak in under £1500

I built a Chinese carbon 29er for my sister, XT/SLX 1x10, Reba forks, came in under 23lbs and cost £1500.

So what is the use case for a 24lbs Ti HT with SID forks and carbon bits?

Erm....

Can you squeeze a 650b race day only wheelset into the enigma?
You could change the forks to 650b models that wouldn't upset the geo too much?
Or
http://www.merlincycles.com/beone-crd-sport-carbon-29er-mountain-bike-65330.html

The stated weight on that BeOne... I'd eat my hat!

Just was in the Thursday email off Merlin, bit looked in detail

I'm not sure converting to a heavier wheelset 650b with almost the same overall diameter to what you already have will make that much difference?

This has got "just ride the ti bike and ask Njee which stem/bars/qrs I need" all over it....

[i]just ride the ti bike[/i]

yes, but don't let that stop you spending a lot of money on a new bike 🙂

This has got "just ride the ti bike and ask Njee which stem/bars/qrs I need" all over it....

[url= http://www.xcracer.com/shop/ ]xcracer shop[/url]

MtZoom bars and QRs. KCNC stem.

The 650B wheelset option could be worth looking into if you have a lot of clearance on the frame, probably won't make a huge difference though. There was a link somewhere to someone who'd done that and raced on a whippet. Though if you have a grand to spend, maybe a really light set of 26" race wheels for the Ti bike.

How much lighter than 1450g wheels can I sensibly go?

mrblobby - Member
xcracer shop

MtZoom bars and QRs. KCNC stem.

Thanks for that - I just found the ti stem faceplate bolts I need for 3 bikes also 🙂

FWIW I was in the same situation with a 22lb Ti 26er best bike. I need to find 10% off my lap times to get where I want to be in the Gorricks etc plus I want more comfort/speed for long distance events (Manx 100etc). Most of that is likely to come from skill and fitness but if I can get 3% from a carbon 29er then I've decided that's worth it for me.

I've bought a Whyte 29c frame and will build up with the bits I want (LB wheels etc)for the same money as a 29c team. The ti bike becomes my winter trainer having donated the XTR etc.

Keeping equipment for sentiment is fine providing it doesn't frustrate performance.

Find some ztr mmx rims?

This has got "just ride the ti bike and ask Njee which stem/bars/qrs I need" all over it....

😆 I'd agree with mrblobby.

On wheels - my Podium/A2Z wheels were 1246g, and I never had any problems!

If you could get close to 29er performance from upgrading high quality 26er HT frames why aren't the unsponsored but quick XC riders snapping up the bargain 26er stuff and using it?

njee has just gone from full sus 26er to hardtail 29er - are you faster njee?

Fwiw Nick Craig came to Hit the North with a 26in wheeled bike and gave us all a good shoeing 🙂