[Closed] Fat bikes pros and cons please

I think I've hit the sweet spot!

Carbon rigid forks and Blutos
4.8's on 100 rims, 4.6's on 80 rims and 650B+

Now i've got it covered 😀

What have we missed?

Con - They do not turn you in to a riding God.

I think this may be the key. If the better bike for you is the faster bike then it's unlikely to be a fatbike (unless you are in the snow). As far as I can tell a fatbike is great in situations where you have to go slow; snow, sand, bogs, steep, technical sections (up or down), but it is rubbish at blatting through rough stuff at warp speed.

Think this pretty well explains it succinctly, plus you could add that you can ride stuff that you'd be walking riding anything else.

Okay she had a demo .....well someone's on one ....and

Hated it .....interestingly liked the first 20 minutes but the next hour or so did not get on with it especially in turns...it was a mixed fell side with firetrack and Singletrack.....

But she has had a go on trek stache-.....liked that as it felt lighter and more managable....

More pondering

ive had one a while now and tbh wasnt that enamored with it. lots of fun in the 2 or 3 snow rides ive managed but its pretty terrible down any of my favorite normal trails that have any sort of technical features, ones im used to going twice as fast down! so it is mostly used to walk the dog and tow the tag-along.

however, just this weekend i took it to the sand dunes at St Anne's... Holy shit that is absolutely insane fun!!! ive definitely found its vocation! cant wait to that again!

It's quite amusing that people are surprised that they are good in snow & on sand, which is what they were designed for & not so good on normal trails.
See also DH bikes at a hill climb etc

It's quite amusing that people are surprised that they are good in snow & on sand, which is what they were designed for & not so good on normal trails.
See also DH bikes at a hill climb etc

and yet most of the fat lovers will tell you they're ace at everything 😉

She approached with a more open mind leaning towards goona to love this but it was not for her..... I do think weight ( hers) may have impacted saying that she has owned big bikes in the past 36 lbs freeride dog sled.....

29 plus needs more investigation though

worth bearing in mind there's VERY few tyre options for 29+ - if you're gonna go plus, I'd look at 650b+ instead - plenty already out there, and more coming from the big boys. as far as i know, only trek [i]really[/i] support 29+ (save for mebbe some more niche offerings)

You do know that you can get fat bikes around the 11kg mark without to much expense, and some have them around the 8kg mark!
I built my Fatty Trail (with carbon fork) on a tight budget and it came in at 12.7kg, and that was with the standard heavy OO wheels and 2x 1.4kg tyres.

Did you play about with the tyre pressure on the test ride? It makes a huge difference using the correct pressure, and tyre choice can also affect things too.

Its harder to design a good 29+ bike than it is a good 650b+ bike. B+ is basically the same outer diameter as 29er, so many of the questions relating to what geometry works has been well researched and defined.

After Saturday's ride - just over 100k on the river Ayr way, I'd say a big advantage is riding wet, sodden grassy trails. I was on B+ and my buddy on mahoosive ground controls. I was really having to work to keep up, and he's not any stronger a pedalled than I normally.

and yet most of the fat lovers will tell you they're ace at everything

Tyre pressure was tried at different settings yes...just not for her.....

And possibly neither is 29 plus for her or me.....

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Free entry to MTB races. I guess since they aint gonna be claiming any trophies

I love the fat bike look but after trying one and the effort to get it moving I was put off immediately. Also the bars are far too wide for tight trails IMO I do like the look but I wouldn't touch. Me and a mate rolled down the hill on our bikes my Dale and his charge cooker and it was almost like I was pedalling the way I pulled away.

beermonst3r44 - Member

Also the bars are far too wide for tight trails IMO

Wide bars are fatbike specific?

Wide bars are fatbike specific?

You need fat bike specific shoes as well apparently, maybe the OP's daughter was wearing the wrong footwear?
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/what-clipless-flat-pedal-shoe-for-fatbike

Bit like those 29er specific saddles 8)