groundskeeperwilly - you have pre-empted the question I was about to ask as I'm after a tyre with a bit more edge for the winter.
I'm running a 2.25 Ardent at the moment on WTB Frequency i23 rims and have had no problems with it rubbing at all but figured this was a fairly small tyre.
Local Spesh store had some of their tyres going cheap a while back but when I looked at them on the stock bikes in the store the tyres looked very tall.
I may just settle for old faithful an get a Minion 2.3 for the rear or another HR2.
Specialized purgatory fits fine anyway.
I use a WTB Vigilante which does rub when new, and fires stones out at high speed when they get dragged through. I bought another as they were stupidly cheap on crc, and I'm skint. The brace has worn down a bit now but still not much clearance!
Just waiting for my smuggler frame to arrive in a couple of weeks hopefully. Have you guys got any picks of the rear wheel bridge clearances ? Got a couple of rear tyres to choose from either a 2.25 maxxis beaver or minion 2.3 DHR. I'm using a set of mavic crossmax st wheel set.
kdmckenzie here's a 2.35 Hans Dampf:
[url= https://farm1.staticflickr.com/621/22201732190_cbe2c3e7fd.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm1.staticflickr.com/621/22201732190_cbe2c3e7fd.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/zPTFu3 ]IMG_3242[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/9655603@N08/ ]weewillywinky[/url], on Flickr
And a 2.25 Trail Boss:
[url= https://farm1.staticflickr.com/659/22201988128_1be1ec7005.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm1.staticflickr.com/659/22201988128_1be1ec7005.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/zPUZyL ]IMG_3250[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/9655603@N08/ ]weewillywinky[/url], on Flickr
The wheels are Easton ARC 27….
Hasn't the 2016 frame got more clearence on the seat stay bridge?
Cheers fellas. how does the trail boss hold up in wet/mud conditions ? I think I'll be running the beaver through the winter which worked really well last year on my trans AM 29er. I'll get some picks posted of my build once the frame arrives (Noverber some time)
Mine is a 2015 frame FWIW.
Haven't got much to say about the Trail Boss in wet/mud as it's been unusually dry here! I was actually thinking if it didn't perform in the mud then a Beaver would be my next choice for the back with a Shorty on front.
I've read somewhere that the mark 2 frame has got a little more room at the rear and a higher BB than the mark 1. I use a shorty F/R on my my bronson. super tyre for the winter
I'm running a 2.25 Nobby Nic in my 2016 Smuggler, so I can't say for sure, but there looks to be plenty of room in there. Easily enough for a 2.35 I'd have thought.
Anything under 2.3 is what Transition recommend for either 2015 or 2016 frames as far as I am aware. The 2016 Mk2 definitely has more room!
cheers thanks for the info
I thought I'd give a quick update on my progress with the Smuggler.
It's been an interesting "honeymoon" period. Certainly not love at first sight, as it was when I first built up my Five and I'm still wondering whether I should have gone with the Segment instead. Of course we're splitting hairs here. They are two pretty similar bikes (long, low, slack short-travel 29ers). The main difference is that the Smuggler has a much stiffer (and shorter) rear end. On the way up that stiffness can really help and it's easy to move the front (and rear) around but it seems to be a bit less forgiving on the way down and not quite as magic-carpet like when trundling along.
Actually maybe forgiving isn't the right way of putting it as it will get through pretty much anything if you just commit, but it seems as though you do need to commit. Ride a section with confidence and really push the bike into stuff and it's amazing. I've smashed personal records on sections that I've ridden loads of times before without even feeling that I've come close to what it could do. But get nervous and tentative and it all seems to get a bit unforgiving.
Fair enough, I guess. It is marketed as a 29er for aggressive trail riders and that's what it is. Ride it aggressively and you'll be amazed at what it can do, but don't expect to be able to just sit there and let the bike do all the work.
I like the honesty of your bike write-ups Roverpig.
Did anyone here grab that large frame off eBay last night for £850?
I had a cheeky low-ish punt but there was a late flurry of bids.
I find the rear very magic carpet-like on general trail chatter until it gets a bit bigger, there just isn't the travel for the full magic carpet smooth-over-anything mince tank experience, after sag there is only about 75mm of fairly progressive travel so it isn't going to eat everything in its path.
Depends what you are used to and what you want from it, but I like it. I find the bike most fun on fast singletrack with lots of nice corners to throw it round, the bike comes alive with some speed and aggression when you lean it into nice fast corners, the back end is nice and firm to push against and there is just bags of grip.
I like the honesty of your bike write-ups Roverpig.
Thanks, but having read the Stooge thread, I guess I'd better be careful 🙂
Of course, it's all just my opinion and I'm not really being negative. It's not that I don't like the bike. In many ways I think it's fantastic and it may be that I end up loving it. It's just taking a bit longer to get the hang of it.
I find the bike most fun on fast singletrack with lots of nice corners to throw it round
No argument there. It's fantastic in those situations and they are the bits of trail that I most enjoy as well.
the bike comes alive with some speed and aggression when you lean it into nice fast corners
I think we are saying the same thing here. It's great at speed and when ridden aggressively, but it seems to need that to come alive.
It's funny though; quite a few times I've ridden a section and thought "that was crap, I could have gone much faster there" only to get home, load the ride into Strava and find that I'd smashed my previous best (sometimes by over 20%). So obviously it's not crap and if I can get the hang of it I reckon it could be brilliant. On the other hand, if you feel like it's crap at the time then it is crap, by definition.
It's all just a bit of fun though.
I know I've asked before but am I still the only one having problems with the rear end if my smuggler? Loads of tyre rub even with skinny 2.2's!
Anyone think it has a flexy back end at all?
I know I've asked before but am I still the only one having problems with the rear end if my smuggler? Loads of tyre rub even with skinny 2.2's!Anyone think it has a flexy back end at all?
Not having any Tyre rubbing problems and running spec purgatory.
Are you sure its not your wheel?
Ive done a full on weekend in Wales (Afan and BPW) without any problems and didnt feel under biked at all.
The only tyre rub I get is very big tyres like the vigilante rubbing the seat stay bridge. Loads of clearance elsewhere. If you are getting rub elsewhere I'd guess your wheel is flexing or something. Have you checked your spoke tension and torque of pivot bolts. My rear end is tight and stiff, oosh.
No evidence of rubbing on mine with 2.25 Nobby Nic tyres. Is it just one side or both? If it's just one side then you might just need to get the wsheel re-dished a bit. If the latter it could be wheel flex. If it's the bike then I guess it would be flex in the pivots/bearings which you should be able to feel.
Thanks folks - The rubbing is on both sides. I can't detect anything wrong with the wheel myself but maybe I'll ask the shop who supplied them to look them over.
I'd like to rule out frame flex/issues as-well. So hard for me to tell what is actually going on back there when I am riding.
I know they made some changes to the 2016 model, but I think it was just that seat stay bridge at the top, so clearance on the sides should be the same. If that's the case I can't see how you can be rubbing the seat and chainstays on both sides with a 2.2 tyre as I seem to have plenty of space.
Maybe you are a mega aggressive rider and are putting loads through the wheels that the rest of us can't imagine. Well it's a nice thought 🙂
It could be wheel flex, but they aren't exactly budget wheels that you've got. If they flexed that much then surely there would be more reports from other users. The stays on the Smuggler aren't really any tighter than lots of other modern 29ers.
It could just be a "bad" build i.e. low spoke tension, which should be easy to fix.
I don't think the stays themselves can flex much at all, but it could still be play in the pivots. You could take out the wheel, remove the shock and just give he back end a good wiggle to see if you can detect any lateral play.
This is turning into a rather unusual review. The normal pattern is that you buy a new bike and immediately think it's the best thing since the wheel. Or, at least, the best thing since somebody thought of tying two wheels together. So you go online and tell everyone how great it is. Then you start to notice the faults or just get bored with it and stop posting. So, all we have are the positive comments.
This review is kind of the opposite. For the first few rides I really wasn't sure about the bike and thought I might have made a mistake. But, the more I ride it, the happier I am with it. I've slowed the rebound damping down (at both ends) so it's now about a third from fully closed (rather than a third from fully open as it was before) and that seems to have eliminated the feeling of being pinged from rock to rock. In fact it seems to flow over the trail very nicely now. It's still the case that it feels better the faster you go, but I'm starting to really like that. It's silly to talk about a bike making you a better rider, but it certainly encourages a more aggressive riding style, which brings benefits of its own.
well ive been told my smuggler wont be comming in November and may not even arrive before xmas. ordered it in september totally gutted.
Glad to hear you're bonding with it Roverpig, but you know where I am if you do decide it's not for you.
😉
Well it's good to have a plan B I guess. I wouldn't hold your breath though 🙂
kdmckenzie, that's pretty crap. Have you tried phoning around to see if anybody else has any in stock? I think Merlin have a Large orange frame in stock, for example (along with some small 2015 frames with tasty discounts).
cheers for the info roverpig.
I'm only half serious, I actually have something similar in the pipeline anyway. Watch this space.
Merlin have a Large orange frame in stock, for example (along with some small 2015 frames with tasty discounts).
Yes and don't just assume you'll be your usual size - I tried bungalistic's medium and I'm pretty sure it was too short for me. I'm only 5ft 8in.
Ah, you tease 🙂
Good point about the sizing. The steep seat tube means that seated reach is less than you'd think from the (standing) reach or the ETT figures, for example. Having said that, I was a Large on my Five and the Large Smuggler (with a 35mm stem) feels good too.
i have a trans Am 29er in large at the mo with a 50mm stem which fits just fine
Off to Merlin with you then sonny.
🙂
7% discount too. What's not to love 🙂
Oh dear, mines due around Christmas... I gather from last year they had some big delays ( found this out after I'd ordered! )
Anyone interested in a Large would probably be well advised to buy that one in Orange from Merlin - sounds like they'll be difficult to get hold of for a wee while!
Blimey, the merlin one if real is 1299....and thats for the 2016 frame.... I have a feeling somethings not right there, however if it is then its a bargain.
Lbs has a large 2016 Smuggler in black hanging on the wall now. Twelve50Bikes in Cheshire.
The Merlin frame is only £100 below RRP (I think). A bit surprising given that these seem to be in short supply, but not unbelievable I guess. It's probably still worth checking to see if there is some specific reason for the discount though.
I'm hoping the LBS' shipment of test Transitions has come in, a Smuggler was supposed to be among them... off to see on Sunday and hopefully swing my leg over one 😀
Those Small frames at Merlin are now 10% less, £850!!!!!
Sat here seriously considering one, especially as I have to call in on my way home.
trouble is, there is nothing wrong with my 5 Spot 🙄
Any photos of people's 2016 builds??
A few of mine on the earlier pages of this thread, but not sure if I've uploaded this one before:
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My new beast!!! 😀
Just bought the frame and fork and mostly used parts from my last bike and swapped them over. Sweet ride so far. Feels very good at speed!
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Hi guys, please keep eyes peeled for a 2015 large blue Smuggler...mine has been stolen last Friday in a burglary in mid Cheshire in which they also took my other bikes and wife's car among other items.
Wtb rims on silver hope hubs
Pike rct forks
Renthal carbon bars
Reverb
Esp grips
Full 11 speed XT group set.
Cheers
Hey Roverpig...can I ask a Q? How tall are you mate and is yours a large?
Cheers
Six foot with something like a 33" inside leg and yes, it's a large. Feels pretty much spot on to me.
