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So looking at getting a hardtail frame and have narrowed it down to the above two
Needs to be 29er with stealth dropper routing
Like the Sonder due to the fact it can take upto 2.6 tyres, comes in gloss grey at no extra cost and only costs £450, only downside really is as its steel it is a little heavy and has an I.S brake mount
Like the Orange Clockwork Evo, its alloy so will be a bit lighter, has post mount brake mount, Orange are a well known brand and have been around since the 90's, downsides are it looks like it can only take up to a 2.35 tyre (Ive got a set of 30mm wide DT Swiss EX1501 wheels, 240 hubs with 2.5 tyres fitted) costs £50 more than the Sonder if i wanted it in the std orange (i dont) i want it in grey like the Sonder which is an extra £100 so £600
Swinging towards the Sonder but i do like Orange frames
I have the Ti, it’s an amazing bike! Great downhill but also great for long xc days. I’d imagine the steel frame will be just as good. Orange are overpriced in my opinion.
It’s worth nothing as mine is an order frame but I have a clockwork 129 (model before the evo but basically the same frame) it’s a lovely bike to ride. I’ve not tried yet but I think a 2.5 might fit as I have a 2.35 on a 30mm rim
And there is good clearance still.
Nice frames but that Sonder looks amazing and is a bit of a bargain. Will be a weight penalty for sure but how much actual difference that makes…
Agree pm would be nice but it’s an easy ‘fix’. I think the price and extra clearance would swing it for me for the sonder.
Cheers for the replies
I'm 99% set on the Sonder so will prob order one this week
Sounds like with those wheels you'll be able to build it quite light so perhaps the extra weight won't be an issue. I'm very happy with my ti signal so I can definitely recommend based on the geometry. And alpkit are decent to deal with so that's a bonus.
Just to add I have 2019 Clockwork Evo 27.5. I generally don’t ride hardtails but bought it for the occasion fun and a winter HT. I have a 2.6 Magic Mary up front and 2.4 Trail Boss out back - that’s probably as wide as you can get in their, I think the newer ones take more.
I’m surprised by how good the frame/bike is, it seems very balanced, comfortable and rides light than its heft and generally just feels “right” to me. and I’d buy another for sure... if it was also on discount as mine was.
I’d take the Sonder I think. The 2.5” rear tyre plus a steel frame will be more forgiving than the alloy frame with smaller tyre.
Not exactly the same comparison but I was running a Vitus Sentier VRX+ with a 2.25 or 2.3” rear tyre and it was quite light and whippy on easy flow trails but I could only ride it for a couple of hours before my lower back got unhappy from a previous injury.
Swapped it out for a steel Marino frame (Reynolds 725 tubing) and running a 2.6” Forekaster on the rear (2.5 DHF upfront) and it’s a dream. Riding for 3 or 4 hours with no drama and it’s just a bit more damped everywhere. Yes it’s heavier for sure (despite having lighter build kit for the most part) but I’m having more fun on it - not just easy stuff but it’s decent on steeper tech stuff too.
Just as an addendum, having had several of both not sure about the comfort thing of steel vs aluminium, very much depends on the frames in question. My genesis tarn wasn’t very forgiving compared to a whyte 905 (or even the cheap pinnacle iroko that preceded it).