[Closed] Trek Farley 5

My mate had a Farley and hated it, he loved his OO fatty, and currently his favourite bike is his Speshalised Fatboy....think the geometry was primarily the issue....but you will find statically more Farley frames for sale second hand than other makes......apart from OO but that's because they're heavy I think.
2015 Fatboy Experts were down to £1600.
Calibre Dune......£520 ish depending on codes available etc....

Got one. It's fun. I like it. YMMV 😀

I didn't do too much research, but I did happen to look at a Dune first and was very tempted (this was before the current flurry of attention to them on here). What put me off was the cheap'n'nasty ancilliaries - gears, shifters, etc. and uncertainty as to how durable the frame and wheels will prove to be. You could probably bring the Dune up to a decent spec for what the Farley costs though, especially if you have a decent parts bin (assuming you have faith in the basics and can be bothered).

I think this year's Farleys (5, 7, etc) have reworked geometry compared to last year's (6, 8, etc).

The 5 seems to be put together very well, and nicely finished off with decent kit.

The stock tyres seem pretty decent, and the wheels / tyres are really easy to set up tubeless.

For balance, there are a few niggles:

It could do with a more powerful front brake (or I need to get used to Avid DB1s)

You can't slide the rear wheel all the way forward in the dropouts without it buzzing the front mech if you have more than 5PSI in the stock tyre.

I haven't found any 165mm cranks to fit it yet because of the 120mm wide BB shell.

It still has the traits of a rigid bike though (IMHO). I suspect that this applies to all of the rigid fatties. I was a bit miffed that the front wheel of the Farley isn't compatible with a Bluto fork (one of he selling points is that the frame is) - I don't know if adaptors are available, or if it would need a new hub. The Dune is compatible.

The above is meant to be impartial, rather than negative. Otherwise, I find it great fun to ride (it's my first fat bike) and surprisingly quick - much better than I expected. Frighteningly fast down hill (see 'brakes' above!)...and it isn't fluorescent green!

Which ever one you get, you will draw attention, and be the hero of every 10 year old boy on your street. 🙂

Really helpful replies, thank you.

Pretty much mirrors my thoughts although I didn't know that the Farley front wheel wasn't bluto compatible. Useful. Does anyone know if there is an adapter or if it is a new hub/wheel?

Any other thoughts from owners/general fatties?

Thanks. S.

I demoed one over a year ago and loved it. I went on to buy a oo rolling chassis and rode that for 8 months and now have a carbon beargrease as well which I'm happy with. I think the Farley is a good bike but my oo was more nimble and more of a bike for tighter trails IMHO.