[Closed] Would you buy a (new) fatbike for ~£1k?

Well done indeed, Mrs dahedd! 😀

Wives can be awesome like that. My fatbike was an early 20th anniversary pressie. By early I mean 6 months early. Didn't want me to miss out a winter of ride time.

Enjoy your new bike.

Is that bondage tape likely to attract dirt. Do you think this would be a good colour match https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/361083896982 ?

Bondage tape might attract filth?!

Not sure about the non-slip aspect, but the colour looks like it would work.

Are you sure the fat bike in the garage wasn't someone else's? After all fat bikers have to fight off the opposite sex and you did deny your wife the chance to be married to one by walking away.
Just thinking out loud
😉

What's the best price that Blutos can be picked up for historically?

I've tried my front tyre down as low as 4psi but not quite sure I'm achieving the fabled 2" of cushion that fats are famous for - my wrists are well aware this morning that I went for a ride last night!
I'm enjoying g the back to basics fully rigid experience after years of front suspension - but in the fast descents I'm beginning to crave a little extra help up front.

Had several miles on a tow path last night towards the end of my ride and noticed the additional drag from the tyres for the first time. Not sure I'll be happy switching to heavier/draggier tyres! Goes great up climbs and grips nicely everywhere though. Staggering how much off camber grip there is

slimjim78 - Member
What's the best price that Blutos can be picked up for historically?

~£400 new is the going rate, Winstanleys is £380 at the mo.

But here is an alternative approach to ponder...
Buy a Fatty Trail for £1k, if you prefer the Dune frame, pinch the Bluto; front wheel; brakes etc.
Put the bits you don't want on the Fatty and flog it as a unique modded Fatty with a fluro yellow rigid fork.
😆

There's a tapered carbon rigid forks (plus an alloy) at http://www.carboncycles.cc/?s=0&c=105&p=1662&tb=001 , as another option to consider.

I've tried my front tyre down as low as 4psi but not quite sure I'm achieving the fabled 2" of cushion that fats are famous for - my wrists are well aware this morning that I went for a ride last night!

Having said that, I wouldn't say no to some rear suspension...

Slim Jim , I swapped my 120 tpi tyre for one with 60. It was noticeably harsher. Swapped back to my old tyre and am happy again.
I'd invest in a Floater just to check.

Adapting your riding plays a big part too, unweighting the fork more and working the trail a bit more. But I think my main criticism of the Dune is still that stiff fork, it does beat up the wrists a surprising amount. (I moved my bars and stem from a carbon forked scandal to the Dune and the Dune definitely wears my hands more in some ways).

I just put a set of Crank Bros Cobalt bars on it-their daft 780mm wide XC bars. They're seriously soft- you can bounce on them and see and feel the bend- doesn't bother me while riding but it's really taken the sting out, now I can spend a day riding really rough stuff and feel fresh. Not for everyone I think but I'm really pleased.

Adapting your riding plays a big part too, unweighting the fork more and working the trail a bit more.

Yeah I'll persevere, you're right about adapting style - I'm used to being lazy! Having said that, I hit a hidden rut at about 30mph last night which I'm fairly sure a suspender would've just soaked up - if it were any deeper I'd probably have been in a bit of trouble..

Running a Knuckleball bar, but wish it was the 'chewy' option - I've got the firm, and for carbon, it's firm. Less buzz than Alu though.

First time I rode a fatty at a trail centre I felt like I'd been in a ring with a pro boxer, really battered my shoulders & back, 18 months on though & I've adapted my riding style and have few problems on rough terrain

My thumbs really don't appreciate it. There's a few bits at Swinley where you pick up a lot of speed, then suddenly turn into a series of roots/steps upto a foot, and you can't manual them because they're usually into a corner! Every ride I come back with sprained thumbs!

Had the same issue with normal rigid bikes though.

slimjim78 - Member

Yeah I'll persevere, you're right about adapting style - I'm used to being lazy! Having said that, I hit a hidden rut at about 30mph last night which I'm fairly sure a suspender would've just soaked up - if it were any deeper I'd probably have been in a bit of trouble..

Yeah, this sort of thing has caught me too. I did a day/night enduro race on mine not long after I got it and that was the learning curve- for most folks, there's some stuff like big compressions and ruts and that that you don't have to worry about on any other bike, you have to worry about on the fatbike. (because on any other bike that can't deal with them, you'll normally be going much slower)

For me this is a total selling point though now i've written that down, I see this is moronic. But what the hell.

So thanks to the Mrs I've got one now.

Had its first outing in the local woods yesterday, lots of fun but a culture shock from riding Full Sus for the last 2 decades. Sods law but the terrific run of weather this last week in Moray has pretty much dried the trails out so little mud to float through. Still obvious though that in the mud ill get mucket, what do you recommend for a mud guard combo

[b]DOUBLE FAT![/b]

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Another 20miles on the Wazoo over the weekend. Great fun but seriously weird to ride being so used to a full sus. Going to have to modify my riding stance & Style on this bike.

Found it to be great thrashing up the fire rds with the kids for a picnic in the morning, great traction on the lose dry gravelly stuff, like wise on the damp old railway line.

Out myself In the afternoon after a mate pulled out. Felt really weird on my local tight, rooty singletrack & I'll need to work on the jumps & I avoided the drop offs. Sore back by time of got home but I reckon that's down to my riding style betting not quite right for the bike. It'll take a little getting used to. Felt the front end pull & wash out a few times, think id dropped the front the pressure a ill too much (need a better pump)

All in all though I good first weeks fattie riding.

Got my first fatbike snake bite flat yesterday, riding down some Rocky steps, BOOM! Rapid deflation at speed, full on tank slapper & nearly soiled my shorts

OK, I have a question.

I love my Dune, but would like to "upgrade" to a large frame, now that such a thing is available. But GO will only sell me a complete bike, not a frame only.

So, is there any reason not to buy a Fatty trail frame and swap everything over? The seat posts are a different size, so I'll need a new reverb, but will wheels etc all just transfer?

dahedd, what tyres have you got?
As with anything, tyres make a huge difference.

fadda, the Fatty Trail has a 170qr rear, Im sure that's different than the Dune.
So, possibly just a new rear wheel and most of the bits should swap over. There are lots of cheap second hand bits out there that would probably suit.

Fatty trail has 170 rear spacing & QR fitting, dunes have 190mm & bolt through iirc but everything else should swap + it would clash a bit with the yellow fork! (& u might want to check fork length as fatty trails are 120mm suspension corrected)

@ dahedd
Keep playing with your tyre pressures too, till you find that sweetspot that works for you.

Dahedd, are you still using the default stem and if so, are you finding the front end feels very low?

I think crashtestmonkey raised the front end, possibly with a high rise bar, I swapped to my 80mm ~35 degree On One stem to get a 4+cm raise.

How funny, I dropped the front to get a bit more reach, got a stiff neck and tingly palms at 3+ hours, but I didn't notice anything negative about the ride, better than ever in fact (might be getting used to the 1x10 setup mind)

Might go for a wider flexi bar too - after that a longer seat post but then there's only the frame and wheels left!

I find the front slightly lower than I'm used to, but it feels kinda good. Switching over to an 80mm stem with +6 degree rise later in the week - coupled with my 780mm bar I think it going to feel sweet.

Been plagued with a bit of chain suck this week and have lost a fair amount of paint as a result a looking forward to my 1x10 gear arriving

Oh yeah, need some crank advice - I have a spare standard Hope 68/73 bottom bracket with GXP adapter fitted so ideally would like to use it - I'm looking at the SRAM GX1000 which looks good value at around £75, guessing that the BB would be fine to use without the standard width plastic tube spacer thingy?
ie, just run the BB at 100mm.

Bit worried about chainline with a SRAM crank, anyone know the centreline of them?
Also, the GX 1000 has an 11sp ring - are they ok to run with 10sp chain?

Lightman, at the moment I'm using the tyres that came with the bike; Mission Command's, never heard of the manufacturer before. They'll do fOr now.

Might get a steeper stem or riser bars later, I'll see how it goes. Only been out on it 3 times so far. As far as weight reduction goes I've more need to lose over a stone myself before I start fitting carbon forks & bars on what was intended as a cheap & cheerful winter ride.

'May' have been perusing the Go Outdoors site, 'possibly' looking at Dunes - they've got a 10% offer on today, so with the member card + 7% from Quidco should give decent discount. If my maths are correct (they may not be), think it would come in at sub-£500...so very, very tempting...

I'm thinking of buying a L and giving my 15 year old daughter the M. She does love riding it. Sounds like a plan 🙂

Do it. You won't get more fun for your money.

Oh yeah, need some crank advice - I have a spare standard Hope 68/73 bottom bracket with GXP adapter fitted so ideally would like to use it - I'm looking at the SRAM GX1000 which looks good value at around £75, guessing that the BB would be fine to use without the standard width plastic tube spacer thingy?
ie, just run the BB at 100mm.

Yes, but it may be susceptible to water inside the frame getting to the bearings. Pack them out with grease on the inside and drill a hole in the BB shell to let the water out if there isn't one already and should be fine.

Bit worried about chainline with a SRAM crank, anyone know the centreline of them?
Also, the GX 1000 has an 11sp ring - are they ok to run with 10sp chain?

SRAM certainly have a narrower Q -factor than most, Raceface and others are 200/220mm (170/190 spacing), but SRAM are closer to 175/195. Not sure what the chainlines are, I just use a 2x X5 chainset on my fatty with a single ring, works fine on a 10s cassette. The GX versions use similar arms to the X5/X9 (GX-1000 is solid like X5 and deore, GX-1400 is hollow like SLX and X9) but use a 94mm BCD which ties you into SRAM chainrings.

I'd best wait for child 2 to come back from School to ensure we've got our story straight in case of cross examination... they have one in Gloucester as well!

The GX versions use similar arms to the X5/X9 but use a 94mm BCD which ties you into SRAM chainrings.

Damn, I stupidly assumed 104 BCD - I already have a SuperStar 3-T NW in transit. Suppose i could send it back and use the Sram ring.

do I have any other/better options to run with my Hope BB?

[b]dahedd[/b], the Vee tyre Mission Commands are one of the worst off road tyres out there!
You really need to look at the tread like you would do with any mtb tyre and see if its suitable for your riding. Just because its a fat tyre, it doesn't mean it will magically make a poor tread really good in conditions it was not meant for.
I got some VEE8 tyres and they are rubbish off road, but I only use them on the road because of that and will run them 15-25 psi. They will go off road but I don't expect much when that happens.
I would suggest that keep your tyres for road rides and get a pair off On One Floaters to get you going if you're on a budget, thats what I have.
There are better and more expensive tyres out there, but the Floaters are a very good budget tyre and will transform your bike straight away 🙂
Plus, if you run them at 20psi, they are actually quite fast on the road too.

Cheers [b]Lightman[/b] I'll upgrade them b4 the autumn. Still got my 29er Stumpjumper to play with as well. I've a mate who has fat bikes for ages, ill pick his brains on tyre choice (see if he has any cast offs)

Saying that I see On One still has a sale on. The Floaters are down to £30. Is it worth replacing just the rear tyre or is it best to do both ?

Just changed the innertubes on my on-one for the schwalbes recommended on here.

Bloody hell the difference is immense, 570g each down to around 180, are they really strong enough?

I can see me using them for all the mtbs, cant see why i'd use anything else. The mtb tubes ive been using are 325g.

Lets just see if the buggers are up to the job

dahedd, the Vee tyre Mission Commands are one of the worst off road tyres out there!

Vee Missions were horrible, Mission Commands are a new version and apparently pretty good.

Just changed the innertubes on my on-one for the schwalbes recommended on here.

Bloody hell the difference is immense, 570g each down to around 180, are they really strong enough?

I can see me using them for all the mtbs, cant see why i'd use anything else. The mtb tubes ive been using are 325g.

Lets just see if the buggers are up to the job

If it's an original Fatty, drill the rims and go tubeless too, makes a huge difference.

570g tube + 150g of extra metal down to ~120g of tube and ~120g of sealant, doesn't feel that different to my 29er now.

One aspect of riding a fatty didn't become apparent til last night.
Making progress on a gravelly descent and spied a dog walker coming out of a side path. Slammed the brakes on.
There was no suspension dive, no skidding , just a very controlled stop.
I always reckoned I would put my Fatty away in the summer. Really can't see me riding anything else.
I have officially become a Fatty Bore.

I think crashtestmonkey raised the front end,

no, it was what a few other reviewers had mentioned on the Wazoo.

The Mission Commands are excellent on hardpack/trail centre stuff. I currently have a Floater (£15 in a recent sale) on the rear and Jumbo Jim on the front, but the MCs will be getting used, not binned.

My Schwalbe 180grm tubes are holding up fine.

Grip on fat bikes really is immense. I was the only bike to clean a few super steep climbs on our last (local Chilterns) ride (my legs were cursing the grip!), and I found I was carrying so much more speed on swoopy stuff as every corner feels like a berm I was having to brake to avoid steamrollering mates I'd thought I was riding at the same speed as. No slower anywherre than the HTs or FSers I rode with and occasionally quicker.

My fat bike will be getting used throughout the summer with the big bike only coming out for stuff like the non-trail centre stuff at FoD.

Talking of cranks, does anyone have suggestions for a replacement 36t ring for a 2x10 Sram X5 on my older Fatty? Would much prefer steel to butter/sorry, alloy.

Well, bit the bullet thanks to this thread. Ordered a medium Dune for Mrs MM...which may get pinched 'occasionally' - will be comedy small for me though. Still can't make up my mind whether I really like the Rooster. If the Dune's as fun as I hope, might sell the Rooster f&f and swap bits over to a large frame. Shame they don't do a different colour option though, his+hers bikes...not sure...

Anyhow arrives tomorrow, can't wait 🙂

Dfs , sorry I mean PlanetX, have a weekend 15% discount code for components, pxfounders50

Makes the RDS On One Carbon Fatty Fork £127.50 less ~2% using Topcashback.

The default Wazoo wheels and fork are Front Disc Spaced, would either need some lathing skills on the disc mounts to remove 5mm, or buy a relatively expensive and heavy Fatty front wheel for ~£63 (have been ~£37).

Sadly, the Fat Not Fat 29er wheelset was increased in base price from £120 to £150, so using promo, it is same price as fork.

Still no idea if the front wheel of this set is RDS or FDS.

Makes the "chewy" Knuckleball bars £51 less cash back, due in June.

Fat tyres are at least £25.50 less cash back, they have been at least £15 each.

How do the Emmental/El Guapo wheels weigh up?
Annoyingly unavailable in a Dune friendly pair - but if they were any lighter/better than stock wheels they would probably be worth a bash at £169 a set.

http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/WBOOEELF/on-one-emmental-fat-rim-on-el-guapo-fat-hubs

Might pick up a chain in thier sale though - which is best for 1x10 Zee/Sunrace set up?
Have heard KMC work nicely - any model to pick in particular?

Annoyingly unavailable in a Dune friendly pair - but if they were any lighter/better than stock wheels they would probably be worth a bash at £169 a set.

Same rims as the Dune (and Halo tundra, Charge fat bikes, and a few other budget wheelsets), so no they're unlikely to be much different (unless you need new hubs).

Cheers for the heads up though, I've been slowly accumulating bits for my Fatty Trail build, ironic really, it's probably going to end up being near enough the stock build at this rate!