So gone from an airdrop edit to a cotic rocketmax. Currently on a commencal meta am 29. Airdrop was the most fun bike I’ve ever had. Both the cotic and the commencal are great bikes but a lot of bike!
90% of my riding is natural singletrack type stuff. Think fod offpiste, north nibley and around Dursley. Go to risca once or twice a month and some bikepark stuff occasionally.
In my head I’m over biked for most of my riding. Would swapping to a 130/140mm trail bike actually make that big a difference? My enduro bike definitely makes things easy and steam rollers through most stuff. So would a 29er trail bike bring back a little of that airdrop edit fun? Do I just need to suck it up and stop thinking about it?!
Frame wise thinking privateer 141, Hightower, starling murmur, Stanton switch9er fs kind of territory

The RocketMax is a lot of bike. If you liked how that rode then a Cotic Jeht would be that, but with a bit less travel. Less travel is definitely more fun.

Yeah that’s what I’m wondering, will 20mm or so less travel bring back that fun feeling? Yeah the jeht does look good

Less travel and less weight needed by the sound of it! Going down in travel/weight would make a big difference, something like a Tallboy/Optic/Occam might be worth a look

I’ve been thinking along similar lines. Decided to change my 150/140mm bike (Escarpe) for a 130/120mm Tallboy.
A winter of riding a hardtail has convinced me that I prefer that closer connection to the trail.

My hardtail is what has kicked all this off! Rode my hardtail for a couple months then broke the mech so took the enduro bike out, it wasn’t boring but just kind of easy and like I didn’t have to try if you know what I mean? A big burly bike does well on South Wales natural terrain but surely it’s not like a trail bike couldn’t handle it. I am likely to reach my limits before the bikes limits!
Privateer ticks that Horst link box that my airdrop had. Find it hard to get excited about Santa Cruz for some reason. I guess the privateer isn’t light. Looking around time!

Check out the Bird A9. I think it is lighter than the 141. A little shorter on the rear.

Having just gone from HT to the A9 I have to say that I did miss the connection to the trail of some of the rides. I video’s my first ride out and whilst conditions were ideal I was considerably quicker on the FS, but didn’t feel like I was pushing it.

Things felt more “alive” on the HT.

I didn’t consider the Santa Cruz at first as I associate them with “All the gear, no idea” types!
I’ve looked at so many different bikes… Ibis, Orange, Yeti, Transition, Nukeproof, etc, etc. The Santa Cruz wormed its way in owing to the overall design and lifetime warranty that is well supported in the UK. It was also available… not many are!

I dont own a Stanton switch9er fs but quite a few people on the FB owner group comment that it is a lot of bike and quite heavy. Might not be better than what you already have.

I am still really impressed with my Last Glen, 140mm rear 150mm front 29er (Mullet link also available). Frame is really well made, has decent geometry and is not overly heavy for aluminium, my XXL is around 3.1/3.2kg without the shock, the Smuggler I had before was around 4kg without the shock!

I have one of the first generation frames, the latest version uses the same front and rear triangles as the longer travel Coal too, so with a different fork and shock (Linkage too) you would have an enduro bike (160mm rear 170mm front).

A winter of riding a hardtail has convinced me that I prefer that closer connection to the trail.

Conversely, a summer of hardtail induced vision blur and battering can convince one of the need for an FS…

The solution of course, is one of each.

Orange stage 4

Class bike.

with the right geo, less is more.

I love my 125mm rear 140mm front Norco Optic. The bike is light, sprightly and great fun to ride. Yes some tougher stuff is more fatiguing, but its still capable and gives a sense of achievement, picking lines rather than steamrollering all in front of you.

Airdrop was the most fun bike I’ve ever had

I’m interested in this statement. I like the look of the V4 but I’ve heard some people say they can feel quite glued to the ground especially with a coil shock. I want it as a second bike for hooning around on and I fancy something like a big wheeled jump bike that can pop around quite easily.

The other bike I really like the look of is the Meta TR. The AM is definitley too much bike for where I live. I’ve never ridden a 29er that I really like and I’m scared that big wheels will be a total buzzkill.

Rode an am9 when I got my rocketmax, it was good but it didn’t shine if that makes sense. I’m not sure how worried about weight I actually am. Sure if a frame happened to be light then bonus but it isn’t a requirement.
The summer before I got my rocketmax was spent in the fod, mainly Staunton or mallards. That thing was just manoeuvrable and fun, kind of felt like I could take on the world. But I was racing lots and the 29er just felt right for charging. So I wonder how much is in the wheel size and how much is in the travel. Incidentally I quite like the way a slack bike rides. Would a slack/long shorter travel bike still be what I’m talking about? I wish I had bought the meta tr to be honest but I didn’t think about it!

You seem to have two LLS enduro bikes, so swapping one to a mid-travel 29er bike would be optimal IMO.

Would a slack/long shorter travel bike still be what I’m talking about? I wish I had bought the meta tr to be honest but I didn’t think about it!

The Meta TR and some of the other bikes you mentioned are on the hefty side, I’d look for something more in the average weight zone. The new Vitus Escarpe and Sonder Evol both look good. The Norco mentioned above, the Stumpy Evo, the Hightower you suggested yourself.

I have a big heavy enduro bike and a lighter trail/enduro bike (Stage 6), and it makes a really nice contrast for me.

I’ve had a RocketMax and a Highower and I’m now on a Privateer 141. The Rocketmax was a lot of bike and only fun on rides at the Golfie, Dunkeld etc. The Hightower was great and I built it up with a custom link to make it more of an LT. I really liked it on most trails but I fancied trying a steeper seat angle and longer chainstays, hence the 141. The Privateer is great. Brilliant on steep, technical trails but also fun on mellower local stuff. It is quite heavy for a “trail bike” though. I couldn’t care less.

Sorry I might not have made it entirely clear! Had a rocketmax, now on a meta am. Also got a 130mm hardtail. The shorter travel trail bike would be to replace my enduro bike and I would keep the hardtail as well. So burly trail bike might not be a bad thing as long as burly doesn’t mean full enduro bike ride! The privateer or meta tr feel like the closest in fit and geo to my meta am. Which I like the fit ride of but slimmed down would be good I think.
The rocketmax felt more all round than my meta, that feels big and gnarly. However I prefer the ride position of meta compared to the rocketmax

Hi
I have a V4 Tallboy and it makes a fantastic all round trail bike.
It’s not stupidly light at around 29lb with a nice build but it’s just hugely capable as a trail centre, moors, woods etc all rounder.
Currently has a 130 fork but would happily take a 140 too
Also consider Evil The Following maybe
Cheers
Steve

@beamishblue I’m leaning towards a 141 because the geo is very similar to my commencal but shorter travel. Which in my head could be what I’m looking for. The tr meta could also tick that box. These two bikes have the geometry I like but the shorter travel
Where/ what sort of terrain do you ride?

Gotcha now.

So yeah the 141 would make a lot of sense, if it pedals well.

That and the Meta are two of the best-looking bikes out there as well, IMO.

@chakaping yeah they are two good looking frames. The price helps me out a bit too!
I was hoping everyone would say don’t be so silly it 20mm of travel won’t make a difference. But equally happy the 141/tr seem to be where I’m heading!
I’m massively on the fence with it all. On one hand I feel I should be happy I’ve got a bike I like, on the other hand would I happier on something else!

Put a deposit on a privateer 141 just to get in the queue! Looking at the end of august for frames. Can cancel that and get something else if needed. Will carry on looking around!

Have ordered a meta tr and am not sure i would describe it as a trail bike.
160mm 29er is a bit much for trails but I’m going to use it for everything short of full dh. Not flat xc though

I live in Stirling so I ride here as well as in the mountains and Dunkeld, Ballo, Tweed Valley etc.

The 141 seems ideal for all of this. I looked at the Meta TR as well but I am on an XL and I like how Privateer alter chainstay length along with reach. The Meta TRs chainstays are the same length throughout the size range.

I wish I got an order in a month or two ago! August feels a lifetime away!
Cheers @beamishblue on paper it’s all I want, to hear it rides well is a bonus. The weight is it’s only downside and i don’t really care about that

The Norco Optic 2020 is excellent for around Stirling. So much zip but you will ride most stuff with it.

About the same weight as the 141, I would go with a Banshee Prime V3. Frames available. Rides fast everywhere. You will climb to Dumyat etc easily and rip down back.

What about the New Bird Aether 9??
Seems to get some brilliant reviews
https://www.bird.bike/aether9/

Transition Spur or Santa Cruz Tallboy or Pivot Trail 429 or Orange Stage Evo ?

If you buy me a banshee phantom I’ll test it for you

I’m currently looking at the Meta TR to replace the Stumpjumper Evo Pro Carbon I’ve just sold.

Want more reach up front as I’m 6ft 2 (stumpy was about 475mm).

Obviously going to be burlier weight wise, my only niggle is the short chainstay with the long reach of the XL

How do the Commencals ride?

I think I’m coming around to the Canyon Spectral. All the reviews of the Meta TR make it sound like a bit of a lump and more suited to winch and plummet riding.

I don’t have access to that much gnar so I want something more sprightly for doing a bit of distance that will feel more lively on less exciting trails and trail centres.

I think some of the UK bikes might be unfairly seen as not lively due to speccing Hope wheels quite often. I’ve had a few sets of Hope wheels over the years, and they are heavy and kinda soft, sucking the life out of most bikes. Rebuilding those wheels with some better rims and lighter spokes makes wonders for most bikes.

I have just gone through this but coming from a hardtail.

Considered most of the bikes mentioned plus a few others.

I ended up ordering a Banshee Prime.  Quite excited!

Ended up buy a bfemax to keep things lively and an airshock for meta am, also ordered the wrp mullet link. Hoping both of those things make it a little livelier. As for for the bfemax m, all I can say right now is holy hardtail Batman! How is that thing so fast?!!