Increasingly i find myself wondering “Should I have actually bought a large T-130”

Now that may seem weird as i’ve owned the Whyte for 2 years now, but at the time i bought it i got a M and at 5’11-6’0 it’s arguable i’m deffo a Large. But at the time the Large felt a bit, well, large…
I’ve got several thousand miles on the Whyte without any issue and i absolutely adore it, it’s done the SDW, Morzine, BPW, Afan, etc etc… but would i love an L more…

But i wouldn’t mind trying one.

Can’t find a frame to buy and in honesty it makes more sense to buy a whole bike
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2016-Whyte-T130-sx-650b-27-5inch-wheels-Large-frame-with-upgraded-Fox-34/283163343216?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2763.l2649

I could get that for £1000 but if i buy it and still prefer the M then i’ve got to shift it on… Which i could possibly do of course, but may take a little while of course…

Swinley Bike hub used to do Whytes, but don’t now, so that option is closed… I could Demo a large from Banjo Cycles in Newbury, but they’ll only have the later models which are different geometry so not sure it’s a true representation because i won’t be buying a new one, only an older Ebay one. Can’t justify shelling out a grand on top of my T130 to still get another T130 which would essentially be distinctly similar.

So ideally i need someone who fancies an hour out at Swinley/wherever and wouldn’t mind trying the M version.

Pretty please.

selling my large whyte for £450 without dropper £625 with lots of marks but fully working

Don’t Rides on Air in Wallingford still sell Whyte? I got my Shoreditch from there.

Don’t know the shop mate, but they’re likely to be 19s so quite different.

Don’t have it anymore, but I had a large t130s from 2015…it was way to small for me. I’d always had Large frames before, but this felt tiny. I’m 6’1″ btw. They did lengthen the top tube in 2016 by 20 odd mm.

Weeksy, give John (ex manager at banjo’s) a bell at the Marlborough Bike Co I think he has an alu 130 Works from 2015ish, maybe 16 in stock at the moment, I’m sure it’s a large – I’m sure he’ll let you give it a spin.

Increasingly i find myself wondering “Should I have actually bought a large T-130”

I think it’s fair to say, yes you should, given your height. Given how small they were, an XL wouldn’t exactly been considered roomy at 6ft.

Cheers Adam, have done so.

I did wonder how long it was going to take for this thread to appear! Longer than I thought I must admit! As I beleive I said at the time, a large is by far and away the best size for you, even with the longer top tubes of more recent models.

Why not consider a different frame?

I get you are otherwise happy …
I was always stuck between small through large…
Small felt tiny in length but large was too high… so I ended up on medium even though it still felt short…

A recent revelation however was I tried a bigger bike (nukeproof mega in pre extra length large) and it’s fantastic in many ways except it is so stable it takes away some fun… I tried Jnrs XS Bird just for fun and it m Got be slower but it’s more fun. That’s obviously pretty extreme … but it made me realise that faster isn’t the same as fun.

If I cared about a couple of seconds the NP is probably faster ..so I just ended up buying a used frame in medium. (Non metric, non boost)

Im planning to sell the NP eventually but you could borrow it if you wanted for a couple of weeks though it’s more travel .. but might give you a feel for a bigger sized bike and if you like the feel for free?

After which you might just decide to keep the medium T-130

Over 2 years lawman.

Steve, I’m not against another frame, I’ve actually just put an offer in on this

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Specialized-Stumpjumper-EVO-650b-2015/153331739348?ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&redirect=mobile&autorefresh=true

My Hopes will go straight on as no boost etc, I’d swap the dropper potentially as I compiled my Vyron although I seem in the minority there.

P.s thank you for the kind offer.

I’ll give you a free pro tip on the SJ of that era, as a Spec employee.

It was a total bodge job, to have a 650b bike. It’s a 29er frame modified badly to take 650b wheels. We had to run an external lower headset cup to raise the front end enough to allow for the smaller wheels.

Save your money & cancel the offer.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Specialized-Stumpjumper-EVO-650b-2015-/153331739348

Oops. I just bought this

Oh really butter? Oh. Errrrm

https://www.bikeradar.com/mtb/gear/category/bikes/mountain-bikes/full-suspension/product/review-specialized-stumpjumper-fsr-comp-evo-650b-14-48306/

Reviews ok?

One thing i have just noticed is that the routing for the dropper isn’t standard, he/someone has done that.

Hmmm

If you get the stumpy or not with the NP … I bought frame only for <£250 partly because it took a 216×63 so I just transferred the pikes and in my case added the airshaft for 160 from the 140 I had it.

So my cost exposure was pretty low… hence why I’d be happy to loan it as I’m not in a huge rush to sell and it’s actually more clearing the room .. or I might keep it. I actually really like it in some or most ways…

I wasn’t really lookin to buy another anyway but hey ho..local and decent price. At £450. Then again it’s hopefully between the NP and Whyte and will have the bits I like from both.

It took me 6 mo anyway but worse case I’d not lose much.

I didn’t go for that particular one, partly because of the bloke above, partly because it also has a lower BB than the T-130 (only 4mm but the T-130 is low anyway) and partly the aftermarket drilling for the dropper.

So I’m all a bit up in the air now with it and thinking “What’s the point really” I’ve never when out riding felt an issue with the T-130 despite peoples thoughts it’s too small, although sometimes yes the bars feel a little closer than i think may be correct, but it’s far from insurmountable. I also am not sure on the value of the T-130 and think it would only net me £700-800, which then leaves me with a £200 hole to fill… Sure that’s not a massive figure i get that, but really would it give me anything. It’s not likely to make me faster in an XC racing context and even if the Large DID do that, it’s more likely i’m still holding it back so any improvement would be minimal.

Not really sure where this leaves any thoughts/decisions if i’m honest. So for now i’ll close ebay and keep enjoying the T-130.

For the best regarding that Stumpy. £1050 is overpriced in my opinion for that. I sold my 2016 carbon Stumpy (with updated geo) for the same price just over a year ago.

He accepted £925 which was decent? But I didn’t like that drilling.

Mountain Trax are close to Swinley and are a Whyte dealer. They have a large current T130 on their demo fleet according to their website.

Yeah there’s serveral options in that context Simon, including Banjo. But they’ll be 19S which are massively different to the 15’s for sure and fairly different to the 16 that i’d potentially be looking at too. So i’m not actually convinced i’m going to learn a lot from trying a much later one other than the fact it’s clearly bigger, which of course we already know.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Whyte-T130S-2016-Large/132928201486?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649

This came up on ebay last night, but i’ve settled on keeping it now and seeing what happens when i throw a Shockwiz on it and set it up etc.. After all, i’ve been riding it for 2 years now so can’t be THAT bad and can honestly say i’ve enjoyed each and every ride on it.

Would a longer stem and/or a layback post make up the difference in reach between a M and L if that’s what feels small?

the M already runs a 65mm stem so didn’t really want to jump to an even longer one as that may affect the handling. I’ve run it a couple of times with a layback post, i think 20mm or so, but in honesty it wasn’t night and day different.

Would a longer stem and/or a layback post make up the difference in reach between a M and L if that’s what feels small?

Reach is a fixed number in respect of the relationship between the HT & BB shell.

Putting a layback seatpost on a bike with an already slack seat angle, that on paper is far to small for the the rider is going to be hideous. The saddle must be close to lining up with the rear axle!

I’m only a couple of inches taller than you & there is no way I would ride a medium of any bike. I generally have to chose between a L & XL. My back hurts even thinking about it 🙂

Jeez I’m 5’9 and now ride large frames. Always told by manufacturers I was a medium but after trying sizing up recently it made the world of difference. Simply night and day! So even at my height I would find that medium to small Weeksy, sure you have ridden it for a few years but that doesn’t mean it’s been as good as it could’ve been if it was the correct size for you. Personally I think you should at the least take 1 size up if not 2. Especially if looking at older model years which would’ve run shorter geo anyway. I can honestly say I batted al my friends comments over my bike looking small away as bunkum until I actually made the step!

I think by the fact i’ve ridden it for 2+ years and not complained shows that it can’t be that bad…. I don’t suffer with back issues due to it that’s for sure. I do occasionally get a sore neck/shoulders, but that’s not even when i’ve been riding the T-130 but the Large Parkwood.

Anyway, due to buying the shockwiz and also a Binners picture, the new T-130 is off the cards currently unless someone bought mine in advance.

Jeez I’m 5’9 and now ride large frames. Always told by manufacturers I was a medium but after trying sizing up recently it made the world of difference. Simply night and day! So even at my height I would find that medium to small Weeksy, sure you have ridden it for a few years but that doesn’t mean it’s been as good as it could’ve been if it was the correct size for you. Personally I think you should at the least take 1 size up if not 2. Especially if looking at older model years which would’ve run shorter geo anyway. I can honestly say I batted al my friends comments over my bike looking small away as bunkum until I actually made the step!

I’ve owned and ridden a multitude of bikes, both Medium and Large, from a Commencal Meta AM29 in a large, to a Spearfish in a Large, also several mediums… I’ve not been unhappy with any of them as such. The large often felt a bit unweildy compared to the smaller ones. Which is why when i bought the T-130 i went for the Medium as i had both a M and an L here with me, but the L felt all massive and ungainly.

The 2018 t130 in medium is only 4mm longer reach (449) than the medium Bird Aeris 1.5 I had for a few years. At just under 5’10 I was at the upper end of the sizing on that, and as such I’m now on a 475mm reach bike (the Bird AM9). There is no way at your height I’d be happy on a 2015 medium T130 based on the assumption that the reach is less than 440mm

FFS the things i let you lot talk me into ! hahahaahha

It would be worth a demo on a bird aeris 120, lovely bikes with loads of sizing options. I am 5 ft 11 and definitely would not want a medium, in face m on an XL bird, but i do like long bikes. Id day a ML or a L bird woudl be good for you, probably a ML if you dont like really long bikes.

That’s a whole different level of spending mate. I’m looking at as close to a £0 swap here not spending an extra £1000+

If i were doing that i’d probably have a Whyte S-120 ordered up by now.

Now sitting impatiently waiting with a bit of “damn, i should have gone in and accepted their counter offer….

Tick tock tick tock.

Well you buggers, it appears i’m the owner of a new shiny bicycle shaped object.

[url=https://flic.kr/p/2dhUVFG]t13016[/url] by Steve Weeks, on Flickr

Winner winnner!

Glad you got it sorted. Good price on it?

£900. 2016 model. I’m happy with it price wise, just need to sell mine now.

Wheels will be in storage mostly as i’ll fit the Pro4’s and will potetnially swap the seatpost for my Vyron.

Nice, we expect a full thread of you stripping it down, servicing, cleaning and upgrading it over the next couple of weeks please. That said I just built my new bike up and didn’t bother posting on here.

Nice colour by the way

Just spent the last hour and a half sorting the out-going 15. Put a new Bottom Bracket in it, new jockey wheels, standard wheels with spare tyres and tubeless fluid…. Gave it a full clean and prep so that’s now ready to be sold…

Ooooh this has all become a little complex, potentially got a buyer for the Blue 2015 who wants it Satuday morning… Which is also when i’m collecting the orange one !

The downside is, i have the Magura Vyron on the blue15 bike and the Orange16 comes with a reverb that’s internally routed.

So my big dilemma is, do i fanny about swapping over the Reverb which i assume will need a bleed as well as re-routing an inner for it… Or just leave the Vyron for the buyer of the blue bike… I think in all honesty, it makes more sense to leave the Vyron in the blue one…. which is a bit of a shame, but overall i rekon i’m doing well on the deal.

Chat to the buyer, see if there happy to have the blue with the reverb and reduce the price by £30 or so to cover an lbs bleeding the post?