Fairlight Holt Hardtail

That’s very good to know, cheers

I have a holt (and a strael). The holt’s my first mtb for probably ten years. It’s a great bike for me: brilliant on woodland singletrack that I’ve been riding it on. Seems well made too

Jezkidd is the frame as comfortable as there blurb makes it out to be?

I’d say yes but it’s not a sofa. It’s well judged for geo so you can really move around but in terms of ride feel it’s not overly stiff nor bendy. I’d say taut.

@ojom let’s see some pics!

Posted a wee link up there to IG.

I don’t know how to add more here. Loathe WordPress. DM me your email and I’ll fire some to you

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@Wheelie, I’d say so. I’m running SIDS and 2.4s and I find it comfortable and quick.

@Andy – Thanks for the heads up, the discount still applies so you saved me a bob or two😀.

I find it very comfortable. Running 2.6 mezcals and a pair of sid selects.

I tried it with 2.35 mezcals and also some 2.4 Wolfpack trail tyres, but enjoyed it more with the wider tyres on.

Perfect for my riding on and around the South downs.

Hi, any advice on sizing for someone at 5’11”, riding nippy singletrack? Does it feel compact or stretched out?

Cheers

As above also interested in sizing , 5’10.5 tall , right between M and L.

I’d put you both on a large. I’m 5’7″/173cm and on a medium. I think you’d find medium a bit wee.

5ft 9 and I’m on a large.

This thread needs more rider photos 😎

Here’s a pic.

Here are some more

👌🏻

What size chainring are you running?

It’s a 30t oval. Should be a 32t oval as I’ve switched the rear cassette from a 42t cassette to a 50t.

They’re v lovely to look at, do they ride as nice as they look? Feel a little bit special?

I love mine, it feels special to me. I have nothing to compare it to though, as it’s my first ever steel bike.
It’s way more comfortable than my On One Whippet (not really an apples with apples comparison though).
It’s a good fun, light(ish) weight hardtail that beats me up less than any other hardtail I’ve owned.

Just bumping this thread up as there’s another batch of these coming in the next couple of weeks and one of them will be making its way to me.

Anyone else waiting for one? How you building it up? Mine will be rigid to start with.

Anyone with one already have any opinion on a dropper post? Oneup Vs PNW Rainier seem the best options.

Hi all.

My first Holt frame needed to be returned because the seat tube wasn’t formed correctly – It was loose at the top and too tight at the bottom. Fairlight inspected it and agreed it was a QC issue and I waited over 2 months for a replacement. I can’t complain about the customer service, but it was frustrating to be without a bike.

I received the replacement frame (Large) last week and the seat tube is good on this one. However, I am seeing an issue with tyre clearance. It’s significant enough that I’m worried the frame is out of sorts again.

I’m seeing almost no clearance on the drive-side chain stay. The tyre bristles are touching the stay.

This is with Vittoria Mezcal 29×2.6 at 25 PSI on Hope Pro 5 hubs. The Thru-Axel is torqued to spec.

This does seem odd as the frame is specced for 29×2.6 and the Mezcal has relatively small knobs. It’s also a tyre I have seen Fairlight use for publicity shoots.

I’m hoping onecheshirecat sees this as I think he is using the same tyres. If so, I’d love to see a photo of your clearance on the drive side chain stay. My photo below.

Tighter than a [insert metaphor here]! You can’t ride it like that shirley.

With the seat tube issue, tyre clearance, and this (translate in your browser), I am beginning to worry that there are manufacturing issues they need to get on top of.

If that’s just the amount of clearance on all frames, then fine, but I don’t think it can be advertised as 29×2.6 compatible. The Mezcal would be the most popular tyre by far on a bike like this.

@onecheshirecat

Wow, this isn’t good. That’s not rideable with that tyre

How does that clearance compare between frame 1 and replacement frame?

If you flip the wheel round is it still the same (i.e. not a dishing issue)?

Any chance there’s an issue with the wheel, like the end caps fitted on wrong sides? Is there same clearance both sides, or if you put wheel in wrong way round?

Thanks for the responses.

I can’t remember if it was the same on frame 1 – I didn’t check at the time or didn’t notice it. 

I’ve checked a couple of things with my digital caliper just now. The distance between the stays measured at the point where Fairlight measure it is 78mm, which matches their spec. The tyre is 66mm wide, which matches Fairlight’s max recommended.

I’ve also flipped the wheel and the problem stays on the drive side. I can only conclude that the stays aren’t exactly centred in line with the wheel. I think the next step is to confirm with Fairlight if the wheel should be 100% centred or if it’s expected to be further outboard on the drive side. I’ve emailed them. The photo makes it look worse than it is, so I’ll take a video later. 

Misaligned dropouts would cause that too, i.e. NDS further dropout towards the front of the bike, so the wheel is pointing to your right hand grip rather than straight through the frame.

Any way you can check that? long straight edge against the tyre below the chainstay? It’d be easier without a derailleur or cassette, and more accurate against the rim with they tyre off, or completely deflated.

Or frickin’ laser beams?

Or is the centre line of the tyre in line with the centre of the seat tube?

I feel your pain though, I had 2 wonky Ti frames on the bounce, 3rd time got lucky. Or more accurately, the 1st 2 times very unlucky, 3rd what unpacked and checked over by bossman before they sent it out. Waltly mfr’d frame from Sonder.

Below is a photo from Fairlight showing clearance for a 2.6 Mezcal…

Thanks for the photo. I have nothing close to that sort of clearance on either side. What the hell!!

That’s concerning I was considering one of these; hope you get this resolved!  What I really like about fairlight is the quality of the technical communication and focus on engineering detail.

Just an observation based on the photos. 
On the Fairlight design notes images the chainstays seems much wider spaced where they meet the bottom bracket. There is barely any space between the outside edge of the chainstay and the edge of the bottom bracket. 
In your photos there is a noticeable gap between the edge of tbe chainstay and the bottom bracket which indicates that they are closer together. The crimping also seems to be longer and wrap more around the tyre in the Fairlight images. From the photos it would appear that the clearance is quite different between the Fairlight design notes and your actual frame.
Probably worth sending it back to them for inspection. They have a great reputation for looking after customers, and (usually at least) fantastic attention to detail and build quality. Every manufacturer has the odd Friday Afternoon Bike, but maybe you got 2!

Yeah, I think it does need to go back but that will be another 2 months without a bike whilst I wait for the next shipment. Not riding a bike has tanked my mental health and I need to get back on!

Oh well, needs must I suppose

Mocked up this comparison as best I could. Something definitely not right.

The stays do appear have a different profile, bend and position in those photos. Much narrower and straighter on your frame and the crimp is shorter. Assuming the wheels is correctly dished there also seems to be an alignment issue too. Might be perspective and angle, but it looks different to my untrained eye. Only one way to find out of course.

With luck it won’t be 2 months and you have been unlucky rather than this being a quality issue for Fairlight. Having owned one (a Secan) it was spot on.

Man, I’m so sorry I missed this thread, been browsing without logging in! Just seen @beadlesabout message.

I actually stopped running the mezcal 2.6 tyres as I was getting tyre buzz from the chain stays. Kind of coincided with the onset of the crap weather so have put my winter tyres (2.4 tyres) and stuck my head in the sand.

A real shame if I can’t run them as it was definitely my preference.

Will be interesting to see if anything changes with a new frame.

I would say that I definitely had more clearance than @beadlesabout photo above. I was able to run 2.6 mezcals and only occasionally had rubbing. And only when running lower pressures.