Gnarly/silly/fun/pointless* new hardtail ordered!

*Delete according to taste.

I’ve finally succumbed and ordered a new hardtail frame! Well, it’s a bit more than that because I’m shifting from 27.5 to 29. My Bird Zero AM has done pretty sterling service for the last six years but I’ve never known a bike that is so brilliant when I’m riding well and so cantankerous (yet still safe) when I’m having an off day!

The new bike will be a fair bit bigger in reach and stack, a bit slacker (the Zero has an angleset), bigger wheels, chainstays adjustable from slightly longer to a fair bit longer, slightly higher BB and it’s steel (apparently with a nice ride feel). And very very PINK. All these are changes I think I want so I hope I’m right! Frame should be here in March, wheels are coming from my Levo (which is getting some tougher ones), most of the rest of the parts from the Zero bar the shiny new fork that’s arrived.

Pipedream Moxie MX3 – Long / Neon Pink
160mm Lyrik Ultimate RC2 42mm offset
Roval 29” 30mm wide wheels
Fatbar Lite 760mm 40mm rise
Hope 50mm stem
DMR Deathgrips
Hope headset
Hope BB
GX Eagle 170mm drivetrain (34t / 10-50)
DMR Vaults
OneUp bash/guide
Hope Tech 3 E4 brakes
203/183mm floating rotors
BikeYoke Revive 185mm dropper
Fabric Scoop saddle
Magic Mary 2.35 Snakeskin Soft front
DHR2 2.3 Exo Dual or Rock Razor 2.35 Snakeskin Speedgrip rear
Rimpact Original/Pro inserts

(Everything black apart from the frame)

I know it’s some months away but I’m excited! No photos yet…

Should be a beast! Nice to have a shopping list like that

I have one of those. Best bike I’ve ever had!

Pay attention @Northwind that’s not a shopping list it’s being transferred from the old Zero, otherwise the chief would have gone for some better brakes 😀

Reckon that’s going to be a great bike, will be interested to hear how it pans out

Just scuttled off the the Pipedream site, that does look like a fun bike, can’t wait to see it!

Got rid of my V1 after 7 months. Hope you enjoy yours more than I did!

@howsyourdad1 care to explain why it wasn’t enjoyable?

“ Pay attention @Northwind that’s not a shopping list it’s being transferred from the old Zero, otherwise the chief would have gone for some better brakes 😀”

Yes, it’s a Trigger’s Broom build – the parts from the Zero were previously on a Cotic Soul or a Banshee Spitfire (or two). It’s getting a bigger front disc (old one off the Levo)! In a shocking case of standards being slightly standardised, the seatpost and clamp, the BB, and the top half the headset match whilst the caliper post mounts and adapters work out neatly for the bigger front and same size rear rotors.

I’ve got an HG freehub for the old Levo wheels and am fitting an XD one for the 12 speed – so I’m thinking I should be able to singlespeed it with an adapter kit on the HG freehub and a shorter chain. Any suggestions? Can I still use the same chainring with a singlespeed sprocket? What sprocket size for a newbie single-speeder with 29” wheels and a 34t chainring? South Downs but the steeper parts of this locale, so not the fens but also not Welsh valley fall line trails!

I’m using an ’11sp’ thick/thin on my SS using 9 sp chain without any problems or a lot of wear for 4 1/2 years. Fwiw I’ve been doing ~ 100k and 2500m climbing per week.

I run a 17t on 27.5+ wheels and 18t on 29ers. The 18 does feel stiffer – I could go 19t without any trouble. So for you maybe a 20t? Even a 21t might be ok. You’ll just have to suck it and see really. You’ll get used to what you have.

Mate (luket of by yere) has the blue and it’s a great looking frame. Good choice!

The mx3 rides really nice. Very smooth over everything in 29er 160mm form. You will not be disappointed. One the better riding frames out there.

A Moxie with a 140mm fork is near the top of my list, I’m just worried that the ‘long’, whilst has 10-15mm more reach than my SolarisMAX (120mm fork) , will feel short when climbing as the ETT is 15mm ish shorter!

I’ve got a long Moxie in vivid blue. It’s flipping brilliant

Sounds great OP. Love the look of them.

Personally prefer fork travel a bit shorter on hardtails but will watch this with interest. Roll on March!

“ A Moxie with a 140mm fork is near the top of my list, I’m just worried that the ‘long’, whilst has 10-15mm more reach than my SolarisMAX (120mm fork) , will feel short when climbing as the ETT is 15mm ish shorter!”

It’s hard to compare because Cotic quote geometry with 25% sag whilst the Moxie is 140mm static (the site says it’s similar to 160mm at sag but that’s only true if you run 12.5% sag). And the Cotic has a straight seat tube with no offset so the effective seat angle and ETT are consistent, whilst the Moxie has a significant bend, which means the true seat angle gets slacker and the ETT longer as your saddle height increases.

I only realised this after seeing the side on pics of BFeMAX and Moxie on bike radar:

Large BFeMAX @ 150mm

Long Moxie @ 160mm

The Moxie pic is more zoomed out but you can compare the wheel diameter to the ETT at that saddle height for an accurate reference.

Great choice. I’m a serial bike changer yet I’ve had my moxie for over 3 years now, it’s one of the original ones and I can’t see me changing it for a long time. I’ve got 2 sets of wheels so run mine 29 or 650b plus depending on how I feel.

The ride is fantastic, you’re going to love the bike. It’s an absolute animal on downhills and great at everything else.

Ooh!

I will follow your thread with interest Chief. Your musings on new skool HT geometry and riding are insightful and interesting.

“I run a 17t on 27.5+ wheels and 18t on 29ers. The 18 does feel stiffer – I could go 19t without any trouble. So for you maybe a 20t? Even a 21t might be ok. You’ll just have to suck it and see really. You’ll get used to what you have.”

Thanks! Hopefully the Levo’s HG freehub is a steel one so the singlespeed cog won’t dig right into the the spines. 20t is slightly higher than the middle gear on a 10-50 cassette so that sounds sensible. I guess I just need the cog and those spacers to position it in the middle of the freehub?

“Personally prefer fork travel a bit shorter on hardtails but will watch this with interest.”

So far I’ve tried 100, 130, 140 and 150mm forks on hardtails – and 150mm is my favourite, so I’m continuing the more is more thinking! 😉 A 160mm Lyrik will put the geometry where I want it – plus I’m trying to make this hardtail as similar to my Levo as possible. So similar angles, dimensions, BB height (all at sag) and the same fork (and many of the other parts), so hopefully I can hop on the hardtail (after commuting via trails on the Levo the same day) and attack trails with a similar attitude. That’s the lofty goal!

With 150mm of fork travel, the way the Zero and its Luftkappe’d Pike are set up, I only ever get into the last 20mm or so of travel when I huck to flat and the load through the BB from my feet (and all my weight) uses the fork to give what’s basically very short travel rear suspension.

“Your musings on new skool HT geometry and riding are insightful and interesting.”

Wish my riding was as interesting as my musings…

Good to hear the pro-Moxie comments above!

Haha in contrast I’m toying with going for a smaller hardtail.

Are your legs actually long enough to go full 29? 🤔😉😂

“Are your legs actually long enough to go full 29? 🤔😉😂”

Yes, I’m all legs and arms – also, I’d look taller if I was as skinny as you! 😜

Pondering a 27.5+ rear wheel/tyre as an alternate option for uplift days – is this a silly idea? Would be running the dropouts in the long position for trails like that. Would need to be a pretty tough casing to handle the rocks. Not sure on the tread, I’d be running something like a Magic Mary 2.35” Soft up front.

I think a smaller 27.5 would drop the BB too much for my liking. A fairly honest 27.5×2.8 on a 35mm rim should only be about 10mm smaller than 29×2.3 so about 4mm lower at the BB, right?

Are you really taking a hardta for an uplift day?

That aside, plus tyres always tended to be a bit fragile when I tried them, EBikes might have brought some better options since.

Sounds very good indeed OP!

“Are you really taking a hardta for an uplift day?”

I took my 26” Soul to Antur and BPW on consecutive days – that was quite hard on the hands but I enjoyed it! Thinking that a much better work with 20mm more travel, longer, lower and slacker geometry and bigger wheels might be rather good.

If not I’ll take the Levo but that would be a bit annoying on a full trail centre day with everyone else unpowered (I normally ride it unpowered if I’m with a group of normal bikes).

That aside, plus tyres always tended to be a bit fragile when I tried them, EBikes might have brought some better options since.

“ That aside, plus tyres always tended to be a bit fragile when I tried them, EBikes might have brought some better options since.”

That was my concern but you’re probably right about the ebikes – will see what’s on the back of the some of those sort-of mullet ones like the YT one.

“Sounds very good indeed OP!”

I’m very excited!

160mm Lyrik Ultimate RC2 42mm offset
Roval 29” 30mm wide wheels
Fatbar Lite 760mm 40mm rise

Are you of tyrexian proportions? 🤣

Isn’t that quite a high front end? I dropped to 10mm rise when I changed to 150mm forks on the Jeht (30mm being a touch high with 140’s)

@metalheart that’s a similar set up to what I’ve got on my Squatch as it’s got a really short headtube, from memory the moxie is similar. my rocketmax only has 15mm rise bars to get a similar bar height.

“ Are you of tyrexian proportions? 🤣”

Actually I’m more of a gibbon on stilts! The 40mm rise bars are on my current hardtail so I’m hoping they’ll swap across fine – on my Levo I also have a 29” front wheel, a 160mm fork, a 125mm head tube and the same 40mm rise bars (and one spacer under the stem), so I do like a high front end.

Not sure when the frame is arriving but I think I have everything for the geared build now.

However I’ve also ordered the singlespeeding parts – a Gusset XD adaptor, 16t (that came with it), plus 18t and 20t sprockets, a 30t steel chainring (thought I might as well save the wear on the alloy 34t) and an 11 speed chain (for cross-compatibility of spare chain and quicklinks with my Levo).

The current plan is to build it up as a singlespeed with the easiest 30:20 ratio and see how I cope. Had a brief go on a mate’s a few weeks ago and enjoyed it rather a lot, just really depends on how my bad knee copes on full rides – and of course if I enjoy riding without gears for 15-20 miles and 2000′ of climbing, because it is meant to be a fun pastime!

I guess if I’ve got a choice of sprockets, I should set the chain length with the largest sprocket and the dropouts near the shorter end, and then each time I go down two teeth on the sprocket I’ll need to move the wheel back by ~6mm (1/4″)? It’s got 16mm of sliding adjustment, 425mm – 441mm chainstays.

Sounds like a fun bike!

I like 30/18 as a general all-round SS gear on a 29er in hilly areas. Gets me up most of the stuff I’d get up with gears but is still quick enough elsewhere. I’d find 30/20 a bit spinny I think.

If you’ve got a duff knee, try and resist the temptation to sit and grind on SS. I’m pretty sure this is where the idea that SS is bad for knees comes from as it does put a shed load of strain through things. If you make sure you stand up for anything that’s going to make you gurn it’s a whole lot more knee-friendly.

“ I’d find 30/20 a bit spinny I think.”

I’m thinking that too but I’m hoping it’ll be a slightly less challenging starting point for singlespeed uphill stuff. Thankfully* the hills around Brighton don’t go on for that long before it’s time to go back down. I’m expecting to stand up lots. Hopefully I can upgrade to 30:18 after a short while.

*I’d rather they were bigger but it’s better than most of south-east England!

Trying to find anything possible to do to avoid a particularly dull yet complex bit of admin, and thus pondering which tyres from my pile should go on this. I’ve found that I’m really bad at bothering to swap them for the conditions.

Front choices:
Magic Mary 2.35 Snakeskin Soft
DHR2 2.4 Exo MaxxTerra

Rear choices:
DHR2 2.3 Exo Dual
Eliminator 2.3 Grid (got one fresh, one part-worn)
Rock Razor 2.35 Snakeskin SpeedGrip

They’re going on 30mm rims with Rimpacts inside. Do you need a toothier rear tyre on a singlespeed to avoid bad climbing moments or a faster one so you roll fast after spinning out, or like the gears, are you always on the wrong tyre?!

I think momentum is more important than grip on a singlespeed but then my SS has been hanging up in the shed for years.

The frame is here! It looks very nice and VERY pink. On the hand scales of truth it’s much lighter than my last full-sus frame (2016 Spitfire) but not as amusingly weightless as my 2010 Soul.

Now to try to find the time to assemble it. It’s getting different cranks SLX 165mm, I realised my faulty ankle needs shorter than 170mm to spin circles without my foot squirming and upsetting my knee – actually noticed a different wear pattern on the shoes I wear for commuting (mostly on the Levo which has shorter cranks) vs my shoes. Going singlespeed to start!

great to hear! look forward to some pics. I’ve only just picked up on this thread. I’ve had a similar mtb ‘journey’ (ahem..) in that I’ve got a 2014 Spitfire (languishing in bits in the shed) and just ride a hardtail now – a Scout. My next MTB purchase will probably be a Moxie or a BFEmax. Probably with a 150 fork and mullet set up. very interested to see how you get on…

But where are the photos of said frame – I love the pink Moxies!

Flipping love my Moxie. Mine’s blue. A bit of me secretly wishes I’d got the pink. And it’s longish/mullet because short legs. Otherwise similar. 150 Lyrik Ultimate.

Oh I see I get a mention up there. Hello Del!

Mine is 34(oval):18 on 27.5X2.8. I would say that’s a shade longer than my old 33(also oval):16 on 26 Soul but that could just be the fat rider.

165mm cranks are a near necessity on my setup, with the BB pretty low. I had too many pedal strikes with a 27.5 front (all else unchanged). I suspect even with 29 F&R it’s a good call.

I find the bike to be a great descender as you’d expect but also a lot of fun, which maybe surprised me a bit. Good paint job too.

Look forward to some pics…

Excellent!

*rubs hands together and peers intently at screen waiting*

I’ve been on wagon wheels for 9 years now so kinda take then for granted, and my LLS journey has included them from the outset, but I’m keen to hear your impressions on adding them to LLS.

A friend of mine recently put 29ers on his compatible 27.5/28 Kingdom Vendetta. Comments were it was better on the rough stuff and he felt he gained more advantage on a HT than an FS.

I’ve had a fully built up pink longer for about 6 months or so now and still haven’t ridden it. You will have to let us know what you think, it might encourage me to get on it!

I’ve had a fully built up pink longer for about 6 months or so now and still haven’t ridden it. You will have to let us know what you think, it might encourage me to get on it!

What more motivation could you need than a shiny new bike??!!

I know but I bought another bike very soon after, which I shouldn’t of really, and it kind of took the shine off the moxie.

I’ve taken one photo – of the serial number on the BB shell because I always forget to record them! I shall take some tomorrow, I have a load of product photos to do tomorrow so I might as well shoot the frame whilst I’m at it (IANAProperPhotographer).

I popped into my LBS to arrange the build (too much work on to do it myself!) so it’s booked it for a few weeks’ time. Funnily enough they’d just built up another Moxie from the same batch in the same Long size and in mustard yellow, which looked rather nice. A few hours later its owner arrived up at work to show me his new bike (turns out he works in the same building, just a few floors up!) So I had a ride around the corridors and it felt pretty great. His build is lighter/smaller than mine, 150mm Pike, smaller brakes, faster/lighter tyres, lower rise bars, shorter stem, shorter dropper. All the changes for my build should tweak it further towards my ideal so that bodes well!