A swing back to the 26ers …

29er – 12
26er – 14
700c – 5
650b – 1

Results so far:

29er – 9
26er – 3
700c – 4

Just been through this. Superstar crest deal is hard to beat if you want tubeless rims. I couldn’t bring myself to buy white rims :oops:so I stumped up another £80 for Hope Hoops from Progressive. Stretched my buget but well worth it I reckon

I have a Lumenator and mj872. Both great lights but Lumenator is better for what you want. Better for head mounting (comes with helmet strap that’s (although I used a bit of foam and the rubber ring around the helmet vent then bought a £1.99 one from On-one that’s lower profile cos I’m fussy). It also has a bigger battery and a really wide range of output levels.

Don’t stress it, you’ll be fine with any of the lights on your list.

You never see anyone ride through dog shit in those videos. Reckon that could be the next big thing

Love the colour. Looks well. What size frame?

Good decision. Enjoy your new bike

I’m thinking cranks woven from a single MysteriumTM nanofibre exactly a gazillion light years long, using Dense Fractal TechnologyTM and a 4D-Optimized Quantum-Weave ContructionTM – with one end attached to the pedal and the other to the bb.

On your right…

robinlaidlaw says it well. Don’t be tempted to get too big a bike. It’ll eitherlie unused in the shed or you’ll drag it around wishing you had something lighter and less trail-smoothing.

I’m lucky enough to have a big bike that I wheel out for those occasions when it’s the best option but most of the time I ride similar territory to you and choose my 130mm hardtail or rigid SS – because it makes the riding more fun on that terrain.

@Oldandpastit – are those for real? What about a sprung spiral to provide suspension when stood on the pedals?

Had a great time with Switchbacks. More riding up than I would have chosen tbh but loved it all the same. Great trails and good guiding

Those boys at vital bmx are very excitable. Seems like a reasonable idea

Purposelessness is priceless

Well, partial success. I got the extractor bolts out using a pin punch and hex key without too much trouble. Drive side crank came off easily enough with a crank extractor tool but the left-hand crank was a complete #$@%* – it was locked solid, the thread stripped and it took three hacksaw blades, two drill bits, a cold chisel, lump hammer and an entire afternoon to get it off.

I guess that’s the price you pay for bottom brackets that last four years…

Next time, I think I’ll take it to a shop

I’ve been riding an Inbred 69er and enjoying it lots. I say go for it

Great stuff. Thanks for the advice

Yep, peg spanner is the proper tool to remove the bolts but I don’t have one and have my doubts about whether it’ll do the trick after they’ve been in there untouched for so long

If, instead of reading and contributing to this thread, we’d spent our time knitting, together we could have made a lovely sweater for that whale that Somafunk rode down in another thread recently. Or a big pair of pants.

Just sayin’

MJ872 is a completely different and much better light than the £20 Chines eBay ones. If you’ve got the cash then I’d go for it

Isn’t this just optimists v pessimists?

As an owner of several 26in bikes and now one rigid 29er SS (which is where, for me, at the moment, I see big wheels possibly providing an advantage), I’m excited by the new possibilities that all this innovation may bring. As someone said a few pages back, the market will ensure there will always be good bikes to ride, no matter how tall/short/skilled/incompetent/jey/gnarr you are. New thinking and new solutions just help move things forward.

Mine fell apart when I removed the crank and spewed bearings. I took it back to the LBS and they sent it back for rebuilding FOC under warranty

Go rigid, get a Fortitude or similar. Plays to the strengths of 29in wheels and perfect for muddy xc

I’m running an old-style 2.35 Bonty 29-4 on the front of an Inbred 69er. It’s OK, lots of squish and reasonable grip at around 26 psi

There’s also bound to be a placebo effect. If you think your wheels are lighter, you will believe you can go faster and it’s likely that you will go faster. So it’s OK that manufacturers’ quoted weights are all cobblers :wink:

I got one for Christmas. It’s great

My experience is that Shimano front hubs last forever with minimal servicing but rears need re-greasing every 3 months and the freehubs are prone to dying after a year or so.

The last models pre-CEN test were designed for 100-130. I think it’s 100 max now if you want to be safe

I ran 130mm Revs on mine for a while. It was OK but personally, I’d stick with 100-120

As above, relax more. Get your elbows out and your body low and use your arms and legs as suspension

I fancy a share of all this derision, so I’ll admit to having noticed this phenomenon too. Nothing to do with the type of tyre, purely a difference between the ‘thumb feel’ of a tyre when run at a similar pressure with and without a tube.

Not sure it ‘explains’ tubeless though.

Been running an XML torch . £11, very good . Just got a Lumenator, just over £100, very, very good. Lots of options to beat an old P7 torch. Take your pick …

So that’s no one then?

Now need a rigid fork and some light 29er wheels. Anyone know of any bargains?

Inbred 29er SS for me :D

Lumenator for me. Result :D

Chopper

I also have 2011 HLRs. Replaced a Wotan and is better in every way (except perhaps stiffness, but still plenty stiff). Definitely recommended

At some point I’ll be getting a 29er HT to run rigid and SS. I’ll move the bits over from my Inbred and either get some Superstar/Stans wheels or rebuild the existing hubs with new rims. Need to find some cash and then decide between Inbred, Scandal, Swift, Fortitude and Mariachi. I’m in no rush but I’d like to have it for Charlie’s bash in May.

Physics and common sense say 29ers are:
* faster rolling
* less manoevrable in tight, twisty stuff
* better suited to taller riders

All these things are sort of true. But:

* It’s not the most important feature to focus on when buying a new bike
* You need to try it to see
* There are lots of different types of 29er and 26er, with lots of overlap
* Your ideal bike might be either

Have fun choosing your new bike :D

I use one of these tyres from On-One with a Crest. Don’t think it did the pinging into place thing but it’s been running fine for a couple of months.