I would take manufacturers 29er specific ‘650b+ aftermarket compatible’ frames with a pinch of salt.

I had a Zelous Divison Mk2 for a while, which is advertised as 650b+ compatible, but at the slightest hint of mud the drivetrain would be seized solid with mud. the chainstay would carve the mud off the tyres, because of the small clearance, and the jam it against the frame and drivetrain. I was only running WTB Asym i35s on Trailblazers with 1×11. I imagine lots of these frame would do that.

bd197, in this thread, was getting a ‘bit of rub on the chain stays even though Stanton now sell it as a plus capable frame but I do mean a bit and only from the slop we were wading through’.

That was with a Trailblazer 2.8 on Scraper 45mm (inner width) rim.

The Trailblazerz, in my experience, are quite a narrow b+ tyre, so you would struggle with any of the others on a Scraper rim. If you go for a narrower rim you might be able to run a wider tyre.. It’s a bit of a guessing game really.

That would be The Missing Link in Droitwich.
Mboys a gent and will look after you.

I cant seem to see anything that states rear travel…

140mm front and rear

What does dull mean in relation to a bike . Serious question here .

For me I ride for fun. I need to connect with the bike. I love playing, so that means popping off things, kicking the back out, wheelieing, manualing, etc. I don’t mind doing this on any bike (CX, XC, FS), although it’s obviously less accomplished on some.

The Trek just felt sterile. It was no fun to kick the back end out and I just didn’t feel connected. I used a S-Works Epic a while back and that was incredibly fun, despite being even more XC focused than the Trek.

I really knew it wasn’t right after taking my T129 out and realizing how much fun that was. Grinning ear to ear despite being slower & harder to climb.

Thanks for the advice.
I’ve spoken to a local firm that will strip with bicarbonate blasting and powdercoat it for me for under £50. Job done I think.

Now.. what colour for a Stooge..

As Trimix said, Swinley car park is always packed but the trails are empty.
Can’t work out where they all go.

Same! I’m looking at picking up 2 carbon bars. Annoying.

Just deciding on wheels for the Stooge.
Would the Hope Tech DH wheels with 28mm internal make use of b+ tyres or is it worth spending more to go wider?

Thanks GFS! Looks spot on.
I’ve found a local firm that offers this. I’ll call and get a quote later.

Many.

Most recent was a Trek Superfly. It was incredibly competent at going fast and climbing, but it was so dull.

Worst was a custom steel FS bike I had built in Australia. Discussed geometry and spec then signed it off. 8 months later it arrived and I built it up. After 1/2 hr ride it was clear something was wrong. I didn’t fit at all. I measured some tubes and it was way out from what I’d discussed. I couldn’t ride it at all. Like a bmx with FS. I kept hitting my knees and had no confidence with it. Oh well.

I’d check with Mboy at The Missing Link[/url]
He’s a great guy and easy to deal with.

The components are all really nice. The build has just failed to get any cohesion. If they followed one or two colour schemes that would have been nice.
(Yes, and chopped the steerer and fitted a dropper).

I will questions the wheel choice though..
Front rim- EX471; Inner 25mm, Outer 30mm, looks like skinnier tyre
Rear rim- XM551; Inner 40mm, Outer 44mm, looks like chunky tyre

At least tyres and valves are lined up..

I headed over yesterday and really enjoyed it.
I managed to fit in 14 runs- mixing blue, red & black.

Initial impressions are that it’s worth a visit. I travelled an hour and was really happy. Trails are short and the Blue (longest) takes nearly 3 minutes. Blue and red are well armoured so were running dusty and lose whilst the black is natural and a bit muddy.

Blue: Nice and flowy, easy to carry speed and clear the doubles, but also suitable for novices if they roll it all
Red: My favourite- pretty fast with rock gardens and small drops. The doubles at the end are easy if you have speed. I saw lots of riders caught out on various parts of the trail.
Black: Easier than the red in my opinion, there’s chicken lines (unofficial) but the drops and gaps aren’t actually that big and providing you carry the speed they are easy enough to clear.

The only bit that was a tad frustrating was the uplift speed. There was sometimes a long wait for the landy to arrive and then the uplift drivers would check, check and double check every bike taking a long time. I assume this will become more lax once they have settled in (like their other uplifts at FOD and Gawton).

Other bits: Firendly Staff, good cafe, good parking and nice range of Kona’s to rent.

All in I really enjoyed it. I’ll be heading back again soon. It can only get better once they develop the rest of the land and the trails bed in.

What was it lent against?
Could it be a cloth with something in/on it that stripped some of the anodizing off?

Undersand heating at the beach! Must be the next big thing to keep the tourists coming all year. Perfectly sustainable..

29ers have been adopted by the majority of manufacturers and pushed in lots of applications. The majority still offer a long travel 29er variant where supposedly 650b would ‘excel’. I can only think of Giant that scrapped 29er.

The 650b segment has replaced the 26” bikes and a few 29ers. The 29er size is stand out and adopted mainly by the commuters, leisure cyclists and XC, trail riders, as well as the giants.

29ers are here to stay. You won’t have any issues sourcing parts for them for the foreseeable future.

For what it’s worth, I own 3 29ers and love them. I think i’ll only go 650b for long travel or park/pump track bikes.

Nukeproof Scout 290 Comp- £1450 (after BC discount)

The Missing Link, Droitwich
Banjo Cycles, Newbury
Specialized Concept Store, Newbury

Fantastic service from the guys and girls above.

I’m going to head up on the weekend if you fancy selling your uplift ticket Monkeyboy?

I used some light tapping on the axle with a mallet. I modified a headset bearings press to press them back in.
The whole job only took 15 minutes. Surprised how easy it is!
I had an issue with the freehub but it turned out I had a pawl the wrong way round after rebuilding 😳

Very quick dispatch & postage from Wych

2x 29er fs bikes with front wheels removed in a 3 door fiesta. I think I could fit another small one of with wheels removed.

Mine did this a couple weeks ago and I asked the same question.
I just took the shields off, sprayed in wd40 and then used an air compressor to clean it out and dry it. Repack with grease and fit shields. Took 5 minutes and now it’s perfect.

Yeah, those consumables are expensive.. £50 chain, £79 chainring & £302 cassette, that’s £431! That said, there’s always healthy discounts available.

There we go! Launch article on the front page.[/url]
A mate at the LBS didn’t believe me.

Eagle Crankset: XX1 – £356.00 // XO1 – £328.00

Eagle Rear Mech: XX1 – £234.00 // XO1 – £185.00

Eagle Trigger Shifter: XX1 – £131.00 // XO1 – £112.00

Eagle Cassette: XG-1299 – £353.00 // XG-1295 – £302.00

Eagle Chain: £50.00 – £71.00

X-Sync Chainring: £79.00

XX1 Complete Group: £1,173.00

XO1 Complete Group: £1,005.00

True- lower to the ground, less stabby bits, not clipped in, more clearance and usually less obstacles to hit.

Whyte T129. I’ve got the ’15 SCR Works version and it’s the best bike I’ve ever owned. It’s handled everything I’ve thrown at it, from the Scott Monster Marathon to the blacks on an uplift weekend at BPW. It does everything I want it to, and it does it very well. Easy enough to manual and play, but long TT and steep ST make climbing easy and descending enjoyable.

Yes, you can have lighter builds or more travel but as an all rounder I think it nails it. It seem’s to get fantastic reviews everywhere.

I’ve covered over 3,000 miles since I got it in June and the bearings are still fine despite some rubbish weather. The paint has also lasted well and the weight is pretty good.

The one thing that isn’t fantastic is rear tyre clearance, but I’ve found my holly grail tyre, Maxxis Beaver 2.25 EXO, and it fits with plenty of mud clearance.

The only bike I’d sell this for would be a carbon version.

Never had a crisp butty 😯
I might try one tonight. I’ll build it based on the general consensus here.

Right, I’m going to buy one.

What do we think of this bike? Seems a £500 build?
Kis Bike Co Mirage custom build in the classifieds

21″ Kis Mirage frame
federal liquid invest cast v2 fork
BsD giraffic bar
BsD Stem
Kis front hub
Kis seat and post
Odyssey/eastern brake
Fly tampers tyres
odyssey pedals
Fly Trebol cranks, rims, rear hub and sprocket.
Proper grips.

I got a 6S insurance replacement for my 5S. For me it’s the perfect size. The screen size and ease of sliding in/out of my pocket is great. There’s no way I’d want to go bigger as my thumb just reaches the whole keyboard, and I wouldn’t go smaller because it’s too small for browsing and watching anything.

All I want it to have is a larger battery and an external memory slot.

I like their stuff. I’ve never had any issues with components I’ve bought from them. Really pleased to see some of it being made in the UK. Good luck to him! Hope to see them expand UK production.

My brother had a big off and we had to cart him off to A&E. My mate strapped my bike to his car in the meantime and we drove off leaving said car in the car park. I was in a fluster and let him take care of it. We came back about 5 hours later in the dark and I saw what he’d done! Bike was still attached to the car in an empty car park. Maybe I was lucky? This was a bank holiday weekend last year. I would have thought it would be prime time to steal some bikes.

It should come out later today. Sram is American and that’s their biggest market. I expect it’ll be around midday US time.

This thread is making itch. I might just get one.
For £200 I could get a low maintenance bike and it’s only small.. and fun..

Jameso, when is that coming out?! 😯
Prices and spec options? Was going to buy a Ramin as a hack, but would like to wait for a B+ option.

Only available as a full build, but this ticks all other boxes;
Charge Cooker 1 Midi

I guess it’s what sells. 99% of cyclists keep their wheels on the ground, but love that image of being ‘rad’. Same applies to lots of other sports and the gym.

It’s this sort of thing.

I had the cancellation email, but the chaps at the store still called to say the frame hasn’t arrived today and they hope to have it for me by Wednesday 🙄

A few spoons and Al will have that together in no time.

..but yes, incredible! I guess a combination of some incredible engineering and luck. I heard it happened at around 200mph?!