My Giant XTC 29er.

weeksy59

Bought this a couple of weeks ago now and am getting more and more used to it, getting it set up correctly and starting to enjoy it lots.

Pretty much standard apart from a Charge surface spoon saddle and a pair of Wellgo B54 pedals.
Also fitted some wider, riser bars as the narrow flats were just simply too extreme for me.

I love the fact it gives me more feel and ability for getting the bike in the air than the FS i replaced, also the fact overall it's quicker for XC on timed/known rides.

gmacz

Giant are producing some fine bikes at the moment.
Of the popular brands, they seem to be on top.
Have googled 29ers, opinions all over the place.
Need to test run to have an opinion.
Nice bike, cannot go wrong with a dark colour with light markings.

dc71

Giant do make nice bikes. I think feelings towards 29er's are mostly to do with the type of trails and riding that you prefer. The biggest difference to handling is probably the generally longer chainstay length which makes for less flickable handling and more difficult to pop the front wheel over larger steps/roots. 29ers win lots of XC races because they are suited to typical XC trails. Tighter, rootier singletrack would probably show up their shortcomings more.

I think Canfield have it sorted with their Yelli Screamy and Nimble9, offsetting the seatpost forward so that CS length is shorter than my 456! This should mean you get the benefits of 29er rolling, but without the handling issues from longer chainstays. Thinking of a Yelli for my next build..

weeksy59

Giant have the shortest geometry of all 29ers on the market i believe. The overall wheelbase is the same as my mates Lapierre 514.
Apparently they manage it with a short rear triangle (short as possible within wheel constraints of course).
I've not done anything particularly 'tight' on it yet, but that's not what i have or ride regularly, hence going for the 29er.