Full Sus 29er with 120+mm travel? + Views on FS 29ers

Slow1

Are there any 29ers with significant travel out there or is it just not possible yet?

Any practical ownership views on FS 29ers and recommendations?

Cheers :?:

VWsurfbum

I run a 29er with 120mm travel, i can whole harledly rcomend it, very few choices out there at the moment but look up the GF Rumble fish, the Rocky Mountain altitude or if your budget allows a intense spider.
I have used mine for everything from racing to trail centre mayhem!

diy

Can you explain what are the pros and cons of a FS 29er vs the equv. 26er. I'm afraid I'm not getting the 29er thing, but then I haven't ridden one.

John Moore

Loving my Rumbefish for all day hilly rides but I wouldn't use it localy for shorter rides as I've other 29ers for that just.

Take a llok at the Spech Epic 29er with the lock out brain on the back

DIY - Ride one and then you'll understand

weeksy59

diy wrote:

Can you explain what are the pros and cons of a FS 29er vs the equv. 26er. I'm afraid I'm not getting the 29er thing, but then I haven't ridden one.

They roll faster and longer (althoguh the same logic means they take slightly longer/harder to get up to speed)

The larger rolling area also means it can pass over object easier than the 26" equivalent.

In some ways i can see how people percieve them as a 'fad'

However for me, on timed rides over set distances from my GPS, i'm 4 mins quicker per hour on the 29er than i was on my 26.

stubs

Ask a 100 people and you will get 100 different opinions. As said the only way is to try some. I tried 3 29rs earlier this year and to be honest couldnt see what the fuss was about they just felt like bikes. Nice comfy bikes but they didnt make me into a better rider or light my fire in anyway.

ride_whenever

Ibis ripley

Generally they feel like they have about 50-100mm more travel than they actually do. Roll better but are a touch less agile.

Slow1

Thanks for various pointers guys. will have a look at that reco's

Does anyone know why they stopped making the Spec Stumpy FSR 29er (it had 130mm)???

Question for Ride.....while they may feel liek extra 50/100mm does it work like that when you hit the big drops etc?

VWsurfbum

Mine has handled reasonable drops ok, how bg you talking?
It did cannock black route drops ok?
i do Danbury ok on it?

Thing to remember and you can get sucked into this (i have) you can get lazy thinking i'll just roll over that and not make any attempt of lifting the front end.
While i'm picking myself off the floor, i think well that was just a lazy off!
but that said, it does mean you can keep the power going longer while staying seated more for those technical sections both up and flat (not down as that will end up in some sorry endings)

Pudseyp

I Can't see the point on a FS bike...on a HT maybe...to me it's a fad and a money making spin.

Slow1

VWsurfbum wrote:

Mine has handled reasonable drops ok, how bg you talking?
It did cannock black route drops ok?
i do Danbury ok on it?

Thing to remember and you can get sucked into this (i have) you can get lazy thinking i'll just roll over that and not make any attempt of lifting the front end.
While i'm picking myself off the floor, i think well that was just a lazy off!
but that said, it does mean you can keep the power going longer while staying seated more for those technical sections both up and flat (not down as that will end up in some sorry endings)

Will PM you

weeksy59

Mate of mine was in a LBS y'day and an American rep came in and was astounded to find so many 26" bikes.... apparently there's WAY more 29" over there nowdays than anything else.

Pudseyp

weeksy59 wrote:

Mate of mine was in a LBS y'day and an American rep came in and was astounded to find so many 26" bikes.... apparently there's WAY more 29" over there nowdays than anything else.

That's probably because yanks have the perception bigger is better...I was over there the other year and a guy was bleating on about his 8 litre mustang delivering 350 bhp....when I told him my 2 litre scooby was pushing out near 500 he nearly shat himself....bigger ain't always better.

Plus the majority are as thick as two short planks and spend half their lives whooping and saying awsome and god saved me....

Slow1

It's part of the reason I am asking the question.

Am starting to think that while the HT or short travel FS are good for XC and race , the mid-travel FS on big frames (my size) with a long wheel base, may not suit tight and short uk courses.

Pudseyp

^ agreed.

At the end of the day the geometry is more important any decent 26" mid travel bike in my opinion will be just as fast as a 29er....

If big wheel are better for riding through forrests, why don't rally cars run 20" wheels rather than 17" ? its all about acceleration and speed optimisation

Slow1

I'm just looking for something, practical and tough enough for the Ku without buying a tank.

As am tall thought I would explore the 29er thing before buying.

26 wheels do look small on XL size bikes!!!

pilch

Pudseyp wrote:

^ agreed.

At the end of the day the geometry is more important any decent 26" mid travel bike in my opinion will be just as fast as a 29er....

Depends on the rider, but typically your C of G will be lower on a 29er, you feel like you are sitting 'in' the bike rather than on it, the tyre footprint is larger and the bike feels more planted with more front end grip.

As a direct comparison in my own experience I am quicker on my 29er than my 26" HT or FS through the same bits of singletrack.

I am not sure (yet) if longer travel FS 29ers will produce the same significant benefits, as I love my 26" bouncer as it is on the steeper stuff, but interestingly although the HA's on the 2 bikes are noticeably different (67º FS, 71º 29er) the 29er feels almost more relaxed due to the amount of wheel in front of you.

VWsurfbum

Slow1
did you see my PM?,

Slow1

VWsurfbum wrote:

Slow1
did you see my PM?,

Certainy have!
Cheers again

weeksy59

Pudseyp wrote:

^ agreed.

At the end of the day the geometry is more important any decent 26" mid travel bike in my opinion will be just as fast as a 29er....

Tell that to my GPS.

VWsurfbum

weeksy59 wrote:

Pudseyp wrote:

^ agreed.

At the end of the day the geometry is more important any decent 26" mid travel bike in my opinion will be just as fast as a 29er....

Tell that to my GPS.

likewise, i would say i'm roughly 10% faster over race distance

stubs

VWsurfbum wrote:

likewise, i would say i'm roughly 10% faster over race distance

Isnt that sort of the point, if your interested in covering the ground as fast as you can against the clock a 29er is the weapon of choice. If your more interested in mucking about in the woods or throwing yourself down something steeper than you could climb without the aid of a rope then a 26er is the thing.

As not many of us can afford both (I probably could if I gave up eating and beer for a while) then its best to work out what you enjoy riding the most and go with the best bike for that.

VWsurfbum

stubs wrote:

VWsurfbum wrote:

likewise, i would say i'm roughly 10% faster over race distance

Isnt that sort of the point, if your interested in covering the ground as fast as you can against the clock a 29er is the weapon of choice. If your more interested in mucking about in the woods or throwing yourself down something steeper than you could climb without the aid of a rope then a 26er is the thing.

As not many of us can afford both (I probably could if I gave up eating and beer for a while) then its best to work out what you enjoy riding the most and go with the best bike for that.

agreed, but I think you will see the odd 29er on the uci DH world cup next year, cube and others have DH rigs all ready

Shaggy_Dog

Pudseyp wrote:

I Can't see the point on a FS bike...on a HT maybe...to me it's a fad and a money making spin.

That's ridiculous, how are bike companies making more money from a 29er than from a 26er?

A lot of bike companies are jumping on the 29er bandwagon, but if the market dictates that 29" is what they want, they'd be mad to turn the revenue down.

If the demand is there because people want it, who are we to argue?

You could more easily argue that ever increasing travel and travel adjustment, platform damping height adjustable seatposts are money making fads since you are certainly paying extra for those things.

stratblue

I'm 6'3" and bought a rumblefish 2 29er a few months back and it's the first mtb I've felt at home on. It's huge mind, I'm on 23" frame and it isn't as good on tight twisty singletrack as my old 26er but if you saw me you would soon conclude it probably isn't the bike that's the limiting factor...I bought it to be a comfortable all day epping/thetford device and it does that brilliantly.

madmax245

i tried a 29er pivot FS at the cycle show at birmingham didnt like it one bit,it was slow accelerating and hard to pedal. this might ofbeen because of the test track but im still not convinced about the advantages.

madmax245

i tried a 29er pivot FS at the cycle show at birmingham didnt like it one bit,it was slow accelerating and hard to pedal. this might ofbeen because of the test track but im still not convinced about the advantages.