Which 29er have you got or ridden?

equinefunk

Hi, wonder if someone can offer some experience of riding these bikes. I work away and don't have a lot of time to test bikes at a weekend so looking for advise from the community. I have a 26" Norco sight which I love ,however I just want a xc bike for riding on the North York moors. Not too racy. I was thinking of the following:
Whyte M109
Scott Spark 920 (reduced at lbs)
Giant Xtc
Trek Superfly

My budget is £2k

Thanks

njee20

I have got, but not yet ridden, a Superfly, the 9.8 is over budget at £2500, but IMO storming value.

The Rookie

I've ridden a Trek Superfly Elite (the £4K one), the ease with which it rolls faster was very obvious compared to my somewhat non standard Carrera (link in sig), on moderate turns it carved nicely, but on tighter turns, even compared to my Carrera it felt very cumbersome, also tried an EX-9 but just felt I was pedalling above and not over the trail. For York Moors riding a 29er holds a lot of aces and no deuces as far as I can see, tight turns being a rarity!

lostboysaint

It's a good list but you need to decide whether you want full sus or HT first. Then choose from the two of each category.

Oh and Njee, there's no such thing as a storming value bike at £2500 unless it has an engine.

equinefunk

Thanks for the info. I originally considered only hard tails but reading the reviews the short travel full suss seemed good. I had an anthem for the weekend a couple of months ago but I thought it was too trail if that makes sense. So maybe hard tail. The routes I want to ride a long and not too technical. So the Norco is not the perfect bike for these.

njee20

Oh and Njee, there's no such thing as a storming value bike at £2500 unless it has an engine.

Pah, course there is. Didn't say cheap, it's good value - ie the sum total of the parts is worth more than the cost of the whole.

Decidedly mid range these days anyway.

iwilldoit

I've got a Specialised Carve 29er, really like it a lot, I have only been MTB ing 3 months so don't know a whole lot, bought it s/h and it's been great.

lostboysaint

njee20 wrote:

Oh and Njee, there's no such thing as a storming value bike at £2500 unless it has an engine.

Pah, course there is. Didn't say cheap, it's good value - ie the sum total of the parts is worth more than the cost of the whole.

Decidedly mid range these days anyway.

Just because people pay ridiculous prices it does not make it "storming value", it means that there's a lot of gullible people paying a lot of margin to various manufacturers, distributors and retailers, NOT that the bike offers good value.

Someone's already mentioned a £4k bike in this thread. Remember that there are some excellent motorbikes out there NEW for sub £5k.

stubs

I have a Vitus Rapide 29 Carbon Hardtail. I got it at a bargain price last August £1350 down from £2000 and I am loving it its comfortable, fast over the ground, lightweight and imo looks gorgeous. So far the only downside I have found has been tight slow corners as mentioned above but after a few weeks you get to learn how to ride it. I reckon I am now just as quick around tight nadgery stuff as I was on my 26er.

If your into mile munching mixed conditions riding and want to storm up hills as well as down but like to keep the rubber on the ground a 29er is ideal. Just checked the carbon 2014 version its now £1665 http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/vitus-bikes-rapide-290-hardtail-bike-2014/rp-prod107046

njee20

Just because people pay ridiculous prices it does not make it "storming value", it means that there's a lot of gullible people paying a lot of margin to various manufacturers, distributors and retailers, NOT that the bike offers good value.

Why does it mean that? Are you suggesting that £2500 bikes are bought solely by the gullible, and there are no performance advantages over a cheaper bike? Where do you invoke this threshold? Presumably at the exact value of your bike? Surely people paying more than £50 for a bike are "gullible people paying a lot of margin to various manufacturers, distributors and retailers"?

Someone's already mentioned a £4k bike in this thread. Remember that there are some excellent motorbikes out there NEW for sub £5k.

What's your point caller? You can get a new car for that as well, or a boat, or about 1000 DVDs, or a high end hi-fi, or a lot of Tesco Value Baked Beans.

A quick economics lesson for you - most commodities are not sold at one price point, there are low end ('budget' if you like), medium and high end, there will be a law of diminishing returns on the expensive stuff, and economies of scale on the cheap stuff.

Is a £5k motorbike exactly the same as is being used in Moto GP? Or a £5k car winning F1 races? A £5k MTB is basically what won the Olympics. Apples:oranges comparison you've made.

heavy_rat

I've got a Superfly 29er HT. Its the first one I've ridden and have so far managed 3 rides on it.

After reading about all the pros and cons that come with this wheelsize I must say that, yeah, they are true but not to the extent that the people on the internet would have you believe.

Yes it rolls faster but the difference is smaller than I expected. The turning is slower but by not a lot and not in a positive or negative manner, just different. I don't feel I sit in it as opposed to on it as I expected I would. I do like it and I enjoy the directness of the rigid rear end after riding FS for a few years. Its faster than my 26 FS on some terrain and slower on others such as very rooty sections. I'm sure other people will disagree but for me the difference in 29 and 26 is fairly small.

It does make me think that the whole 27.5/650b movement is completely laughable but that is another topic for another time.

stubs

I paid £1350 for my wagon wheeler therefore anyone who paid less is a worthless peasant who will be crushed under my wheels. anyone who paid more is a capitalistic running dog who will be the 1st against the wall come the revolution.

equinefunk

stubs wrote:

I paid £1350 for my wagon wheeler therefore anyone who paid less is a worthless peasant who will be crushed under my wheels. anyone who paid more is a capitalistic running dog who will be the 1st against the wall come the revolution.

Damn they gone up to £1665....capitalistic running dog it is then.

I never considered the Vitus

ride_whenever

Aluminium highball, wonderful bikes to ride despite the less than stellar spec

plasma_man

Got a Cube Ltd SL 29 and really love it, my LBS is a the main Cube dealer in Switzerland so it was hard not to go there and try a a lot of bikes from the range.

So being Cube biased, if it was my cash, I would probably test ride a Cube Stereo 120HPC or similar!

Alan P

Canyon Grand Canyon AL29....fantastic bike, great spec and superb value

equinefunk

Thanks for the recommendations, I was only thinking of the bikes I listed. I need to get one with interest free credit after buying my wife an over expensive eternity ring and buying a new house. I looked at the Cube Ltd, but thought it was a bit behind the times without having a tapered steerer. I looked at the Cube Reaction but read that they were a bit skitty.

batmo

njee20 wrote:

...or a lot of Tesco Value Baked Beans.

I just had to know: 4386 kg is the answer.

kajjal

iwilldoit wrote:

I've got a Specialised Crave 29er, really like it a lot, I have only been MTB ing 3 months so don't know a whole lot, bought it s/h and it's been great.

Bought the Carve from the previous year after a few test rides and it is a really nice handling XC bike. It is fine on single track and wider trails.

If you want to spend 2K you have to have a very clear idea of what you want and do plenty of test rides. More expensive bikes can be better but only if you are clear on what you want from a bike and not get distracted by the price.

equinefunk

Kajjal wrote:

iwilldoit wrote:

I've got a Specialised Crave 29er, really like it a lot, I have only been MTB ing 3 months so don't know a whole lot, bought it s/h and it's been great.

Bought the Carve from the previous year after a few test rides and it is a really nice handling XC bike. It is fine on single track and wider trails.

If you want to spend 2K you have to have a very clear idea of what you want and do plenty of test rides. More expensive bikes can be better but only if you are clear on what you want from a bike and not get distracted by the price.

Thanks for the info on the Carve, I looked at it but hadn't considered it, I do have a clear idea of what I want to do, I had an idea on the bikes that I like which I put in my post, I was just looking at feedback on those bikes...I can't have plenty of test rides as I work away and long hours. I already have an expensive bike and I'm not getting distracted by the price. My budget is my budget, if I get a bike for less then that is even better.

Kiliscott

I had a saracen kili trail 29er. 100mm travel, usual middle range spec. It was probs the most comfortable bike I've ever rode for XC/commuting. The frame looks very nice aswell, saracen have really come on from there past years it's just a shame no one will try them. It rolls nice obv 29er and is fast once you get going.

The bike is currently £350 from £550. I'd have it back in a snap, I bet theres no difference in ride compared to a £5000000 scott/orange.

stubs

Kiliscott wrote:

I bet theres no difference in ride compared to a £5000000 scott/orange.

You lose your bet. The difference between a £500 bike and a bike costing 5 times as much is huge. The difference between a £2500 bike and a £5000 one is pretty small but thats the law of diminishing returns.

Kowalski675

njee20 wrote:

Is a £5k motorbike exactly the same as is being used in Moto GP?

£5k would't even buy you the brake calipers.

njee20

As I'm well aware, hence the point...

Cee09

Is there much difference between the Cube LTD 29er and the LTD Race 29?

http://www.cube.eu/en/bikes/mtb-hardtai ... ack-white/
http://www.cube.eu/en/bikes/mtb-hardtai ... blackline/

In the market for a HT and the Race version has been getting rave reviews, ridden my mates standard LTD 29 and I loved it, wondering if I'm better off getting one of those and buying some extra gear or going for the Race, £200 extra though which would stretch me.

kajjal

equinefunk wrote:

Kajjal wrote:

iwilldoit wrote:

I've got a Specialised Crave 29er, really like it a lot, I have only been MTB ing 3 months so don't know a whole lot, bought it s/h and it's been great.

Bought the Carve from the previous year after a few test rides and it is a really nice handling XC bike. It is fine on single track and wider trails.

If you want to spend 2K you have to have a very clear idea of what you want and do plenty of test rides. More expensive bikes can be better but only if you are clear on what you want from a bike and not get distracted by the price.

Thanks for the info on the Carve, I looked at it but hadn't considered it, I do have a clear idea of what I want to do, I had an idea on the bikes that I like which I put in my post, I was just looking at feedback on those bikes...I can't have plenty of test rides as I work away and long hours. I already have an expensive bike and I'm not getting distracted by the price. My budget is my budget, if I get a bike for less then that is even better.

That's good you'll be fine then. Even if you can only manage a couple test rides are very useful to make the final choice.

Artful_Codger

The discussion here is mostly HT oriented, but perhaps Specialized's Camber model is worth looking at for its versatility. I got the 2013 Camber Comp at the sale, and it's proving to be a fantastic ride. It's lighter and more chuckable than I thought it would be, and it straddles XC and light trail designs. The only thing I added was a nearly new command post off ebay. I've had a Canyon 26" HT for a couple of years (it's a Grand Canyon from 2011 or so), and it's a lovely, light bike with steeper angles. The 29" Grand Canyon must be great, but I'm not sure I'd prefer it over a shortish travel full suspension 29er like the Camber, Canyon Nerve or Giant Anthem if I was planning to do at least some trail riding. The 2014 Camber Evo is better specced than last year's Comp, but I wouldn't buy a Specialized bike at full price.

rockmonkeysc

I have ridden an Anthem 29er and a Camber 29er and thought both were very good. They felt fast but not racey. I think I'm going to buy an Anthem 29er before Giant go all 650b.
On the subject of value, my Nukeproof Scalp cost neaely £4k but has a better build than a £5k Specialized Demo and won't snap it's shock so I consider it to be good value. Expensive but good value and a lot more fun than any motorbike I have owned (ZX7R, CBR600, RGV250, GSXR750)

equinefunk

Thanks for the thoughts, I went to my LBS today, they're going to build up a 29er Spark and a 29er Scale for next weekend so I can take them out. Hopefully I'll take to them.

johnmcl7

equinefunk wrote:

Thanks for the thoughts, I went to my LBS today, they're going to build up a 29er Spark and a 29er Scale for next weekend so I can take them out. Hopefully I'll take to them.

I think that's the best way to go, I spent monthsdeliberating on whether to go for a hard tail or a short travel full suspension like the Superfly then went to a demo ride session they had up here and made my mind up pretty much straight away. I enjoyed riding the full suspension more than I expected but found I liked a little more travel than the Superfly so went with a Fuel Ex8.

John

7448stewart

I got a CUBE LTD race an I love it, so fast on trails and its strong an sturdy on jumps an drops, bit slow on corners/berms but is tones of fun! changed afew things on it to suit me, handlebars, pedals, grips an saddle.