Whyte T129 vs Specialized

buffoon

Hello friendly bike advisers! Got some questions which may be naive and hackneyed, but any advice appreciated.

Currently own my first MTB (hardtail 29er; Voodoo Aizan) and considering upgrade to a full suss for ~£2k ish. I have seen the Whyte T129S get rave reviews but, similarly, have also seen the Specialized Enduro/Camber/Stumpjumpers get rave reviews. So I have these questions:

1) What's the main difference between Specialized Enduro/Camber/Stump??? Having read numerous forums I am still confused. I ride Cannock Chase, and love the downhill bits, so I suppose I am looking for an aggressive trail bike, but one which is not a pain in the ass going uphill or meandering along the flat. Which one? Enduro has ~150mm travel, Camber ~110mm - that seems like a massive difference but people say they're both great trail bikes ??!!

2) Buy a Whyte T129S or one of the above Specialized? Want to buy British but struggling to get a Whyte demo... The Whyte seems better value since it has a dropper post, but the Specialized look fairly tried and tested...

3) Forget all of that full suss crap, and upgrade my cheap (but excellent) Voodoo Aizan by buying lighter wheels and a better fork (pretty expensive upgrade though)....

cooldad

Depends on the trail.

buffoon

cooldad wrote:

Depends on the trail.

Cheers! problem sorted.

abarth_1200

No clue good luck

cooldad

buffoon wrote:

cooldad wrote:

Depends on the trail.

Cheers! problem sorted.

Trails can be anything - I like pedally singletrack, some prefer gnarly virtual DH.

I ride trails on a very light, 100mm full sus.
My son mainly uses a fairly hardcore HT with 160mm travel.
He is faster, better and braver than me (or more stupid).
Swap bikes and he's still faster than me. On any trail.

Over the weekend he was busy rebuilding for a trip to Wales so he used my 1989 rigid Rockhopper with cantis. He was still faster than me.

So it depends.

If you like steeper stuff get more travel.

Although reading that, maybe I am just rubbish. Might be ready for an ebike.

warpcow

Don't forget the Specialized Evo models too. They sit kind of inbetween the standard models in levels of gnar-itude (I can't think of any other way to describe it, I really tried). So, for instance, the Camber Evo has more aggressive geometry (slacker, longer, lower, etc) than the Stumpjumper, but it's shorter travel and slightly lighter in the frame (but comes with slightly burlier kit), more akin to the T129.

Personally, I'd want something like the T129, or a Camber Evo, for what you describe.

bigmitch41

These two (129-S & the Evo Camber) are both on my short list for my new bike, its going to be the end of this year or beginning of next so hoping to get a deal. It’s a shame the Camber doesn’t come with a dropper as standard as I’m going to want one of these. I’ve seen both the Camber and the 129 in the flesh and impressed with both, according to the reviews neither will disappoint.

Be interested to hear from any owners they’re views..

buffoon

Thanks for the Evo advice. Visited the local Spech shop and have narrowed it down to Camber Evo vs Stumpjumper Evo. Will organise a test ride of both bikes, and post my impressions. Man in shop reckons the stumpy is a bit over the top for my type of riding, but keen to test it nevertheless. It seems comfier, and comes with dropper post and better forks than camber. looks evil too.

mr joey

I have the stumpy evo but have it in 26" (as dont like 29") and have to say its probaly the best bike ive owned and had most trek orange marin santacruz etc just got fedup of having to upgrade stuff on previous bikes but dont have to do a single jot to the stumpy everything on it is spot on dropper post dangler brakes etc and just soaks everything up and i do ride pretty aggresive sometimes and the revelation fork is exellent its 150 mm on my 26 pretty sure its 140 on the 29ns and the colour is bad ass best bike ive had hope this helps

jndb72

I have the Whyte T-129 Works and love it. Put the effort in and it don't half shift.

It's got me safely down most of the red trails at Bike Park Wales with no issues at all (and that's me riding with a shattered wrist).

Can't comment on the Spech as I've not ridden the one's you mention

tarbot18

I have the Whyte T129s and love it as said above its a very fast bike and the suspension works well .
The spec on the s version for the money £2100 is very good, possibly the only fly in the ointment the elixir 5 brakes but mine are working great for now , but the reba fork and monarch shock work well.

buffoon

So I demo-ed the Stumpy Evo 29er today at Cannock. Seemed excellent but I wonder if the man in the bike shop is right. i.e. The main type of riding where the Stumpy seemed to excel was very fast straight-ish downs with big obstacles (not many at cannock) - It just felt so stable bashing into all sorts of stuff (maybe I should visit Stile cop?). During the tighter, slower, twistier stuff, the difference between the stumpy and my cheap hardtail was less dramatic. However, it certainly wasn't irritating during tight switch-backs, and I didnt notice any pedal-bob. The riding position is quite upright, which may take a bit of getting used to, since I normally like to lean down and forward when descending. I didn't use the dropper post a great deal but on the descents of the monkey trail it was useful. Like some others have reported, there was an audible groaning from the rear brake, but not enough to annoy me. Otherwise the brakes were good. The tyre pressure in my demo version seemed far too high for my liking, so may have handled better with less pressure.

So overall, an excellent and enjoyable ride. I am fairly sure I would be happy with this bike, especially if I get the chance to visit gnarlier trail centres. BUT I am now very keen to compare it to the Camber Evo to see if that suits Cannock-style trails better (will also try Whyte T129S if I can get hold of one). Will try the Camber ASAP...

BigAl

cooldad wrote:

buffoon wrote:

cooldad wrote:

Depends on the trail.

Cheers! problem sorted.

Trails can be anything - I like pedally singletrack, some prefer gnarly virtual DH.

I ride trails on a very light, 100mm full sus.
My son mainly uses a fairly hardcore HT with 160mm travel.
He is faster, better and braver than me (or more stupid).
Swap bikes and he's still faster than me. On any trail.

Over the weekend he was busy rebuilding for a trip to Wales so he used my 1989 rigid Rockhopper with cantis. He was still faster than me.

So it depends.

If you like steeper stuff get more travel.

Although reading that, maybe I am just rubbish. Might be ready for an ebike.

Yeah, I get that. Age - comes to us all - though sooner to me than Cooldad perhaps

My sons are 13 (twins) and all the above applies. It's both uplifting and depressing at the same time.

Can still sort them both out in a wrestle though (for now, anyway)

Though there's no doubt; I am a bit rubbish

buffoon

Just demo-ed the Camber Evo. I now totally understand why people buy loads of bikes for different occasions - it's definitely a compromise decision. However, it was also excellent. It seemed more planted and flickable than the stumpy - had more sense that i was in connected to the front wheel, if you get my meaning. There were a couple of occasions when i did notice the reduced travel compared to the stumpy, but this didnt happen enough to make it worthwhile having it. Ironically, I felt that a dropper post was more necessary on the camber than the evo, because you could make up for the reduced travel on the rough bits by leaning way backwards. However, it doesnt come with one. If I did slightly more rough/downhill then I would go for the stumpy, but in every other situation the camber felt faster. So I think I'll get it.

Still interested in the Whyte T129, but my local dealer wants to charge £50 for the privelige of a test ride! Whyte themselves were no help either. I'm not going to splash out £2k on a bike I haven't ridden, so camber it it.

buffoon

Quick update:

Had my new Camber Evo for about 1 month now. Absolutely loving it, but did have one major issue. The rear brake produced massive vibrations. I am not talking mildly irritating noises we all get with disc brakes, but fullon whole-bike vibration, enough to make the brake unusable. Forum searching revealed a known resonance issue. It was solved simply by unclipping the rear brake hose from the seatstay. Basically, the seatstay would vibrate and, due to the hose clip, would modulate the braking force at that vibration frequency, leading to an almighty resonance. Pretty sure that specialized know about this issue, but they're not exactly shouting from the rooftops about it. It wouldnt put me off, because the bike is great, but if you do decide to buy this bike, make sure your LBS is aware of the issue and will deal with it should it become a serious problem.

Oh, BTW I also purchased the command post - I think a dropper post is almost compulsory to get the most out of the camber.

bigmitch41

Glad your enjoying it mate, Im still deliberating over the Whyte 129-S Camber Evo & the Stumpjumper FSR-29, Deffo need a dropper and leaning towards the Stumpy at the moment, dont know if the extra 20mm will be needed but maybe as my riding develops it could be usefull, plus we have a specialized dealer near by.
Got until the end of the year before I push the go button anyway, decisions decisions...

Keep us posted on the Camber

buffoon

BigMitch41 wrote:

Glad your enjoying it mate, Im still deliberating over the Whyte 129-S Camber Evo & the Stumpjumper FSR-29, Deffo need a dropper and leaning towards the Stumpy at the moment, dont know if the extra 20mm will be needed but maybe as my riding develops it could be usefull, plus we have a specialized dealer near by.
Got until the end of the year before I push the go button anyway, decisions decisions...

Keep us posted on the Camber

I had exactly the same dilemma between the camber and stumpy, even after test-riding both. I knew whatever decision i made, i would always be wondering about the othe bike (bit like girlfriends). If it helps, once you factor in a dropper post for the camber, it ends up almost the same price as the stumpy. Main advantage of the stumpy is that big plush slack pike fork which soaks up everything. Good if you do lots of black sections.

Having said that, the Whyte T129 is a relative bargain by comparison. Assuming you can get to ride one, and it rides well, the only slight disadvantage i can see is it doesnt quite look as nice as the spesh bikes.

batmo

buffoon wrote:

I knew whatever decision i made, i would always be wondering about the other bike (bit like girlfriends).

Except if your mate has a different bike, it's okay for you to swap sometimes...
I've had my Camber about a month now and I'm really enjoying it. How much of that is Camber and how much is just being my first full suss is more difficult to separate.

buffoon

Annoyingly for me, specialized have just knocked off £300 from the camber evo. This may sway decisions...

buffoon

Minor update:
Fitted a 45mm stem, and has significantly improved handling over stock stem(70mm?). Turns much more easily.

Would like to try a Hans Dampf tyre up front - anyone know if it will fit? The Camber doesnt have masses of clearance. Also wondering about upgrading fork in the future. Would like an RS Pike, but dont know if you can easily get it in 120mm travel. Specialized manual states that you can only fit 120mm to the camber. Not sure if thats just conservative company nonsense or not. Would be nice to try 140mm pike, but on the other hand i dont want my frame to break...

paul.skibum

Any tyre should be OK up front as forks dont really vary tyre clearance much between models - clearance is more an issue at the rear.

buffoon

Thanks - just seen a few messages on forums suggesting that the Hans Dampf barely fits the RS Reba (29er). Some say its just about ok, others not. Its not a cheap tire, so I dont want to waste my money. Will try to borrow one to test.
Had it on a previous bike and the grip was brilliant.

bigmitch41

I went for the Whyte in the end, a T-129S for under £1,470 delivered was just too good to miss, thanks Winstanleys bikes! So far really pleased with it but im still getting to know it, its a cracking bike though!

buffoon

BigMitch41 wrote:

I went for the Whyte in the end, a T-129S for under £1,470 delivered was just too good to miss, thanks Winstanleys bikes! So far really pleased with it but im still getting to know it, its a cracking bike though!

Congrats on the purchase! I will now try to think of reasons I paid an additional £700 for the camber!! Errr... nice colour.

batmo

buffoon wrote:

BigMitch41 wrote:

I went for the Whyte in the end, a T-129S for under £1,470 delivered was just too good to miss, thanks Winstanleys bikes! So far really pleased with it but im still getting to know it, its a cracking bike though!

Congrats on the purchase! I will now try to think of reasons I paid an additional £700 for the camber!! Errr... nice colour.

I tried both and the Camber was just a better fit.