New Wheelset for easy/long trips?

New Boy2

Hi all, my yearly frequent to these parts looking for help

Currently running a Marin Pine Mountain with Easton ARC 40 wheels (still have the originals non boost set) with 2.8 tyres allround, running tubeless and whilst it is great fun it is a bit of overkill when I am out with the kids doing more leisurely cycles. As it is me who ends up lugging all our gear round I could do with something that is a bit less draggy. Also of note I was planning an overland tour with a couple of mates in france next year. Also I have installed a new boost RS SID fork with remote lock out (the Easton wheelset is boost up front), but have kept the rigid fork for.....you know, just in case....

So, the way I see it is that I have three options (two options within no.2) and just wondered what you guys thought? Oh, I would look out for second hand deals for 2 & 3.

1. Keep current setup and move to a slimmer less treaded tyre.
Pain in the arse as I am tubeless and will it make much of a difference?

2. Save up for new 29er wheelset and run a XC type set up on the tyres
a) use existing RS SID boost fork - A lot more expensive choice, but relatively straightforward to swap about between wheelset.
vs
b) use old rigid fork non boost fork - Probably a touch cheaper than a, but a bit of pain to switch between the two. However, for a long jaunt might be of benefit as there is less to go wrong.

3. Save for a 2nd bike along the lines of a lightweight 29er XC machine or sturdy cyclocross,
More dedicated machine, but more limited by bike I am on. Also going to be pricey to get anything decent. Also storage and wife concerns!

Let me know via poll and also comments welcome

Cheers

cooldad

Er um OK....

cooldad

N+1.

Always.

JBA

Option 3, obviously.
There. Done. Close the survey.

LimitedGarry

I was in the "one bike is enough" club up until the point I got a second bike.
One bike club is lame. Get a second bike. Since you've put that option into the poll, it means you have thought about it. The idea has been planted and now it won't let you rest. And if you pick any other option, you'll keep on reminding yourself that a new bike was on the table of possibilities once and you won't be able to stop wondering what could have been. :twisted:

But seriously think about it - you might get a cyclocross touring bike that can mount panniers. It'll be the stuff for the long rides and group rides. When you take the panniers off, you'll have a great and fast touring bike for when the trails are not rideable or for when you simply feel like it. And you'll still have a monster back home that provides all the entertainment you may ever desire.

Look at it from another angle - a MTB chain lasts roughly 1000km or 600-650 miles. A cassette will last two or tree chains, assuming you change the chain soon enough. A cyclocross bike's chain will last twice that at the very least. So one bike to eat up the mileage, the other for fun.
And there's a completely new level of fitness on road an CX bikes for you to discover. Definitely something that will be beneficial to a mountain biker.

If you change the tyres to thinner ones, you may not be able to get as rowdy as you used to. In other words, you may end up ruining your fun trying to get the bike to be more touring friendly. There's a reason why tyres on mountain bikes are generally getting wider - the hit on speed is not as significant as it may seem.

An XC bike can be faster, but not by a whole lot. Maybe 30 seconds over 15 minutes at race pace Clint Gibbs on Youtube is currently doing a series comparing plus bike against a much more expensive 29er XC rocket. The differences are not as large as some had predicted and as he's pointing out all the time, the plus bike is so much fun.
On slow family rides, it doesn't really matter much. If your concern was group rides with fit and capable riders, I might say go for it if you need it. But then again, I ride with a guy on a fat bike and I never heard him complaining outside of long climbs. The distance isn't a problem for him, the speed on climbs is.
So to sum it up, the biggest problem is that should you buy a new wheelset, you'd be spending a lot of money on something that won't really make such a drastic a difference for your purposes.

And yes, I'd suggest getting a CX bike, not an XC bike. If you only have two bikes, you want them to be as different as possible, so that you never start wondering why do you even have two bikes.

fat daddy

cyclocross with panniers ..... its the only sensible choice