So very true. I'm still on a 2012 fsp and have been looking at getting a custom built titanium hardtail. This will be my first hardtail and 29er bike in well over 10 years.
@@RajaShetty I was eyeing their bikes for awhile but they seem like they might be hard to get in the states. Also I really only ride single track and it's often pretty rocky out here. I do plan on going with a Rolhoff gearhub and gates carbon belt drive.
As a former engineer, I appreciate your real world technical analysis of bicycle geometry. So much enduro buzz and nobody else talks about the floppy steering due to slack geometry. Great solution for no lock out rear suspension too!
The floppy steering is such an unfortunate tradeoff, because switching to a 64deg HTA made me a more confident rider. I've found that it's worst when sitting stationary with my hands off the bars. The front wheel can easily flop to the side and then wants to roll away and tip the bike over. Embarrassingly that once caused me to fall flat on my face when I was sitting stopped with one foot still clipped in while checking my phone!
Since I've rediscovered my passion for cycling I haven't seen or heard a more detailed and well planned guide/video series/RU-vid channel as your/your's. You on your own ar a gift to cycling and cyclist alike.
Before you upgrade the brakes consider upgrading pads and rotors. You can run 220 for the front and 203 on the back. Enduro Mag wrote a piece about why we all should run bigger back rotors. Just because when we do big descends we constantly reduce our speed with back most of the time and brake with both. So the back brake actually gets more beating. Different pads are also really can make a difference. If you want the ultimate brake for a small budged you need to buy Magura mt5 calipers and pair them with your Shimano levers. Bleed them with Shimano or Magura mineral oil and be amazed how crazy good those work. I have owned several pairs of them and I also have the Dirittissima from Trickstuff. This brake is a the ultimate brake to day and the Shimano/Magura(Shigura) franken brake is almost good as the Dirittissima. OFC the Direttissima will have other benefits like never get destroyed and unreal build quality
I remember you saying in your video about bicycle gearboxes that a Pinion has the advantage when it comes to mountainbikes. So: why no Pinion? Keep up the great work, really enjoying the quality content.
@@Cyclingabout only 50 were ever sold !! No one knows about them, and so many riders stop to talk about the bike, It’s like I’m going past on a Sea Horse !!
Thanks! I've decided that I really enjoy riding my full suspension mountain bike (29er 130F/130-115R) much more than my gravel bike. So I've been configuring the MTB for bikepacking and will be selling my gravel bike. I even bought another set of carbon wheels with fast tires for riding road and gravel and use a 30/32 Absolute Black Oval chainring with an Eagle X01 10-50 cassette. Plus, I have 3 modes: open, trail and full lockout front and rear and have a rear flip-chip to change between 130 or 115mm. The bonus is that the bike with flat pedals weighs under 28 pounds, which is very light for a full suspension.
Full-sus bikes are definitely underrated for bikepacking! But I also get it - they require a bit more maintenance to run well than a rigid bike with fat tyres.
I say it's a smart move. I love gravel bikes but I found the tires for gravel bikes to just not be up to the abuse. Maybe I shouldn't be riding them on super rocky single track 😅
Another way to make your fork stiffer at the end of its travel, while keeping it sensitive on small bumps would simply be to put tokens in the air spring so the fork becomes stiffer as you get into the travel. It would make your air spring less linear and more progressive ;)
Tokens provide most of their progressivity deep in the fork's travel. Even if I added a token and removed some air pressure, the small bump sensitivity virtually doesn't change, and I end up with quite a lot of ramp-up at 80% travel. A product that really suits my use case is the Vorsprung Secus air spring upgrade. It's basically a huge negative air chamber that attaches to the bottom of the fork, reducing the spring force at the beginning of the travel while increasing the mid-stroke support. Pinkbike has a good review on it: www.pinkbike.com/news/review-vorsprung-secus-air-spring-upgrade.html
hey amazing! thanks for sharing! where do you camp in Oaxaca on your trips, not afraid of criminals or people with machetes wondering the mountains? hehe thanks !
I may have missed it here or missed or forgotten it elsewhere, and please excuse my not knowing this - What is the brand and model of the saddle you prefer?
Add another token in the rear shock same with your front fork the right side holds the tokens add another you might have 2 in there and adding more air ad a 3rd it'll reduce the air psi make things bit firmer change to Big Betty on the rear from magic Mary's for what your doing
It's been available for about six years now but has never received widespread adoption in a market flooded with comparatively simple closed cell foam inserts. I think it's a great system!
It's a 45mm. Be careful with short stems on Loop bars though. As the bars sweep backwards, you end up steering in the lower half of the steering arc - they can get a bit funky to steer. I talk about steering in lots of detail in this video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-R37R0gUFr7I.html
I have a question regarding the suspension fork setup: You mentioned that since you're on 0 clicks of compression the fork sits too low in its travel. I was asking myself if a few more psi in the air chamber reduce the sag and put you up higher? To get the same progression feel I would remove a token so the fork won't feel to hard.
Yep, more air reduces the sag and puts me higher in the travel - but then I lose out on the small bump compliance I'm trying to achieve at the beginning of the stroke. Tokens provide most of their progressivity deep in the fork's travel. Even if I added a token and removed some air pressure, the small bump sensitivity virtually doesn't change, and I end up with quite a lot of ramp-up at 80% travel. A product that really suits my use case is the Vorsprung Secus air spring upgrade. It's basically a huge negative air chamber that attaches to the bottom of the fork, reducing the spring force at the beginning of the travel while increasing the mid-stroke support. Pinkbike has a good review on it: www.pinkbike.com/news/review-vorsprung-secus-air-spring-upgrade.html I'd be keen to try one after upgrading my damper to the Charger 2.1.
@@Cyclingabout Wow, yep that makes sense. Would love to see the upgrades in-depth. I think you are enough mechanically inclined to fit the upgrades yourself. Great video btw. I learned a lot of new facts, even though I'd call myself a MTB nerd😅.
Hey Alee, long time listener first time caller here. Great video as always thanks heaps. I think you said you've got 2.6 rear and 2.4 front tyres. I would like to know if, in your experience, a rear tyre wider than the front tyre has a noticeable effect on the trails?
I cannot definitively say this width combination is best because it depends on so many factors including the tread pattern, tyre casing and terrain you're riding. I found the narrower front tyre to have more front grip in this instance, but it might not be the case for other brands or models. Usually, people describe front tyres as 'vague handling' when they get too wide, which is part of the reason why 3.0"+ tyres aren't more common on dedicated mountain bikes. 2.4-2.5" seems like the precipice in the enduro/dh scene, but it really depends on the tyre+terrain. The wider rear tyre allows me to use a lower tyre pressure to achieve more ground grip and a more stable bike on chunky terrain. It seems to be the best option for here!
Alee the bike and setup is super nice, the Procore looks amazing....what's the max pressure in the outer chamber? It says 0.8 - 1.5 bar, but I wonder if I could pump it to my Tyre max for use on tarmac and in the street for better rolling resistance, I have an Surly Ogre so I would like the procore for off road but still be able to pump the outer Tyre to max for commuting etc. Thanks keep up the great content
You'll want to reach out to Schwalbe for that info. I suspect the limitation is more the tyre or the rim specification, rather than Procore. 1.5 bar definitely sounds too low, as many people use this system with much narrower/lighter tyres than me. I think the 0.8-1.5 diagram you're likely looking at is a pressure recommendation rather than a pressure maximum.
The wider rear tyre allows me to use a lower tyre pressure to achieve more ground grip and a more stable/smooth bike on chunky terrain. It seems to be the best option for here based on my testing.
@@Cyclingabout thanks! I ride mine without luggage but seem to notice better agility with a 2.4 rear. I like how the bike turns. In a couple months want to experiment replacing the 29x2.4 on a 30mm inner width rim with a 27.5x3.0 on a 40 mm inner width. Ideally would make the bike more plush on a softer tyre and more load-capable. Would differ only 2-3mm in diameter with the 29 I think.
Would aero bars be a good idea for bikepacking in a bike like this? I think it might allow to change position in long roads and would help on long trips, but I have never seen an enduro bike with aero bars...obviously
@@Cyclingabout My only bike is one very similar to this one, and I would like to start bikepacking, is it such a terrible idea to use it for long distances in gravel roads?
@@paulwilberforce9115 It's definitely one of the biggest enduro bikes out there. The Santa Cruz Megatower is a touch taller. The Transition Spire is a touch longer. Then there's Pole, Geometron & Nicolai who are 3-4cm longer again but quite expensive.
I appreciate that! Hopefully, my content inspires people to tinker with their bike setups a bit more, so they too can enjoy some next-level bike riding. 🎉
You do a wonderful job of explaining the features and benefits of the equipment. Your videos are very clear to me despite my ignorance of many common terms thrown about. Your diagrams help a lot too. Thank you.
Hi Alee, another great video... Thank you. I came to a similar conclusion on what bike I wanted - a full suspension Enduro/Trail bike with similar travel (except it cost more than yours!) but has a Rohloff/Gates drivetrain. I also found the same issue with the tires, so I run 2.35 width tires on 25mm rims. I have been debating inserts but run higher pressures so no problems so far... My brakes are Hope... just seems like such an appropriate name for brakes when I am on those very steep and technical downhills!
I'll be interested in your future review of that IGH, particularly in how well it engages, which is imo the biggest obstacle to these types of tech on mountain bikes
Might be worth upgrading the rotor and pads to some of Shimano's freeza stuff to decrease brake fade. Are you on metallic pads as well? Anyway, enjoying living vicariously through your videos!
I got an ice tech in 180mm on one of my bikes. But a 200mm rotor upgrade really was what stopped the fade. Cannot beat good old displacement as they say. Supposed to be a small loss of modulation but I did not notice much, can still modulate it down steep muddy shoots in the local forest!
Loving this Alee; massive kudos to you for being able to make such great content in such challenging circumstances! If you get the chance, can you please answer one question? Are you able to explain how your current derailleur clutch dampens your rear suspension?
Cheers! The chain length "grows" on almost all full-suspension bikes due to the way the linkages work. And a derailleur clutch puts tension on the chain so that it cannot jump off the sprockets. In theory, taking away this additional chain tension should allow the suspension to perform better (the Kindernay doesn't require a clutch mechanism). But it'll be interesting to see if I notice any difference.
I thank you for the bike information...but I am more interested in the gear you are carrying on this bike...you talk very little about your gear ...please I beg you to do more gear videos...
There is only one thing that bothers me - How often do You change your chain Alee? I'm using xc bike for my daily commute, with an SLX chain and Deore 10-51 cassette, and after 1000 kilometers it's on the limit (with Rohloff dry lube) - a little more than 0,5% stretch. How do you maintain that? Great video BTW! :)
It's weird seeing you on a bike 🚴 other than the Tout Terrain. I don't plan to ever go bike packing unless it's absolutely necessary when I go on the GDMBT. I have a new Kona Sutra for a US coast to coast trip on pavement. I'm saving 💰money for a Tout Terrain like yours. I would have gotten one instead of the Kona but I didn't know about them. Ride safely. 👍☮️🌞🌟🚲🏔🏕
I agree with the fact that Oaxaca has the Best mountains the city Is surrounded by beautiful mountains, the bike scene Is getting better ando better every year. Greetings from Oaxaca.
wow el primero de tus videos que encontré fue hace mas de un año y ahora que planeo salir a hacer bikepacking de nuevo encuentro que sigues en mi país, que bien, ya hablas español?
My Giant Anthem Advanced 29ner 2019 has a carbon front triangle but has an aluminum rear triangle with bearing pivot points. When it's fully loaded with bikepacking gear--two Ortlieb Gravel Panniers on an Old Man Mountain Divide rear rack at the back and two Ortlieb Fork Packs and a Salsa EXP handlebar cradle and dry bag up front--I can feel both the rear triangle and even the headset bearings slightly flex and twist when I have to lay the bike against on a wall or at any angle that isn't perfectly perpendicular laterally to the ground. Is this normal or should I be concerned?
It sounds like you're a bit too loaded up with weight! Any chance you can get more weight onto the frame rather than the fork/bars or rack? This will reduce the torsional flex of the frame.
How high of a psi did you have the inner tube? Cause it sounds to me like that might be the cause of the problem for why your wider tire wasn't gripping well at low pressures, or at least maybe was a part of it?
@CYCLINGABOUT thanks! I'll have to look up more information about those secondary tubes, I guess. I don't know how such a low psi would keep it from pinching or bottoming out?
I've just retired so have more time for recreational cycling. Was out on my Defy with its slick 25c tyres on a road that soon turned to gravel. Rather than turning back, I skated through it. This rekindled my interest in off-road. Instead of making room for a 3rd bike, I ordered some Hunt carbon gravel wheels for my Ridgeback hybrid with some XTR 160mm rotors & Schwalbe 35c knobblies (all my tyres run tubeless). I've been revisiting trails I haven't been down for 25yrs & having a real blast! The Ridgeback ain't no MTB but it does light off-road perhaps better than many drop-bar bikes do. This has had me really familiarising me with current MTB tech such as gearbox drives & dropper posts. Great video, if a little terrifying to watch at times!
Thanks! I'm glad to hear you're venturing off-road a bit more on the gravel bike. It's refreshing to discover new routes and spend a bit less time around cars.
A bigger rotor would stop the fade. I have a 200mm front on my XT brakes for my full suss bike. When bike packing I down the steepest trails and roads in Wales (often go up to a mountain range and camp) I tackle lots of blind switchbacks. Old system with 180mm used to fade. Can be dangerous! Had to stop halfway down. New system with just bigger rotor fixed that.
I might try 220/200mm rotors first. But for sure, the cheaper Shimano brakes are more prone to fading than other brakes... and I need an excuse to test different brake setups!
As someone who just sold their enduro bike (a 2018 Canyon Torque) for a gravel/classic bikepacking bike, there are 2 huge downsides to the enduro bikes in general: - due to the geometry and the position on the bike, long-distance rides on flat surfaces are killer on your stamina due to the awkward pedaling position and the wide tires. -maintenance. It's costly and time consuming because the suspension needs to be cleaned and oiled, along with the bearings in all of the pivot points. Don't get me wrong, they are very fun and immensely capable bikes otherwise, but for me at least those 2 above downsides were in the end, deal-breakers.
Rented a Nukeproof Mega 275 in the mountains a while back. Probably the most fun I ever had on a bike. Sadly not worth getting an Enduro or even XC where I live
