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Currently riding a 68 degree Whyte (T129), but another lighter more 'me' frame (2014 Niner Air 9)Â has come up .. but it has a 70.5 degree angle, possibly 70 ... is this going to be hugely noticeable? I don't think I'd even thought about such things till I got a different Whyte a few years back and wondered why it felt so 'right'... bit worried about it feeling significantly twitchy in comparison - everything else about it seems to fit my local riding better.
You will probably notice it, whether it's any worse depends on the kind of riding you do.
http://www.ninerbikes.com/MY18-AIR-9-1-Star
Well the later version was down to 68 so they probably thought it was better that way?
It's not just about head angle tbh- wheelbase, reach, BB height are all really important too, HA just gets more attention because it's so easy. Those other things could easily balance it out overall but... the other thing HA is good for is an indication, the other things tend to follow in the same direction as head angle
Obviously there are other things to take into account including your own set up (bar width/stem length, etc) the rest of the geometry, wheel size and the like.
But, that said, I have 2 29er hardtails. 1 is steep in HA and the other slacker. They differ in other ways too but personally I can easily pick up on the HA when jumping from one to the other.
Both work depending on what I'm riding it for. So +1 for what Stevet1 said.
Yeah was aware the later models had a slacker angle, but still not sure how much odds it'll make real world .. I don't think it'll be a million miles off my old 29CS with 130mm forks. Have had all sorts of combinations in the past, but the slacker ones seem to be the ones I prefer though I've nothing definitive to say thats true, it's a guess based on feel & fit.
You'll notice it.
Whether it matters is a totally different question. If the frame is more "you", it probably won't matter.