Perfect bike for Surrey Hills? All day and enduro riding

If you're after a mullet, then Orange are currently selling the old model Switch 6 frames for £900 (with a nice shock).

145mm rear travel, but very responsive and engaging to ride, brilliant in the corners and ahead of the curve on geometry. I have one myself and it could be perfect for the Surrey Hills, although I might lean towards a full 29er myself (personal preference).

I wouldn't say I'm specifically after a mullet as I need to try them (I've been off injured for the last year, just getting back into it now!). I tried a YT ebike mullet a while back and it felt like a chariot- a really high front end which felt strange. Maybe it just takes getting used to.

If you put a gun to my head I'd say 27.5 front and rear, but thats what I'm used to. the new 5010 is a mullet but last years is full 27.5.

I love the playfullness of smaller wheels- I just find it more fun.

But, I will go and have a look at those orange frames, thanks!

Posted by: spicer

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... 140mm hardtail ... I can ride this everywhere, from all day rides to steep dh tracks. The new bike will essentially be replacing this, as something thats a bit more forgiving on descents

Production Privée Shan GT. ❤️ 

(I know, it's a 29er, but plenty manoeuvrable, certainly no ploughing monster)

Just looked at the switch 6: 160mm front is too close to the Nomad and too much travel for what I'm after. 

A Five is a possibility but the sale ones are out of stock in my size.

The Shan is a lovely bike but basically the same as the On-one I have (just different wheel size)- I'm looking to get a full sus for a bit more comfort on the descents after a year out from a knee injury 😞 

Oh, I quite like carbon things too!  🤗 

If you're open to full 27, then I'm sure you could  snag a secondhand Five pretty cheap.

Obviously there are other options beside Orange, but I do think they suit the SH particularly well as they're super-poppy and fun.

I must get back there this summer!

Don’t just assume a 29er is a plough and a 27.5 is nimble and fun. Both wheel sizes (and mullets) can be either. Geometry and suspension setup is all important. A lot of the mullets are big travel / enduro type things I think. I had a go on a Nukeproof mega that was a mullet and it was an absolute plough - it was less lively than my full 29er Sentinel.

Sounds like something with middling travel but decent geometry is what you’re after.

Trek Fuel Ex or Top Fuel

Norco Fluid (or maybe Optic - but the outgoing version rather than the new high pivot)

The old 5010 (v3) was very lively but I thought the front end was a bit less stable than the Aether 7 I was riding at the time

Bird Aether 9

Transition Smuggler or Spur

SC Hightower or Tallboy 

Airdrop Filter

Hmmm intresting @joebristol . Maybe I'll have to get some more demo's in than I expected. My limited experience on 29'ers is pretty much just from my KTM xc bike. The tallboy was also a consideration but I had started leaning toward the 5010.

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll look into them

I think you'll like the Izzo.

I demoed a Jeffsy and rode a Stumpjumper carbon expert and both seemed a bit OTT for the area. 

I think the Tallboy will be a better pedal than the 5010 in terms of the along and ups. Whilst it has less travel it’s meant to be very capable as a trail bike.

Of the ones I listed the Spur / Top Fuel are more on the beefed up xc end of things whilst all the rest are more proper trail bikes.

You could add the Spec Stumpjumper (not the evo) and the Epic Evo to that list too. Again that’s trail / beefed up xc. It depends if you’re after more lively pedalling or more overall capable descender whilst not being enduro.

I'm building up a Transition Spur atm and it's a lovely thing. Can't say how it rides yet but Transition say it can go 10mm either side of the 120mm travel so easy to make an all rounder.

I like Orange very much too. Look around the various big stockists (Sunset, Treadz, Winstanley's, Leisure Lakes, etc) and there are plenty of super deals on the Five, Alpine Evo or Stage Evo, which should all fit the brief. Sunset have a bunch of Stage 6 Evo Factory for a good old discount too.

I'm leaning towards a SC 5010. I'll demo a YT izzo at some point too.

I've got the previous model 5010 (that looks pretty much the same but is full 27.5) and find it perfect for the riding you describe.

You can find second hand ones with high spec for less than I bought my frame for because it seems little wheels arent popular any more.

If they still have 27.5 in stock, Bird Aether 27.5 does similar but in aluminium and for less money.

If you are considering an Izzo then might be worth looking at a Transition Spur for a similar bike that is well reviewed by users for longevity.

The saracen ariels 30's are on sale at the moment. The pro is 2k and good spec. I'm greedy/lucky and have 4 bikes to choose from, if I could only have one it would be the ariel. I've done uplift days on it and pedalled it round on xc loops. They're mullet in medium and small. 

It's been many years since I had a play on a 5010, but I remember thinking it would be a perfect trail bike for Peaslake. Lively ride, great on jumps but with a good enough platform to deal with some rough stuff. Santa Cruz normally run some demo days.

All personal preference but in response to the above recommendations, I can't imagine wanting to go from SC to Orange and I would stay away from the beefed up XC options if you're lapping Redlands.

I'm riding exactly the same trails, maybe a bit less of Bike Park Peaslake but plenty of Redlands and Leith steeps, Leith, Ranmore and Boxhill/Micky trails, and all the jumps and drops that the hills can throw at me.
Been on a 27.5 135mm travel Ibis HDR since the dawn of time, although the forks have slowly crept up to 160mm after an Alps trip. Very recently switched to a 29 Revel Rascal, still riding everything, but surprised to find the Rascal is more sure footed, holds corners better, and plusher than the Ibis, despite losing 5mm off the back and 10mm off the front. And it posp, so jumps I was casing before, I'm now clearing by half a landing or more!

Stick with your travel plans but open your mind and try some big wheelers. They're not going away...

That Saracen sounds great on paper, and a lot of bike for the money, if a little weighty. I can't find much about demo/test riding one though! 

There's so much choice, but I'll get out on some 29'ers and get a feel for them as soon as possible, I'm clearly still living in the dark ages as my favourite bike is still my 140mm 26" hardtail 🤣 

Just look carefully at the sizing on the Ariel - I considered one before and they were long reach wise for the given size vs other brands. Also superboost which is fine if buying a whole bike but less good if switching components from other bikes. 

It’s also 32.5lbs in small size on the top model. But that’s because it’s got Fox 36’s and the wheels use EX511 rims - which tells you it’s made for going hard downhill / in the bike park rather than being in that beefed up xc area. 

Just looked again at the Ariel and the small has a 455mm reach which is marginally longer than my medium in another brand. The jump to medium with a reach of 480mm would be too long for me - been there done that with a bike that had a 481mm reach - it was always just a bit too long even with a short stem. Rode it for 2 or 3 years before I admitted defeat. 

Thanks @joebristol, I will look into the geo but tbh I am put off a bit by the weight- the idea is to get something nice and spritely, and something like a tallboy comes in at 1.5kg lighter. All the sales are emerging, and 50% off santa cruz's isn't unheard of, so I will keep my eye out for those and any other big sales on the above suggestions

I'm currently running just an SC 5010 and a full 29er hardtail, and (the shame of it) currently don't want for anything else. I even sold the SC Bronson I had as it was gathering dust, and I just preferred taking the 5010 everywhere as it was more fun... That includes SH, Lakes, Peaks, bike parks with the 29er just being taken out for the local woody, flat singletrack sprints.

I recently had a (very short) ride on a Hightower. The one thing I remember noticing most was how nimbly it climbed.

I think I’d be inclined to get a Tallboy out of the list I put on earlier. Nice blend of trail bike capability, not too bad weight and both times I’ve ridden VPP I’ve thought it pedals efficiently.

I’ve been using a Tallboy in the Surrey Hills as my summer bike for several years.

It’s been great uphill and down. 

I have a tallboy and we have just built a blur tr for my partner, the tallboy is a great trail bike pedal’s great and is considerably lighter than my enduro bike. My partner loves the blur and it weighs 11kg. We’ve found that tyres are one of the biggest weight saving and speed gaining components.

I think the 27.5 5010 is spot on for what you describe, great all rounder but biased towards the smiles per mile.

The tallboy is dull in comparison.

Banshee Spitfire (27.5) or Prime (29/Mullet) both are 135mm rear travel.

Banshee Phantom 29/Mullet 115mm travel might be worth a look too.

I have a Prime and it’s super fun and not a plough.

Pedals really well and can built ruffty tuffty mini-enduro or a lighter trail build.

Ebike all day long

I loved riding a 110mm travel Kona Process on the stuff you're talking about, but it was a lot easier, and my technical riding has moved on far faster by changing to a Gen 5 Fuel EX. While I'm not an ebike owner or rider, you will get a load more laps in using one, and friends and fellow riders who've gone down that route have really developed their skills. Might be a bit of a stretch to say 'ebike all day' though - battery life is a thing, and accelerated wear and tear will definitely mean a more costly ownership, even if it comes with a load more miles as well.

Definitely try out a full 29er. Modern ones are pretty darn amazing, and event the older ones are very capable.

Thanks folks. I'll update you once I've done some test rides and let you know what I buy!

I'm not interested in an ebike at the moment for various reasons, I've tried quite a few, but lets not turn this into an ebike vs normal bike thread 😉

I demo'ed a YT IZZO for a day in Surrey Hills and really wanted to fall in love with it... but couldn't. Pedalling efficiency was okay, weight was okay, suspension tracking was okay... you get the idea. Definitely leaning towards trail and not XC, but if I wanted trail, I'd go for something with more travel, hence I struggled to see the fit there.

Ended up getting a Scott Spark RC and have been blown away. Ticks all the boxes and more. Love it.

I demo'd a YT Izzo today, I actually quite liked it.

I soon forgot I was on a 29er other than tighter corners, and it seemed to go uphill plenty quick enough and gave me plenty of confidence on the jumps down pitch hill and various other gaps, drops and steep bits around peaslake. But, I was on the top spec one with carbon wheels etc, so that will have rose tinted things a bit.

So yeah, it has changed my opinions on 29ers, I quite like the idea of a Tallboy or maybe an Izzo if the spec is right.

The boss has decided we need to keep some money aside for kitchen upgrades, so I think I'll be keeping my eye out for a 2nd hand short travel 29er

You a medium sort of a size? There's a Norco Optic in the classifieds. Could be spot on.  6 days ago,  posted by @argee, I think. 

Norco Optic was on my list when I was looking for a mid travel trail bike (before I swerved and bought something altogether bigger). Has decent geometry etc - reckon that would be worth a look. I couldn’t find a decent frame only one at the time I was looking.

The previous generation Stumpjumper (not Evo) might be worth a look as well?

I went for the previous gen tall boy for 2 reasons. One was second hand was much cheaper. Second was it has adjustable chainstays as its not transmission compatible and I prefer the longer setting which is longer then the current one. 

Posted by: BillOddie

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Banshee Spitfire (27.5) or Prime (29/Mullet) both are 135mm rear travel.

Banshee Phantom 29/Mullet 115mm travel might be worth a look too.

I have a Prime and it’s super fun and not a plough.

Pedals really well and can built ruffty tuffty mini-enduro or a lighter trail build.

The newer Banshee frames are super poppy / playful and fit the brief well. They are also quite competitive weight wise for a modern alu frame, the Spitfire in particular. I'd stick to the v3.2, of which there seem to be a few going s/h.

Can't imagine something like a Stumpjumper fitting the bill, the last one I rode had a dead, ground hugging feel even with an air shock. Might have been the setup though.

There's a Norco Optic in the classifieds

Almost bought one of those but ultimately went for a Kona Process 134.  Both brilliant fun for Surrey Hills type riding, not really enduro though

tall boy

Used to be very popular in the Surrey Hills but I have never even had a go on one.  Don't see so many since ebikes took over

So I picked up a Tallboy last night, thanks for the help swaying me back into trying a 29er folks.

It's a V4 CC with nice spec all round (apart from the SRAM guide T brakes) and finished off with some swish enve rims. 

No idea how to post images on here so heres a link

Nice one, strong look with the tanwalls. Post again once you've ridden it in anger. 

You just paste the pic URL in, and it should appear:

Mental that that has Guide T brakes in it, but easily fixed. Looks like a nice spec with the fancy wheels. For me it would look better with black wheel decals but that’s just a personal preference thing. Hope it goes well for you - I’ve thought for a while it would be nice to have something like that for the less gnar riding. 

Yeah the looks are a bit bold, but I've got a bunch of different colour schemes mocked up (chatGPT image editor is great!). I've ordered some XT 4 pots (mostly because they share pads with all my other brakes) to replace the guides with.

I will update in a couple of weeks once it's had some trail riding and redlands thrashing 😎 

I've had a few peaslake loops and today did 35km of Redlands on the Tallboy- loving it, completely happy with the bike. Descends like it's got more than 120mm of travel- more than capable enough for redlands and well suited to peaslake laps, geometry is great, and clearly pedals great as I managed over 1,300m of climbing on my 6th ride back after a year out from my ACL.

Not quite as good on really tight techy stuff like our off-piste local trails, but seems to be great on everything else and is happy being sent off jumps and drops. Impressive how well it holds its speed through the rough stuff- not sure if thats the wagon wheels or carbon rims, probably both. It's weakness is slow techy climbs (feels like it's easier to fall sideways) but maybe thats all 29ers?

Probably not the most playful bike in the world, but I have it set with a little more sag than I normally do to keep it poppy, and it really encourages you to hop and pump. Probably the best all-rounder bike I've owned, what a machine

"Ebike all day long"

Isn't the main issue that it won't be all day long? 😉