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Getting back on the bike after too many years away. I am amazed how much things have evolved and very excited to get riding again. I missed the geometry revolution and evolution!! Can’t wait to see how different modern bikes will feel.
Here’s my dilemma. I am in the incredibly privileged position of being able to afford a bike of my dreams. However, I haven’t ridden any of the ones that take my eye. It will be a full sus 29er W circa 120/130 travel. Definitely. However, I don’t see much written about mud clearance?
Any owners of the following able to comment on mud clearance, maintenance, bushing/bearing longevity and ease of servicing for the following:
Ibis Ripley
Nukeproof reactor
Whyte S120
Santa Cruz tall boy
I’m pretty sure any of these will be incredible btw!!
Cheers.
You could add the Transition Spur to that list at the shorter but very capable end, plus the Bird Aether 9 A or C. I think the Trek Fuel EX is also worth adding and perhaps the Giany Trance 29.
Generally I think most bikes now have plenty of mud clearance - just look for some reviews of each bike to make sure they haven’t commented on it negatively and I think you’ll be ok. With 29er wheels they are heavier than 27.5” so as long as you can fit in a 2.4/2.5” wt Maxxis you’ve probably got plenty of tyre under you.
I was in the same position as you. Coming from a circa 2005 Rockhopper Comp with 26” wheels. I was hoping to get a Whyte but ended up with a carbon Stumpy Comp.
I was unsure of the 29” wheels and super wide handle bars compared to what I was used to. Took it to Wales on what used to be the Marin Trail and it’s bloody amazing! I think any bike you get is going to feel better in every way than what you’re used to.
Your biggest challenge might be actually finding a bike you want that’s in stock.
Can’t wait to be able to go on more proper rides when restrictions are lifted.
Good luck with your search.
TBH except when squeezing in extra wide tyres (which I kinda do all the time) I've not seen a bike that I worry about mud clearance for a long long time. More bikes than ever are built for wide tyres, and 1x drivetrains help with that too (in principle the Boost standards should also help with it, but in practice it doesn't necessarily, basically it's still a designer's decision where to put the bits and the standard doesn't really push that)
Santa Cruz have a lifetime pivot bearing warranty, tbh that's not really all that meaningful by itself since bearing replacements are usually cheap and you're arguably just paying for it up front with their expensive bikes... But they do seem to put some thought into longevity. Nukeproof I'd definitely seek out some owners' experience of that bike, a mate has the original Mega 29 and the stock bearings were absolute shite (and not only that but some were weird sizes and hard to replace). They may have upped their game or that might have even been just that one model, but it's something I'd want to find out more about before buying one...
Thanks for this. Exactly. Coming from my Rocky Mountain 853 blizzard hard tail. Really looking forward to trying a 29er. As people say, the issue may be finding one in stock 👍
Cheers - I’ll have a look at the Transition too 👍
Oh, I’d love to hear from any HB130 owners too. Expensive but love the look of them and have always been a Hope fan. 😎
I was in same boat last year: dug out the old hardtail, rode it a bit, sighed, sold it, and bought a spanking new Santa Cruz Hightower - which is amazing. Got the Mrs a whyte s120 a couple of weeks ago and had total bike envy. Any of the bikes on your list will be amazing - in the current market it might come down to waiting times though. Like vaccines, the best one is the one you can get now. I honestly think that unless you’re a serious competitor all the bikes are as good as each other so for me it came down to which one gives that warm fuzzy feeling. That was the Santa Cruz
Cos it’s been the dream bike since childhood.
Excellent. I’m loving hearing how revelatory modern bikes are. Cheers for that. 😎
The mud clearance on recent forks is excellent - in my Lyrik I have a true 2.4” tyre (it says 2.6 on the side but it isn’t), one of those bent bit of plastic mudguards and it only clogs up in the stickiest mud.
Some bikes are a bit tight at the back but it’s pretty rare now.