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Hi folks,
Looking to reframe my hardtail - list of wants:
- modern I.e. long/slack geometry
- boost rear hub spacing
- threaded BB
- external cable routing
Can be steel or alu, no more than £600 ideally.
What do people recommend?
Cheers.
What size?
If small Cotic have one Solaris max left.
Get that.
Wheel size?
Fork travel?
Frame Size to suit a 181cm height, fork currently 130mm travel, wheels are 27.5" with 2.6" tyres. Cheers folks
I have the Santa Cruz chameleon in the 29 variety but comes in 27.5.
It was a really change for me but love it now so much so I have decided to get rid of my short travel Yeti.
A great bike for fun stuff and long day rides.
Also just got a Dartmoor Primal for my daughter and seems really good value and fun in both sizes.
Eldest daughter also got a On one Scandal which she loves although the paint chips really easily
Pace rc627?
Ragley Blue Pig fits the bill.
Clockwork Evo? Money left for a change of air shaft..
Never a better time to pick a nice donut all hardtail, so many great options, just some suggestions from my part:
- don't let the material be a big factor for your selection, the whole "steel makes for a smooth ride" thing is mostly outdated advice from 80s road bikes and even pre-CEN MTB frames. Today's steel hardcore hardtail frames are mostly too overbuilt to make a difference
- go for a slightly shorter static reach than you would for an FS, HT's reach lengthens when suspension sags
- for the same reason, consider a slacker static HA than an equivalent FS
What size?
If small Cotic have one Solaris max left.
Get that.
I wouldn't. IMO Cotic have ballsed up the sizing on the small, they've kept the long chainstay length on the small, so it's longer than the reach, I can't see how that is going to work (short arse speaking from experience)
I have the Santa Cruz chameleon in the 29 variety but comes in 27.5.
It was a really change for me but love it now so much so I have decided to get rid of my short travel Yeti.
A great bike for fun stuff and long day rides.
Just done first proper ride on my alu Chameleon on Exmoor. It was great - no issues with staying with mates on full sus bikes and it is a comfortable ride. Mine is set up on xc side of trail with new 35mm SIDs. Mine is a large and I'm 5'10", medium would definitely be too small. Wouldn't say it's overly modern LLS geo though, but great for an all-round riding.
I can’t see how that is going to work
You point it up hill, pedal, and the not short chainstays help keep the front wheel planted. You point it down a hill and the not short chainstays help keep the bike stable. There are arguments to be made for longer chainstays still on larger sizes of many bikes, especially long travel full suss bikes, but there’s nothing particularly odd about the not short chainstays on those small SolarisMAX bikes.
I'd have the BFe for 27.5 wheels on 2.6s
Cheers folks, some nice suggestions.
Do like the SC Chameleon, almost bought one a while back so thanks for reminding me of that.
Ragley blue pig, Clockwork Evo and BFe Evo are all nice but out of stock at mo.
Not heard of Primal, anyone else had experience of these?
What about Bird?
I bought a Zero 29 but also tested the AM and they are both great fun. I went for the 29er for comfort and stability at speed but there wasn't a lot in it and I reckon I would have been really happy with the AM too.