[Closed] Would you buy a (new) fatbike for ~£1k?

Took my oof out for its first play in ages (been playing on my 29er and orange five too much lately) forgot how much fun it was. First time with new tyre combo. Swapped from Nate front and rear to Jumbo Jim (thanks Northwind) with Nate up front. Bike felt fantastic, much more nimble. Jim was just about predictable in the wet sloppy stuff with just enough grip to get the back end sliding just enough with loads of grip on the dry bits. Think I finally have my favourite tyre combo. Chuffed.

I just wanted to thank the positive contributors to this thread. My fatbike deliberations finally came to an end last weekend with a Calibre Dune purchase. For a casual rider like me and a Whyte 146 in hand I could not justify spending over £1000 on a fatboke but came close with Scott Big Jon and Specialised Fatboys etc not to mention onOnes and Charges etc. However having just lifted up a Dune in store, I was surprised at its light weight. I have no issues with the spec save the brakes could o with more bite. Couldn't believe how well it rolled with 15-20 psi, and of course the stability and balance are great. I'm now experimenting with lower pressures but really couldn't b happier with this as a fun fatbike choice. I am only 5'7" with a 28/29 inseam so the oft criticised medium geometry is actually perfect for me. £500 for this bike with discount? One of the best decisions I ever made. Are bikes costing 3 times as much 3 times better? Who cares, I will have a ball with the Dune and will enjoy limited depreciation as a result. Thanks chaps.

Are bikes costing 3 times as much 3 times better?

Enjoy fatb450 - it's a real bargain when considering smile per pound ratio. I've blown a couple hundred extra on mine and it's pretty much in a spec I'd choose off the shelf now, for way less than £1000 - which in today's terms remains a bargain.

Yep, fatb450, I was in the same position and bought the Dune 6 months ago. Have now put a Thomson lay back 420mm seat post in and have a set of Deere brakes to go on. But it's a great ride unmodified and I've followed the 1x10 discussions here but the gears work fine so ok for me and I'm old and enjoy the granny gear. One essential is a full bottle of slime in each tyre!

Anyway get out and ride the bloomin' thing, life's not all about the Strava times...

Although, I've set half a dozen strava pb's in the last couple of weeks.. Up [i]and[/i] down hill..

Mind you, I am a bit crap. Beginning to wonder if my super 650b needs selling and the fat bike treated to a set of light wheels and be done with it.

Possibly silly question for fellow Jumbo Jim owners...
Does the tyre carcass slightly bulge out in-between each of the outermost lugs on your set?

Another silly question for SV13F inner tube users...
Do you find they lose quite a bit of pressure over time? I pumped my rear 13F and front 13J to 30 PSI to help seat the beading of the JJs, maybe ~4 weeks ago, checked the pressures yesterday morning and they had dropped to ~18/25 PSI respectively.

Rode for the first time in a while yesterday morning, not been feeling too good health wise for must be ~2 months, I expected to have been bike commuting since around early April but it never happened! Not just health, but also paranoia of something happening to the Wazoo when locked up all day (quick release wheelset and those pricey JJ tyres), plus the Nexus 7 tablet free wi-fi on the bus with a £5 weekly ticket has make bus commuting far more palatable since Xmas.

But even my my currently very bike unfit state, I could really notice how much easier tarmac riding was on the JJs at 30PSI, compared to the default Mission Commands at 20PSI. Even so, the bike feels badly geared by default (probably not helped by my current fitness levels), the 38T large chainring makes anything smaller than the 20T sprocket practically impossible on the tarmac flats.

I've found JJs fine on the road (and that's at normal low pressures). No different to my skinny bike.

I find pressure is very temp sensitive at low psi, bout of warm weather in December made my tyres a lot harder

I think I've also experienced some temperature effects although bear in mind that I'm very new to this fatibike malarky. My first ride on the new Ice Cream Truck, with 4.8" J tyres was at the weekend when it was hot and even though I was running low pressures (down to 6psi rear and 4psi front at some points) they felt harder than I'd expect. Then last night (back to more normal temperatures) they felt nice and soft at 7/6 psi (rear/front).

I'm still getting what I can only describe as weird moments with them though. Not sure if it is just a general fatbike thing, something specific to this bike or these tyres or some problem that I need to address with the build.

It's not a big deal and 99% of the time they are fine. In fact, they are always fine on soft ground, when climbing and on any technical descent. But sometimes when I'm just riding along on the flat or freewheeling down a gentle slop I'll get a very brief WTF moment when it just does it's own thing for a fraction of a second. Almost as if something is loose, although I'm pretty sure it's not.

I'm not sure whether it is just the big tyres catching on small ruts in the trail (it only seems to happen on hardpacked sections of trail), but it's a little disconcerting.

There is quite a big difference between the central and the side knobs as well, which I think can make the steering feel a bit too active. Lean the bike slightly to make a turn and those side knobs seem to catch and pull you into the turn a bit more. It's not extreme and maybe I'm just being too sensitive (with it being a new bike and all that) but I didn't notice it with the Bud/Lou combo on the bike I tested a while back. Mind you, the JJs are a lot faster.

fatb450 - Member

Are bikes costing 3 times as much 3 times better?

My dune costs pretty much 3 times as much as a new dune. And no, it's not 3 times better 😆 TBH £20 or so for tubeless, maybe £70 or so for brakes, will give really good vfm upgrades but after that it's diminishing returns imo

Ride it and enjoy it. The good thing about the Dune is it can be upgraded in many ways and the frame/wheels can take it. Otherwise I worry less about abusing it when it hasn't cost a fortune...

I do have one KOM on it but I was only the third person to do that segment 😕

Calibre Dunes down to £492.99 today! 😯

Go through Topcashback for 7.7%, making it ~£455. 😉

http://www.topcashback.co.uk/gooutdoors/

38T large chainring makes anything smaller than the 20T sprocket practically impossible on the tarmac flats.

Hmmm.

I fitted gears to my Puffin last night, been riding SS up til now, 32:19. Been getting up the hills fine, but a couple of the downhills near me are more fun pedalling out the geary hardtail.

Long ride tomorrow, as long as today's inexplicable little niggle in the hip goes away. only narrow wide ring I had spare was 38T. rarrh. 38:36 lowest is still a load lower than the SS ratio, so should be grand. Might not be quite so grand getting back over the Weald after 70 miles though!

roverpig said: I'm still getting what I can only describe as weird moments with them though.

At low pressures the self steer becomes more noticeable as the tyre distorts, but you also notice it in ruts, cambers etc. if it's doing it loads you might need a bit more pressure?

Northwind said: I'm not sure about these SV13Fs, they don't seem to fill the tyre nicely, if that makes any sense?

I think you're right, they don't have as much meat to shape the tyre, but LBS sorted my JJs not seating properly with them - 30psi and lots of soap. £12 for the pair to save 500g over the standard tubes mind, I'll take that!

My OO Fatty is creaking so much it's driving me nuts.

Happens only when pedaling, with both pedals, when stood up or sat down.

I've replaced the BB, it and the pedal threads are greased, what else could it be?

Rear quick release?

did the noise change at all after switching BB? check its not your stem/headset - mine was creaking like a scotsmans wallet last night as I applied pressure to handlebars during climbs - sounded like it was coming from seatpost/BB area at first!

Chain ring bolts worth a check too, one of the sources of a previous creak I experienced for about a month before I finally found it.

Rear quick release?

Hope (so not likely)

slimjim78 - Member
did the noise change at all after switching BB? check its not your stem/headset - mine was creaking like a scotsmans wallet last night as I applied pressure to handlebars during climbs - sounded like it was coming from seatpost/BB area at first!

No, if anything it may be slightly worse, so it's not the BB and whatever it is is getting worse and has been for the last 100miles or so. BB was notchy, but had no play.

I'll drop the forks out and look, the headset's never been quite right so that's not a bad suggestion.

thv3 - Member
Chain ring bolts worth a check too, one of the sources of a previous creak I experienced for about a month before I finally found it.

I changed the BB on mine thinking the creaking meant it was shagged, New BB, same creak. Check chainring bolts, nip up slack, not creaked since. Reinstalled old BB

Mine was creaking for ages and I just couldn't find out where it was coming from. After the umpteenth time striping, greasing and tightening everything, it turned out it was a bit of dirt on the Pawls in the freehub!

Those Maxxis Mammoth EXOs are now £30 at PX, Vee Missions are £20 at OnOne.

Need some security for your fatbike? PX have the perfect thing, http://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/BLKNSJFCH/knog-straight-jacket-fatty-chain-lock 😉

Finally got the Dune set up 1x10 - need to tweak the set-up as im struggling to get it to change up from top gear whilst keeping remaining changes slick, plus also dropped the chain over cassette and into spokes on first climb, but, other than that its Sooooo much nicer to ride now.
Jury's out on oval ring, feels nice and smooth, seems to be nice to climb with and winched up everything, but not sure I could pass the Pepsi challenge with it. Looks ace though. 30T is plenty close to the chainstay too, not sure it would take a 32T on this crank set-up.

[URL= http://i968.photobucket.com/albums/ae168/keepitsteel/C08CEC6C-0645-4B62-8FC7-24BBE5BE24BF_zpsqzjqo0d5.jp g" target="_blank">http://i968.photobucket.com/albums/ae168/keepitsteel/C08CEC6C-0645-4B62-8FC7-24BBE5BE24BF_zpsqzjqo0d5.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]

Took the dune out last night for a spin in the local hills for first time in a good couple of months, never fails to put a smile on my face, pound for pound best value bike Ive purchased,I was lucky enough to have a set of slx brakes, reverb dropper, set of fatbar lites all from a previous build lying around, made all the difference to the bike, finding the 2x8 more than adequate...only problem Ive had was trying to get them tubeless, could get them inflated but never seemed to stay up overnight, may give that another go.

"10JUNE16" promo code gets 10% off at Go Outdoors, reduces Calibre Dune price to ~£521, if you go via Topcashback you get a further 7.7% discount making it ~£480.

Halfords' Ebay store is listing both sizes of the Voodoo Wazoo available, http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VooDoo-Wazoo-Fat-Bike-Bicycle-26-x-4-Tyre-16-Speed-Alloy-Frame-Mud-Snow-Sand-/201373335552

PX are doing promo prices on the Fatty bikes...

Standard Fatty at £699.

Carbon forked Fatty £799.

Just taken the plunge and got a Dune using the offer above (although not sure if the topcashback link worked on my account - edit, it did).

First bike I've had in ages, looking forward to getting it and taking it for a spin...and then adding one or two upgrades 🙂

Loving my Wazoo, great fun. Looking at slowly upgrading it. I'm looking at the On-one carbon forks http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/FOOOCFAT/on-one-carbon-fatty-fork Pity they don't come in black & green.

btw has anyone had any experience with the RST Renegade fork as opposed to a Bluto?

dahedd, that fork will not naturally work with your Wazoo front wheel, they have different disc spacing. You will either need to get a Rear Disc Spaced front wheel, or lathe down the brake mounts by 4.8mm like (kayak23?) did {which sounds risky to me, albeit far cheaper than a new wheel}.

Never knew about that RST fork, will google-fu it now!

PX have put the Fatty Trail frame down to £100.

On One Floater tyres are down to £20.

Sadly, it appears that the custom (including a few fat hub variations) Hope wheels at Chain Reaction don't qualify for the "HOPE10" promo code.

Halfords' Ebay store has 8+ Voodoo Wazoo is stock in both 18" and 20" flavours at £499.

Well done Creg with taking the plunge, a Dune for ~£480 is a great buy, enjoy!

That's a pity those forks won't fit, quite a bargain. I reckon I'll pick up a new set off bars though. I'm getting a, sore back as the seating position is totally different to my Stumpjumper, wider riser bars would rectify the problem.

Well as much as the lathing option sounds risky to me, kayak23 appears to be still alive after doing this mod a few months back to make his original front wheel work with the Carbon fatty Fork. 😉

Another option is the Exotic carbon fork, it's not as light (~600g vs ~1000g), but it is Front Disc Spaced. http://www.carboncycles.cc/?s=0&c=105&p=1780&tb=001

Not fatbike specific, but the Knuckleball bars are down to £40.

Thinking about a £20 El Guapo short stem to go with above, partly because something seems odd with my On One 80mm 35 degree stem currently installed on the Wazoo, the allen bolts seem to be working themselves partially loose every time I use the bike for commute (trying not to get paranoid about someone messing with my bike, it's probably me not using my torque wrench and guesstimating badly). But also the Knuckleballs are a bit wider than default bars at 747mm and I've never had a stem <80mm as far as I can remember.

thread lock?

I really like my knuckleball on my Dune. I have the 777mm one.

The El Guapo stem is super stiff, just not available quite long enough for me.Quite a chunky beast too. Like me.

The strange thing is, that 35 degree stem was good as gold when on my Felt F5C from ~2010, I've only experienced the bolts loosening a little recently since commuting on the Wazoo.

I could be wrong, but I really vaguely recall getting some rust-proof (titanium?) bolts years ago, maybe I've messed up some of the thread? I should undo the bolts and look at the threads and if they look fine, tighten to ~6nm using my torque wrench.

Regarding El Guapo stem, I'm not sure I'm brave enough to go 35mm, but I might do 45mm, the longest version available for 20 squids.

I have a good as new 35mm available if feeling any braver?

Nice link to the Carbon Cycles page. I've bookmarked it for future. Like the forks & the bars.

n0b0dy0ftheg0at - Member
Well as much as the lathing option sounds risky to me, kayak23 appears to be still alive after doing this mod a few months back to make his original front wheel work with the Carbon fatty Fork.

Indeed. C'est moi!
The brake mod works brilliantly. Not touched it since and I can confirm that I am to all intents and purposes, alive.

Touching disc
[img] [/img]

Milled out with a woodworking router.
[img] [/img]

Job's a goodun.
[img] [/img]

slimjim78 - Member
I have a good as new 35mm available if feeling any braver?

I've still yet to place an order (I swear I'm getting more indecisive as I get older!) and if I do, I want to find something constructive to get the order over £50 for free postage... So I'll give you a shout if interested, but if you find a home for it elsewhere, don't hang about waiting for me. 8)

Nay bother, it's just hanging on the wall as a nice spare part so won't be heading anywhere.

Nice mod Kayak.

Has anyone tried a different fork on their Dune yet?

Be that carbon, or Bluto or anything else? I'm still enjoying being back on a rigid bike but wondering if any harshness could be removed with a decent carbon fork.
I nearly bid on a good as new chinese set on eBay a couple weeks ago but the lister mentioned that they were very light and possibly not best used in anger(!). I think they were around 650g mark.

650g isn't that light. My OO Fatty forks are around 600g and most Chinese carbon forks are around 500-550g.
Most road bike forks are <350g, so mtb forks have a considerable amount more carbon for strength.
Carbon will certainly help take a bit of the sting out of the trails.

EDIT:
To put it in perspective, some of the lightest road frames are around 650g!

yeah, I think I may have overestimated the weight come to think of it.

I'd try these first in Chewy.
http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/HBOOKNUCK/on-one-knuckleball-carbon-handlebar

Chewy only available on 'short' version.

I have the 'hard' 777mm version. They are pretty darn stiff. Love the width.

I thought about a carbon fork as the fork is pretty damn harsh even with a fat tyre... but tbh I don't want to spoil the colours 😳 So I bought a Crank Bros Cobalt 11 bar instead- it's their 780mm, weighs nothing, XC bar and very "soft". Instant cure for battered hands, very pleased.

(I tried softer grips first, that made it worse as I was squeezing more... I like ths sort of non-logical problem solving stuff but it's a pain sometimes)

I tried a Surly Nate recently it was a draggy as hell but noticeably comfy.
Might be worth seeing if you can borrow some different tyres .

I'm still alive after doing a half arsed job with a bastard file on my brake adaptor. No hospital food or orthodontic procedures even after going hammering down with a handful of hard on Hope hydraulics, half hoping heroic happenings have halted horrible hospital heartache.

A few fatbike related bits are in the latest round of [s]DFS[/s] PX sales...

On One/ El Guapo front wheel skewer £2/5
Hotbox/ Corso short stems £10/20
Maxxis Creepy Crawler (kids fatbike tyre) £15
El Guapo front hub £20
On One Floaters £20
Vee Mission £20
Maxxis Mammoth 120TPI EXO £30
Knuckleball bars £40
Fatty front wheel (rear disc spaced) £75 {these have been £40}
Fatty Trail frame £100
Fatty V2 wheelset £150
Fatty cromo fork bike £700
Fatty carbon fork bike £800
Fatty Trail bike £1000

I'm still deliberating on bars/stem, plus waiting to see if anything happens to the carbon fork and FatNotFat wheelset prices (albeit there are now allegedly just 5 in stock)! 😆

Ignore this post. I'm a bit thick.

Duh 🙄

Not quite fat, but in the spirit of the Dune.., I took a cursory glance at a 650b + 'Carrerra Vendetta' in Halfords today, basic spec but it actually looked a lot better in the flesh than on their website imo, could probably shave a decent chunk of weight easily enough; you'd need to at 37lbs, but for £350...

I saw that yesterday it looked nice

That does look rather funky. Fair discount on them just now as well.

Emmental drilled fat rims for £20 at PX.

Could pair them with El Guapo hub (£20 front) and ask LBS to build wheel.

What sort of ballpark price would wheel builder charge if you provide hub and rim?

£35 ball park

Anyone here had an issue with a clicking from the LH crank arm under power on the Dune?

Was happening on the first ride, suspect it could be a knackered bearing in the BB?

After one winters abuse as did one pedal (which was responsible for the clicking noise but they were old Time set I used). Two hanger screws came loose and had to be loctited into place, two chains and one set of front rings.......
and the other thing responsible for a clicking noise and derailing chain eventually was the naff big ring that's made of cheese and lasted one ride before I'd bent three teeth over on it 😆

Just a word of warning folks... There have been a number of "stealthy" buys of the FatNotFat 29er wheelsets recently, I've just pulled the trigger after finding there were only two sets left, so now there is just one set left!

And I still don't know what disc spacing the front wheel is, I guess I will find out when they arrive and try to fit them to the Wazoo's FDS fork! 😆

Evening gents, I'm thinking of slapping a Dune on my credit card tonight!

Has anyone really tall had a go on one? I run a 19" hardtail, but my full sus is a 22" frame.

Thanks if you can help?

I'm 6ft 1" and on a large Dune. I just needed an extra 10mm on the stem.

Thank you, just finishing my wine and pizza. If I feel brave I'll hit the button!! Any good vouchers on the go?

7.35% Topcashback

Fatty Trail is down to £900, not bad for a Bluto fork fattie!

Glad I spotted they were down to the last two FatNotFat 29er wheelsets yesterday afternoon, they are now all gone (except that slimline ice bundle which is rubbish value, paying £100 extra for 2x~£20 tyres and 2x~£5 tubes).

Both sizes of the Voodoo Wazoo are back in stock on the Halfords Ebay store, http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/201373335552?var=500565737499

Charge Cooker Maxi 1/2 models have been reduced in a few stores, down to ~£720/£880.

The Wazoo looks to be heavier, with worse tyres.

I've already got some brand new Shimano brakes in the shed, so I think I'm better with the Dune? Is that right?

Thanks for the tips so far.

It's hard to say, because we have all used our fatbikes differing amounts and ridden them over different terrain, but since I followed this thread in February 2016 I would say I've noticed a lot more Dune owners reporting issues than the other popular <£1k options.

As much as I often have a dig at PX, I would say the Fatty Trail is the best buy, if you are happy to fork out £900. The Bluto fork is worth ~£400 alone and I don't recall any owners in this thread having issues.

My Wazoo has been pretty good since I swapped to Jumbo Jim tyres and sv13f/sv13j innertubes, plus swapping out the 80mm/7 degree stem for a 80mm/35 degree to help my lower back (I think the front end is a bit low anyway for many, a 25+mm riser bar would have been better IMO).

It still feels over-geared with the 38T large chainring, but the JJs improved this massively over the Mission Commands and it will be interesting to see how this feels when my FatNotFat 29er wheels arrive later this week. When the current chain/cassette wears out, I will definitely upgrade to 10-speed at the rear and then decide whether to try 1x at the front or simply get a smaller large chainring (depending on how the 29ers feel).

It would be unfair of me not to re-iterate that I've cycled far less than I hoped I would have by now, it's been a very disappointing year on that front, I expected to be doing at least 5+ hours cycling a week since March and I've done nowhere near. So the lack of issues I've had could simply be down to a lack of use!

The Dune definitely has the weight advantage out of the store, has more modern spec hubs and a easier upgrade options to Bluto etc., but IIRC there have been hub/BB issues for some plus it does not come with hydraulic brakes. Now the tyres are Juggernaut Pros, it makes the bike lighter still, but I'm getting the vibe that are less versatile than JJs and fatbike tyres aren't usually cheap.

When the large Dune frame became available, I did start to regret not waiting, but over time I think on balance I made the right choice for me considering I had a sub-£600 budget for the initial purchase.

Had it been me buying the bike I was probably going to buy a Dune. But I hit a Wazoo as a gift & im loving it. I'll change the tyres over b4 winter & I reckon it needs a shorter stem & riser bars but other than that I'm leaving her as she is.

I've had a lot of fun on it so far, roll on winter.

Btw had my daughter at Go Outdoors testing out the Ripple kids fat bike. It's really weird. The top tube seems rediculously long. Reckon I'll get her the On-One Picconili (spelt that wrong for sure) Anyone got any experience with one of these for their kids??

I can't believe it, I thought I had made my mind up! Are the issues that bad?

Oh and my kids have always preferred the lightest bikes available. A fat bike would never be on my list of kids bikes.

She's got a Specialized Hotrock already & loves it but tbh she's too light to make any difference to the forks it came with not too mention it's equal in weight to my Stumpjumper. Never understood why kids bikes are alway so heavy. I figure the fat bike gets past the need for forks & tbh the weight of Ripple was comparable to her Specialized .

You're right! A spindly 26" inch rigid bike with basic hydraulic discs and a wide range 1 x 8 would sell like hot cakes if someone made one for a reasonable price!

For some reason Halfords and the like try and put shitey forks on bikes, which don't work and make them heavy.

Anyway when can I order my Dune, and will if fall to bits??!!

As much as I often have a dig at PX, I would say the Fatty Trail is the best buy, if you are happy to fork out £900. The Bluto fork is worth ~£400 alone and I don't recall any owners in this thread having issues.

I would certainly agree - at a £900 price point it is a best buy, but as the Dune can be bought discounted down to sub £500 the lines are blurred somewhat.

The Dune definitely has the weight advantage out of the store, has more modern spec hubs and a easier upgrade options to Bluto etc., but IIRC there have been hub/BB issues for some plus it does not come with hydraulic brakes. Now the tyres are Juggernaut Pros, it makes the bike lighter still, but I'm getting the vibe that are less versatile than JJs and fatbike tyres aren't usually cheap.

Again, I agree on the Dune having 'better' specced hubs/clearences - I remember reading of one freewheel issue that was sorted under warranty, and a BB issue that was probably due to user error.
However, the 2x8 groupset is really cheap (= nasty). It's functional, and some are choosing to stick with it, but I switched everything out to a full 1x10 set up after dropping the chain for no good reason and removing a fair amount of paint on the chainstay in the process.
Disadvantage is that I spent another £250 to go full 1x10 (including fancy new chainset), Advantage is that the bike now feels brilliant underfoot. Effortless gear change, no chain hop, sure footed. Also dropped about a pound in weight!

The Juggernaut tyres are super lightweight for a fat tyre and during this mostly dry season (South Downs) i've found them perfect on chalky/hardpack/flinty trails. My mind may change when we get to the muddy season - but to this end i've picked up a discounted set of Floaters for £20ea. So no biggy there.

I did swap out the bar for a spare wide carbon that I had, but the only other change (other than lightweight inner tubes) that id definitely recommend is the brakes. I hated the nasty cable pull ones and switched to a bargain set of Formulas picked up in the On-One sales (£100).

So all in, i've spent best part of £850 on it and it's right where I want it to be in terms of sheer fun and performance.
Would I buy a Fatty Trail with Bluto for £900 if I have the chance to do it all again?
Thats the real question.
Personally, I didn't have a lump of £900 to lay down at the time (plus they cost £1100 when I was in the market for Fat), and psychologically it was much easier to convince myself to part with £500 for 'a whole new bike'. Also, the Dune is now riding superbly and I am really digging the rigid front end set-up having ridden front suspension for years. Having a fully rigid fat bike gives me a whole new flavour of riding.
I'd say, if you have any spares that you can swap out for a Dune 're-build' then its still very good value - but if like me you are a bit of a perfectionist and cannot resist upgrading, then the Bluto Fatty is hard to look over.
A deciding factor for me is that im not a fan of the rear end spacing on the Fatty (or lack of bolt through axle), nor do I think it looks as fab as the Dune. The nuclear yellow (literally glow in the dark) paint work is awesome in the flesh. And the frames lines all look smart to me.
I kind of have a weird sense of pride that I enjoy riding this 'budget' bike more than pretty much all my other bikes.

Anyway when can I order my Dune, and will if fall to bits??!!

Thanks Jim, I've lost count of how many thousands of pounds the bikes already in the shed are worth/cost.

I've got a brand new set of shimano brakes with four sets of pads sat in the shed too, so the brakes are no problem.

Sounds like I need to man up and hit the button.

fozzylonglegs - Member
Thanks Jim, I've lost count of how many thousands of pounds the bikes already in the shed are worth/cost.

I've got a brand new set of shimano brakes with four sets of pads sat in the shed too, so the brakes are no problem.

Sounds like I need to man up and hit the button.

After going there via Topcashback for 7.35%. 😉

It's a great looking bike, I like the hi-vis colour for commuting visibility, the Dune suddenly changed my search for a new commuter from a rigid hybrid to something more extreme.

After playing with the idea of a fatty for years & returning to the forum tonight for the first time in ages, I found this thread. Interesting read. NEVER EVER LOOK AT NEW BIKES IN THE EARLY HOURS OF THE A.M. The part of your brain that says 'you can only ride one at a time' is very much asleep! Trigger pulled, Fatty Trail ordered! 😯

HOW LONG TILL THE BUYERS REMORSE KICKS IN?? 😀

"10JULY16" code at Go Outdoors for 10% off anything all departments. Don't forget to go via Topcashback for 7.35% for further reductions on a Calibre Dune. 😉

For some odd reason, the Voodoo Wazoo is not included in the Halfords 20% off sale on the Ebay store, despite claiming to have 9+ in stock of both frame sizes.

Wiggle have a few fatbikes in their sales, Maxi 1 £629; DD70 £699; Maxi 2 £770; Wozo £1049.

fozzylonglegs - Member

I can't believe it, I thought I had made my mind up! Are the issues that bad?

I think the bb/crank issue referred to might have been me- totally my fault, I didn't tighten the bolt right after removing the arms so I mangled the crank. Out of practice with square taper. Excuse to fit aeffects 😆

I snapped up a nearly new Fatty Trail for £700 and I'm very pleased with it.

I bought it expecting to swap out gears and brakes but I've been pleasantly surprised by the X5 kit and I'm in no rush to replace it.

It's a steal for £900 new.

Just in from a wee ride on mine and it reminded me of something... Basically, all the budget fatties bring something of their own to the table but relatively few can do a 4.8 rear tyre. Now, traditional fattists generally hold 4.8 to be overkill anyway, but for me, it's been a gamechanger.

Basically, with 4.0s, I couldn't get a good balance of pressure vs flats. If I had the pressure high enough to not suffer flats when pelting down rough trails, then the tyre was also too hard to really work properly as a fat tyre. But the switch to the 4.8 JJ which is my normal rear brought with it the ability to go down to 6psi without issue, meaning the tyre works right and grips better but also doesn't just flat/ding the rim. I had my 4.0 JJ back on the rear for the Glentress Seven and I'd forgotten how much less well it works for me.

Also, the 4.8 JJ shits on the 4.0 from a great height... It's heavier and a little slower, sure, but the improvement in grip is huge, it's a far more useful tyre and deals better with wet conditions etc. And there's other great tyres that only come in 4.8, the Minions and Bud/Larry being obvious ones.

Sooooo. Not everyone fatbikes like me, I reckon relatively few fatbikes get ridden like mine and at the same time I don't do a lot of the traditional fatbike riding. So I'm not saying everyone should have a 4.8 fatbike. But the Dune can be both, and most of the competition can't. That's a big difference in capability and choice. I'd never have been happy with the Dune if it could only do 4.0.

So you had not rode a Fatbike before you bought your Dune and your now sayimg you would not buy one now if it only fitted 4" tyres?... 😀
Despite spending probably double the original purchase price on your Dune it`s no longer a budget 1K build is it? 😆
And your certain 4" is slower than 5" on trails? 8O.
I doubt that having rode both tyre sizes for a few years,
5" gives more comfort and grip, ideal for xc riding on peat Cheviot trails and loose rocks stuff like in the Lakes,
Fatbikes are not a replacement for regular MTBs, thats for all to see who follow UCI XC, Enduro, Downhill,

But each to their own... 🙂

Fatbikes are not a replacement for regular MTBs, thats for all to see who follow UCI XC, Enduro, Downhill,

coastkid - Member

So you had not rode a Fatbike before you bought your Dune and your now sayimg you would not buy one now if it only fitted 4" tyres?...

Yep, exactly. I didn't know that when I got it of course so it wasn't a factor in my choice- I'd have got the Voodoo if it'd been in stock tbh! This is luck not judgement... (let's be honest, the colour was a bigger factor than the tyres...) My silly upgrades don't really have any bearing on this- you can stick 4.8s on a standard/near standard one, I think you might have to lose the granny ring. The tyres came before most of my upgrades. (I suppose the only relevance is the Dune's superior upgrade options, I don't think I'd have done all this to a Fatty)

"faster on trails" doesn't mean anything because trails are so varied... TBH I use a minion/JJ combo almost all the time because I can't be arsed to swap, and there's no doubt I could be faster for some of my riding, that's a stupid amount of front tyre for the pentlands frinstance. But where it really counts for me, 4.8 isn't just faster- it's the difference between "let's give that a go" and "ooh, better not". My best ride on the Dune was up the golfy- and frankly I don't think I'd have ridden half of it with less tyre. Best ride either ruined or never attempted, that's way more important than slightly faster or slower.

But I'm getting a wee bit distracted from the real point, which is that the Dune offers a [i]choice[/i] which most competitors don't. If you want to stick with 4.0s then it's just as happy as its rivals. It just has another trick up its sleeve. 4.8 isn't better for everyone but being able to choose 4.0 or 4.8 is better than not being able to. You will never ride a Voodoo and think "phew, I'm glad this doesn't take 4.8s, they're too big"

Ah, but what if you fit a Fatty Carbon Fork to a Wazoo, which will enable a 4.8" up front IIRC? 😉