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

Just had a lunch break go on a Dune, seriously impressive for less than £500. 150mm thru axle, 190mm rear & JJ's and a lot lighter than my fatty with carbon forks!

Mine was having coastkid turn up at a pentlands ride years back on I think his purple pugsley (I only remember the tyres and his awesome delft bashring) and just getting on with it 😆

Still have that delft bashring Northwind 😀
same frameset, was Thunderbird Grey, currantly black, needs to go flake metal Saltire blue with the orange graphics 🙂

[url= https://farm1.staticflickr.com/585/22639144689_b2dc2be541_c.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm1.staticflickr.com/585/22639144689_b2dc2be541_c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/AuxwYR ]14th Nov; Saturday beachride 006[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/coastkid71/ ]Bruce[/url], on Flickr

🙂
[url= https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5829/22756622537_54821e8f10.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5829/22756622537_54821e8f10.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/AEVD3Z ]003[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/coastkid71/ ]Bruce[/url], on Flickr

even one of the consultants had a go and said he'd buy one!
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i had a quick ride and although it's too small for me it felt great, sorted head angle, no self steer, bluto ready frame and hub, what's not to like?!

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1st time out in the snow on the Dune, was brilliant fun but not really sure just how hard I could push it. JJ's were ideal, although obviously didn't grip on the ice.

Think its going to be worth the asking price for snow rides alone, I'd always go out on my other bikes, but eventually the novelty always wore off. Don't think its going to happen on this 🙂

Just come back from Basingstoke branch to get a jacket and thought I would have a snoop. They didn't have any flouro ones on display, just a black one for £440 ! Wife went WTF. I thought about getting it off the stand although the shop is so tight with things, I could image the trail of destruction I could have left behind me on a spin round.

Had first ride out back on a non fat bike today........and I'm sort of sad to say that I really missed riding the dune.....my back was feeling hammered after an hour on the Cove Stiffee........although Strava says my speed was fast on a lot of sections on FTD/Monkey......

Oreet Chris, I got meself one of them Fatty trail jobbies today pal, its getting he maiden voyage in the morning 🙂 its the Fattest ive ever been, 😆

NormalMan, it's a Puffin. Could have done with it for yesterday's race!

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Course was well prepped though, and my points for 10th wouldn't have counted with tyres over 2", so it's all good!

How's the Pug?

[url= http://www.loro.co.jp/blog/lwr/2015/11/bd-1-classic-semi-fat.html ]Semi-fat commuting ???[/url]

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I need that. Chainring bigger than the wheels, it's the way forward.

Took the Dune out for the forfar funduro yesterday... Funny race- no practice then 2 laps of a pretty short route with a lot of toasting yourself by a bonfire inbetween. Sadly they didn't get any of the snow.

Lots of fairly flat trail centre hardpack which was just ridiculously hard work trying to keep the speed up, some squishy slippy offpiste, couple of short techier rockier sections... The night stages were a bit hair raising, I've not ridden at night for a while, turned out there's tons of stuff that's hard to see that upsets a fatbike a bit, hollows in the ground and that where it really gets the tyres bouncing if you hit them unexpectedly... But comically good at the nadgery offpiste where people were struggling to find lines, Bud don't need lines 😆 Good times. And I think I sold a marshall a Dune.

Oops, falkirk not forfar!

Mine's out at night, tonight, too - back to the FoD after jnr goes back to his mum's

I went out today with a mate ...me on my fatty and my mate on his 26 er canyon...about an hour into the ride we decided to swap bikes for a laugh......eeewww ....riding his 26er......it felt like a kids bike...but my mate loved the fatty.
So after 5 mins I had enough and grabbed my fatty back, much to his annoyance ...lol
I was blitzing him over headley around all the boggy trails......the fatty is king!!
And better still we rode up zig zag road ( boxhill) and I over took 3 people and one was a roadie...his face!!...all I can say is.......boo ya!!...fatbikes rule!!...ha ha ha

@ nedrapier - I'm loving the Pug. Will be out on it again tomorrow. It's always a bit hard to praise a bike early on as it just sounds like 'new bike love' however I do really like it. (Actually I love it!)

@ NW you should be on commission!!

My Fatty bit me yesterday when one of those fast moving trees darted out in front of me. But it is rapidly establishing it as my prime bike. My commute in a straight line is only 4.4 miles. I can easily do an off-road 6 mile route so that is ideal, and for the Ridgway around Didcot Mr Fatty is Mr Darcy.

Best move ever Tony! I expect a bit of a write up once you've stopped grinning like a kid!

Chris, its the maddest thing Ever pal!!! I absolutely love it! it is gonna take some getting used to tho, I haven't rode a hardtail never mind a Fatty hardtail for almost 15yrs, my technique is lets say (a little off) Lmao 😆

😆 have you mastered the undamped tyre rebound in drop offs yet? I was in our town early doors this morning and first three bikes I saw were fat bikes! All ridden by men of our age 😆

if im honest Chris, I haven't mastered a thing ... Yet 😆
i'll be doing lots of practice over the next few weeks tho so I can try n show off at the GFBD, Lol
is this Fatty thing an 'Our Age' thing then????

Could be.......it's a great excuse for me being slower on the climbs......if only for the fact that I'm actually faster on it 😆

its mad innit, they seem like they should be slow and draggy but they deffo get a move on, I did a 35 miler with over 3000ft of climbing on mine earlier and it was just as easy as riding me Nuke.

Missed you last night, I thought you'd had enough dragging it round the day stages. I'm blaming you for churning it all up between my day and night efforts.

I was anchored to the bonfire from the second I got back til my wave left 😆

(you beat me by 53 and 54 seconds btw. But I reckon I get 30 seconds off per wheel)

We saw the fire but figured we might not hear our wave being called from over there, especially after the farmer complained about the noise of the tannoy. I get a 30 sec bonus for remembering what my bike looks like so the original time still stands. And you a youngster.

Hi All,

I just wanted to say thank you for the posts on the Dune, I'm really glad that you've all got the point of the Dune. It was designed to be an affordable 2nd (or 3rd) bike and an entry into Fat Bikes, and if you like it then you can upgrade. So as some of you have seen, its Bluto compatible for no real extra cost other than the forks themselves, hydraulic disc brakes are cheap as chips these days and drive-chain can be changed 1x10 easily. It’s also true that a larger version will be in stores early next year – to be honest we were nervous on the Fat Bike so wanted to limit our risk, but the larger size was developed and even raced at Mountain Mayhem this year.

Cheers,
Mike (Calibre Bikes)

o/ Thanks for the bike!

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Not so much braaaap as buuurrrp but still

Yeah cheers Mike I love it fantastic value. The cx in store looked a proper bargain too even had wtb nano on 😉

Sounds like you should be happy with that one, Mike!

If it wasn't for the fact that the frame is too small for me I'd have bought one already.

Roll on the larger version.

calibrebikes - Member
It’s also true that a larger version will be in stores early next year

Hurry up & take my money will you!! 😆

affordable 2nd (or 3rd) bike

*ahem* 4th. Mine's currently having a bit of workshop time. SLX brakes, wider bar, 1x10. Oh and somehow I became convinced that without a reverb, it wouldn't be 'finished'. Off riding in Spain next week, just for a mad second I thought 'would that go in the bike bag?' 🙂

Oh and NW part of your socks appear to be a perfect colour match to the frame. That's Enduro right there 🙂

Calibrebikes...Mike, can you get some spare gear hangers into stores or give us an address to order them from, I dislike SS bikes to get home at the best of times and would prefer to have a spare hanger.....and so eone rose list his end nut off the front QR lever...as all us Duneists know they are brilliant and value for money........only thing you should change is the rim strips to match the paintwork 😆

@suggsey we've got a full range of spares coming in and hangers will be part of this. regarding the rim strips we did try the yellow but in all honesty it was just too much yellow :)but colours etc are a personal taste

I like the green I wonder if it goes with green floaters 😉

Got to say I like the green.

Although not owning a Dune I also have to say it's great that Mike has signed up and is willing to answer questions. Great job.

Depends what you want.

A decent sh OOF will be around £500 unless vendor is taking the p1ss.

Lots of good Fatties around the grand, mostly compromised in some way - as always build kit is the best scenario to be crap as it's easily changed. Wheels and tyres are much more expensive than regular mtb, £150 for a pair of tyres is normal if not crap vee rubber or cheap and decent oo floaters.

Pay attention to what is being offered and what you want the bike for. The Fat market is very much split between those wanting trail slack bikes for go anywhere hooning and people wanting steep and tall bikes with gear mount bosses in places you've never seen before to attach lots of luggage to and ride in sloppy conditions in more traditional fat bike style (the snow and sand stereotype)

Join a decent fatbike forum and ignore most of what is written about them on STW. 🙂 checkout Slam69 if you haven't already. I'm running a £500 bitsa OOF right now and deciding if I should spend a lot more replacing it with a much nicer fat bike and probably sell the FS or keep it as a toy. I enjoy all my bikes when I'm riding them, but having cut down to three before the Fatty I'm back in too many bikes not enough time land...

Join a decent fatbike forum

I'm trying! Maybe admin have been following this thread and know I won't be collecting mine for a few weeks.

@calibrebikes Site shows collect only now. I'm guessing stocks are low. Any more due in or a new model?

Was going to get one but none local to try.

Cheers

Cheers Mike. And vinccienup.....just admit it you are Dune curious 😆

checkout Slam69

Cheers Mike. And vinccienup.....just admit it you are Dune curious 😆

A bit Dune Curious myself...

@Sniff yeah we have had a great response to the Dune so stocks are starting to thin a little. what would be your local store? i'll see what i can do for you. more stock will arrive early next year though. as for another model, it wasnt on the cards but by the feeling i'm getting here it could be. what would you like to see as upgrades on the Dune and what price point would you be thinking?

Cheers,
Mike

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@calibrebikes Local store in Inverness. Wanted to try one for size.

As for upgrades I reckon the same frame with upgraded components and maybe a bluto would attract the One One level of Fatty customer. You would do well by seeing what the ones one this thread who have bought one are doing for upgrades e.g. single front ring, different tyres etc

You should still keep the current price point for a similarly specced to the existing one though as it looks a great platform for upgrading and gets the fatty curious bikers interested.

Well done on a nicely designed, well priced bike.

Cheers

More seriously, 1x SLX/Bluto would probably be a good fancy-schmancy model. Don't know where that would put the price.

I like what Pinnacle do with their bikes - eg Ramin - same nice frame all the way up, but includes a cheap as chips starter build.

More seriously, 1x, SLX, Bluto would probably be a good fancy-schmancy model. Don't know where that would put the price. Maybe cheaper cranks and or brakes?

I like what Pinnacle do with their bikes - eg Ramin - same nice frame all the way up the range, but includes a cheap as chips starter build.

I wonder how the sales of the various builds compares...

Yeah I meant keep the existing one and then add a higher spec one along side it

just in case, sniff, this

More seriously

Calibre certainly seem to have cornered the market with the Dune in terms of a decent entry level fatbike. It works for those looking for way trying out fatbiking with a small outlay, also for those on a budget and even those just looking to add to their bike 'collection' as such.

I've had 3 relatives looking at them. Unfortunately, a minimum of a 60 mile round trip to see a bike they may like/fit has put them off slightly but I'm working on them!

As for another model. Well as suggested a 1x and bluto equipped model would more than likely prove equally as popular. I guess it depends how directly Calibre wish to rival On One, etc.

From my point of view the current bike is exceptional value for money and you should retain that as your most sucked model..... I have a feeling that a full build 10 or 11 X1 build with Bluto and dropper would put it beyond most people who would be shopping in general within GoOutdoors and I couldn't see it being a viable option to stock.
However you could add perhaps a carbon forked 1x10 with expander gear SLX drivetrain and brakes version for around £700? This would seriously undercut still the likes of Trek Farley and Soeshalised Fatboy and On One Fatty but without being at a price point that would put non serious/affluent bikers looking for N+1 buyers off.
I prepare to be flamed 😆

I think any additional investment would be better spent on doing at least a larger size for us >6 footers. Beyond that, maybe a Deore level cassette or just concentrate on having a sorted/well painted frame.

after watching Coastkids vid im off to formby dunes in the morning for a bit of the very same 🙂 gonna take me doggies too for a bit of trail/dune hounding 😆 I hope I don't die 😉

TBH I think just a higher (not high) spec model would be a good addition- lift the drivetrain and brakes to deore or slx level, nicer cranks, better finishing kit but nothing outrageous. Just a Dune +1 basically. Not sure there's much sense in carbon cranks considering the weight of the alu ones and Blutos are a niche within a niche and a very easy later addition anyway.

Andy_K - Member

I think any additional investment would be better spent on doing at least a larger size for us >6 footers.

Already on its way, if you read the thread.

Hi all, thanks for the posts and ideas i've started a couple of balls rolling so keep an eye out on our instagram for samples as they arrive. @Sniff - it had to be Inverness 🙂 this is going to be hard but not impossible, leave it with me.

Cheers,
Mike

Carbon cranks NW? Might have missed it but I saw carbon forks as a suggestion which would drop a load of weight?
Interesting position for Calibre, selling in a non-specialist shop but getting reviewed (favourably) in MTB mags and gathering a following here. I wonder how many sales are to non-enthusiasts just browsing in a Go Outdoors; I suspect very few, in which case buying punters wouldn't be put off by Higher priced version?

Doh, yes, meant forks!

I've just ordered some deore brakes and floater tyres (couldn't afford nates) for better winter traction as I slipped all over in craggy mud

I'd say up the brakes to deore and shifting to a deore 2x10 or 1x10 with expander and perhaps a bit more of an all rounder tyre and it would fly out the shops

I'm definitely keeping the jumbo jims for summer tho

As Suggsey mentioned in a previous post, I've lost the axle nut from the front QR skewer. Now you would have thought that this would be a simple matter to resolve, but oh no. There are actually no 15x150mm skewers available in the UK, which are not of the Maxle type variety, and I suspect the Chinese ones on Amazon/eBay are too long (unless anyone can correct me)
GO have been apologetic but not really helpful; I'll go to another store this evening...
The thread appears to be M15 x 1.5, which is used by absolutely no one apart from bolt manufacturers for car oil sumps and their repair, but no nut. I've actually been this morning to an engineering supply house, the chap there just looked at me, shook his head and sucked his teeth.

Any suggestions or do I need to replace the whole flipping fork.

@Bakey i'm sorry the customer care guy didn't relay the message to you [properly, i'm giving you my personal one from my bike so you can carry on riding, i'm OK to wait for the warranty ones (stuck in customs - what can you do)

@Sniff i've arranged for a boxed Dune to arrive in Inverness early next week - if you give the store a call on 0844 387 6834 they can advise once its built etc

Top service there!

That's incredibly helpful Mike and a response I hadn't expected!

Sincere thanks.

@bakey no trouble as i say customs have been less than helpful otherwise we would be sorted. who did you speak to at GO? have we got your address etc?

rOcKeTdOg - Member
Top service there!

+1

Proper service that. Given they seem a funny Size I may have to enquire about buying a mech hanger and front spare nut as I'm forever losing bits 😉

They quality of the dune made me look at the other bikes in the range there really are some stand out bikes. So more of the same and your onto a winner Mike

@calibrebikes - just had an email from Customer Services telling me that they 'are expecting loads of spares delivered into the Head Office in the next few days' and asking me to contact them next week.

If you drop me an email, I'll let you have my address - I ordered the bike to be delivered to the store directly so you may not have my details.

Whilst the above has been a pain, I can't fault the bike at all. Upgraded now with Elixir R, XT and a carbon bar... 14.8kg. Lovely.

The best thing about the Dune is its super competitive price point.

However, i'd still be purchasing a bunch of drivechain gear that has almost no value to pass on - therefore to get me buying one i'd need to see the low price maintained as much as possible, but inclusion of Deore level components (including rear hub).

A carbon fork would be great, but would probably up the budget by at least £50 so not a deal breaker.

Frame details like hidden cable runs (see Rose Tusker) would be sweet.

Large frame size for 6ft plus riders, plus the above, and keeping price under, I dont know, £650? That'd be hard to turn down.

Otherwise the price is too close to a mint higher spec 2nd hand Fat bike.

The USP here is the perceived low starting price.

Deore level components (including rear hub).

I'd rather pay 500 for a dune and buy brakes than buy a used on one fatty. Infact I did

I will add also some used pugsleys popped up around the 5-600 mark but they all had old standards on where as the dune is ready for any upgrade you fancy

For what it may be worth. I know of one potential customer, who tried a Dune for size at our local GO, to be fair they were helpful in as much as they had none left built on a thurs evening , but sorted one for 10 am following day ,
Sadly it was too big and didn't give her any sensible stand over . Otherwise she would have bought it there and then.
A mate of mine who is a fairly short guy, had the same issue. He would also probably have bought one, if not in the last few weeks, certainly after Christmas.

The Gloucester store were great as well. Didn't even seem to mind me, or my daughter, riding through their tents 🙂

Yeah I rode round the tents in Leeds grinning like a mad man

[quote=firestarter ]I'd rather pay 500 for a dune and buy brakes than buy a used on one fatty.Absolutely.

shimano are yet to produce a 190mm hub afaik

Yes, Deore level ideally, somewhere around that quality/price point

I'd rather pay 500 for a dune and buy brakes than buy a used on one fatty. Infact I did

I'm not so keen on the sound of quality of rear hub/freewheel on the dune. Plus a fatty would likely always be worth close to £500, the dune will probably drop to what, £350 after first ride?

@Calibrebikes. Fantastic service, thanks a lot 🙂

slimjim78 - Member

I'm not so keen on the sound of quality of rear hub/freewheel on the dune.

It's fine- better than I'd expected from a £500 bike tbh. The bearings fitted seem low quality unless my failure was a defect, but they're standard sealed bearings so that's no stress.

I wrote another thing: http://pickled-hedgehog.com/?p=3541

Off to Spain riding on saturday. I'm going to miss the fat bike!

Excellent read Alex!

Ta 🙂 It's definitely a labrador. I've ordered a less 'ambitious' tyre which will be here when I get back. I have a feeling it's going to make the winter a little less grim.

As a winter bike specifically I can really imagine a Fat bike would be fit for purpose.

My trigger finger is poised over the Hesperus now its dropped by £200, but there's bound to be another xmas reduction or two elsewhere also..