DarKris

So I'm potentially thinking about getting a hardtail MTB however I am finding it hard to justify. My current bike is a Giant Toughroad and will fit up to 50mm wide tires which is wide for a gravel bike but narrow for a MTB. The only reason I would want a dedicated MTB is for winter riding and for more steep + technical trails. The issue is those two scenarios are scarce for me, however the snow part is more common for where I live.

I tried out a few bikes from Salsa: the Fargo, Timberjack, and Beargrease. The Fargo had 29 x 2.6" Tires that I got to try out in the typical snowy conditions that I experience here, and I can say that the 2.6" tires performed remarkably better than my 45mm and 50mm tires, and I think that would be a good balance for what I want to do with my bike. The Timberjack had the same size tires as the Fargo, although they were definitely more trail oriented, and the Beargrease's 27.5 x 3.8 tires felt pretty overwhelming to ride with when I did my short test ride. Unfortunately I wasn't able to ride those two in snow.

So summary I guess: I want to get a MTB that can run 29 x 2.6" tires, however it would only see limited use due to availability of trails to ride and snow which'll make it hard to use my gravel bike. Due to this limited use case, I'd be looking to spend around $1000 or less on a complete bike. There doesn't seem to be mant 29ers in this price range that will fit those tires from what I'm finding, however there seems to be better priced options in 27+, but will I be losing out that much in therms of traction compared to a 29 x 2.6"?

Advice/Options?

rumrunn6

fwiw ~ I've read where ppl who bought 29ers switched to 27+ when they came out

also, I found, for myself, that once I got an off-road bike (s), I wound up finding trailz I had never previously known about. so maybe if you get a new bike, it will open up new opportunities for you?

PaulRivers

From what I've heard, here in Minnesota, almost all off-road winter riding is done on Fat Bikes, because riding on snow (even packed snow) is difficult with any skinnier of a tire. Fat bikes aren't cheap either, though they're cheaper if used.

In my opinion with winter riding there's almost only 2 sizes of tires that work - 30c-40c, for riding on pavement, where if there's fresh snow the tire cuts through the snow to the pavement. Or a fat bike which is as good as you can get on snow where it's either to deep to cut through, or just not possible (offroad). I'd be hesitant to spend money on a bike that only takes 2" tires or anything close to it for winter riding, myself.

JonathanGennick 

If riding on trails with packed snow, then you want fat tires -- four inches wide or wider. Framed Bikes has some good sale pricing right now.

If your target trails are groomed for fat tire biking, then for sure you want fat tires lest you face the ire of your fellow riders who won't like the ruts left by anything skinnier.

Are you just wanting to commute and ride around town in the snow? I live near Lake Superior and have been having good luck with some 700c x 38 mm Gravdals from 45NRTH for just riding around town for errands and exercise during winter. You could run a set of those on your ToughRoad.

rumrunn6

so you unmounted those non studded winter tires you were using? Continental's Top Contact Winter II Premium Tires

JonathanGennick 

I did! But not because I hated them. (The Gravdal tires are actually on a different bike). The Top Contacts were on the Pinion Gearbox bike, and I pulled them off that bike because I had gotten my hands on a set of studded A10 in the 650b size and wanted to try the A10s. I sadly do not have enough N+1 to run all my tire options at the same time.

After the A10s, I managed to get a set of Nokian Stud 62 tires. They are wider, with fewer studs. They pretty much suck. They look good though, so I suppose one could consider them as tire-shaped objects .

The Stud 62s are 54 mm tires that measure out to 47 mm, and they are a perfect fit on the 600. They look great on the bike and perform well on streets covered by packed snow when the packing is deep enough and firm enough for the tread to get some bite. On ice you have to be on your game against front-end washouts, because 62 studs just are not nearly enough for that size tire. Those tires would shine with triple the stud count.

I plan to put the A10s back on. Haven't done it yet. These past few weeks haven't seen me out on the bike much. I need to turn that around.

FWIW, I'm happy to have the Top Contacts, but they will always be an N+1 option. First priority is to have at least one bike with a good studded option on it. The Top Contacts are no good on bare ice, and bare ice is too common where I live to not have a studded option readily at hand.

My neighbor got a set of 26er x 2.0 Gravdals for Christmas. Those are fantastic on his 26er bike. He let me take a short spin on it. I would throw money at QBP if they would do a 650b x 47 mm version.

rumrunn6

JonathanGennick 

Munising is in one of Michigan's top (three, I believe) snow-producing regions. It's common for us to get 150+ inches during a winter season. The Keweenaw, further west, gets even more and is usually #1 in the state by a wide margin. Some days the snow is a bit much and wears on a person, and one really needs to find ways to embrace the snow. I may feel a little bit conspicuous sometimes being out on the bicycle in February, but it sure beats sitting home on the couch. The high snowfall is all due to being in the shadow of Lake Superior. We get a lot of lake effect.

rumrunn6

HerrKaLeun

I have 2.15" tires on 30mm rim in front and plenty of clearance on my Toughroad. I bet you can mount any of the studded 2.1" tires front and rear.

I'd say the difference you noticed between the toughroad and the MTB 2.6" tires is more related to the tread pattern than width. If you have plowed paths, a thinner studded tire may work equally as well. If you want to use with as a weapon, go fatbike.
BTW, on unplowed trails (3" snow) i see cyclocross bikes etc. and they seem fine given the circumstances. so i bet you could equip the toughroad with a dedicated wheelset and studded winter tires and would be fine.

One thing that speaks for an MTB would be a dropper post. When going over seemingly icy patches I lower myself on the fatbike to get more stable and have my feet closer to the ground if needed. You can't get that on the Toughroad with the stupid D-shaped post.

New MTB with enough tire clearance all have suspension forks. In the cold they can get stiffer and cause other problems. I'm just going by what i read, though. But many people with fatbikes swap their suspension forks for rigid forks in winter.

prj71

Definitely fat bike territory.

DarKris

So I thought about this a little more and for my current circumstance I am finding it harder to justify a dedicated mountain/fat bike for my riding purposes. We haven't had a considerable amount of snow in about a month so I haven't been restricted in riding my current bike. Most of my rides are short neighborhood rides and any off-road riding I do is usually on a local 2 mile gravel loop. I didn't intend on riding MTB trails in the snow, and the only two trails I know of are about an hour drive from where I live. Not necessarily ideal except for maybe once a month for me.

I think what ends up happening is the rare occasion when there is a fair bit of snow that I can't ride through well with my current bike, even if it's only temporary, I feel the need to want a fatbike/MTB.

Sorry, I have the Toughroad GX (The drop bar model) and unfortunately the frame is slightly different from the flatbar model and the rear has less clearance. If I run a 52-53mm tire I have only about 3mm of clearance on the non drive side provided the wheel/tire doesn't flex

BrocLuno

Used hard tail off Craigslist from nearby large metro area. Plenty to be had. Even with V brakes, many have lugs for discs so can be upgraded over time. 650B wheels at the time of upgrade and as wide a tire as will fit the frame.

$100 bike. $400 in upgrades (used parts) and you are done

Bigpond

Grab a mtb. Having one opens a lot of areas to new exploration.

DarKris

Bigpond

Take a look at the secondary market, imo. Used fatbikes seem to have some of the lowest miles of any used bikes around here (New England). Good deals abound!

rumrunn6

I think they are hard work, physically. but I'm just guessing. probably in the right conditions they are faster & more fun, but I think under some conditions ppl are surprised at how arduous the ride is. but probably, any bike in those conditions would be difficult to ride. I think the difference is that the trail is "passable" with a fat bike, where-as with another bike, it would be impossible