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Who knows hardtails?

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Old 07-05-22, 11:53 PM
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3speed
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Who knows hardtails?

I got back into mtbing this year after ~10yrs away. I got a full suspension, and while it's definitely still fun, I want a hardtail again for my main fun bike. The full suspension will be more of an easy after work when I'm tired kinda ride. It's definitely easy to ride on the trail, but feels vague and feels all wrong trying to get the wheels off the ground.

So, anyone have any suggestions for a "27.5" hardtail? I'd probably want something more slack with ~130-140mm travel. I'm looking to build something fairly light(compared to modern full suspensions anyway) and fun to take down some fast flowy trails, hit some jumps(up to ~6' distance), and small drops(not more than ~4') with. A guy I work with has a Ragley Marley that feels good to me riding around the parking lot, but I'd like to hear any other suggestions since I don't know what else is out there.

Last edited by 3speed; 07-06-22 at 12:00 AM.
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Old 07-06-22, 11:14 AM
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Canfield. Steel is the Nimble 9 and aluminum is the Yelli Screamy. Both are what you ask for.

My dead stock Yelli is 29.44lbs. I could probably get it to 27 if I wanted to get spendy.

The bike shreds.


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Old 07-06-22, 11:37 AM
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You might check out this youtube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/c/hardtailparty

He's reviewed dozens of hardtails and has good perspective.
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Old 07-21-22, 03:24 PM
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Canfield. Steel is the Nimble 9 and aluminum is the Yelli Screamy. Both are what you ask for.
""My dead stock Yelli is 29.44lbs. I could probably get it to 27 if I wanted to get spendy.
The bike shreds.""


That's the kind of tail I like. I'm gonna check out their site but I have a feeling parts will be scarce. Will $1500 get me this? Happy Trails.
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Old 07-22-22, 04:42 PM
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I rented a Nimble 9 in Fruita for a day. It was a hoot.

I don’t think a 140mm fork is what I want for a HT, but if I did, this bike would definitely be at the top of my list.
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Old 07-22-22, 05:23 PM
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The reason I didn't respond to this thread at first is that in order to get a 27.5 hard tail I thought you'd need a time machine to 2015. For the most part bikes right now are "29 or 27.5+" with some companies now even dropping the pretense of the latter. A bike designed for long-low-slack with 29x2.5 or 2.6 tires is never going to ride high enough on 27.5 x 2.8

However Banshee has just proven me wrong with this thing, a true 27.5 bike, which looks like a hoot
https://www.bansheebikes.com/enigma

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Old 07-22-22, 06:20 PM
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For this class of bike, frame sets are pretty common and that makes lightweight all up to you. Unfortunately the best places to save weight is in the big expensive parts and not the little controls.
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Old 07-23-22, 06:17 PM
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Originally Posted by Darth Lefty
For this class of bike, frame sets are pretty common and that makes lightweight all up to you. fortunately the best places to save weight is in the wheels.
fyp....
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Old 07-28-22, 09:34 AM
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[re: Darth's Bike]

Nice ride! So clean. How long of a dropper post can you put in there? Looks like a lot of room, at least to the triangle formation?
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Old 07-28-22, 09:47 AM
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My experience with a proper hard tail includes a felt doctrine. Steep head angle for mtb, huge 29" wheels, 100mm suspension fork makes for a ride that conquers some pretty nasty terrain with speed and unflappable composure.

Do you want something slacker with more front travel for safety and stability, or do you see yourself tackling some truly nasty terrain?
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Old 07-28-22, 06:55 PM
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Originally Posted by crab_eyes
[re: Darth's Bike]

Nice ride! So clean. How long of a dropper post can you put in there? Looks like a lot of room, at least to the triangle formation?
It's a factory photo, follow the link. I would guess pretty long since there are no bottle bosses on the seat tube but it would depend on frame size

My bike is much dirtier
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Old 07-29-22, 11:23 AM
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Originally Posted by Kapusta
I rented a Nimble 9 in Fruita for a day. It was a hoot.

I don’t think a 140mm fork is what I want for a HT, but if I did, this bike would definitely be at the top of my list.
I’m running my Helm at 160mm. I think it’ll go down to 120mm if I wanted to.
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Old 07-30-22, 04:46 PM
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Originally Posted by crab_eyes
Canfield. Steel is the Nimble 9 and aluminum is the Yelli Screamy. Both are what you ask for.
""My dead stock Yelli is 29.44lbs. I could probably get it to 27 if I wanted to get spendy.
The bike shreds.""


That's the kind of tail I like. I'm gonna check out their site but I have a feeling parts will be scarce. Will $1500 get me this? Happy Trails.
They do offer a Yelli frame for around $800.

Last I checked they had partial builds on the website so they could keep selling bikes despite parts shortages. Those are definitely less than a complete bike, depending what you have laying around.

I think you should budget about $3000-$4000 to be really happy with a bike like that.
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Old 07-31-22, 09:11 AM
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Originally Posted by rosefarts
They do offer a Yelli frame for around $800.

Last I checked they had partial builds on the website so they could keep selling bikes despite parts shortages. Those are definitely less than a complete bike, depending what you have laying around.

I think you should budget about $3000-$4000 to be really happy with a bike like that.
Thanks for the info. I would lay down $3000 for this beauty in a second. I hope I can pull the trigger sooner than later. peace.
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Old 08-02-22, 08:57 PM
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Originally Posted by Darth Lefty
For this class of bike, frame sets are pretty common and that makes lightweight all up to you. Unfortunately the best places to save weight is in the big expensive parts and not the little controls.
I'm a shop mechanic, so luckily I get most of those parts at a solid discount. Yaaay!
General idea is to build it up with Deore M6000 brakes(Really good brakes, for a low price. Unbeatable value imo), 11/12sp XT shifter/derailleur, decent dropper, carbon bar, and decent carbon wheels(can get Bontrager for 30% off wholesale) with nice tires. Most probably Fox suspension.

Last edited by 3speed; 08-02-22 at 09:09 PM.
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Old 08-03-22, 04:49 AM
  #16  
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Originally Posted by 3speed
I'm a shop mechanic, so luckily I get most of those parts at a solid discount. Yaaay!
General idea is to build it up with Deore M6000 brakes(Really good brakes, for a low price. Unbeatable value imo), 11/12sp XT shifter/derailleur, decent dropper, carbon bar, and decent carbon wheels(can get Bontrager for 30% off wholesale) with nice tires. Most probably Fox suspension.
That's great to hear.
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Old 08-11-22, 11:44 AM
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Chromag makes good stuff
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