Carbon Hardtail for mild stuff.

[Arbuckle]

I am an old bloke and haven't been on here for a few years. Sold my last MTB a few years back.
Getting itchy to do some slightly more rough stuff than I feel comfortable with on my gravel bike.
Thinking a Carbon Hardtail XC might be the go.
Mainly roadside tracks on the Mornington Peninsula, of which there are plenty.
Had a alloy dually prior to the gravel bike, which was heavy (you can tell I'm a roady) and overkill for the riding I was doing.
The gravel bike is fine, but I don't have the bike handling skills to feel comfortable on the slight rougher stuff on it.

What do we recommend for an old bloke doing that? The N+ 1 can't cost too much though or the boss will be very unhappy with me. Although just getting any N+1 will cause trouble

 

[Asininedrivel]

You're definitely on the right track imo - carbon hardtails are great fun and much more versatile than they look. One with a 100mm fork will really take the sting out of rougher trails and features compared to a gravel bike. A fair whack cheaper than going an XC full suspension bike too (obviously - and for what you want to do it sounds like one might be unnecessary anyway).

One caveat from XC puritanism - dropper posts are great.

 

[Arbuckle]

You're definitely on the right track imo - carbon hardtails are great fun and much more versatile than they look. One with a 100mm fork will really take the sting out of rougher trails and features compared to a gravel bike. A fair whack cheaper than going an XC full suspension bike too (obviously - and for what you want to do it sounds like one might be unnecessary anyway).

One caveat from XC puritanism - dropper posts are great.

Yeh was thinking dropper post would be a good thing.

 

[Jabubu]

My friend is going to build up a carbon hardtail but insists on a 120mm fork for the more comfortable position on the bike, and the ability to absorb more hits than a 100mm would.

 

[Dales Cannon]

I am an old bloke and haven't been on here for a few years. Sold my last MTB a few years back.
Getting itchy to do some slightly more rough stuff than I feel comfortable with on my gravel bike.
Thinking a Carbon Hardtail XC might be the go.
Mainly roadside tracks on the Mornington Peninsula, of which there are plenty.
Had a alloy dually prior to the gravel bike, which was heavy (you can tell I'm a roady) and overkill for the riding I was doing.
The gravel bike is fine, but I don't have the bike handling skills to feel comfortable on the slight rougher stuff on it.

What do we recommend for an old bloke doing that? The N+ 1 can't cost too much though or the boss will be very unhappy with me. Although just getting any N+1 will cause trouble

You're definitely on the right track imo - carbon hardtails are great fun and much more versatile than they look. One with a 100mm fork will really take the sting out of rougher trails and features compared to a gravel bike. A fair whack cheaper than going an XC full suspension bike too (obviously - and for what you want to do it sounds like one might be unnecessary anyway).

One caveat from XC puritanism - dropper posts are great.

This pretty much describes my Cannondale F29. Very capable with 100mm lefty and so light to throw around. Fitted a dropper post recently and realised I should have done that when I first bought it. 2.25 Scorpions work really well. And you don't need more fork than that.

 

[ashes_mtb]

This pretty much describes my Cannondale F29. Very capable with 100mm lefty and so light to throw around. Fitted a dropper post recently and realised I should have done that when I first bought it. 2.25 Scorpions work really well. And you don't need more fork than that.

How does the Lefty compare to the mainstream forks?

 

[Dales Cannon]

How does the Lefty compare to the mainstream forks?

Looks weird. Rides the same. Cannondale Wankers Some will argue the linear bearing is superior and the lower weight can be felt. In reality any decent xc fork is fine. I just like the reactions from bystanders who dont know about lefties.

 

[Arbuckle]

Flipped and flopped.
The N+1 will be a shorter travel squishy.
A bike for every occasion instead of trying to do double duty with one bike