Returning to hardtail, who's done it and how'd you feel about it?

[Tubbsy]

I have mixed feelings about the 5010.

Are you still thinking about the @Craftworks? I had an email chat with them too recently.

 

[beeb]

Are you still thinking about the @Craftworks? I had an email chat with them too recently.

I would love one for my more supple dually (great supple suspension action for descending, but efficient like a short-travel trail bike heading up), but (TBC) I'm not sure the sizing I need is going to happen.

Kind of devo'd TBH, they have been amazing the whole time I've been dealing with them so would love to send my business their way. Have to see what happens with the sizing first though. It's not totally off the table as I could probable ride the other size coming but I need to get back to riding first to see how I feel about that...

Have you had a chance to ride one?

 

[rowdyflat]

You need more than 1 bike .
5010 IMHO is an awesome frame and a hardtail is simpler, a better climber , cheaper but more jarring even with big tyres.
So do what I do = have 5 mtbikes !!! 2 would do to start with so you can cope with all terrains.

 

[rowdyflat]

Also the reason steel is said to be more compliant is that it is much stronger than aluminium so can be made with strong but thinner double or triple butted wall tubing and smaller external diameter tubing.
This takes skill otherwise the bike is stiff and heavy.
Aluminium is used in big thick tubing for strength but thats not as heavy but very stiff.
Its just physics not magic.

 

[Ultra Lord]

I would disassemble the dually but keep the frame and fork initially, and use a lot of the other components to build the HT. Technically I have enough parts to have both up and running but brakes/wheels/drivetrain/etc I'd want to put on the HT.

I have mixed feelings about the 5010. Where it shines it shines like no other. Berms and rollers are its forte, much like a dual-slalom bike but for a lot of other riding (rocks, jumps, techy climbs) I don't gel that well with the VPP leverage curve (but is definitely still a pretty amazing bike!). It has some distinct advantages and disadvantages but I think something with a simple progressive leverage curve would suit me best, and I'd just have to suck it up when it came to pedalling uphill.

But that's also why the hardtail has a lot of appeal at the moment. Efficient climbing, but still very trailworthy with fun handling and "pumpability" on the bits of the descents I enjoy anyway. There's a just a blissful simplicity to it (aside from all the bouncing and skating about, lol). So a hardtail to probably replace the 5010, then a more supple and linear feeling dually for the more choppy trails if I feel the need in the future...

Sounds like you need a scout..........

Keep the 5010 and buy this? https://www.commencal-store.com.au/Mobile/meta-ht-am-essential-650b-shiny-gun-metal-2018-c2x23864564

 

[Ultra Lord]

Also the reason steel is said to be more compliant is that it is much stronger than aluminium so can be made with strong but thinner double or triple butted wall tubing and smaller external diameter tubing.
This takes skill otherwise the bike is stiff and heavy.
Aluminium is used in big thick tubing for strength but thats not as heavy but very stiff.
Its just physics not magic.

Steel also has a much larger elastic deformation zone than aluminium, whereas ally needs stiffer tubig because if it flexed as much as steel it’d crack much sooner.

Steel is real! But ally hardtails are also awesome, just different.

 

[rowdyflat]

Yep as UL said you can bend steel back and forth before it breaks whereas alloy breaks easily when you try to straighten it . 6000/ 7000 series ski poles almost explode.

 

[Tubbsy]

Have you had a chance to ride one?

No I haven't, but I really like the sound of it. I live next door to the Isaacs Pines downhill tracks (can basically see them from my bedroom window), but not all that confident going down them on the Ibis. So something that I can pedal to the top without losing interest is very appealing, plus the Thredbo to Jindabyne trail that'll be finished soon is something I'd like to ride too,

The new numbers sound like they'll be better than the Ripley, which is comfortable in most scenarios for me, so it could well be workable.

But I'll need to test one before committing.

 

[beeb]

Sounds like you need a scout..........

Keep the 5010 and buy this? https://www.commencal-store.com.au/Mobile/meta-ht-am-essential-650b-shiny-gun-metal-2018-c2x23864564

The Scout's actual seat angle is way too slack, HA is a degree slacker than I want, and I'm looking to change to slightly longer chainstays for a little more high-speed stability and suppleness. Would be a fun bike, but not enough difference from the 5010.

And the Commencal, a 29er? - What happened to you man?

 

[slowmick]

I have a steel hardtail with 160mm fork built up to complement my enduro. I originally built it up with the left over bits from other bikes as a stand by for then the FS was being repaired. Then it became the go to bike for wet weather and building fitness. It is great for pedally rides and for attacking the trails around places like Lysterfield when the fitness allows (not stop roots wear thin very quickly on a hardtail). I have enjoyed riding it around Mt Beauty where it is as much up as it is down but have no interest in taking it out to the You Yangs. Hardtails are a lot of fun but they are not the best tool for every situation. Maybe a wider rear tyre for some cushioning would make it more versatile. It may be my fitness or just that I am big and heavy. There was a bloke at the Mt Beauty shuttle days that was happily riding the downhill trails on his Chromag hardtail.

 

[hifiandmtb]

^^^ This man is a man to be listened to.

 

[Lazmo]

It's easy, you need both... a FS and a HT... at a minimum.

It's necessary.

 

[Ultra Lord]

The Scout's actual seat angle is way too slack, HA is a degree slacker than I want, and I'm looking to change to slightly longer chainstays for a little more high-speed stability and suppleness. Would be a fun bike, but not enough difference from the 5010.

And the Commencal, a 29er? - What happened to you man?

The one I linked is 650B?

Edit: never mind, I’m a dickhead. Disregard the commy

 

[ashes_mtb]

I swapped back to a steel hardtail in 2007 after 10 years exclusively on 3-5" fullys. Needed a hard tail at the time to carry racks and gear on a 6 day Munda Biddi trip.

I didn't mind the hardtail and wouldn't say I had an issue with getting that sore, but still prefer a dually over a hard tail for pretty much anything off road.

 

[Dozer]

Loving it, absolutely loving having an aggressive hardtail back in my life. It totally compliments your skill to ride your other bikes and you'll love yourself for it.
In my opinion, you could go for a large frame, perhaps a size smaller than what you've been used to on an XL. XL feels long on a dually but thats okay for me, a large hardtail is way more fun. No sore knees, no sore back, just rad times.

 

[Warp]

Sounds like you need a scout..........

I can help with that...

 

[Miguel75]

I can’t really talk about riding a FS as I’ve not really ridden one enough to know anything. But I absolutely love my hard tail. I ride it everywhere as it’s my only bike. I’ve 160mm up front and love riding World Cup DH at Bright because from top to bottom the bike bucks, bobs, ducks and weaves and just feels so alive. It’s unreal fun!

One thing I’ve done is really work on my glutes and core, as I tore an internal oblique a little while back, and I’m finding all my rehab/prehab work is paying off.

Hope your shoulder gets better mate, that’s a great looking bike you’re thinking of building up.

 

[glenn1529]

Just bear in mind oils aint oils. Having ridden a few steel hardtails, I can say that some are supple, springy and a joy to behold. Others can be dead, harsh and heavy. It’s not always in the geo numbers and marketing

 

[Minlak]

TransAm in steel and Torrent in Aluminium /end thread.

 

[bataleon]

I'm going the opposite way. I've never owned a dually so my Stache is up for sale. A change is as good as a holiday so they say. The Stache is an absolute riot though.