why not hardtail?

[sparky33]

What's wrong with a hardtail?

My mtb is a Santa Cruz Highball 27.5 hardtail with 2.3s and a lightweight build kit. I ride it quite a lot to the point of cannibalizing cx territory too. My local terrain is variable - lots of trails connected by short road segments. Not a lot of elevation, some technical stuff, plenty of single track and fire-roads, some rocks&roots. Typical northeast stuff. I'm a cross country mtb'er.

Lately, I've been getting the nudge to go with a full-suspension bike, from friends and from my inner evil self. A few demo's of XC/trail full-suspension bikes...Santa Cruz, Scott, etc. tell me there are some great options. Certainly, full-suspension is faster going downhill, and the climbing traction is noticeable too. The thing is, none of them are as fun as my hardtail. I think about the next mtb, and I'm still envisioning the hardtail that I already have. It's simple, lightweight and quick, like the BMX bike I rode as a kid. I like picking interesting lines and sometimes not getting it right the first time around. Maybe one of those rowdy hardtail trail bikes could be it. I don't know. Am I crazy for not jumping on the full-sus thing? Should I just get over it?

[weisan]

Talk to Joosttx.

[Steve in SLO]

I've been riding hardtails since the '80's, and have tried FS bikes but I like the directness of a HT. They feels more immediate and involving than a FS bike. Riding HTs builds bike handling skills and makes you pick a good line. Unless you're hitting super technical trails or getting regular big air, I don't see a reason to go FS unless you really want to.

[2metalhips]

You're not crazy. I have been riding rigid for 10 years, 4 years on a steel Haro Mary 29er and then the last 6 on a carbon Highball 29er. I rode ht or full sus for 15 years before that. I prefer the rigid ride, picking the perfect line, cleaning tech sections. I also enjoy the low maintenance. All my friends are on fs, the only advantage I see is a bit more speed on descents if that is important to you. To me the key is body position and really low pressure and tubeless tires. Of course this is for wheels on the ground riding/xc. If you wanted to go as fast as possible/racing or jumping off rocks, fs might be the better path in NE anyway.

[John H.]

Hardtails are awesome- maybe more like a cross bike on steroids than a full suspension bike.
But it depends on terrain and who you ride with.
If you ride with a bunch who are ballers on descents and ride full sus bikes- It can be rough on a hardtail. The full sus guys will tend to pick more difficult trails-
But is you do a lot of climbing and also some of the road that you ride the cross bike on a hardtail works really well.

I sold my full sus last year and bought a hardtail with the expectation that I would get a 120mm full sus bike. For multiple reasons, the full sus bike never happened.
I was entirely happy riding my hardtail for almost everything.

[John H.]

And even the best full suspension bikes tend to be noise makers.
I love how quiet my hardtail is.

[jtbadge]

Hardtail with 120mm or so of fork travel is the way to go, as far as I am concerned. Ultra capable and fun to ride without the complexity and maintenance of a full suspension.

[BikeNY]

Nothing at all wrong with a hardtail! I started mountain biking almost 30 years ago, when the only option was rigid. Over the years I upgraded to front suspension and then full suspension for a few years. And then I took a big detour and went back to rigid and singlespeed! I loved the simplicity of it, but if I wasn't riding all the time, SS was tough. I went back to gears a few years ago and just got my first suspension fork in like 10 years recently. I've also increased my tire widths as the years have gone by, currently riding 27.5x3.25 Plus tires and loving them. They take the sting out of the rigid rear end and let you ride faster safely. Not as fast as full suspension, but it all depends on your goals. If you are racing or trying to get from A to B as fast as possible, a FS is usually faster. For anything else, a hardtail with Plus tires is the way to go, IMHO of course.

[JAGI410]

Hardtails and full rigid bikes are still awesome!

I have a steel rigid fatbike that I love, and a carbon FS 29er (or 27.5+) bike that I love. I can ride them both 20 miles on the same trail and have a blast. The big difference is how I feel the next day. I’ll be feeling considerably better after riding my FS.

[nmrt]

You say the FS are faster going downhill. Actually, my Ibis Ripley was faster going downhill and uphill compared to my hardtail! But as you so remark -- my hardtail is so much fun. So much fun that I sold my Ripley. And Ripley, as you all know, is a tremendously capable FS bike.

So, this is what I say: You want to be fast? Get a FS like the Ripley.
You want to feel fast? Get a hardtail! :-)

BTW, my 29er hardtail is one of those with a 71 deg HT angle -- something the new crop of MTBers and bike shop salespeople disdain. But so what. As I said, for me it is about fun. And I can have fun on my whippet of a hardtail on ANY speed. But on my FS, I have to be going fast. Or else it is handles like chopper.

[dustyrider]

Sounds like you need to make things more fun with the bike you have. I vote for turning your bike into a single speed. All the rides you already love, you’ll love just that tiny bit more! You’re welcome.

[Hilltopperny]

I love my hardtail and I’ve tried a couple newer full suspension bikes. They felt more sluggish and heavy to me. I also like a rigid mountain bike. They are also a lot of fun and can be built up very light.


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[merlinmurph]

Hey sparky, I'm in your neighborhood and am familiar with the terrain around here. Curious where you ride.

I agree with others in that it depends on where you ride, who you ride with, and how you ride. There's a lot of stuff around here where a hardtail is perfect - Callahan SP, Upton SF, etc. Then, there are lots of riders at Vietnam with pretty burly FS bikes.

I, too, am more of an XC guy, favoring a hardtail or a XC oriented FS bike. More of an uphill guy than downhill.

Since you've demo'd some FS bikes, I think you've answered your own question. Maybe you just want some validation? It's all about fun, so go where the fun is for you.

Enjoy your ride,
Murph

[Jaybee]

I might be the last person riding a XC hardtail here in the Front Range.

I go pretty much wherever my riding buddies go - none of us are into double-black enduro stuff, but there aren't very many buff flow trails here either. Usually I climb faster than they do, unless there's a lot of techy stair step stuff, and they usually go down faster than I do. Occasionally, we will swap bikes and I will admit that their FS bikes (Ripley, Fuel EX, Tallboy) have some nice attributes: a modern short to-mid-travel 29er is incredibly capable, pedals really well, and just leaves you less tired at the end of a long ride.

That last one is why I'm thinking about getting a short-travel FS 29er - I'm pretty beat up after 20 or so rocky trail miles. Rationally, they are "better" bikes, whatever that means, but I dunno, I just kinda like my current bike the way it is.

[HenryA]

Originally Posted by Steve in SLO

I've been riding hardtails since the '80's, and have tried FS bikes but I like the directness of a HT. They feels more immediate and involving than a FS bike. Riding HTs builds bike handling skills and makes you pick a good line. Unless you're hitting super technical trails or getting regular big air, I don't see a reason to go FS unless you really want to.

This ^^^^^^^^.

Started on rigid both ends. Short travel suspension forks are nice but full sus, not so much in my opinion. Tried full sus for a couple of years. — Bike loses the carvy feeling. And I like trying to riding a clean elegant line as much as I can. Hard to explain, but it feels right.