don
Well-Known Member
I am thinking this Turner might rekindle my liking for singletrack. Hoping for DJs on the weekend and pedal rides during the week this fall.
650b
- Thread starter BonsaiMTB
- Start date
I am thinking this Turner might rekindle my liking for singletrack. Hoping for DJs on the weekend and pedal rides during the week this fall.
Jolly705
Member
I was just in Park City UT and was at Giant Demo and rode a Trance 29er and 27.5 and hands down would buy a 27.5. I put 38 miles on them between the two days.
Trance has always been one of my favorite bikes and in my opinion the 27.5 is a great combination between the nimble 26 and easy rolling 29er. It steered super fast but I felt just as confident as I would going down hill on my 29er (I own a GF hifi pro 29er). I for one and "sold" on the new 27.5. If you have not tried one I recommend. Now I just need to get some money to buy one, haha....
Trance has always been one of my favorite bikes and in my opinion the 27.5 is a great combination between the nimble 26 and easy rolling 29er. It steered super fast but I felt just as confident as I would going down hill on my 29er (I own a GF hifi pro 29er). I for one and "sold" on the new 27.5. If you have not tried one I recommend. Now I just need to get some money to buy one, haha....
Hmm.. How tall are you?
This has me feeling more hopeful about this wheel size. Frankly none of the dealers I know are embracing it in a big way and customers don't seem to have any interest in it.
I want a 650b Glory for what it is worth.
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Jolly705
Member
with all this talk of 650b...
i figured i'd add my worthless $0.02.
the last few days i've been demo'ing a Jamis Dakar XCT Pro from Marty's found here: http://www.jamis650.com/dakar-xct.html
it's been my first experience on a 650b/27.5/marketing shill bike. immediately i noticed that the bike fit me WAY better than any 29er i've ever been on which isn't surprising since i'm barely 3 apples tall. i noticed very little difference from the "roll" of a 29er but it did seem more playful. initially i wasn't thrilled with the rear suspension but after dialing the stiffness up a bit, it sat nicely on the climbs with very little noticeable pedal bob. after today's ride i can tell it still needs some additional noodling. one thing i will point out is, now that i've used a bike with a dropper post, i feel like that's a "must have" option.
so far i've ridden it at LM and locally at Dickerson Mine (which, i have to say, the Orange trail is outstanding and wicked technical) and hope to do some additional testing with it either at Mahlon or DP to get some good, solid time on it. all that said, so far i'm thinking that some flavor of FS 650b will be my next bike unless i'm totally blown away by the EX 29er or the C-dale Trigger.
net-net: it's worth a ride for sure if you're in the market for a new bike. i probably wouldn't be looking at one of these if i was still riding a 29er since i didn't notice all that much change between the roll (of the 29er v. the 650er). it's not at all like the night and day change of going from 26 to 29 but there are subtle differences. personally i don't think the difference is enough to warrant dropping the cash unless you're made of loot and crave new hotness. for me, as an all-around bike, the size really makes sense.
i figured i'd add my worthless $0.02.
the last few days i've been demo'ing a Jamis Dakar XCT Pro from Marty's found here: http://www.jamis650.com/dakar-xct.html
it's been my first experience on a 650b/27.5/marketing shill bike. immediately i noticed that the bike fit me WAY better than any 29er i've ever been on which isn't surprising since i'm barely 3 apples tall. i noticed very little difference from the "roll" of a 29er but it did seem more playful. initially i wasn't thrilled with the rear suspension but after dialing the stiffness up a bit, it sat nicely on the climbs with very little noticeable pedal bob. after today's ride i can tell it still needs some additional noodling. one thing i will point out is, now that i've used a bike with a dropper post, i feel like that's a "must have" option.
so far i've ridden it at LM and locally at Dickerson Mine (which, i have to say, the Orange trail is outstanding and wicked technical) and hope to do some additional testing with it either at Mahlon or DP to get some good, solid time on it. all that said, so far i'm thinking that some flavor of FS 650b will be my next bike unless i'm totally blown away by the EX 29er or the C-dale Trigger.
net-net: it's worth a ride for sure if you're in the market for a new bike. i probably wouldn't be looking at one of these if i was still riding a 29er since i didn't notice all that much change between the roll (of the 29er v. the 650er). it's not at all like the night and day change of going from 26 to 29 but there are subtle differences. personally i don't think the difference is enough to warrant dropping the cash unless you're made of loot and crave new hotness. for me, as an all-around bike, the size really makes sense.
I also had the pleasure of riding a Jamis dakar xct team (carbon frame) over the weekend.Three things i observed, 1 coming out of a turn the bike is quicker up to speed.2 fits better than my current bike a med FS 29. 3 as Jake said more playful, can jump it around and wheelie all over the place.
I rode it at the Nassau Trail in High Bridge on the second weekend short track course and had my fast time with the Jamis.
also rode the 650b dragon steel hard tail, was fun but hurt lower back to much to own and since i was there the dakar 650 amt 6 inch travel bike, that was more down hill than xc but was still fun.
Thats all i have to say about that.
I rode it at the Nassau Trail in High Bridge on the second weekend short track course and had my fast time with the Jamis.
also rode the 650b dragon steel hard tail, was fun but hurt lower back to much to own and since i was there the dakar 650 amt 6 inch travel bike, that was more down hill than xc but was still fun.
Thats all i have to say about that.
I have to say the more I hear about the size the more intrigued I am. Funny, Halters' attitude is one big "meh" while Mike at Town Cycle is pretty excited. Both are Giant dealers is why I make the comparison. I want one but the current pricing is a bit steep.
i didn't read jay as being "Meh" as much as not really agreeing with the business case for Giant going "all in" on the size. i think he has a pretty solid theory as to *why* they did though..
dave, if you're in the 5'8" - 5'9" range and below (like me) it's really worth checking out. for a do it all FS bike for me i think it's the right choice. that said, for a single speed "raceish" bike i'd be on a 29er.
the one thing i need to get my head around is the sussy travel. i like the 130 of the Jamis but the interwebz is saying both Treks are honey...but they're like 160 mm or something? i'd laugh at myself riding that at LM.
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See above.😀
I'm a smidge over 5'10", so it's a viable option. Still hoping for the playful feel of the Trance combined with the speed and rollover of the 29er. Although I'm aware you can't have everything, if I had some of each that'd be pretty close to what I'm looking for.
Thanks for the writeup, interesting especially since you've been a racy hardtail guy for a bit right?
See above. I think he was, now he's not.😉
well, that really depends on how you define "racy" but yeah, i suppose. 😀
from my last couple of rides, the 27.5/650b seems to be a really nice compromise. the geo of the Jamis is FARRR less racy than my previous bikes and the flickability™ and ease of getting the front wheel off the ground is certainly noticeable. i think it could be a solid racy hardtail option but but to me, i think that world is going to continued to be ruled by 29ers.
Monkey Soup
Angry Wanker
This 650b/27.5 thing seems to be an "its going to happen, make peace with it" type of deal. Whether you like it or not, its going down. If you own a shop, I think the smart choice is to get on board with it, so the shop guys should be pimping it, its the smart business decision.
Personally, I think its a bunch of marketing crap. If your "feeling" a big difference between it and your 26" bike, I think its because geometry, wheel, tire, and suspension evolution has been happening as well. Bikes have also been getting a whole lot lighter. I don't see how you can judge one 5-6" travel bike "rolls over" something better than another 5-6" travel bike and chalk it up to wheel size with all of the other variables in play. Not to mention, you shouldn't have any trouble rolling over anything with 5-6" travel bike.
Personally, I think its a bunch of marketing crap. If your "feeling" a big difference between it and your 26" bike, I think its because geometry, wheel, tire, and suspension evolution has been happening as well. Bikes have also been getting a whole lot lighter. I don't see how you can judge one 5-6" travel bike "rolls over" something better than another 5-6" travel bike and chalk it up to wheel size with all of the other variables in play. Not to mention, you shouldn't have any trouble rolling over anything with 5-6" travel bike.
i honestly don't think it's marketing crap anymore. i did, but i was also curious about it the wheel size. you can search the forums and find my absolutely GLOWING review of the Fisher Hi-Fi which is decently comparable to to the Jamis. yes, the Hi-Fi had a bit less travel and certainly a more "racy" geo. the bike felt GREAT but still felt a bit big even though i was able to toss that bike all over the place (see timmy's comments about said bike in aforementioned thread). i'll say that may have been a technology bump coming from riding hardtails for so long. with a few more bikes under my belt now, i think i have a decent perspective on things.
and i'll reiterate again...i DO NOT think the gains of going to 27.5 FROM either 26 or 29 are going to be spectacular, not like 26 --> 29 where it's super easy to feel. in fact, you'll notice little difference b/c there really isn't a huge one. but there is one.
THATmanMANNY
Well-Known Member
wow, even trek's "gravity" bikes (not DH) are dropping 26". In fact the whole FS lineup besides DH is 650.
Pearl
THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING
This is a great idea.
THATmanMANNY
Well-Known Member
too bad the cost of production would be 3x higher so that wouldn't be feasible for any Co.
don
Well-Known Member
So I finally got that Turner 5 Spot built and took a 45 minute shake down spin on it the other day. I haven't ridden XC since my previous post about the 650 Bronson I rode in VT.
After that ride I have to agree with a lot of what you are saying. Getting into Mtn biking when things were 26", rigid, flat narrow bars and 150mm stems it is totally insane what can be done on a 6" travel rig with 26" tubeless. Even compared to the single pivot full suspension Sinister I had before the Turner is much smoother and efficient.
BTW, one thing I haven't heard mentioned is tire size. I like 2.5+ knobbies and would be curious to know how they compare to a 650b x 2.1 or even 2.3 in diameter.
That being said, I have to agree with GTluke's statement to match wheel size with body size. At 6 foot I am sure I could ride a 29er and be "right" (and if I ever build up a SS hardtail I would likely go 29). But for smaller size bikes I think a smaller wheel makes sense so it can take advantage of the bikes geometry at that frame size.