4 Inches or 5 ?

[starsky]

I'm about to ask a question you thought no man ever would:

Is an extra inch really necessary?

In the market for a bike and I can't make my mind up if I really need a 5 inch travel bike. There seems to almost be a consensus at the minute that you should have a 5 inch travel bike for general trail riding.

However, if you're keeping the rubber firmly on the ground, do you need a 5 inch travel bike or would a 4" bike be better suited with quicker handling and less relaxed geometry?

On the other hand, if you have zero skill and tend to slam into roots and rocks, would you be better off with the extra inch as an insurance policy or do the geometry compromises on a 5 inch bike outweigh the benefit of the extra inch?

[honourablegeorge]

Sounds to me like you need a 6 inch bike.

[Bloom]

Frame wise a 4" travel one is grand for trail riding. Get a fork with adjustable travel so you can bump it up for the rougher stuff.

[starsky]

I had a 6 inch travel bike George. Never again!

[honourablegeorge]

Why, if you don't mind me asking? I have a 4.75" bike (4.75" is where it's at, all the cool kids have them, it's sort of an underground length ;) ), but I'd like more, to give me a little bit of the confidence I get hooning about on a DH bike.

Never been in a rush to get to anywhere, so going a bit slower uphill is fine by me, I enjoy the banter on the way up.

[barry_kellett99]

I wouldn't say its the amount of travel that is important, but the bike itself.

What are you thinking of changing from and to?

[timH]

I would say geometry is more important than 4" or 5" travel. Get a bike that fits you and feels right.

[iggs]

its all too easy to get hung up on a specific, the reason a bike suits you or doesn't is more complicated than one thing in isolation. 1 inch on its own is nothing, as is always being said by those in the know its how you use it

[honourablegeorge]

Have a blur 4x. came to it from a hrdtail, love the bike, but want to push myself on a bit, and want something that'll compensate somewhat for my innate clumsiness as I learn.

[barry_kellett99]

Have a blur 4x. came to it from a hrdtail, love the bike, but want to push myself on a bit, and want something that'll compensate somewhat for my innate clumsiness as I learn.


You would be better buying a pressure suit and good quality armour :)

[mccreaky2000]

get a five inch trail bike which is about 30lb, so it will still climb, if possible get an adjustable fork, you will appreciate the extra travel on the other hand if yoiu get something much under 28 it will start to feel hairy on roots etc and you have to make sacrifices if it is over about 32 it starts to become a slog for oing much longer rides, 4 inches is quite XC based, 6 inches is starting to get very light freeride etc depending on the bike and 5 inches is that grey area in between I would defo go for a 5incher

[barry_kellett99]

I wouldn't worry too much about the weight either, unless its a real beefy son of a...
My Meta 5 must be near 35lbs and It pedals great, because of the angles and seating position etc.

Tims G-Spot is a true heavy weight and he can almost keep up with me.

If you are doing really big mile rides all the time I would worry more about the weight etc, but for average joe rides I think its less of a factor. I would sacrifice a few pounds any day for extra strength and stiffness.

[kenny]

I wouldn't say its the amount of travel that is important, but the bike itself.



^^^What he said. Get a bike to fit you, that's designed for the purpose you want, not how many inches there are on it. Ride it, ride it a bit more, then ride it some more and maybe some more again....and then some more. The zero talent dissappears when you do that. And still there could well be someone comes flying past you on a hardtail some day on a trail you think you need a bigger bike for.

Think I'm saying, just get out and ride.

[AndyL]

I have 2 6" travel full bouncers, but they are very different bikes. An amount of travel doesn't define the bike, but its strength, geometry and componentry make all the difference.

I'd like a 5" lightweight trail bike, but I sometimes ride the whyte with 4" travel at the back and on normal trails rarely bottom it out, so if wheels were planted to the ground, a 4" would probably do rightly.

Do you save much weight in a 4" bike these days? I am under the impression that a big lad like me and a 4" xc bike wouldn't get on too well as it'd be a bit flexy or fragile. No?

[Aaron B]

for a bike to ride round davagh on and not do any of the jumps 4 is more than enough. Big Dave does it all at a fair old lick on his 4inch Spech!

my next bike is going to be a 4inch bike, 6 is too much for davagh and 5 is too inbetween i found

[starsky]

As far as "getting a bike that fits" goes, please see my earlier thread about lack of test bikes in NI!

I would be going from an Intense5.5 to a Ventana Saltamontes or a Turner Flux. Alternatively an El Ciclon or a Motolite.

[Aaron B]

turner would be the choice from that lot i think

[starsky]

Did you read the review of the ciclon in What MTB earlier this year?

[Big Dave]

Big Dave does it all at a fair old lick on his 4inch Spech!



Well if we're in the mood for compliments Aaron i've seen you do it at a fair old lick on a hardtail. Lets not mention the Raleigh and Saracen combination;)

Starsky, Alot of it depends on the setup as well man. If you dont like bumps much, run the setup softer like, but to be fair if its just rolling over bumps 4 inch is wayy more than ample. Reckon i'd choose the one thats most comfortable, then get plenty of miles under my belt and tweak it till its as good as it gets. I try not to worry too much about the bike as opposed to just enjoying the riding man, and if you're beat i'll do you a deal on an 06 spech xc, one careful owner!

[starsky]

A fair point well made Dave.

I tend to run the suspension very firm to help with climbing, as I need all the help I can get!

[Big Dave]

What about a shock with lockout?

[starsky]

I usually run an RP23 Dave.

[ColB]

i run my rp23 on 200psi and setting 3 with pro pedal off - to me it is perfect for Davagh - will drop the setting to 2 on the really bumpy stuff just to add a bit more cushion!!

[starsky]

Aye, but God sparing I would like to venture beyond Davagh through time!

[AndyA]

Aye, but God sparing I would like to venture beyond Davagh through time!

Don't go bringing God into this thread too :eek:

[timH]

As far as "getting a bike that fits" goes, please see my earlier thread about lack of test bikes in NI!

The last bike I bought I hadn't ridden, but I'd spent enough time riding my old bike and other peoples bikes to know what I liked and didn't like geometry/sizing wise. There's sizing charts online for virtually every bike, figure out what you like and find something that matches.

I would suggest comparing effective top tube, BBheight, head angle (taking into account your preferred fork), effective seatpost angle, chainstay length. Seat tube is largely irrelevant if you can get a seatpost that allows you to run your preffered BB to saddle length.

[Steveb]

My advice G is to forget about all this hand made US bling, find a bike shop you can trust, try the bikes they have, and buy one that fits. With respect your problems in the past have been that you've bought before trying, and until you know exactly what you need from a bike, this is dangerous.

Yes, it's **** that no one here runs demos in the bling stuff, but your just gonna have to work with what you can get your hands on.

The only real difference between a lot of the brands you mention, and stacks of "production" bikes is the name on the tube, the country where the welding was done, and the price ticket. I suspect if you were blindfolded and put on a Kona Dawg and 5spot, you'd fail to tell the difference.

[Aaron B]

My advice G is to forget about all this hand made US bling, find a bike shop you can trust, try the bikes they have, and buy one that fits.

Yes, it's **** that no one here runs demos in the bling stuff, but your just gonna have to work with what you can get your hands on.

The only real difference between a lot of the brands you mention, and stacks of "production" bikes is the name on the tube, the country where the welding was done, and the price ticket. I suspect if you were blindfolded and put on a Kona Dawg and 5spot, you'd fail to tell the difference.


All very true! nothing wrong with a standard off the shelf Specialized xc or stumpy, thats what i'll be having next i think

[Big Dave]

My advice G is to forget about all this hand made US bling, find a bike shop you can trust, try the bikes they have, and buy one that fits. With respect your problems in the past have been that you've bought before trying, and until you know exactly what you need from a bike, this is dangerous.

Yes, it's **** that no one here runs demos in the bling stuff, but your just gonna have to work with what you can get your hands on.

The only real difference between a lot of the brands you mention, and stacks of "production" bikes is the name on the tube, the country where the welding was done, and the price ticket. I suspect if you were blindfolded and put on a Kona Dawg and 5spot, you'd fail to tell the difference.


Thirded!

[starsky]

Steve, it's difficult to get a demo on the production stuff as well!

[hughsuffern]

starsky - if you want to sit on a turner flux let me know - i have a large , i think

[starsky]

That would be great Hugh! Sent you a PM.

[Mac]

Starsky

Just back from a weekend in the Lake District with Hugh and the NTSR entourage and I must say his Turner is one beautiful bike. It is blinged to the last - Crossmax wheels, Fox forks and shock, XTR etc etc. It is really light and i'll be having a look at them when i'm next changing the Blur. They also have the added bonus that all the bearings have grease ports and you can repack them with grease on a regular basis.

[starsky]

I have heard the Turners are great of giving little or no bother with bearings. Interesting to hear the views of a vpp rider on the Flux!