Aluminum vs Steel

[supermodel159]

Neither...Titanium!

[El Chupacabra]

I've been riding this hardtail a lot this year -- an On One "Hello Dave" --
https://www.planetx.co.uk/products/o...-mountain-bike

It's steel, but not what I'd call compliant or springy. Mine is a full custom build, not the stock build linked above. In size XL, with a 160mm Lyrik, and not particularly light parts, mine weighs around 34 pounds with pedals. The 160mm fork is +10mm over what the bike is spec'd with, so the geometry is more like 61.5* HTA/ 76.5* STA. Climbs acceptably, you just have to get used to low speed front wheel flop. It's very very stable on descents.

It is not a bike I would recommend as your only bike. It's fun as hell though.

[Spencer123]

Man this all has me super excited for my new ride. I was a little worried it was too slack since I wanted it to be a little more sporty than the ripmo but sounds like slacker was better. But dang those Canfields sure do look nice.

Titanium sounds great…. But not exactly in the “first child on the way but I can justify this because I can also use it to tow a kids trailer around and bike from the house when we are busy” budget category 😀

[SchralphMacchio]

lol, that’s exactly how I justified my hardtail, because the steer tube on my Bronson was way too short for a harness seat like the iBert, so obvious conclusion with first child on the way, second bike with long steer tube, that also happens to be exactly the one I want for wet weather riding, duh! [emoji2957][emoji2957][emoji2957]

[Spencer123]

Glad I am not the only one with that idea!! Probably going to throw a 140 pike or 150 lyrik on it depending on what pops up for a good deal, nice tip on the longer steerer tube!

[toast2266]

Glad I am not the only one with that idea!! Probably going to throw a 140 pike or 150 lyrik on it depending on what pops up for a good deal, nice tip on the longer steerer tube!

I've got a 150mm Fox 36 factory for sale, if you're interested. It's orange, so it's fast.

[Robik]

The only modern aluminum hardtail I had was Kona Gonzo AL and that thing was jaw breaking harsh. Super short chain stays, pretty over built frame were just unforgiving.
Pole Taival looked very radical and front wheel washed out under me in fast flat turns. It was ridiculously long, like 1310mm wheelbase in size Large. I really liked RSD Middlechild V1, tried both 27.5 and 29 and preferred 27.5.
Cotic BFE Max was the most compliant, probably due to Reynolds tubing or some other British witchery.

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[toast2266]

Pole Taival looked very radical and front wheel washed out under me in fast flat turns. It was ridiculously long, like 1310mm wheelbase in size Large.

I have a taival, and yeah, it's long. I ride a size small, which fits pretty similarly to my size large sentinel.

[zion zig zag]

Same. Soft-ish off the top. But then a bunch of volume reducers in it to keep it from getting crushed when I nose into things hard (which I do a lot, since it's the only suspension I've got).

Sorry thread drift: you certainly know more about bikes than I ever will, but I found that soft off the top and then volume spacers to prevent bottom out left me wallowing in the mid stroke and never got close to full fork use. I just went from 3 spacers to one and bumped up air pressure a bit (Fox 36). Definitely not as supple on the small stuff, but less time in middle travel and getting closer to realizing all 150mm of travel, maybe saving 10mm for fuck ups.

[toast2266]

Sorry thread drift: you certainly know more about bikes than I ever will, but I found that soft off the top and then volume spacers to prevent bottom out left me wallowing in the mid stroke and never got close to full fork use. I just went from 3 spacers to one and bumped up air pressure a bit (Fox 36). Definitely not as supple on the small stuff, but less time in middle travel and getting closer to realizing all 150mm of travel, maybe saving 10mm for fuck ups.

I find it varies quite a bit from fork to fork.

My hardtail has an older lyrik, which I always preferred with more reducers in them. I have the current lyrik on my sentinel, which I think works better with less reducers in it.

I was running my previous 36 similar to you - 1 spacer, and I think maybe a smidge over recommended pressure.

[zion zig zag]

I find it varies quite a bit from fork to fork.

My hardtail has an older lyrik, which I always preferred with more reducers in them. I have the current lyrik on my sentinel, which I think works better with less reducers in it.

I was running my previous 36 similar to you - 1 spacer, and I think maybe a smidge over recommended pressure.

Makes sense. This is the first fork I’ve really messed with the volume spacers on.

[ZomblibulaX]

Spencer, I hope you'll consider putting some meatier tires on that Scout and seeing what it can do. That should be a very capable bike if built for more than speed.

Neither...Titanium!

If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up. It is... so choice.

[Spencer123]

That’s a nice looking steed! I am leaning that way. Ordering some hunt wheels for my wife’s bike and taking her heavy ex511s for it. They give you a free set of tires, either ardents or aggressor/asseagi combo so thinking I’ll start there.

Spencer, I hope you'll consider putting some meatier tires on that Scout and seeing what it can do. That should be a very capable bike if built for more than speed.





If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up. It is... so choice.

[MagnificentUnicorn]

Spencer, I hope you'll consider putting some meatier tires on that Scout and seeing what it can do. That should be a very capable bike if built for more than speed.





If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up. It is... so choice.

Telluride?


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[ZomblibulaX]

Telluride?

Yar.

[jhyatt]

Aggressive/Progressive (what's the difference) hardtails are super fun. I think dropper posts, slack HT and long travel pedally forks made this happen. And wide tires that aren't stupid DH heavy.
My son has a HONZO st and I love riding it, even though it's too small for either of us at this point.

[bagtagley]

Did somebody say Titanium?

https://turnerbikes.com/products/2023-scrub-ti-frame

25% off right now. Don't think I'd ever spend that much on a hardtail frame (personally, no judgement), but as a long-time homer, it's kinda tempting.

[Spencer123]

Finally finished building my scout 290 and got it out for a couple of rides! It is a ridiculous amount of fun. Out of the saddle and in turns it feels like a rocket compared to my full suspension. Also, after spending basically a whole season getting my ripmo dialed to fit comfortably, it was a pleasant surprise to jump on it and just have it feel like it fits perfect, maybe one small saddle adjustment to make but otherwise it’s good to go.The slacker seattube angle makes a huge differnce in comfort on more gradual rolling terrain it turns out.

Did learn a quick lesson though about hardtail Life… the back wheel takes a beating without suspension, so although a lot of people talk about lower pressures making the ride better, unless you have an insert or ride a lot smarter than you do on a full suspension (admittedly this also includes heavier tire casings) you will end up like me with a pinch flat and a broken spoke on day 1. Went back to riding my normal pressures and got through a desert trip with no more issues even with an ardent race in the back.

Thanks for all the input, really glad I pulled the trigger to build this thing up. Also, for anyone looking for a fun bike at a good price they are half off right now at planet cycerly (1100 for a 12-speed deore build), had I waited I would have saved quite a bit even though I built this up with a lot of used parts of KSL and stuff from the garage.

https://planetcyclery.com/nukeproof-scout-290-comp-alloy-bike?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAg9urBhB_EiwAgw88mW gfW7PEXf0aZ7DQJqr382M4p9xAiO-RrrNPBDcE_ctQT2AGJmtsyxoCcjUQAvD_BwE

[VTskibum]

Run low pressure plus tires on mine sometimes and have done some serious damage. Damn tires are heavy as is, so haven’t bothered to put an insert in, so just keep bending rim back as it’s only for winter time riding for me. Got wheels for free so they owe me nothing. Hardtails are awesome though. Have been curious about the Scout but not looking good for Nukeproof these days/


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[frorider]

I’ve always had at least one hardtail in the quiver. For me the biggest factors that let me ride a HT fast on techy terrain is a) long ass wheelbase b) clip in pedals.

On fast chunky stuff you relax more when you don’t worry about the feet moving fwd bit by bit on the flats. But the other main benefit, IME, is that when you’re clipped in you pick up the rear tire more actively and instinctively…lifting it up to avoid a square edged hit, moving it sideways a few inches to avoid a rut or whatever. I think this mental engagement is what makes hardtails fun. On your enderpo FS bike you focus more on front wheel placement only.

I’m not saying clip in pedals will eliminate rear wheel dings or flats, just saying it’ll reduce them on a hardtail.

IME anyway.

[Spencer123]

I never thought about clips like that, but it makes sense. I definitely need reminded to unweight the back instead of hammering it as hard as I can into stuff just for fun. A friend of mine just picked up one of the discount Scouts and we talked about the low confidence future of Nukeproof. My theory is, how much can really need Warrantied on an aluminum frame with no bearings, shock mount etc... hopefully that doesn't come back to bite him. I bought mine 3 days before all of that happened so I was committed. Picked it up in-person in SLC at their US headquarters, couple days later, poof all gone.