Weight of a mtb compared to a Trek hybrid

[Becky]

What about a soft tail? I have no idea of their availability or who's making them (last one I saw was a Moots- big money ), but that may be a good way to save the joints and some weight at the same time?

Anyone know if they're commonly available?

See here for a pic: http://www.cambriabike.com/shopexd.asp?id=52099

[Irulan]

funny I just thought "soft tail" was more lingo for full suspension.

[Becky]

funny I just thought "soft tail" was more lingo for full suspension.

My understanding is that a "soft-tail" is a pivot-less full suspension with ~1" of travel usually. A true FS has one or two pivots, depending on the rear linkage design.

Like I said, I've only see one in person, but its owner spoke very highly of it and its ride characteristics.

[sundial]

Pardes, any updates on your mtb shopping?

[pardes]

Pardes, any updates on your mtb shopping?

Not at the moment. I'm planning on taking a lonnnnng weekend this coming weekend and will have much to report. Hopefully.

Mentally I'm still vacillating which way to go but then I smack myself and tell myself to just put my butt on some bikes and see what feels good. Otherwise I'd be "planning" which bike to buy until the next century.

[oldmtnbiker]

Mostly I read these boards without posting. But in this case, I've owned most of the bikes being discussed and I'm an "old" - over 50 year old female - mtn biker.

Over the past 10 years my bikes have included: a Trek hard-tail with 26" wheels, a Gary Fisher hard-tail with 29" wheels, a Spec. Epic Marathon (full-suspension), a Seven "soft-tail" with 26" wheels, and a Salsa Dos Niner - a soft-tail with 29" wheels. I also own a Trek road bike.

I ride recreationally on mtn bike trails, rails-to-trails and a bit on the road. I race my mtn bikes cross-country and in endurance races. I don't road race at all. I'm about 5'6" (and shrinking) and 125 lbs.

My first reaction to reading this thread is that "traction" is mostly about tire choice - tire width is a factor, but tread pattern and the composition material is much more important. If I need more traction, my first thought is not to look for a bigger volume tire.

My second reaction to reading this thread is that unless you plan to ride some really rocky, rooty trails, the full suspension bikes being discussed are probably not a good choice.

Full suspension bikes are heavy (unless you pay very big dollars). For relatively small riders, the weight is a significant fraction of body weight, and makes a big difference in how much fun they are to ride. In addition, even good mid-priced bikes have a certain amount of "bob" in the rear suspension - bikes like the top-end Spec Epics have made their selling point be that their shock is "smart" enough to lock out when not needed, but kick in when you hit the bumps. This works pretty well, but it costs alot. Without this "smart" feature, you have to set the shock for your given ride. That's not bad, but my guess is that unless you are riding really bumpy trails you will set it for about 1" of travel. If that's what you do, then you might as well buy a "soft-tail." They weigh less and handle better.

My current "favorite" bike is my Salsa Dos Niner. It has a very small rear shock (soft-tail) that gives me about 1" of travel. Because its a 29'er (29" or 700 wheels - same as a road bike), it rolls over small things on the trail much better than a 26" wheel. Without a full suspension, its weight is quite low - 23lbs. I've raced it all summer and consistently beat my times on my Spec Epic Marathon. The Epic is good when there are lots of rocks, but for a "recreational" ride I will always choose the Dos Niner over the Epic.

A final thought: these bikes have rather different geometries. The Trek/GF bikes have pretty long top tubes, my Seven and Salsa are in between, and the Specialized is fairly short. This makes for rather different riding positions. I needed my Epic to be pretty low in the front to keep my weight forward enough to climb efficiently.

Have fun shopping, Deb