Grad present to myself - which Chromag?

I'm going to chime in here just cause.

for trail riding the 29er is great, but I find I am always on the out side of corners and it its hard to get it to pop off lips, I personaly will never own any thing but a 29r Ht as my trail bike, but I am clearly not a dirt jumper.

No it won't. A real 26 jump bike and pump track bike will suck on trails more than a 29er will suck on pump and jump because a proper sized jump bike is like a shitty BMX.

I disagree, I love my monk on trails, it's fun, highly flickable and easy to quickly move around…it's a fricken blast actually

As an bc-xc/trail kind of gal that likes climbing I'm thinking surface or maybe a 650b samurai. I wonder when they'll come out with a 650b version of the kamui or aperture?

Both the Samurai and the TRL will have the same rear triangle with the rectangular chainstays, so the additional 0.5 lbs will mainly offer stiffness in the front triangle. Maybe consider matching the frame to the fork you intend to use? If you're relatively light and you plan on using a Fox 32/34 or Revelation, then the Samurai may be most appropriate. But if you're heavier and need a Fox 36 or Lyrik for your riding, then maybe the TRL. I would definitely encourage you to email Chromag, they will be more than happy to discuss this with you. And then you'll have to make a decision regarding decals, paint, etc… It's a fun process!

Some other things to consider - I believe that the TRL is limited production, so you may have to wait several months for one if they don't have one in stock. Also, the last version of the TRL had straight tubes, but the new Samurai has wavy top and down tubes - I prefer the look of the straight tubes.

Another vote for the 29erHT. I have a Transition 29 trans am. I have owned a few 26 inch chromly and one Ti Hard tails and I really liked them all, the 29er rides better on the trails. I will also say, stay away from aluminium HT frames. You would be better off to grab a bat and beat yourself over the head with it.

Just caught a view of the Tonic Fabrications Barnstormer - definitely another frame in the mix with the Chromags. Its hard for me to say what the primary use of this bike is really going to be, i.e. where I want to compromise. Tough choice, I appreciate the flow of advice

I'm not saying you can't dirt jump on a 29er. Just that it will be a lot more enjoyable on a 26er.

Speaking from experience? Ridden a 29er lately?

Before my Honzo, I've owned a Transition TransAM 26er with a Float 36, and it rode like ass compared to my Honzo with a Float 34 140mm now. Never going back to smaller wheels. Ever.

I recommend riding your father's Paradox more on those jump lines that you mention. If you like the way it rides in that situation you will be happy with a Surface. Are you racing slalom? If so, A gypsy is basically a tRL with a short seat tube. However I don't think they are doing them in a large. They look great though. I appreciate the stiffness of the TRL on DH trails, but for what I use it for mostly-a 24 lb SS it's overkill. I also like the look of the frameset more compared to a Samurai, down to the decals. Just my opinion…go for the Surface, or the Samurai. Yah, you still have to decide the wheel size:-)

At 6ft something you´ll have no big trouble tossing around a 29er with short stays.
Might not be perfect for pumptracks but you probably wouldn´t enjoy riding a small frame too much. A Honzo with its 419mm stays is pretty close to the less radical 26ers.
If you go to a 380mm 26er chainstay-bike - that´s different of course. Too short is possible though.

I am 6ft and a bit myself with long arms and most geezers rage about small frames and flickability and such. Part of it is true. My XL Stumpjumper 29er FSR isn´t THAT flickable, true. But at my height it´s okay. The Large Heckler I rode before felt like a BMX and several large (not extralarge) 29ers that I testrode felt really flickable.
Without the needed BB height for rear suspension you should be fine on most 29ers.

But if you just want to goof around, some trials moves etc. a 26er might work better.

HEck, it´s not a Chromag, but for the wheelsize thing - take a look at this. Looks flickable enough.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded[HTML_REMOVED]v=p6lszlJgPlo#!

Ah - and congratulations on graduating. I am actually finding myself in the same situation, except that my fat bag of money will arrive in September.
I am looking at a rad short chainstay 29er HT myself. Singlespeed and on =)

Greetings Znarf

I am 6'1'' and ride a medium TRL, I chose medium over the large just because I like a smaller fitting bike. It is very comfortable. This spring I am going to run a longer stem (70mm) just to see what that is like as I had been running a 50mm previously and on some climbs I felt the front was wandering a bit (I have a 36 Float set to 150mm right now).

Also, the mediums do look better to me for some reason.

If you get in contact with Chromag they do still do some limited runs of TRLs and Gypsys, just like everyone has said they are very easy to deal with.

My TRL was a present to myself for a grad-type event as well.

Best thing you can do is contact Chromag, talk to Ian or Sean about what you want, and let them help you.

26 vs. 29 will always be a personal preference. They excel at different things and everyone has different priorities / things about biking that is fun to them.

I would get a Surface probably, or at least one of their models with a 31.6mm seat post so I could run any dropper. Hopefully new models will all be 31.6mm

26 vs. 29 will always be a personal preference. They excel at different things and everyone has different priorities / things about biking that is fun to them.

I would get a Surface probably, or at least one of their models with a 31.6mm seat post so I could run any dropper. Hopefully new models will all be 31.6mm

and this, my TRL (last year they were still on the website) has a 27.2 post. I do not have a dropper and there are not many options at that diameter.

In my search for frames I also came across some Euro options, namely the 2Souls Quarterhorse 29er, Production Privee Shan 26er and Stanton Slackline 26er - all sweet and about the same price as the Chromags or less after being imported. Choices, choices…