megrim profile

I've ridden the primer in both 2.8 plus and 29. Different beasts for sure. And I wouldn't say one is necessarily better than the other. Read Cams take on plus vs 29 on the SC Tallboy. Pretty much sums up my experience too.
However, I would choose to ride the plus in the cold and the wet and the 29 in the dry.

Great write up, Pete. I think thought many of the same things when I got my Primer. I thought the bike ride a lot differently between the 29 vs 2.8 Minion plus tires. I've got the 29 wheels kicking around, if you want to give them a go…

Mike

Ok, I will agree that the 130 mm Endo crushes all 130 mm bikes going downhill. But to be fair, you should probably compare it to something like a HD3. That would be a more fair comparison of climbability vs rowdiness.

Yep, I hear yah. People were asking, so I thought I'd give a small bit of feed back.

I'm running the 36 rc2 up front at 88 psi and the rear is 214 psi (I'll double check that one). I'm 185 pounds without gear. Around 28% sag. I think it could use a volume spacer in the rear though. I'm going to toss one in the next week and try it out.

ive only had a few rides on mine, but it's pretty fun so far. I thought I would be a bit of a plow, but it's very agile and jumps way better than it should. It seems like a great all around shore bike. Pedals like a champ, but still big enough to bail you out when you get in over your head.

Pedals similar to the Knolly endorphin. Descends similar to a nomad, without the extra travel to soak up those drops to flat or seriously rough transitions.

I found the AM9 to be a little on the soft side. They had quite more flex than the M200's. I found that I felt less control with the AM9 than either the M200 or the Specialized 2FO clip. One thing I'll have to give to the 9's is that they are way warmer in nasty conditions.

The one thing I don't get is that everyone says these big posts are only for tall riders. You already have long legs (i.e. Suspension)!! I think the long posts are better for short(ish) people. Us guys who don't have extra suspension in our stumpy legs. Ok, maybe it's a fair statement for those that are really short and are buying the xs frame. But bike manufacturers, please design your frame for us shorty' and allow everyone the joy of over 150 mm between the legs!

Mike

Really interested in the ride review (short and long) for this bike. Also curious to see how this would stack up against the Nomad/etc.

I've had these shorts on a few wet rides. They feel a little weird when you first put them on as they don't fit like a typical riding short (at least on me). But they are awesome when it's wet. So much more comfortable to put those few extra laps/km's in when it's wet out. I'd buy them again in a heartbeat.

Mike

Very true. But I'm also old with old knees! It helps us old buggers keep up with you young whippersnappers!!

Old buck, good sir Martin, severed, Asian Adonis, John Deere all good today.

We rode old buck, BP, severed, GSM, John Deere. All 100% rideable, yesterday at least. Upper dales, not so much.

Colder temps mean the trails are rideable again after the messy slush from the weekend.

Crunchy and slippery, not as good as Friday in the fluffy stuff. Tricky maintaining traction on the steeper ups. Descent was great.

Rode Cardiac / Academy / RT / RTC / Pussyfoot / Penny Lane / GSM to JD - very rideable, I lost traction on a couple steeper bits so had to push (i.e. Christmas Corners)

Watch out for falling things. Heavy snow / ice and changing temps -[HTML_REMOVED] some trees have uprooted, branches and ice falling

Any trees down across the trail(s) along your route? I'm debating whether to head out with a bike or a saw…

Mike

I went riding last night with 2.8 Minion DHF's on my Primer last night. Awesome sauce. I was able to keep going quite a bit easier than my buddy with 29 2.3 Minion DHRII's… Airing down to 12.5/14 psi front/rear in the plus tires probably didn't hurt either. ;)

flattire - Like I said, I didn't measure with digital calipers, but I don't think I'm out by more than 3 mm. Even if the errors go the opposite directions, that's still only 6 mm. And I don't think I'm out by that much. But go measure for yourself, I think you'd be surprised.

morgman - I've got a 2.3 Aggressor mounted; I'll measure that tonight. But just from memory, I think the difference will be more than 6 mm radius to the 2.8 plus tire. Then add sag… I agree on the BB height until you get the extremes. I thought the Primer cornered a little better with the plus wheels vs the 29's. BB height, wheel size, and grip all change though, so take that with a grain of salt.

Alright. Here's a few rough measurements and specs on the wheels.
29er. Easton ARC 30 rims, Minion DHF 2.5, diameter to top of tread ~746 mm
27plus. Easton ARC 35 rims, Minion DHF 2.8, diameter to top of tread ~713 mm
275. Nobl TR38 rims (31 mm ID), Minion DHF 2.5, diameter to top of tread ~708 mm

Give or take a bit in the measurements, I didn't do it with digital calipers… But I think you get the idea. Pretty huge difference between 275/27plus and 29. When I first measured, it kinda surprised me that companies are offering bikes that are 29/27 plus compatible, when really I think they should be 275/27plus. But I bet things would change quite a bit if you change rim widths, go to bigger 3.0 tires, etc. Lots of variables!

I hope this helps.

Mike

that's a big difference. i read it was about a cm. the rear tire on the smuggler is 2.3 and the bb is super low, like as low as they come i think around 330. this would be a concern for sure. there are a couple of demo plus bikes around but they all have boost spacing. is this the only way plus comes?

megrim, what bike do you have, and what is more comfortable?

JBV, I've run both sets of wheels on a Chromag Primer, 160 mm fork both times. I think the bigger tires add some much needed comfort (in my opinion). I didn't think the traction was wildly different; better on dirt, about the same on roots and rocks. But I haven't gone silly low with the pressures (lowest has been 16.7 in the rear).

And to answer your questions. More comfortable with the plus wheels. But I think they are slower if the trails are smooth-ish (Old Buck, Upper Dales). You can get a plus wheel laced to any hub, but I think the idea with the boost is that you can get wider stays and increase the clearance. I'll go measure my wheels again. I've also got a regular 275 wheel with a 2.5 Minion that I'll measure. My memory is a little foggy, but I think the difference between the 2.5 and 2.8 was only like a 1/4" in diameter. But there is a big difference in the volume.

OK, give me a bit and I'll post back with the measurements.

Mike

The diameter difference on my plus wheel set (275 2.8 DHF) and my 29er wheelset (29 2.5 DHF) is about an inch (remember, diameter, not radius). And having ridden the same bike with 2 different sets of wheels, I can tell you there's a big difference in bb height. I'm not sure what the Smuggler's bb height is though.

I can tell you there is a huge comfort difference between the 2 wheelsets though. Just my 2 cents.

I'll definitely have to see if I can demo a Slash in the next year. I'm a little concerned about how the new single pivot arrangement affects pedaling performance though and the proprietary knock block headset arrangement is a little annoying. Other than these two questions / annoyances it seems pretty much a perfect spec.

Does anyone have a Yeti SB5.5c? Other than the price, this is probably at the top of my list due to the absolutely glowing reviews I've read about its balance of up and downhill performance. My three reservations are: Price, durability of the switch infinity link for North Shore winter riding, and if the rear 140mm of travel is progressive enough to keep me from bottoming out too often due to my 'bull in a china shop' riding style - or lack of style:(

Banshee also have a great rep for durability but 135 mm rear travel on the Prime seems just a little too short to me and they are a little on the heavy side. Ideally I'd like to keep my build around the 30ish lbs my current bike is.

I got the 5.5 in the summer. I've had a few issues with parts around the bike (for whatever reason), so I haven't had as much time on it as I'd like. No issues with the frame or the infinity link. I pulled it apart a week ago to clean and re-grease it and there was no noticeable signs of wear.

I haven't ridden the other bikes in your list, so it's a little hard for me to compare. Anyway, the Yeti is the best pedalling bike I have owned in a long time (Nomad, Ibis HD3, Knolly Endorphin, etc.). And it's been the best companion for long days and I would say it's the best all around bike I've ridden in a long time. Right now, I'm running a Push 11/6 on there and it feels like the rear end is calmed just a bit, which I really like. I was surprised how well it still pedalled with the coil. My only note or criticism is that bike feels very racey. If I'm out pushing it hard, the bike feels just awesome. But I find when I back off a bit, it can feel like the bike is riding me. Maybe I don't have the perfect set up yet though.

Last thing, I found it pretty hard to bottom the bike even with the stock Fox set up. Even the Push is very difficult to bottom. But if you're looking to plow down Ned's, then probably check out one of the bigger bikes on your list.

Mike

I've run most combos;XTR shifter/derailleur, XT shifter/XTR derailleur, and XTR shifter/XT derailleur. Best shifting/value is the XTR shifter with the XT derailleur. I've also read that the XTR chains are worth it (arts cyclery?).

I've been going through chains pretty quickly (not breaking, just wearing out), but the original XTR 11 speed cassette is still working well after 14 months on the shore…

Mike