Ask Pinkbike: Proper Chain Tension, Specialized Enduro vs. Pivot Mach 6, and Riding in Malaga, Spain

 ...or spend some money on some training sessions with a pro rider. You'll quickly see that the bike or wheel size isn't what's holding you back

 If you have an E29, you're lucky. It is one of the best bikes (obviously I love mine). If you've had your share of enjoying raw speed and miss the smaller wheels' flickability, why lose money?

Go all the way and get a 26" Enduro (they are fairly cheap now) and keep your E29.

 Wow RC - I was just going to post up that quote - more people should follow that advice. Honest and refreshing

 An extended adventure on "Silk Panties" will surely be memorable.

 This is a question for Uncle Dave... Though he's already answered variations of it.

 "I'd keep it and spend the money on a two-week mountain bike adventure." - RC
Best advice ever,

 The dilema for me is to go 650 or 29er enduro.
I thing my ridiing style favours the 29er but i do enjoy getting my bike in the air.
I am also a big fat knacker at 115kg and tend to buckle my 29er wheels so where does that leave me?
Help anyone?.

 @randybadger I'm almost 90 kg and an aggressive rider. I use my E 29 for everything from XC loops, bike park to racing DH. It jumps awesome. The big wheels make it very stable once airborne. The only down side is wind while airborne and if you really hang off the bike you can buzz your rear wheel with your ass.
As for rims. I was going through aluminum rims at an expensive rate. I went carbon ( Roval) and haven't looked back save a few busted spokes here and there.

 Unless he has "money" but no vacation or free time to take at the moment.

 Id say if you like your Enduro 29er you can keep your Enduro 29er, but everyone would know that is a bold-faced lie, yet nobody would talk about it. They'd just hold it inside and wonder for years...am I the only one that recognizes what's going on around here...I feel so out of place, I probably shouldn't say anything in case people would judge me. After all, he's so well liked in the media, real humans must like him too.

 E29 is all they say it is and more...

 I'm going to try the 650 and the 29er this weekend

 become a reach man!

 This problem has already been solved.
Plan A: You get so fast/good on your current bike that rich people sponsor you to ride in races and events.
Plan B: Ride your bike down a Dam Spillway and win 20k!

 Marry into money

 wuts a reach man @BartDM

 Ben Dover

 start a youtube channel wherein you do idiot things and ask for donations.

 Cocain is a helluva drug.

 I guess I meant more along the lines of a mega-church.

 Be the prime minister of Malaysia.

 Hahahaha... just show that someone understands u ;P

 Dirk Diggler-it for abit.

 @m07mmukh and remember; when you are finally a reach man, and somebody comes to you and asks you to buy him/her a bike, just do it!

 I wish I had a Nomad. I rented one in downieville once, and it was sick. It may as well be a downhill bike that also flies uphill. unbelievable bike

 Test rode the enduro 29 for a few hours - was massively unimpressed. Maybe its just the terrain or my riding style but it felt very unwieldy, surprisingly slow and cornered very poorly. I'm sure its right for some riders (based on Spec riders and endless good reviews) but its certainly not for everyone.

 "Had I not demo'd half a dozen bikes i never would have appreciated how well the nomad fits ME. " There's the rub - it can be the best bike in the world, but if it doesn't fit you properly, it's not much good. Buy the one where everything's in the right place, which might not be either of these.

 I agree about the E29, it is definitely not all that everyone says it is. I bought one based on the hype around it and sold it about 12 weeks later. Nice bike for riders who are newer to the sport because it just steamrolls everything, but cornering sucks and I found the 29 wheels to very inaccurate in corners. None of the wheel sizes made any difference in descending or climbing times overall, but they had significantly different feel.

 funny, because i had almost the exact opposite response. I bought a santa cruz nomad 2015 and hated it from the first ride. Components were top of the line, carbon wheels and everything. Never felt comfortable on the bike. Sold it 3 weeks later and bought my sworks enduro 29er and it was the best decision i have ever made in regard to biking. So much faster and much more fun for me, I can honestly say the E29 is the best bike for me.

 Yep that's why trying them yourself is key...can be tricked out with top of the line components, still won't substantially change the bike's core "feel".

650b/29er especially important as for most of us it is our first purchase in that wheel size. Definitely feels different!

 Couldn't agree more. Nomad felt like THE bike for me, i could tell 1/4 the way into the demo. The bike has a shorter reach than most other "e" bikes and it just felt right to me.

I didnt like the yeti, pivot, or the specialized bikes i rode for varying reasons. When i drop that much money on a bike i want to LOVE it. I can't emphasize enough how important demoing a bike is.

 People that don't understand the 1x movement obviously haven't tried it. I'm 265lbs, and I ride a 1x11 setup. Epic trails with 3000' elevation gain (not a lot by some standards) and it hauls my fat but up those hills.

 Test riding is KEY! Was in the market for a new trail bike recently and test rode Spesh, Norco, GT, Merida, Giant and Lapierre... Basically all the main brands available in Oz - The GT and Giant were leaps ahead in my eyes, so much nicer to ride, better square-edge bump performance, better pedalling and less flexy, bobbing around feel to them than the horst links, but more compliant and better handling than the merida/lapierre's... Ride what feels right, 29rs handle like oil tankers too. - Ended up buying a 650b Giant for pure value

 I don't know... I've never test ridden any bike I've owned before I bought it, but I've loved all my bikes. All of them have been great machines for their purpose, only real change I ever had to do was to put a different shock on my trail bike to make me comfortable with it (went from a Monarch+ to a Vivid Air).
I guess it comes down to the fact that if you don't know what you're not getting, you're not missing out. I think people get overly obsessed with how a bike climbs and how fast it corners... Go towards the limits of the bike and you're going to have fun, no matter if someone else is faster than you.

 You can narrow it down without riding the bikes by reading real world reviews, but in the end you should test ride to find out if it's the right bike for YOU. I was so jacked to ride the Santa Cruz Bronson at Crankworx in Whistler because I thought it was THE ride for me. I was surprisingly disappointed. It just didn't feel as good as I thought. I ended up grabbing a Norco Sight instead and it matches me perfectly.

 @gooutsidetoday

I don't prefer 1x11. I'm not afraid to admit that. I do think it works well enough to provide so awesome possibilities to rear suspension designs, freeing up a lot of space in the most cramped area of a bicycle.

If it makes my bike shred harder and is only a minor inconvenience I'm ok with that. (Yes I've ridden it, my bike has an x1 level build)

 @rrolly: You'd be surprised how different a bike can feel just due to a different shock or even just wrong tire pressure. That's why test rides don't give you a good picture - they often aren't setup perfectly, and this can make a great bike feel average.

 There's a lot of people don't ever ride the bike they own set up perfectly either. The important stuff, like the cockpit geometry and just the overall feel - doesn't rely that heavily on shock and tire pressure.. I went to Outerbike and rode everything on my hit list when I bought my new trail bike. I ended up with something I hadn't even considered, that fit like a glove from the time my ass hit the seat. I also rode stuff that I was super excited about, that honestly left me cold. Sure, you might love the bike you buy sight unseen, but that's an expensive gamble and one I don't blame folks for not taking.

 When test riding a bike I focus more on fit and feel...minor suspension peculiarities, cornering issues, etc can be tuned around.

 I'll second that one. I rode the 650 and the 29er on the same trail. 29 felt... Dead. No trail feedback. Kinda vague when you start pushing it.
But then again I'm comparing both to my Nomad
26" Nomad at that!

 @Kainerm the bike was setup for me, sag, tire pressure, correct tires for Whistler, etc. But you're right, bike setup makes a big difference.

 Just put on a Bionicon C-guide. Light, relatively cheap, quiet, and works great even with 3x. Much more effective than fiddling with chain length or ring selection in my experience.

 I don't understand the 1x movement. I don't know what kind of trails everyone is riding, but in AZ there are a lot of times when you're going down a short section right into a climb. My strategy in these situations is to click into my big ring to gain some momentum on the down, then as I start climbing and momentum starts dropping off, I'm able to drop to the small ring and finish off the climb. And then right back into the big because I'm going down again. I can't imagine the amount of clicks I'd have to do with a 1X setup.

 @HK-Mazur I agree. I am running a 2x9 and I use all but the smallest cog on my cassette on a regular basis. So when I do the math on a 1x setup I am going to miss out on either the high or low end.

 black spire makes an incredible 2x chain guide that consists of just a light bash guard and a roller to retain your chain. Your front mech serves as a guide for the top. I used this on my 2009 Giant Trance and it never failed me. Look it up.....

lp1.pinkbike.org/p4pb3350246/p4pb3350246.jpg

 I love my 2x10. I'm able to do like 95% of my riding in the 36t ring (29er), but for those times when I go out of town to a new place with big climbs, or I wanna just be able to breeze up a hill and talk to my buddies instead of putting power down hard, or for day 2 of a long mtb weekend when I'm sore it's really nice to have the low gear.

But the difference between 3x and 2x is huge. I tried so hard to tune my old 3x setup and generally found it to be an unreliable piece of shit. Switched that bike to 1x, but then I had to run a 32t (26er) to keep my legs from exploding on the climb at Windham XC... and then I spun out on downhills constantly. Too much of a balancing act. My 2x (with clutch) has only ever dropped a chain (to the small ring) in crashes, and it's easy enough to double check the chain before I hop back on the bike. Shifting isn't always instant, but it works reliably.

Honestly the dude from the Q&A could very easily solve this problem just by ditching the big ring on his 3x. Unless he's riding a lot of pavement I doubt he's using it anyway, and that alone will allow him to take loads of slack out of the chain. If that doesn't completely solve the problem, then a Deore clutch rear mech is only $40.

 I used to do the same thing on my 2x9, ramp up the speed on the big ring and when I ran out of steam on the up make a quick switch to the granny. I switched to 1x10 and realized that my previous technique was making me a slower and clunkier rider. I discovered that when you make a gear change that fast over such a wide range a few negative things are happening that adversely effect your climb. First of all, your cadence accelerates way too fast. That's not a horrible thing when climbing, but you do lose speed and thus momentum. Second thing is that because the tension on the chain is less and your cadence is faster, the suspension gets way more active so if you are making a tech climb the bike gets harder to handle. I found when I switched to 1x10 if I paid a bit more attention to the trail ahead I could make smaller gear switches and maintain the same cadence. Now I can power up hills so much more smoothly than before. For me, 1x10 totally changed my trail riding for the better. Added plus is that there is one less lever on my handlebar and less mechanical crap on the drivetrain to break. It's more quiet too. Love my 1x, will never ever go back to 2x.

 @bkm303 Considered going with the ACC option? Granny ring with no derailleur, just grab the chain with your hand to shift?

 @groghunter yeah I actually thought doing that to my 29er HT when I got a dropper (to keep the bars less busy and offset the weight). But then I figured if the front shifting actually works, why take it off? Seemed silly. But I might do that for the bike that's currently 1x if I ever get around to it.

What's ACC stand for?

 I'm still on 3x and I do use the Big Ring a lot...even on trails. One thing I didn't like about the initial 2x setups was the larger jump between the big and small ring. However Shimano has corrected this I believe on the new stuff which is great.and would like to go to it at some point. I don't think 1x is gonna totally cut it for me. Also, I like having 2x or 3x as the granny gear gets me more anti-squat when I want it on climbs etc.

 The Bionicon C-guide was crap for me, fell apart immediately. Then again, I break everything. Alas, though, twas just a bandaid for 2x. Went 1x and won't change back.

 Some of the ascents I ride locally are 23% and go on for a few hundred metres, so I stick with 2x. Using a correctly set up XT drivetrain, front shifting is easy and reliable. Maybe 1x is good for some people, but 2x is still mandatory for others.

 @bkm303 Anne Caro Chausson

 @bkm303 Weight's one reason, the other is that you can go narrow-wide on your main ring that way. Better chain retention, less weight. All a matter how often you need to get down into the granny, do you use the front shifter enough to justify carrying that weight with you everywhere you go?

 "justify carrying that weight"

It weighs roughly 2 big mouthfuls of water, and it's good for the same reason a dropper is good. You can use it without getting off the bike. Can't really use the ACC method in a race, can you?

If FDs didn't work it would be a no-brainer. But if you have a perfectly functional bit of equipment that's even sort of useful, why get rid of it? Why would I choose to get off the bike to change my gearing if I didn't have to?

Half a pound vs a useful, reliable functionality. Classic first world problem.... and to be honest that's half the reason I leave the FD on there. Taking it off just to hit some number on a scale (that I'll never actually notice on a ride) would make me feel like a douche.

 Also going NW isn't really that big of an advantage if you already have a clutch mech. I'm convinced they're redundant, and if the NW rings worked as well as they were supposed to, we wouldn't be seeing all the XC and enduro pros running guides.

 I get what you're saying, & if I used it very often at all, I would leave it on, but if you don't even use it once per ride, sure it's not much weight, but you're carrying it around pointlessly.

FWIW, ACC was using it for racing, & wasn't using a chainguide, so apparently they work well enough for her. I've run them on a few bikes without clutches & not dropped a chain myself, either.

 Well it's fine for enduro; you're not timed while you switch rings. That technique would be a disaster in XC.

I understand what you're saying, and NW rings are def an improvement if you're running 1x. But I'll never go 1x unless I get an actual 1x11 system.... which will be when I buy my next new bike... which will probably won't be for several years haha.

 Epic holiday destination. Don't expect a party town at the end of the day though. Do expect Mike to show you up on the downhills though. Also consider doing a days riding in Malaga... there is a gondola lift for proper DH'ing!

 Also, they don't drink cervejas in Spain... Maybe only in Galicia. It's cerveza!

 upvoted for your username

 I upvoted "Benito" and "el niño" for the same reason!

 I run the 650b yoke on my XL E29. The bike now handles so well in the fast gnarly stuff and is so capable that I (sadly) rarely ride my Demo any more. I have even found that I am faster in most DH races on my E29 than my Demo. The downside to the setup is that the shorter yoke also slackens the seat tube angle which slightly effects climbing.

 @adpeters82 my command post has that huge setback offset, which also puts me too far back over the rear tire when climbing. Does specialized make a command post with less offset?

 The new one on 2016 has no offset if I'm not mistaken

 @hamncheez I replaced my Command Post with a 9point8 Fall Line that has no offset (awesome post BTW) and I have my saddle slid as far forward as it will go. Looks a little odd but rides well.

 Some bikes from the past were indeed ahead of their times. If you put an angle set on old Nomad you could shred any trail in the world, including worst downhill tracks.

 that first sentence was meant as a question.

Any responses on these from PB/RC?

Thanks

 Not everyone likes a long reach on a trail bike (trail bike being the operative word here). Some of the best trail bikes out there (i.e. SB5C, Mojo HD3, Burner, Rocky Altitude) don't have super long reaches.

 Of course everyone's taste differ, and it's good to have different options ont e market. But the Mach 6 is at the extreme as far as short reach goes. The medium Enduro 29 has a 425mm reach. The Yeti SB5c is 413, HD4 is 414. The Mach 6 is shorter than all of those at 401 - it's shorter than pretty much any other bike in it's class. It's more a long travel trail bike than the Neurone 29 that the OP is used to , which is much longer and more stable.

 Have you ever ridden a Mach 6? I ask you that because purely looking at geo charts can be deceiving. I own a M6. Before buying it I rode the E29 and the Nomad. It feels a tad shorter indeed, but much less that the numbers suggest. It all comes down to how the bike suits you individually, and in the end the M6 suited me perfectly...it's awesomely capable and the suspension knematics works like a dream.

 when were you out at switchbacks?

 I had a good time at Switchbacks a few years back, but a similar disappointing experience in terms of the service not exactly as advertised. Talking to other bikers at the airport who did trips with other companies, there seem to be some better ones out there.

 I've been on the AM week 3 times and the DH week 4 times. Great, dusty, rocky trails, almost always sunny, cheap beer and tapas, good guides and clients, chilled mountain village life... Van shuttles mean AM has about 500m of up and 2000m down per day. DH has many shuttled runs on the doorstep, and you're staying in the coastal strip, which is more lively if you want that.

Potential negatives: the hire bikes are not in great condition (but Easyjet only charges £30 each way for your bike), the trails are demanding (sweet!), the accommodation can be basic (but who cares about that when you're just showering and sleeping there?). Mike is pretty relaxed (as well as a nice guy and fast rider) and plans can change at last minute but if your priority is great riding and good times then there is no problem.

 you mean kashima? Its a form of aluminum specific hard anodizing...the kashima formulation finishes very smooth, reducing friction.

 His response seemed fairly objective to me. He actually pretty much said keep the bike you have.

 Which is what makes a good answer even better.

 RC is best friends with most of the industry. He was there at the beginning making frames, then he became Editor of Mountain Bike Action. He made ALOT of friends along the way. But he has always been authentic.

 Yah, RC has his reviewer's quirks, but they're easy to learn and he's consistent in his preferences and opinions. Once you learn to read him his pieces are pretty insightful.