The new Fuel EX Gen 6 is no Remedy, and I'm a fool for thinking it would be.

PB Forum :: All Mountain, Enduro & Cross-Country
The new Fuel EX Gen 6 is no Remedy, and I'm a fool for thinking it would be.
Author Message
flag dhrider8051
Posted: Feb 24, 2023 at 17:57 Quote
You need the slash e-bike sounds like it.
flag Eganize
O+
Posted: Mar 15, 2023 at 10:52 Quote
My buddy has both the new Fuel EX AND the latest Remedy.

In my opinion, its ok to keep using an older bike. Sometimes we won't have that surefire 'replacement', and that is what makes some older bikes special. From 2019-present, its hard to find a bad bike that will steer you wrong. Geo has been tweeked maybe here and here (tbh, some older geo is better for certain stages than a slacked out new gen monster), and suspension layouts may have changed, but over all, a rider on a 2019 bike can absolutely crush another on a 2023.

What he is doing is accepting both bikes for what they are, and plans on building them both up for specific things.

The fuel will be his all out speed bike. He is changing the fork to 160 and will be using it for enduro races.
The Remedy he is planning on mulleting, and he will be using that for more bikepark/freeride days where things might get a little more jank.

Just figured I would share mine and my buddy's point of view.
flag tom666
FL
Posted: Mar 15, 2023 at 15:28 Quote
That was a fun read OP

I would do two things:

1) Try a volume spacer or two in the shock as Mike K said. Should add some ramp to get the most out of the travel. You shouldn't have 24% sag and still be bottoming out often - that doesn't sound right.

2) Get a 160mm fork to try out. Ideally try to borrow a 160mm 29er fork from somewhere, to see if you like it, before spending a tonne of money.

I personally would keep the 29 rear wheel.

I've run 140/160 29er for years and had a tonne of fun on it.

The extra 10mm of fork won't wreck the geo too much, particularly if you run closer to 30% sag on the fork and keep the rear at more like 25%

What I find with 140/160 on 29" is the front wheel has plenty of grip and capability and makes you feel in control. The rear wheel is a bit short of travel, but if you get a good firm shock setup you can get great support from the shock and good bottom out resistance. The thing that will suffer slightly on that firm setup is traction - but the 29" rear wheel will be good at kind of skipping over stuff and make the bike feel plenty capable still - particularly if you keep off the brakes and let the big wheels plow.

The higher front end with the 160 fork will also have the added benefit of making scarier situations feel a bit safer - so I think that would be a really good move.

The other thing is make sure you've got a sweet set of tires on there - if you've still got the Bontrager tires on there swap those out for some sweet Michelin Wild Enduros, Continental Kryptotals, Maxxis Assegai/MinionDHR combo etc in a soft compound and a decent weight casing.
flag nateisgrate
FL
Posted: Aug 25, 2023 at 20:58 Quote
Hey DustyTrails. Has your overall impression of this bike changed? I’m coming from a 160/160 (201Cool 27.5 YT Jeffsy and that bike can do everything and handle some pretty gnarly downhill. Was hoping this bike could replace it but I’m on the fence due to the lack of rear travel. Ideally I’d change the air spring out in the fork to 160mm but the 140mm of travel in the rear does make me wonder if I’ll yearn for more, despite the larger wheels. People have good things to say about the Switchblade which is 160/142 I believe.

I’d think I’d prefer a bike like the Sentinel (160/160) or the Stumpjumper evo (160/150). The Sentinel has got to be due for an update soon same with the Stumpjumper but the fuel ex being a recent bike is the reason I’m leaning that way. I’m also not a fan of the Stumpjumper and it’s yoke design and the side load it puts on shocks..
flag HeatedRotor
FL
Posted: Aug 25, 2023 at 21:12 Quote
i had a stumpy evo expert and a alloy sentinel v2.(sentinel is 150mm travel)
The sentinel has poor f/r balance - which enduro mtb did mention and was true.
Stumpy is a good bike but thats kinda where it stays, the poor shock tune with low progression isnt great so if your a harder rider then its always a trade off for suspension.

I had my doubts about the fuel, While the front does flex a bit due to the short headtube I would pick it over the SJEVO or Sentinel. The Rear wheel travel is surprising as it doesnt feel like 140 on the way down, feels like more - where as climbing is fantastic and feels like less travel.

The fuel is very well balanced in low, progressive and middle headtube setting.
flag tom666
FL
Posted: Aug 26, 2023 at 2:40 Quote
nateisgrate wrote:
Hey DustyTrails. Has your overall impression of this bike changed? I’m coming from a 160/160 (201Cool 27.5 YT Jeffsy and that bike can do everything and handle some pretty gnarly downhill. Was hoping this bike could replace it but I’m on the fence due to the lack of rear travel. Ideally I’d change the air spring out in the fork to 160mm but the 140mm of travel in the rear does make me wonder if I’ll yearn for more, despite the larger wheels. People have good things to say about the Switchblade which is 160/142 I believe.

I’d think I’d prefer a bike like the Sentinel (160/160) or the Stumpjumper evo (160/150). The Sentinel has got to be due for an update soon same with the Stumpjumper but the fuel ex being a recent bike is the reason I’m leaning that way. I’m also not a fan of the Stumpjumper and it’s yoke design and the side load it puts on shocks..

I think it depends where your priorities are

I spent a lot of time on a 140/160 29er and it's an awesome setup for doing a bit of everything, including shredding some uplift DH.

I would recommend setting the rear suspension up firmer so it's a business up front, party in the back situation. Front wheel will have the capability and the traction - rear wheel will just skip over a lot of the rough stuff and do it's best to keep up. Still plenty of support in there for big hits because you've set it up firm so it can resist the G-force and has travel to use for the big impacts. It's good fun.

But it has it's limits.

If you want to really push yourself on difficult DH trails (try lots of features you've never hit, particularly blind, and have the capability to go offline without big consequences) sometimes there is no replacement for having more travel. Overshooting or undershooting slightly on a big rig can be no big deal. Just try it again. On a shorter travel bike it's a crash.

140/160 29er will be fast on the downhills (big wheels like fast) and it should be possible to set it up pretty firm on the rear so it skips over a lot of the chatter, but the bike will need to be piloted precisely and kept on line. You won't have too much room for error when trying new stuff.

I would say it suits somebody who does mostly trail/AM and only occasionally wants to do stuff more extreme and they're quite a precise rider. It will pedal good and it will be capable and stable at speed.

If you consider yourself a bit of a hack and/or you spend a lot of time riding gravity I think you would be better served by a bigger bike that gives you more get out of jail free
flag foggnm
O+
Posted: Dec 26, 2023 at 9:15 Quote
I see your remedy is for sale so you must have adapted (:

I don't care what the mullet or 27.5 crowd says but a 29r has no downside especially at 140mm, especially for an adult male. There are tons of 140 to 160 bikes that are so good up and down. And anyone that does significant climbing to get to their descents will likely want a bigger wheel. Every time I tried a 27 bike or mullet, I always felt like the bike was slow. The place I most noticed it was going from the mullet Patrol to the Spire. I bested some of my UPHILL times on the Spire that I set on my trail bikes. And downhill there was just no comparison. But if you do want a small rear wheel something like an Ibis HD6 might be a better option based on your description.
flag ashwinearl
Posted: Mar 31, 2024 at 4:33 Quote
I just got a Small 29er gen 6 with 160mm fork and have 27.5 rear wheel to try mullet. Though I have never ridden a Remedy for comparison. I'm 5'4" so this will be an adventure

 


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