basic-ti-hardtail

Now that R&D spending has shifted heavily to E-bikes and development of good trail bikes has slowed, I don’t mind waiting for a model year with a color I like. I know I’ll probably keep that bike longer, so might as well love it. Especially with more uniformity in style… Horst link or flex stay… a color and lines I like with some nice custom parts is about the most I look for. Or I build my own.

Bambu P1S or P2S - I run both in a digital fabrication lab that art and engineering students use. Highly recommend. If you prefer to support a European company, the Prusa Core 1 is excellent as well.

Heck yeah! I’d love to see bike makers provide files for their specific frames, including (where applicable) support blocks. Perhaps you could strike a partnership with willing brands. I had this same idea back in September and figured it would only be a matter of time.before someone made it reality > thank you!!

@wavewaden: That differs from my experience. I have one on a custom hardtail I built and I quite like it. In the past few years I’ve put significant time on a 34, 36 Grip 2, and Lyric Ultimate. The Lyric is the sleeper of the bunch- quiet, composed, and predictable. But the 36SL Factory has been everything I was hoping it would be - stiffer than a 34 without being heavier, stays higher in its travel and soaks up the small and large hits nicely. The wheezy / zipper noise is noticeable, but that’s really my only gripe with it. Do you think you just got a bad one - or have you ridden a few of them?

I’m surprised they didn’t do a flip chip to also replace the 5010 and get 2 bikes in one. Seems strange to make claims about 4-bar being better for this travel range while you still have a VPP bike with the same travel in the lineup. With a set of 1500g wheels and XTR 11 speed this bike would easily come in under 28lbs. I’m surprised not to see a 36SL build option but I guess SC has to SRAM… even the XT build gets Motive brakes. I wonder if we’ll see a Specialized that’s basically this same bike in month or so?

This brings back fond memories of my Tallboy V4... also a great bike. I ran a Fox 36 Grip2 at 140mm which suited the bike well. I had the same slammed forward saddle... Hopefully V6 finally solves the actual STA issue and keeps what's already great about this bike. I'm on a Revel Rascal SL now, which feels just a bit more refined but retains much of the character I loved about the Tallboy. I do miss the water bottle placement of the Tallboy - that lower link VPP is really well packaged. I'd love to try those wheels.

@cassinonorth: Oh, is that the issue? Hmmm. A specialized that doesn’t offer the Chisel FS is not a company I want to support. To me the Chisel represented a big brand putting R&D and big brand resources towards building a bike that could support NICA racers, new riders, and seasoned riders alike at a decent price. Rant expanded: I guess this should not be surprising. I think the default mode for Specialized is to slap on proprietary parts and charge too much. I guess I just got spoiled by a good 6 year run with the Stumpy ST, Stumpy Evo and Evo alloy, Chisel FS, Epic Evo 7 (which I own) and Epic Evo 8. Have they killed the Crux DSW too? For a while, somebody around there was designing a lot of damn good bikes. Sigh… at least they’re a fun company to hate 😂

I would be very surprised if we don't see something else new from Specialized soon in the 130 range. Folks who bought the Evo (like myself, still enjoying the Evo 7) are not the same folks who want headset cable routing and a base price of $7.5k USD. Nor do we want to be limited so drastically on aftermarket shocks. There's room in the lineup for a really excellent new bike - either a Stumpy ST or perhaps they'll bring back the Camber? Here's hoping we get something like that. The other possibility is they keep selling the Evo 8 at markdown prices to get through this year... which is probably a pretty solid strategy.

Can I get a ‘neutral as pond water’ option for e-bikes? I don’t hate pond water. Plenty of people like swimming in pond water, and that’s ok. Given the choice to swim in a pond or not swim at all, I might jump in the pond. Is a pond my preferred place to swim? No thank you.

Just came here to say that the PB Podcast is by far my favorite things PB produces, followed by funny ‘project’ videos like Dario’s Kona and some of the longer-form product reviews. I don’t work in a bike shop anymore, but listening to the Pod feels like my favorite part of being in a good shop. Honest takes on products, and discussion about what people actually excited about. (Or unimpressed by) Scrolling the ‘feed’ it can feel like $15k e-bikes and $2k drivetrains dominate the landscape. Thanks for creating a place where us weirdos who still prefer to pedal our bikes and shift our gears [without electronics] feel like we still have a place. My first thought with that Levo Rally was… hey, there’s the Stumpjumper ST I’ve been waiting for… but with a motor. I remember when Enduro bikes were always at the cutting edge, and trail bikes would get updated later in the cycle. Now it’s e-bikes - then long travel - then eventually the trail bikes I get excited about. Glad to hear this will be a good year for those!