I have 3 hardtails, two of them Eskers (Smokey steel and Hayduke Ti). I also have a full suspension bike, Canyon Spectral 125. I like your point about rider weight and how a frame feels. It makes a lot of sense that a lighter rider would have a stiffer feel on a hardtail and to where a heavier rider would have a softer feel. Excellent points!
I have both a hardtail and a full squish, I love and ride them both. In fact I had 2 hardtails at one point and both were titanium, one of them was the Stanton Sherpa Ti+ I bought from Steve. After building it up and riding that and my other Ti hardtail I decided to sell my other one and kept the Sherpa. Where I am in the east coast (NJ) we have places where you need a full squish but there are also plenty of places where a hardtail is just more fun for me.
Do not have a current hard tail. Last hard tail was the Pipedream Cycles Sirius S5 I purchased through Steve @ Hardtail Party (you may know him). Sold that bike to make room for the titanium Sirius S6 which is on order! Will be ridden exclusively as a SS.
I have a hardtail (Salsa Timberjack) and a full sus (Transition patrol), I prefer my Timberjack. I stick mainly to blue trails and since it is lighter I just have more fun on my Timberjack.
Great video. 28lbs seems heavy for a Ti hardtail with such great wheels but that's OK. It's not about the weight, it's about the joy any bike brings to its owner. Bottom line is having fun on what ever bike you are riding. Yes. I have a Ti hardtail. It's a Turner Nitrous that comes in at 23.5lbs. And then yes, I also ride FS bikes. A Turner RFX at 28lbs and a Turner Flux at 26lbs. All are fun no matter what kind of trails I am riding.
Yeah, it all depends on how you build it up. I used a pretty light wheel set on it, but the rest of the parts I used were not really curated with lightweight in mind. It could definitely be done lighter though!
@@dustybettymtb I have to say that comment about the weight certainly wasn't a judgmental comment. It still comes down to every one's bike is their personal build based on a lot of factors. It all comes down to how much fun you have with your bike.
I have a Marin San Quentin 27.5 hardtail I ride here in Prescott and it's fun. It's aluminum so not light and it's a large. It's working good but I'm beating it up on really rocky stuff. The geometry is low and slack but I do uphill just fine, hard work.
Yeah, it's interesting. I kind of wonder if the ride quality on the San Quentin is actually a plus on climbs, even though it's a little rough on the high-speed chunder.
It really depends on the carbon model. Just to give you an example, the DV9 V1 rode very stiff for me. It rattled me so hard, My molars hurt. DV9 completely different ride. It was the most buttery smooth Hardtail I've been on. So it depends on the carbon model you compare to. Hope that helps!
Which year is your Japhy? I really like how my steel Japhy(2024) handles, even in the medium chaninstay. I remember Steve mentioned that the steel rides a bit less stiff than the ti. I'd be curious to see a comparison of both if you could.
Honestly I don’t mind head tube angle. The pros were riding hard core with steep head tube angle and they were wining races. Let’s not get too hung up on geometry. Just ride! Also, I want to mention I had this conversation with a road rider and he had on his rod bike disk brakes. I asked what is the average speed and to my surprise his average speed was 10 mph. I average around 20-23 miles now retired and I am still riding rim brakes on my pinarello. The same applies to mountain biking. You don’t need the latest and greatest to ride to my opinion.
It's true. I totally get where you're coming from .You don't always need the latest greatest newest geometry and tech to make bikes fun. But that doesn't mean people can't enjoy experimenting with different geometry and bikes that are designed with different strengths. I try not to attach morality to it when someone gets a new car even if the old one still worked, and I think we should give people a little space to try out new bikes too if they enjoy it. Happy trails!
Excellent breakdown of an incredible hardtail. What a beautiful build, it's fun to see you push this bike and ride it so much.
You made that bike magic for me🥰😘
I have an Evil Following and a Santa Cruz Chameleon gen 8 love both of them.
I have 3 hardtails, two of them Eskers (Smokey steel and Hayduke Ti). I also have a full suspension bike, Canyon Spectral 125. I like your point about rider weight and how a frame feels. It makes a lot of sense that a lighter rider would have a stiffer feel on a hardtail and to where a heavier rider would have a softer feel. Excellent points!
That! The Hayduke looks really interesting. I've got a pedal one sometime just to see what it feels like!
@@dustybettymtb It's a bit quicker handling than the Japhy. Aside from that it feels very similar.
Just a hardtail here thanks to Steve (2020 Santa Cruz Chameleon 27.5+). Love it! Thanks for the review.
It's hard to go wrong with a good chameleon. 👏🏼
Glad I'm not the only one who feels that way about that Rupp climb.
Ha ha, it's a shared misery 💪🏼
I have both a hardtail and a full squish, I love and ride them both. In fact I had 2 hardtails at one point and both were titanium, one of them was the Stanton Sherpa Ti+ I bought from Steve. After building it up and riding that and my other Ti hardtail I decided to sell my other one and kept the Sherpa. Where I am in the east coast (NJ) we have places where you need a full squish but there are also plenty of places where a hardtail is just more fun for me.
It's so nice to have one of each!
853 steel spot rocker- love this hardtail. Sold my FS. Hardtail party!
The rocker is such a fun bike!
Just a harrdtail, thanks to Steve. That guy showed the world hardtails are wroks of art.
There is a whole lot of Minnesota on that bike...😃
I’m in the process of building a Yeti Arc. Light weight, more xc leaning. Full sus is a Yeti sb130.
* chef's kiss👌🏼
Do not have a current hard tail. Last hard tail was the Pipedream Cycles Sirius S5 I purchased through Steve @ Hardtail Party (you may know him). Sold that bike to make room for the titanium Sirius S6 which is on order! Will be ridden exclusively as a SS.
Yes, single speed! Very tasteful set up for that bike. That, Steve--accentric but kind of cute!
I have a hardtail (Salsa Timberjack) and a full sus (Transition patrol), I prefer my Timberjack. I stick mainly to blue trails and since it is lighter I just have more fun on my Timberjack.
The timber Jack is a great solid staple. Hardtails are so fun! There are times when I do reach for my full suspension, but I love a good hardtail!
Great video. 28lbs seems heavy for a Ti hardtail with such great wheels but that's OK. It's not about the weight, it's about the joy any bike brings to its owner. Bottom line is having fun on what ever bike you are riding.
Yes. I have a Ti hardtail. It's a Turner Nitrous that comes in at 23.5lbs. And then yes, I also ride FS bikes. A Turner RFX at 28lbs and a Turner Flux at 26lbs. All are fun no matter what kind of trails I am riding.
Yeah, it all depends on how you build it up. I used a pretty light wheel set on it, but the rest of the parts I used were not really curated with lightweight in mind. It could definitely be done lighter though!
@@dustybettymtb I have to say that comment about the weight certainly wasn't a judgmental comment. It still comes down to every one's bike is their personal build based on a lot of factors. It all comes down to how much fun you have with your bike.
I have a Marin San Quentin 27.5 hardtail I ride here in Prescott and it's fun. It's aluminum so not light and it's a large. It's working good but I'm beating it up on really rocky stuff. The geometry is low and slack but I do uphill just fine, hard work.
Yeah, it's interesting. I kind of wonder if the ride quality on the San Quentin is actually a plus on climbs, even though it's a little rough on the high-speed chunder.
Awesome!
Titanium is great!
How does the feel of the ride compare to Carbon?
It really depends on the carbon model. Just to give you an example, the DV9 V1 rode very stiff for me. It rattled me so hard, My molars hurt. DV9 completely different ride. It was the most buttery smooth Hardtail I've been on. So it depends on the carbon model you compare to. Hope that helps!
Which year is your Japhy? I really like how my steel Japhy(2024) handles, even in the medium chaninstay. I remember Steve mentioned that the steel rides a bit less stiff than the ti. I'd be curious to see a comparison of both if you could.
That's a great point. I haven't had the chance to ride the steel one yet myself, but it would be interesting to see.
Honestly I don’t mind head tube angle. The pros were riding hard core with steep head tube angle and they were wining races. Let’s not get too hung up on geometry. Just ride! Also, I want to mention I had this conversation with a road rider and he had on his rod bike disk brakes. I asked what is the average speed and to my surprise his average speed was 10 mph. I average around 20-23 miles now retired and I am still riding rim brakes on my pinarello. The same applies to mountain biking. You don’t need the latest and greatest to ride to my opinion.
It's true. I totally get where you're coming from .You don't always need the latest greatest newest geometry and tech to make bikes fun. But that doesn't mean people can't enjoy experimenting with different geometry and bikes that are designed with different strengths. I try not to attach morality to it when someone gets a new car even if the old one still worked, and I think we should give people a little space to try out new bikes too if they enjoy it. Happy trails!
I copied your wheel built. S35 Carbon, Berd, and Vesper 👌.
*chef's kiss