Commuting on roads on FS and HT

[Altop1]

Id pick hardtail less to go wrong .no bobbing from rear end and probably cheaper.

 

[GLJoe]

No
Because the power is on the down stroke obviously
This action is what compresses unlocked rear supension
The seat post compesssion doesn't happen on the down stroke it just supports you so you dont lose any of your power stroke with a suspension post

I don't follow your logic.
You sit on the (suspension)seat. It compresses slightly under your weight.
You press down on the pedal. This reduces the effective weight on the seat, so why wouldn't it 'bob' upwards on your down stroke?

 

[Gubbins]

I don't follow your logic.
You sit on the (suspension)seat. It compresses slightly under your weight.
You press down on the pedal. This reduces the effective weight on the seat, so why wouldn't it 'bob' upwards on your down stroke?

My thoughts exactly. Unlike modern suspension systems that are designed not to.

 

[Retyred1]

Hardtail all the way for me. I’ve always said if I’m still riding at 80 years of age I may look at a FS, but meanwhile the hardtail does all I want. Sometimes think owners believe they need the most expensive bike (which usually are FS) thinking that it’ll climb and perform better. The opposite normally happens.

 

[Trevormonty]

Maintenance aside, my biggest complaint about full suspension bikes, is pedal strike. Not something that I have once experienced on any of the three hardtails that I have owned, but have suffered with it on many an occasion on the full suspension bikes that I have either owned or ridden.

Judging by the amount of people looking for or have changed pedal crank length on full suspension bikes, I'm far from alone with that experience.

I had a very cautious ride yesterday evening on the Scott FS, trying to avoid pedal strike on a very familiar rock garden climb, that presents no problem at all on the hardtail. It made for a very careful climb, which still resulted in several strikes and several stops because of it.

This was the climb.

.

165mm cranks are on my shopping list, always hitting 175mm on rocks.

 

[Fat Rat]

I don't follow your logic.
You sit on the (suspension)seat. It compresses slightly under your weight.
You press down on the pedal. This reduces the effective weight on the seat, so why wouldn't it 'bob' upwards on your down stroke?

Your not pressing on the pedals with your arse you peddle with your feet via your leg muscles and your weight that’s why peddling hard you hardly have any weight on the saddle .

Ok look at it another way
Do you get suspension bob when standing on the pedals off the saddle while on a full sus ?
The answer is yes so ask yourself why!

Do you get any loss while on a hardtail standing up ?
Answer No

So what difference does a sprung saddle post make to efficient peddling on a hard tail
You press down on the pedals the saddle post extends slightly why is that taking effort away from your down stroke ?

It’s the bikes suspension that removes the effort at the cranks
Nothing else

 

[Fat Rat]

Find rough bridle track how see how your two ebikes go back to back.

Suspension isn’t everything
Rider skill more so
And high volume 3” tyres make a massive difference shaping there way over the ground

So a hard tail with a good rider and 3” high volume tyres
Or a full suspension bike
Theres bugger all in it and that’s from owning and riding both in high aggression situations
We’re all different thou and some people just don’t have the skill set for a hard tail

 

[Gubbins]

Suspension isn’t everything
Rider skill more so
And high volume 3” tyres make a massive difference shaping there way over the ground

So a hard tail with a good rider and 3” high volume tyres
Or a full suspension bike
Theres bugger all in it and that’s from owning and riding both in high aggression situations
We’re all different thou and some people just don’t have the skill set for a hard tail

Highly aggressive trail riding wasn't in the brief, although some of the roads around here are more like trails and can cause pedal strikes they are do deep!
In the OP's shoes I would want reasonable comfort, protection from wheel water spray and the ability to carry luggage.

 

[Fat Rat]

Highly aggressive trail riding wasn't in the brief, although some of the roads around here are more like trails and can cause pedal strikes they are do deep!
In the OP's shoes I would want reasonable comfort, protection from wheel water spray and the ability to carry luggage.

But rutted bridal ways is
There all aggressive terrain

You mentioned comfort I can’t deny that with a full sus over hard tail thou

 

[Gubbins]

But rutted bridal ways is
There all aggressive terrain

You mentioned comfort I can’t deny that with a full sus over hard tail thou

But rutted? Hmmmmf! How does one "But Rut" something. Dragging a huge arze behing a tractor perhaps? I bought mine dreaming i could do such things but I can't.

 

[Fat Rat]

But rutted? Hmmmmf! How does one "But Rut" something. Dragging a huge arze behing a tractor perhaps? I bought mine dreaming i could do such things but I can't.

If you want to go rutting I think your on the wrong site lol

 

[Gubbins]

Back to the job in hand.. one downside of using my bike on the road is the big steps in the gearing (11-42). Whilst really good off road, when on road my cruising speed is aroung 16 mph which gives me two gear options, one is a bit high (pedaling too slow) and the other is a bit low (pedaling too fast). Over 20 miles I am finding this mildly annoying, so is something to look at if buying for road use.

 

[Fat Rat]

Back to the job in hand.. one downside of using my bike on the road is the big steps in the gearing (11-42). Whilst really good off road, when on road my cruising speed is aroung 16 mph which gives me two gear options, one is a bit high (pedaling too slow) and the other is a bit low (pedaling too fast). Over 20 miles I am finding this mildly annoying, so is something to look at if buying for road use.

Are you running 11spd ?
My mate had annoying gaps like that on is 8spd ex1
It would have drove me dull on a road ride .

 

[Gubbins]

Couldn’t you just change your f

Are you running 11spd ?
My mate had annoying gaps like that on is 8spd ex1
It would have drove me dull on a road ride .

Yes it's 11speed 11-42, is doing what it's designed to do and it is what it is. An obvious change would be to go 11-36 but I also like the really low gears..

 

[Fat Rat]

Yes it's 11speed 11-42, is doing what it's designed to do and it is what it is. An obvious change would be to go 11-36 but I also like the really low gears..

I run 11-42 11spd to but don’t have the issue
Some cassettes have different ratios in the middle , maybe worth looking at that when it’s time for a refresh.

 

[Asboboy]

I have used both HT and FS for road riding..
HT .. Generally a bit lighter, may have mounting points for guards, rack and kickstand but I have jarred my back a few times when hitting a pothole I hadn't seen.
FS.. Generally a bit heavier, wont have any mounting points for guards etc but oh so much more comfortable and relaxing to ride on bumpy roads.
In my case I now have an FS bike and have been able to fit rudimentary guards, a rear rack and panniers and auto lights that come on when it gets dark but a kickstand hasn't been added as yet..
View attachment 25957 View attachment 25958 View attachment 25959 View attachment 25960

That is a cool bike !!

 

[anotherkiwi]

Back to the job in hand.. one downside of using my bike on the road is the big steps in the gearing (11-42). Whilst really good off road, when on road my cruising speed is aroung 16 mph which gives me two gear options, one is a bit high (pedaling too slow) and the other is a bit low (pedaling too fast). Over 20 miles I am finding this mildly annoying, so is something to look at if buying for road use.

http://www.bikecalc.com/ is your friend!

My problem is on the high end - I can't use 48:11! Can't get up to comfortable cadence and as I'm at about 50 km/h when I have the occasion to use it things tend to get a little messy... I have come to the conclusion that the ideal 8 speed cassette would be a 13-42, when I go to 10 speed I will definitely swap the 11 tooth for a 12 so 12,13,15,18 on the top end.

 

[Gubbins]

That is a cool bike !!

Cool but heavy..
Oh! You mean the scott, I had the supercharger on my mind and thought you meant that

 

[Gubbins]

http://www.bikecalc.com/ is your friend!

My problem is on the high end - I can't use 48:11! Can't get up to comfortable cadence and as I'm at about 50 km/h when I have the occasion to use it things tend to get a little messy... I have come to the conclusion that the ideal 8 speed cassette would be a 13-42, when I go to 10 speed I will definitely swap the 11 tooth for a 12 so 12,13,15,18 on the top end.

As they say there is more than one way to skin a cat..
I have tried changing the 17 up front for a 15 but it just moves the issue up or down the cassette. Another option would be the latest offering from the "ped" people who have developed a chip that allows you to set your own cuttoff wirh which I could move it up from 15.5 to 16.5 which would solve this problem without making me a danger to everyone else out there..

 

[soundwave]

10-50 +dongle = warp speed