Mullet VS 29er | What's The Best Enduro Bike Set Up? | Mountain Bike Rider
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- Опубликовано: 25 авг 2024
- What’s the best wheel size for an enduro bike? We go in search of the answer with two almost identical INTENSE Tracers.
While the majority of bikes on the market are 29ers, brands are increasingly offering mullet configurations as an alternative. And while the early mixed wheel models were little more than frankenbike mash-ups, the bikes you can buy now are usually bespoke variants without compromises in geometry.
But why would you choose one? What are the pros and cons? And can you feel the differences on the trail? Armed with two of INTENSE’s latest enduro bikes, the Tracer 279 and Tracer 29, we set out to find some answers.
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All the fast pro Enduro racers have switched back to full 29er setups. That should tell you all you need to know for the question of what is faster.
Doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better though does it, unless you’re a pro racer where every second counts?
I thought they couldn't run that 27.5
These “tests” are so subjective but at least the constant should have been identical as in rear shock vs coil and different tires. Kind of negates the purpose.
the first thing that came to mind! was about to make the same coment...useless review
True, we could have equalised the tyres and maybe swapped the shocks, but with limited time (short winter days) we decided to keep the bikes stock.
@@MBRmagazine should have equalized tires and switch the shocks back and forth at least..would have made it a comparison instead of a review.. All the best, we live and we learn, production values are top notch
Keep at it
Great comparison test and honest opinions as always! Cheers!!!
Interesting. As a 5'10" rider that is ALWAYS squarely between a M and L size with EVERY manufacturer, this decision can be maddening. I ride a full 29 Ibis Ripmo AF, but sized down to a medium frame because the large just felt like a monster truck to me when I demoed both sizes last year. Given the choice, I definitely would've opted for a mullet option with my bike. Hind sight being 20/20, I should've bought a large frame instead of the medium and just dealt with the monster truck. My next bike will be a Mullet, and likely a large sized frame.
Great review again . Really honest as usual
Thanks!
Depends on your riding, I'm a mountain bike rider in the mountains, I don't do bike parks, full 29er for me in the mountains 😜
Great discussion :) It kind of just confirmed what most of us already expected but its nice to have it confirmed... and inform anyone that didn't already know this :)
Thanks!
Great vid..and the ending too
I am full 29 on my enduro bike. That Intense Tracer is sweet. Lot of guys ride that bike at Northstar my local bike park.
On ebike is called MX wheel. Mullet is for bikes that you mod to be 29/27.
If you look at a hill/climb and say "I'm gonna get you next time!" get a 29er. If you look at a feature/jump and say "I'm gonna get you next time!" get the mullet.
I would change the rearshock on the mullet to an air shock, my experience on VPP - whichever it is, air shock works better on most use case. Also change the rear tire to a wider tire. 2.6 and above - more contact patch, more traction.
I like running a slightly narrower rear tire, seems to handle better.
@@rickywoods3101 depends, in this case the 27.5 x 2.6 still has a narrower contact patch than a 29 x 2.4. Someone can correct me if I’m wrong. Plus you can run at lower psi so that the tire conform to the natural technical trail better - works well over slippery roots. For those manicured trails the narrower tire works better.
Before I watch it I’m hoping you’ll say Mullet as I’ve just built myself one!
Not an Enduro bike but a do anything trail bike.
Actually a good-looking Intense.
Mullet In the Woods . 29er Open Trails Or DH Racing all the Wins are 29ers . I Ride Woods So 27.5 CF Warden
Loic bruni mullet..!
I think it'd be more interesting if the rear centers/chainstays were more similar. Santa Cruz seems to be on the money that it doesn't make sense to shorten a rear center just cause it has a smaller wheel like how the Nomad actually has a longer rear than the Megatower as it is a slightly larger bike.
Thanks for the comment. Nomad rear centre is longer mostly because the front centres are longer - balance is the ultimate goal. Hence the proportional rear centres. Would have been interesting to put the 27.5in wheel in the 29er intense though. Or maybe it would have just muddied the waters!
@@MBRmagazine Nope, front centers between Megatower and Nomad are exactly the same, that can't be it. Same story for Commencal Meta AM (29er) and Meta SX (MX). So very interesting it seems to be, would be great if you could make a video on that ;)
Doh, misread Megatower as Hightower!
Why? The whole point of running a 27.5 rear is that you get more clearance and can have a shorter chainstay. Which makes sense for shorter riders opting for a 27.5 rear wheel on what is likely a smaller bike. No sense in having the same rear center numbers on a size S mullet bike as an XL full 29er.
@@jasper_of_puppets Short chainstays are only one variable what makes a bike agile. The very nature of having a 27.5 inch wheel makes it poppy and turn in easier even with long chainstays in my experience. I have a Bronson MX L (439 chainstay, 472 reach, 1249 wheelbase) and it is notably easier to tilt into turns than my recent gen Trek Top Fuel in M/L (435 chainstay, 465 reach, 1198 wheelbase). This test was about what makes a better enduro bike so it would have been nice to have that length isolated as a variable.
I have had both. If you're short maybe it makes sense but i like a full 29er way more than a mullet. I don't think a mullet does beter than a 29er for anything but a 29er does better than a mullet in lot if ways
Not maybe. It *definitely* makes sense for shorter riders to run a 27.5 in the rear. I'm 5'6"/168cm with a short inseam, so a 29 rear buzzes my ass nonstop. This affects my ability to get low on the bike for certain maneuvers and reduces how much travel I can use in my legs to absorb big hits.
27.5 bikes... mullet at a push, I'd rather take up another sport than buy a full 29, I hate them that much.
Alan-75, you are absolutely right. I don't like 29 wheels either. I was looking for a new bike for my wife, but unfortunately, in the current realities, it is almost impossible to buy a good, premium 27.5-inch bike. I don’t understand how engineers think and what they think when they bolt 29-inch wheels to the frame of a bike with size S (height 153 cm)! From the outside it looks like an 18th century cart. And besides, with such a small height, when driving, the tires spin near the ears. They are huge! Idiots. I choose only 27.5 for myself! The maximum is “Mullet”, and nothing more.
@@Come-Clarity Im 6ft 1 and tried a couple of 29 ers, I just didn't like them and was forever buzzing my arse wherever and whatever I was riding.. I got shot forwards towards the seat tube and crushed my nads twice in an hour, not something a bloke wants. NEVER getting a 29.
Nice Santa Cruz
*"DEcreasingly offering". Dudes, the market moved on 3 years ago.
This comparison is a little Of. This is a "bad " designed mullet(with reduced chainstay length. This shows old school thinking (smaller wheels enables shorter rear equals more fun but less speed....). DH Wolrdcup and to some extend Enduro showed that Mullets are faster if ridden fast enough in rough enough terrain when designed with properly long Chainstays(Mullets need even longer chainstais then 29ers because they need to oput more weight on the front tire(the rear one is smaller and cant handle(will loose traction) the same weight as a 29er). Then you have a bike with reduced inertia(lets the suspension work better ==>Better traction(the traction advantage of 29er rear wheels only exist at slow speeds and or less ondulating terrain).
Get your point but is also depends on what size you're riding. A medium mullet bike might have better weight balance than a medium 29er for example.
@@MBRmagazine im not sure if i get youre point.
offcourse a mullet can have a better ballance than a 29er and the other way around. But a mullet will suffer more from bad egineering goals linke the shortest chainstays possible then a 29er. Also bad designs tend to shorten the rear of Mullets(like intense did).
All i wnated to say is that we understand mullets now(its not the fun but slow bikes or for short people any more they are the speed machines in the long travel categories). But this only wokrs with long chainstays and thats the critical thing the intense is missig so its not good for a 29er to mullet comparison because it shows a modern ballanced 29er vs Mullet with flawed geo
I'm not sure you can make such a sweeping statement as 'mullet bikes only work with long chainstays'.
@@MBRmagazine its simple driving dynamics. Smaller wheels means less capacity to carry load while staying in the desired ground pressure for good grip. Therefore a mullet has to shift more weight to the front. You can do that via rider position(longer stem, lower stack.....) but this increses force tranfer by the arms(which is not desireable (most good riders drive through theyre hips (leg musles are stronger(leding to more endurance and faster posible changes(feeling more nible and dynamic)) also average rider profit from more leg driven riding style as they on average are much unfitter especially in the uper body.
So yes a good mullet should have long chain stays
Or you could just ride 29in wheels front and rear
27,5 front and 26 back?
or
29 front and 26 back?
29 fromt and 27.5 back
From today on any e-bike without MGU is stoneage technology!
Ha! Yes, it seems so!
who cares about the time, bike should be designed for fun
Nobody compares mullet to 27.5 though
Dead wheel size for enduro or any form of racing.
@@Pienimusta that may be, but I want to know if its worth it to upgrade to mullet, since Im changing my frame in the near future, I have the option to stay as is, or buy a new front wheel and fork lowers, quite a bit more expensive than just the frame swap, so wondering if the difference is worth it.
@@piciu256 I’ve just built myself a Mullet from a 27.5 so let me add my thoughts.
First the background
I use a ‘do it all’ trail bike for most my riding, I had a Whyte T129 which I really liked but wanted to change to things - it wasn’t quite playful enough and it was a little ‘big boned’ at just under 13kg. I bought a used Whyte T130C RS with the intention of Mulleting it (starting with a 27.5 the rear geo is already sorted and also I get the shorter 27.5 rear stays while keeping the suspension system I liked, plus Whyte use the same front triangle for 29ers so there will be no issues with the front wheel hitting the downtube which can occasionally happen).
Before stripping both bikes down to build up the Mullet I did a few rides on the 27.5, I liked the increased playfulness v my 29er but I didn’t like the reduced roll over and it just didn’t feel as stable as my old bike when pointing down fast but rough natural tracks and was knocked offline more easily.
I’ve now had it as a Mullet for 3 weeks and love it, it’s lost none of the playfulness of when it was a full 27.5 but it’s kept the high speed confidence and improved roll over of the 29, win win! And this 56yo just scooped a 9th fastest time on a Strava segment at the local bike park somehow which is just crazy. Long post but wanted to put my opinions in context as otherwise I think they don’t really answer your question.
Oh and it’s coming in over 1/2kg lighter, most admittedly from the carbon front triangle but about 230g from the smaller rear wheel and tyre.
TL:DR Just do it!