regarding spare hangers, can't see anything in the UK

Specialized GH-296 hanger can be used. A bit longer but works fine.

Any recommendations on changing stem length or bar width make the front end more stable? I'm reading conflicting things about stem length online, some sources say a shorter stem makes for quicker handling, some say it delivers more stable steering 

I've been riding for like two years on 760 riser handlebar with 35mm 0 degree stem. But after one race this season with pretty gnarly climbs on soft terrain I decided to try a classic xc setup. So I put -20 60mm stem with 720 handlebar with no rise and did some trail rides. Honestly at first it was a bit weird but then I realize bike became much more stable, weight balance between wheels became more even and of course climbing became a lot easier. The downsides are pretty obvious: bunny hops are harder to do, low speed drops are a bit trickier but manageble, shifter/dropper switch likes to contact with top tube. And no, it's still hard for me to do an overbars lol. May be I should put a bigger brakes on the front and bulk my finger:)

Overall, I'm kinda happy with this setup. I'll definitely try it in a mountains but I still don't think it's a good idea but in the name of science you know. May be I'll put some -17 or so stem just for eliminate the possibility of shifter vs top tube battle.

Bonus video from local trails:
https://youtu.be/WTrOAumvGJ8?si=wo5MpN8FNpeVKA02

What stem and bars did you go with?  They look great and sounds like they are performing well.  I just ordered fm936s for my sons and would like to mirror your setup!  Thanks!!

It's just a single one that I found locally not in 800mm width. Raceface Next 35 with Turbine R (it's just looks good for me). Pretty expensive but after a couple of crashes it's still alive so can recommend it. By the way it has a backsweep of 8 degrees so it may not be comfortable for everyone.

Since we are at it, what is this great looking rear mudguard ?

Sks Mudrocker. Ligher and softer than mudhugger so rattling occures often.

Meet another one red carbonda

Oh, I think I can share some experience and write some review already. May be it helps to someone.
Rode ~120 hours, ~1700km, through winter, week in mountains, ~10 xco/xcm races.

So I must say it's the most chill an forgiving bike that I have. It doesn't feel like a typical xc bike when you move yourself around all the time on tech sections and may be sometimes trying to survive. It's something like "hey boi relax and stay on pedals, I do the rest". And here is the caveat - now I ride tech section with greater speed and confidence so mistakes became "more expensive". Overall it's an xc bike that feels like older enduro in my opinion and I love it.

Little notes about setup and hardware:
1. 120mm on the front - just great. Feels like infinite amount of suspension. Actually I can't imagine this frame with 100mm on the front. Bb is quite low on my taste.
2. No remote locks. I decided to not take part in races this season so no need to lockouts I thought. But this season already the most race filled season I ever had  . And you know what? It turns out that remote lockouts not so required as I thought before.
3. 720 bar switched to 760 riser with 45mm stem. Just +100 to handling and confidence on descents with a little penalty on narrow sections. +10mm headset spacer for even better feeling, but it's no go for xc races for me.
4. SDG Tellis dropper - just piece of shite. Those cheaper brandx/tranzx much better.
5. Changed already 3 lower bearings on headset. It's just starting creacking and it becomes worse. I should try to trim fork crown may be.
6. Tried to run "dropperless" but it's sooooooo uncomfortable. Saddle being not in that position like on my previous xc bikes so it limits butt movements more than ever. Not a problem on learned race courses but I'm too lazy to swap seatposts.

Hey gang, I know this is a long & drawn-out topic - "which size?" - but I'm about to put my order in, and I'm right in between M & L sizing, depending on which set of numbers you run with.  Using just reach & stack (compared with my current 120 Norco Revolver setup), M should be pretty darn close. You can see in the geo comparison chart where the L 120 revolver & the M 936 match up pretty well in reach & stack. But based on my height, the NS sizing recommends a M, while the Vitus sizing suggests a large. Nothing's ever easy, is it?

Any thoughts or practical experience from the peanut gallery?

Edit: I should mention this will be running a 120 fork, with a crown to axle measurement of 526mm, so the front end will come up 20mm and the angles will slack by 1º.

So that is problem I faced too. According to raw geometry numbers size M (for my 187cm) should be okay as it very close to my Big Nine, but in reality it's completely different bike than your revolver or my big nine and size L feels not that big as on picture.

Actually the most noticable difference between Big Nine in size L and fm936 in L is slackest HTA. It feels like handlebars now completely useless, lol. However body position (on 120mm fork and 35mm stem) is more like on dirt bike with all the weight on pedals compared to "old geometry" cross country bike. Strange combo, need to get used to it.

Could someone recommend fork? Unfortunately I am far away from MTB to understand anything about it

RS/FOX. RS is cheaper, and I do not know if fox much better because it has 2x price
If RS, Do I need remote (for XC races)? I heard that Deluxe is fine for climbing without lock, but sidluxe is more DC shock that is why remote is necessary for uphill. Probably RT3 can solve it? What the f* is MegNeg? About SIDLuxe - not clear if trunnion has remote


My short list:

RockShox Deluxe RT3 Debon Air 165x42.5mm   268.9
RockShox SIDLuxe Ultimate RL Solo Air   285.71
RockShox Deluxe Ultimate RCT   286.9811939
Fox Suspension Float DPS Factory 3Pos-Adj SV   488.49
Fox Racing Shox Float DPS EVOL SV 3POS Factory Trunnion Rear Shock - 2022 Model   528.57
Fox Float DPS Kashima Factory Series 3Pos-Adj Trunnion Evol SV   569.5218394

Thank you,

Can't say about fox suspension simply because of lack of riding on it, but personnaly I choosing between sid ultimate 120mm and pike 120mm. Sid looks like ultimate xc fork but according to forum racers it has a lot of problems. On the other hand Pike is obviuosly weighted more and need some fine tuning for doing good on xc race, but it's pretty reliable and known already. Actually if you're pretty new in mtb you could take Reba 100m and sidluxe. Decent fork that is just works if correctly tuned.

Shocks:
1. Sidluxe - yes, I also couldn't find any trunnion sidluxe with remote and it seems like it doesn't exists at all
2. Any Deluxe - probably the most versatile option with settings and whistles, but may be it's overkill for such a short travel bike

Regarding to remotes - this is the very personal and depends of your climbing technics imho. My last full suspension didn't have any and I had no problem at all but someone can say opposite.

marriage

Those russians It's defect

Hi. I'm newbie XC racer and I want to buy IP-057 frame. Does anyone have race experience on that frames? I mean how hard it can be used without damages. It has pretty sweet price, but I worrying for my teeth, lol.