Before & After

[Carbon_Dude]

I'm sure I will build another Chiner of some sort in the future, but for now I am back on a couple branded bikes again.  I do miss having a bike that I hand selected each and every part but both of my new bikes work really well for the trails I ride.  After selling both my Chinese carbon bikes and getting decent deals on the two new bike, I have been able to minimize the expense buying of two new bikes.  The Trek Stache 7 was discounted 17% off MSRP, and the Specialized was discounted 31% off MSRP.

BEFORE: Chinese Carbon 29ers



AFTER: Specialized Carbon 27.5+ and Trek Stache 29+

[Carbon_Dude]

I posted my thoughts on my first ride on MTBR, thought I"d repost here:

Picked up the bike on Saturday, weather was stormy so I was forced to wait until Sunday to ride my local trails.

1) I really like the suspension. It works very well. On all surfaces, climbs, and descents, you can really feel that suspension working.  Grip is very good with the FS, the rear wheel stays in contact with the ground more so than my previous bikes.

2) Seating position is good, I'm 5'-11" and the bike fits me very well. I feel my CG is nice and low. Like my Trek Stache, the geometry makes me feel like I'm not riding on top of the bike, rather more a part of the bike.  I rode 16 miles and fatigue was minimal.

3) Bottom bracket height. This was my biggest concern when reading through this thread on MTBR. On my first ride I had 6 pedal strikes in the first 6 miles. However, the last 10 miles had no pedal strikes. Maybe I cleaned up my riding style and started paying more attention to where the roots and rock are. Compared to my Stache, I'm sure there is at least 1/2" less BB clearance, although I've not measured it yet.

4) Shifting of the GX drivetrain was flawless, I have been running XX1 and GX drivetrains on all my bikes since 1x11 came out. Still a nice system, I have no complaints about shifting. The 28T ring is a bit on the small side but it does help with climbing the steep hills we have here in North GA.

5) The Shimano Deore brakes are good. Not quite XT good but very close. Unlike the SRAM brakes that I quickly swapped out on my Stache, the Shimano brakes on the SJ6F are decent. Good enough for now anyway. Maybe the 203mm diameter front rotor helps make them at least feel strong.

6) Tires/Wheels. I'm sure the stock wheels and tires are on the heavier side. Probably would be my first upgrade would be to throw on a set of Chinese carbon wheels. However, they aren't bad. The tire choices are good, I like the Ground Control on the back, the Purgatory on the front is a pretty aggressive tire though. For my riding, I could do a GC at both ends or possibly switch to a set of Chupacabra's which are so far my favorite plus tire.

7) My only other complaint is the Specialized EMT tool doesn't come with the bike and it's like $45 to purchase it separately. Looks more like a $20 tool to me. Although I really like the idea of being able to tuck the tool up above the shock. I also like the SWAT compartment although I don't have anything in it yet.

  I am back to two bikes that I enjoy riding.  It's now a difficult choice as to which bike I take to the trail to ride on any given day.

[SportingGoods]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and these nice pictures. Pictures tell a lot. You can see that you moved from a pure XC ride to a real Trail/All-Mountain ride. I'm moving this way too. Started pure XC, then tweaked the XC bike for a more aggressive position and now I've reached the limit of my frame.
I'm convinced that a 27.5+ FS is what I need. I'm not ready though to do as you did and buy an off-the-shelf bike, as much as I love the 6Fattie! I love this prep time where you think about the design of the project, the excitement of receiving parts, the release of assembling these parts, the joy to ride a bike you have entirely put together.

But you are right, there is no 27.5+ FS Chiner bike today that is better then your StumpJumper!

By the way, which size have you picked? I'm 5'11" as well, I'd be interested to know which size I need

[Carbon_Dude]

I agree with you SportingGoods, I have gone from XC to more a trail oriented bike because the trails I ride can be fairly rough and rutted.  I've chosen fatter tires to get more grip in sand, mud, and gravel.  That's not to say that a really good rider on 2.3" tires couldn't do everything and go as fast as I can in the same conditions, it's just that I easily admit that I'm not that good of a rider (although I'm sure I am above average), and I like the confidence the extra grip allows.

My fatigue level was significantly reduced with the 29+ tires, and again possibly a little more with full suspension and plus tires (although I've only got two rides on the new bike).

There is a Chiner 29+ Hardtail frame that's pretty close to my Stache, I was very tempted to build up a bike but after running the numbers, I decided that it would cost me more to build a Chinese 29+ bike as I am sure I'd want to have carbon wheels along with all better components.  Which, for some would be fine but at the time $2,100 was a very good price and I just liked the way the Stache rides right off the showroom floor.

Similarly, for the Specialized SJ6F, it just rode well, however, there is no FS Chiner frame that I think measures up.  The price was really good, $3,100, for a bike with a carbon frame so I decided to jump on it and ride.

I did have a bit of trouble selling my Chinese Carbon bikes locally on Craiglist, everyone wanted to know what brand of bike it was, and when I said it's a custom carbon from from China, many people moved on because they didn't know anything about Chinese carbon frames.  However, given the high level of components, I still recouped about 50% of what I put into the bikes and rode them for 2-3 years.  I think that's not a terrible return, and the second owners got a great bike for much less than what they would spend at a bike shop for a similar model.