# Mtb trends 2019



## mustang1 (13 Oct 2018)

Inspired by a (boring) video I saw rexentre on YouTube and thought I'd make it more interesting.

1. Experimenting with 30 inch wheels.
2. 850mm handlebars.
3. ....Extendable to 1 metre .
4. 300mm (also know as 30cm or 1 foot) suspension forks. 
5. Steeper seat tube angle (this one is actually real).
6. Re-introduction of larger front wheel !30 inch front, 20 inch rear, some bs about front end grip)
7. Single speed cassette, but with triple chainrings (some bs about low maintenance).
8. Top 67 mountain bikes as advertised by your favourite sponsorship magazine.
9. 5mm reduced fork trail (this is real and apparently makes a huge difference though I sniff more brown stuff).
10. I leave the rest to you.


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## fossyant (13 Oct 2018)

None of the above.


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## fossyant (13 Oct 2018)

I will ride.


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## SkipdiverJohn (13 Oct 2018)

The MTB industry is really losing the plot, IMHO. They are changing things just for the sake of change. What most riders actually use a MTB for is amply served by a 26" rigid with 22-23" wide bars. My MTB trend for 2019 is going to be comparing a rebuilt Reynolds 500 Dawes with my 501 framed Raleigh and gas pipe Apollo.


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## screenman (13 Oct 2018)

Great, I love changes and have no desire to live in the past.


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## Phaeton (13 Oct 2018)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> They are changing things just for the sake of change.


Isn't that the same for most things, if they didn't change stuff the uninitiated & vain wouldn't buy new stuff


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## screenman (13 Oct 2018)

Phaeton said:


> Isn't that the same for most things, if they didn't change stuff the uninitiated & vain wouldn't buy new stuff



Or even people that just fancied a change.


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## Kajjal (13 Oct 2018)

It’s always interesting once you get past the marketing bs and change for the sake of change what is actually useful. My 1996 orange hard tail is fine going up and down mountains but my camber is faster, more comfortable and handles better. 

The main thing is get out there and ride


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## screenman (13 Oct 2018)

Kajjal said:


> It’s always interesting once you get past the marketing bs and change for the sake of change what is actually useful. My 1996 orange hard tail is fine going up and down mountains but my camber is faster, more comfortable and handles better.
> 
> The main thing is get out there and ride



Go back to 1996 and people would have been writing the same.


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## SkipdiverJohn (13 Oct 2018)

What we are now seeing is an extreme form of niche segmentaton, and many of the current style of MTB is not optimal for what the typical MTB owner will ever use it for. Some of it is getting silly, I mean who needs handlebars that are so wide you can't walk through your front door with the bike? They're more extreme than the cowhorn bars teenage kids used to fit on their DIY-built Tracker bikes in the 70's and 80's!


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## Drago (13 Oct 2018)

Manufacturers desperately trying to identify or create the next trend so they can get ahead of the curve and cash in. Of course, very few innovations prove to be genuinely beneficial, so they try pretty much anything in the hope that something will take. Typewriters and monkeys.


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## screenman (13 Oct 2018)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> What we are now seeing is an extreme form of niche segmentaton, and many of the current style of MTB is not optimal for what the typical MTB owner will ever use it for. Some of it is getting silly, I mean who needs handlebars that are so wide you can't walk through your front door with the bike? They're more extreme than the cowhorn bars teenage kids used to fit on their DIY-built Tracker bikes in the 70's and 80's!



The front door on the building I keep my bikes in is 16ft wide and goes up at the press of a button. My front door is also wide enough for the bars, not that I would ever bring a bike into the house. Maybe they are a niche bike for a niche market.


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## sheddy (13 Oct 2018)

photo of your 16ft wife pleaaase


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## SkipdiverJohn (14 Oct 2018)

Drago said:


> Typewriters and monkeys.



I used to hate having to read Shakespeare in my English Lit classes!


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## Levo-Lon (15 Oct 2018)

I feel i need to buy this..
And sell my Bordman team bike.
So if anyone would like to buy my Bordy,let me know

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CBHOL...lan-sram-apex-1-flat-bar-disc-urban-road-bike


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## Threevok (15 Oct 2018)

I have 800mm wide bars on the Single Speed. Any more than that and I think by chin will be resting on the stem


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## Drago (15 Oct 2018)

I'm a big geezer, and the points of my shoulders are only 550mm apart (I'm very sad and just measured this. Give another 20mm each side to allow comfortable elbow clearance, and that's 590mm. Any more than that and may hands would start to splay apart and biomechanically speaking I'd become less efficient. If a broad 6'4" geezer doesn't measure up to 800mm bars, then Threevok must be Robert Pershing Wadlow!


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## Threevok (15 Oct 2018)

Drago said:


> I'm a big geezer, and the points of my shoulders are only 550mm apart (I'm very sad and just measured this. Give another 20mm each side to allow comfortable elbow clearance, and that's 590mm. Any more than that and may hands would start to splay apart and biomechanically speaking I'd become less efficient. If a broad 6'4" geezer doesn't measure up to 800mm bars, then Threevok must be Robert Pershing Wadlow!



My shoulders are 600mm + 

I am 6ft 2in but my arms are quite long.

Running a 50mm stem too on the SS

I like a bit of bend in the elbow when it comes to MTB - especially through the gnarlier stuff. I like to get a bit closer to the front end too - especially on climbs

The bars on the Inbred are cut down to 760mm though, as I tend to do a lot more commuting and long distance on this bike


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## Phaeton (15 Oct 2018)

I fear we're moving away from the future by being ensconce in the past, but with 500mm shoulders, are you both saying I should have bars wider than 600mm, going out now to brave the torrential rain, but I'm sure mine are far wider than that. I wonder if that is what is causing my instability at low speeds?

Edit:- Used Google instead of getting wet, apparently currently they are 700mm, so would it help to loose 100mm either by hacksaw or new bars?


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## Levo-Lon (15 Oct 2018)

I have very broad shoulders despite wearing medium large clothing.
I think its due to carrying every fecker all my working life

I run 720mm with a 50 mm stem on most mtb bikes though i like 760 with a 35mm stem.
My boardman commuting bike is custom cut to 640mm


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## marzjennings (15 Oct 2018)

I think I found the next thing in mtbing...







...bars aren't wide enough though.


link to 3d artists site .... https://www.artstation.com/artwork/dOJ4W1


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## SkipdiverJohn (16 Oct 2018)

Strangest looking Holdsworth I've ever seen! Still, at least it's steel, and double-butted at that.


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## screenman (16 Oct 2018)

Phaeton said:


> I fear we're moving away from the future by being ensconce in the past, but with 500mm shoulders, are you both saying I should have bars wider than 600mm, going out now to brave the torrential rain, but I'm sure mine are far wider than that. I wonder if that is what is causing my instability at low speeds?
> 
> Edit:- Used Google instead of getting wet, apparently currently they are 700mm, so would it help to loose 100mm either by hacksaw or new bars?



Surely that is the point of bikes being supplied with wide bars, easier to cut a bit off to suit rather than try and glue a bit on.


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## screenman (16 Oct 2018)

marzjennings said:


> I think I found the next thing in mtbing...
> 
> View attachment 434198
> 
> ...



That is an awesome toy, love to have ride on it.


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## Phaeton (16 Oct 2018)

screenman said:


> Surely that is the point of bikes being supplied with wide bars, easier to cut a bit off to suit rather than try and glue a bit on.


TBH I've never considered it, I have rode with what came with the bike, I did sort of think they were a bit wide, especially after using the son's Kona when mine was in for warranty work. Bit loath to cut them, might look around for a narrow set/pair. Pair sounds correct but as there is only one it can't be?


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## screenman (16 Oct 2018)

Phaeton said:


> TBH I've never considered it, I have rode with what came with the bike, I did sort of think they were a bit wide, especially after using the son's Kona when mine was in for warranty work. Bit loath to cut them, might look around for a narrow set/pair. Pair sounds correct but as there is only one it can't be?



Odd how we all think different, I always assumed cutting down was taken for granted. So easy to do, takes about 10 minutes in total.


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## SkipdiverJohn (16 Oct 2018)

screenman said:


> Surely that is the point of bikes being supplied with wide bars, easier to cut a bit off to suit rather than try and glue a bit on.



I believe that bikes are being supplied with wide bars these days purely for fashion and no other reason. Just another fad to try to sell more product to people who already have perfectly serviceable bikes. They don't wear out fast enough, so the strategy is to hoodwink riders into believing that these various gimmicks are really essential improvements. 99% BS, 1% benefit, as always with anything involving marketing.


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## screenman (16 Oct 2018)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> I believe that bikes are being supplied with wide bars these days purely for fashion and no other reason. Just another fad to try to sell more product to people who already have perfectly serviceable bikes. They don't wear out fast enough, so the strategy is to hoodwink riders into believing that these various gimmicks are really essential improvements. 99% BS, 1% benefit, as always with anything involving marketing.



I disagree.


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## Jenkins (16 Oct 2018)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> I believe that bikes are being supplied with wide bars these days purely for fashion and no other reason. Just another fad to try to sell more product to people who already have perfectly serviceable bikes. They don't wear out fast enough, so the strategy is to hoodwink riders into believing that these various gimmicks are really essential improvements. 99% BS, 1% benefit, as always with anything involving marketing.


My Voodoo Bizango was supplied with 720mm wide bars and (apart from the grips) I find them really comfortable - I'm half tempted to add bar ends as wel!


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## Levo-Lon (16 Oct 2018)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> I believe that bikes are being supplied with wide bars these days purely for fashion and no other reason. Just another fad to try to sell more product to people who already have perfectly serviceable bikes. They don't wear out fast enough, so the strategy is to hoodwink riders into believing that these various gimmicks are really essential improvements. 99% BS, 1% benefit, as always with anything involving marketing.




You might struggle to convince anyone who actually goes fast downhill with jumps sharp twists and turns.

As said before ,enjoy living in the past John, modern mtbs are about position over the bars and front end, not pushing back over the rear wheel at full stretch..


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## SkipdiverJohn (16 Oct 2018)

meta lon said:


> You might struggle to convince anyone who actually goes fast downhill with jumps sharp twists and turns..



You're no doubt correct about high speed descents, but let's be honest 99% of MTB's aren't actually used for anything approaching extreme terrain. The vast majority of riders who buy an MTB simply want a robust, comfortable bike that can cope with badly potholed tarmac, roadside debris, and the odd bumpy unsurfaced byway. They are not remotely interested in racing over rough ground as fast as possible. You don't need super-wide bars for utility use, just wheels that won't buckle easily when ridden over kerbs, and tyres that won't burst if you hit a flytipped housebrick or similar obstacle frequently encountered littered all over on quiet industrial estate roads and the underpass routes crossing major road junctions.


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## screenman (16 Oct 2018)

John maybe people just enjoy buying new things. No pockets in shrouds and all that stuff.


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## SkipdiverJohn (16 Oct 2018)

screenman said:


> John maybe people just enjoy buying new things.



So does buying shiny new stuff actually give you more pleasure than simply using your existing old stuff? I've never seen why some people get so excited about retail therapy. To me, it's just wasted time I would rather spend doing something else.


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## screenman (16 Oct 2018)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> So does buying shiny new stuff actually give you more pleasure than simply using your existing old stuff? I've never seen why some people get so excited about retail therapy. To me, it's just wasted time I would rather spend doing something else.



Fine that is your way, to me it seems very odd as I enjoy a bit of retail and so does my better half.


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## FishFright (16 Oct 2018)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> So does buying shiny new stuff actually give you more pleasure than simply using your existing old stuff? I've never seen why some people get so excited about retail therapy. To me, it's just wasted time I would rather spend doing something else.



So all the stuff you 'acquire' is magically created second hand by special fairies at the back of the tip ?


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## Drago (16 Oct 2018)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> So does buying shiny new stuff actually give you more pleasure than simply using your existing old stuff? I've never seen why some people get so excited about retail therapy. To me, it's just wasted time I would rather spend doing something else.



I like shiny new stuff, although I've never been too avaricious. However, the choice was retire just shy of 48, or carry on working into my old age to pay for lots of unnecessary new stuff - I chose the life of laziness. 

Nevertheless, others might choose lots of new stuff and be happy to work into their 60s to pay for it, and that's cool with me if it suits them. Don't do me no harm, like.


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## Bodhbh (16 Oct 2018)

SkipdiverJohn said:


> You're no doubt correct about high speed descents, but let's be honest 99% of MTB's aren't actually used for anything approaching extreme terrain. The vast majority of riders who buy an MTB simply want a robust, comfortable bike that can cope with badly potholed tarmac, roadside debris, and the odd bumpy unsurfaced byway. They are not remotely interested in racing over rough ground as fast as possible. You don't need super-wide bars for utility use, just wheels that won't buckle easily when ridden over kerbs, and tyres that won't burst if you hit a flytipped housebrick or similar obstacle frequently encountered littered all over on quiet industrial estate roads and the underpass routes crossing major road junctions.



Sounds to me a bit like terms are being mixed up. To me you are describing a general purpose utility bike, which doesn't need wide bars, fat tyres, suspension, etc. But to me, a MTB isn't that, it's a toy to ride over rough ground you have no practical need of cycling over other than the pure joy of doing so. In which case, it can be setup anyway the owner sees fit as long as they get a rise out of it.


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## ChrisEyles (17 Oct 2018)

@SkipdiverJohn I do agree with your sentiments for the most... but some of the new innovations are actually really good! For example, it half killed me to drop £70 on a dropper post for my MTB (I'd normally expect to buy a whole bike for that much on ebay), but it's added hugely to my confidence and ability on the bike, and despite the addmitted slight extravagance, I don't regret it. Ditto wider bars and shorter stem (I'm at 720mm and 80mm respectively so conservative by modern standards, but I find it a lot more capable than the old 600mm/120mm standard). 

Have you had a go on a modern-ish MTB on some rougher trails? If you enjoy off-roading and haven't, I'd definitely give it a go. It'll feel really weird at first coming from a 90s set-up, but I reckon you'd enjoy it, and it'll give you an idea what all the fuss is about. I can happily clear steep downhills, drops etc on my modern-ish (2010) MTB that I would be very scared to attempt on my 90s one, which can be a lot of fun. 

2019 trends..... all I ever seem to find online is "longer lower slacker" and a load of stuff about thicker wheel axles that I can't be bothered to read. Or is that all old hat now?


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## Drago (17 Oct 2018)

Whereas I'm rather tall and long legged and as a trainer have proper technique, and found a dropper post to be of no benefit. One man's meat is another man's Brussels sprouts.


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