# Fat Bikes



## Cannonball (Jan 5, 2016)

The more this season progresses the more I'm looking for a fat bike to take the sting out of bad ski conditions.  Anybody been getting out?  Any top recommendations for a bike in $1.5K range?


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## mlctvt (Jan 5, 2016)

I've been riding my new fat bike 2-3 days per week since November. I'd rather ride than ski a WROD during the holidays.  I'm very happy with my BikesDirect Night Train Bullet with Bluto fork. It was on sale for $1599 a couple of months ago but I think it's $1799 shipped now. You can get it without the Bluto for $1399. I got the Bluto because this will be my only mountain bike but if you will only be riding in snow I'd go without it. I've replaced the saddle, seat post and handlebars and converted to tubeless. It's still heavy at 33lbs. 
Good discussion on the BikesDirect Night Train at MTBR.
You just missed the incredible Surly fat bike sale but Specialized is currently discounting their fat bikes. Altrec also has great prices on the Framed fat bikes link


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## Cannonball (Jan 6, 2016)

Framed Minnesota 3.0 XWT w/Bluto en route to my door!


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## mlctvt (Jan 6, 2016)

Great bike at an incredible price, you'll love it! 
If I hadn't already bought the Night Train that's the exact bike I would have ordered.
Have fun.

If you don't already have them buy a low pressure tire gauge and a fork pump. It's amazing how just a couple of pounds of tire pressure makes a big difference in how the bike rides & handles.


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## Cannonball (Jan 6, 2016)

Thanks!


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## BackLoafRiver (Jan 6, 2016)

That price is silly.

I've been scouring Craigslist lately looking to pick one up on the cheap. It'd be fun to have to tool around on and the general consensus is that it still rules, even in the summer. A back-up bike is great and to have one that plays well in the snow makes a lot of sense.

Post up some thoughts when you take her out.


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## WoodCore (Jan 6, 2016)

Cannonball said:


> Framed Minnesota 3.0 XWT w/Bluto en route to my door!



Love my Minnesota 2.0!


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## Cannonball (Jan 6, 2016)

BackLoafRiver said:


> That price is silly.



Silly good I hope?


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## BackLoafRiver (Feb 1, 2016)

Bump.

How do you like it?  In the Bike Log Thread, I noticed the rigid fork. Did you opt out of the Bluto?

I still haven't pulled the trigger but it is getting awfully close.


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## Cannonball (Feb 1, 2016)

BackLoafRiver said:


> Bump.
> 
> How do you like it?  In the Bike Log Thread, I noticed the rigid fork. Did you opt out of the Bluto?
> 
> I still haven't pulled the trigger but it is getting awfully close.



Loving it!  I have the Bluto but haven't installed it yet.  I want to ride it rigid for a while to get a feel for how I want to set it up once I do install it. (plus I haven't had time). 

It's such a fun ride.  What a blast coming downhill through a few inches of snow!  Even blasting through snowbanks is fun.


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## BackLoafRiver (Feb 10, 2016)

So, the question is, how much fatbike do I need?

Bean's has 2 Scott models I am seriously considering; the Big John and the Big Ed.

The Ed comes tubeless ready, has an X9 rear and X7 front, Shimano hydraulic disc, and a host of other stuff. (Bluto with a remote lockout)

It's a bit expensive but, with 15% off and a bunch of gift cards, I can get it down a bunch.

The John has LX rear, Deore front, hydraulic disc, rigid fork, non tubeless.  It's also $500 cheaper. (but a Bluto alone is almost $600)


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## mlctvt (Feb 11, 2016)

BackLoafRiver said:


> So, the question is, how much fatbike do I need?
> 
> Bean's has 2 Scott models I am seriously considering; the Big John and the Big Ed.
> 
> ...



If it's only $500 I'd get the Bluto version. You really don't need the Bluto for riding only in snow but for frozen rutted trails which are common here in New England, it really smooths things out. It will be much less tiring with Bluto. 
Also if there is an chance you will use this in summer definitely get then Bluto.


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## BackLoafRiver (Feb 20, 2016)

Trigger pulled today but not on the original bike I was considering. 

There was a fat bike demo at Beans last weekend. Reps from Scott and Rocky Mountain were there. They also had some Reid, Minnesota, and...some other brand. 

They had a little course set up but, due to the warm weather, the snow was getting beaten up fairly fast. 

Demoed several bikes but ended up really liking the Rocky Mountain blizzard. 

I also got a chance to try a pimped out altitude and Thunderbolt. The altitude was super rad. Set up as an enduro rig that the rep rocked at thunderbolt all summer. It was buttery smooth. 

Anyway...back on topic. The blizzard should be in this week. Now...we just need the ground to freeze up.  


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## mlctvt (Feb 21, 2016)

Rode on Saturday with a friend who has a Rocky Mountain Blizzard. He's had it since Oct last fall, So far it's been a great bike no issues at all. Nice wide rims and good tires too at a great price point. It does very well in all conditions. I think he does better in the snow than my Motobecane Night train Bullet with Vee Snowshoe tires. 
Enjoy it, you'll love it I'm sure.


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## Cannonball (Feb 28, 2016)

Bike trails just as bad as the ski trails these days.  Just a 5 mile long sheet of ice.  But really a blast anyway!  Even without studs the new ride handled it fine.  I was totally shocked by the traction on the climbs.  Downhill was fast and treacherous.


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## Cannonball (Feb 28, 2016)

Another pic of the  bike rink today....


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## BackLoafRiver (Feb 29, 2016)

Yuck. Good on you for getting out there.


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## BackLoafRiver (Mar 4, 2016)

More pics to come. All I want to do is ride and everything is too wet. 


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## BackLoafRiver (Mar 6, 2016)

A few shots from today. It rode so well. Only complaint was this heavy pull to the left. I had to counter steer a lot. Brought it back to the shop so they can reassess. 




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## bvibert (Mar 7, 2016)

Nice looking rig!


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## skiMEbike (Mar 7, 2016)

BackLoafRiver said:


> A few shots from today. It rode so well. Only complaint was this heavy pull to the left. I had to counter steer a lot. Brought it back to the shop so they can reassess.



Nice Bike.   Curious where were you riding...Pics give the appearance that the trails are relatively dry?


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## BackLoafRiver (Mar 8, 2016)

skiMEbike said:


> Nice Bike.   Curious where were you riding...Pics give the appearance that the trails are relatively dry?




Bath, ME.  The trail was almost bone dry save a few sections.

Actually...there is a decent downhill that comes out of the lot which was a total ice luge. It was scary as hell just walking the bike. After that, it was dry save one line along an open field. I was totally shocked.  Other areas are not fairing quite as well and the warm up this week will not help.


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## ironhippy (Dec 5, 2016)

I bought one a few weeks ago to ensure I could trail ride year round. We have a good community of bikers that get the popular trails packed down after storms.

We had a foot of wet snow last week, then a warm up and now a deep freeze which has left a significant crust on all the snow.

This has now made EVERYWHERE a freeride fatbike park. There is a clear cut behind my house that I was able to bike everywhere on, this week we are going to try out some of the local golf courses.

This is pretty amazing. Sorry for the cell phone pics.


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## mlctvt (Dec 5, 2016)

Nic pics Ironhippy. 
No snow is CT yet, well about 1/2 inch this morning that is already melted. Are you running studded tires? I'm
m trying to decide if its worth the expense. I can get studded Vee Snowshoe XLs for about $250.00 pair. 45Nrth Dillingers are much more $$.


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## ironhippy (Dec 6, 2016)

I have a 26 inch set of studded tires I run on another bike, so I will not be running studs on my fat bike.

(in general) if you need studded tires, you don't need a fat bike because it's so icy the extra flotation is not needed. Studded fat bike tires would definitely give you more traction, but in the weather we had last winter, I was fine with skinny studded tires on the iced over trails.

However if you only want to run one bike during the winter, a fat bike with studded tires will do it all.


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## bigbog (Dec 12, 2016)

Nice country ironhippy.  Condolences on the clearcut but nice pics and country, overall.


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## ironhippy (Jan 18, 2017)

Some more pics:


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## ironhippy (Jan 18, 2017)




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## ironhippy (Jan 18, 2017)

Here are some from a skinny bike with studded tires in the same area


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## bvibert (Jan 18, 2017)

Nice pics!  I wish we had snow on the ground here!


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## BackLoafRiver (Jan 18, 2017)

Nice pics indeed!!!

Riding here has been a bust for the past two weeks unless you had some studs and a whole lot of courage.  The random 3" we just got won't do a ton to help it. As with most things winter, we are in need of some snow.

The upside is that I hear Mass is rolling pretty well right now. Seems to be dry and no residual ice. Might be worth a trip


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## ironhippy (Jan 18, 2017)

Those aren't actually the good trails around here, they are just snowshoe trails that are near my house.
The actual mountain biking trails are in better shape, but are pretty icy after rain we had last week so studs are mostly mandatory.

And we had a race at the local ski hill last weekend. I was out of town so I didn't attend.

https://www.facebook.com/plugins/vi...deos/10154603146399760/&show_text=0&width=560


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## ironhippy (Feb 2, 2017)

The snow has changed again, we have a rain crust that you can walk on everywhere.

The fat biking is amazing, here is a picture from Tuesday when I rode all over one of the local golf courses


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## gorge83 (Oct 26, 2017)

Nice scenery. Never tried riding a fat bike in the snow.


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