ACV Pro Build: $6500 USD
FRAME ACV 27+ monocoque UD Carbon Front and Rear Triangle, alloy Top Link, Internal Derailleur Routing, Integrated protector, w/ 148 x12 mm spacing, 115 -130 mm travel
FORK RockShox Pike RCT3, 27.5+” 15QR thru axle, 150mm travel, 110 x 15 mm
SHOCK RockShox Monarch RT3 Debonair
WHEELS DT Swiss M1600, 40 mm PLUS
HUBS 28 Hole DT Swiss 240 ; 110 x15mm front; 148x12 BOOST rear w/ XD driver, centerlock
RIMS DT Swiss M 1600 Spline Two, 27+"
SPOKES DT Competition 2.0/1.8/2.0
TIRES Maxxis Ikon, 27.5x2.8“, Kevlar Bead, EXO TR
SHIFTERS SRAM X1, 11 speed
DERAILLEUR SRAM X01, 11 speed
CRANK Race Face Next 32T
CASSETTE SRAM XG-1175 10-42, 11 speed
CHAIN SRAM X1, 11 speed
SADDLE Fabric Scoop Radius Elite
SEATPOST RockShox Reverb Stealth, 31.6mm x 420 mm, zero offset, 125 mm of travel
HANDLEBAR Renthal FatBar 20mm - 760mm
STEM Thomson Elite X4: 50mm
HEADSET Cane Creek, 40, alloy cartridge
BRAKES SRAM Guide RS, 180 mm front and 160 mm rear
GRIPS Intense Dual Density Lock-On
ACV Foundation Build: $4600 USD
FRAME ACV 27+ monocoque UD carbon front and rear triangle, alloy top link, Internal derailleur routing, integrated protector, w/ 148 x12 mm spacing, 115 -130 mm travel
FORK RockShox Pike RC, 27.5+” 15QR thru axle, 150mm travel, 110 x 15 mm
SHOCK RockShox Monarch R Debonair, 200x 51 mm
HUBS 32 Hole Intense Tuned, 148x 12 mm BOOST; 110 x15mm front; 148x12 BOOST rear ,Shimano driver, 6-Bolt
RIMS Sun Duroc 40 Rims, 27+”, Tubeless Ready
SPOKES DT Swiss Champion
TIRES Maxxis Ikon, 27.5x2.8“, Kevlar bead, EXO TR
SHIFTERS SRAM NX, 11 speed
DERAILLEUR SRAM GX 11-speed
CRANK Race Face Aeffect, 32T
CASSETTE SRAM NX 11-42, 11 speed
CHAIN SRAM NX 11 Speed
SADDLE WTB Silverado Sport
SEATPOST RockShox Reverb Stealth, 31.6mm x 420 mm, zero offset, 125 mm of travel
HANDLEBAR Intense Recon 31.8 x 18 x 760 mm
STEM Intense, 50mm
HEADSET TS Intense headset
BRAKES Shimano BL M506 180 mm front and 160 mm rear
GRIPS Intense dual density lock-on
But real talk, I dont really get the + idea. fat bikes in the mid west in winter in snow seem very useful. But after watching the launch video of kovarik I didnt see a single thing he couldnt have done on a normal 275 bike. I guess im just not as optimistic as to what they have to offer that other technology doesnt. It certainly cant be traction cause ive watched Chris and the coastal crew drift these things just like any other bike.
We are in drought here. The trails are like kitty litter. 27+ rails even in the loose stuff. I wouldnt have believed it myself until I tried it..
My sentiment isn't resisting change IMO, it's resisting weird shit. I'm sure if I had been talked into the merit of a 27.5+ bike and I ended up forking up 3-4 grand for one, I'd stop at nothing to defend it's merit. However I simply can't buy into this. Luckily, I am not forced to ride or buy one, but good god local bike shop salesmen trying to pedal these things as what consumers should buy are just a bunch of wankers. Commission is cool, selling new product is cool, but I can't imagine how ugly the sales tricks are used to get these things out the door. My concern is these things are things nobody who already rides really wants, but people who are getting into mountain biking will fork up cash for. New bike riders, they have money to blow. Around here a lot of Microsoft/Amazon/Boeing guys are getting into biking, they have tons of money to blow and I think manufacturers see these kinds of riders as the best money grabs, and they know damn well spinning "hey this is the latest thing, mountain bikings been in a dark age for years but they're finally starting to really do good R&D and here's what they came up with it's unmatched" works like a charm on these folk.
Meh. We let 27.5 rape us up the butt, and now it's here forever. I don't fight 27.5 anymore we all have to suck it up and realize that this is what manufacturers are manufacturing now, but 27.5+... this stuff can eat shit.
Yay for more options, but if you jump on this trend and find youself sucking wind uphill, constantly checking tire pressures to find the sweet spot, and then wanting a new, precise, skillful bike like your regular-sized-tired friends, plus size does beginners a disservice. But hey, sell more bikes, right?
I am not sure though if that extra rubber makes sense for full suspension rigs.
My point is rather that I don't think plus is only for beginners, it is just the perfect combination with a rigid tail. On my enduro with Magic Mary tyres, I see no value-add of plus, as it does not lack traction.
(And in case you haven't ridden a modern geometry hardtail for a while of any wheel size, it's real fun)
But again, if you don't like it, you have other options. I just don't think we'd see as many + options now if there wasn't a good reason for it. As much fun as I am having, plenty of reason for me.
I'll take it you can't ride for shit. Now f*ck off old man.
If you really want to live in the past that badly, lock yourself in your basement with your #26aintdead wheels and beat off to old NWD movies while you pretend like you ride anything at all like that.
Also, the amount of envy for new stuff is downright childish. The bike Industry isn't forcing anything on you by releasing a new bike. Yea, I know, I can't afford it either...and it doesn't matter! I mean seriously, is the car industry forcing anything on you when a new expenaive model comes out?
29 is a thing.
27.5 is a thing.
+ Tires is a thing.
Enduro is a thing.
These things are probably all here to stay for a while. Get used to it already. It's not even new anymore and people are bitching like the day it came out.
Makes sense to me.
As for traction, I don't see many jeeps with small narrow tires. I Offroad quite a bit and when rock crawling you want as much surface contact as possible, wide tires, aired down. Same with sand, air the tires down and spread out the surface tension. Mud however is different, big nobs and a tall tire.
I've rode both 27.5 and a 27.5+ in Sedona and on long mountain trails and there were areas where both had their advantages. However, when I was climbing technical sections in Sedona the 27.5+ was like being able to put the bike in 4wheel drive low and just keep climbing. Climbing switchbacks on dry loose mountain trails it was the same thing, no slipping, just put the legs in 4low and go.
That said, would the 27.5+ be my go-to everyday bike? Would it be my bike for smashing a KOM? No. But I would love to have it as an option for rides with lots of technical climbing, loose trails, exploring new trails, and to change things up.
Now that 29ers are more or less sound a new path of development, i.e. 27.5+, is being proposed. While there is undoubtedly some substance to this 29er paralleling 27.5+ trend - increasing tyre width will likely prove a great advantage in the same way that increased wheel diameters (29in and 27.5in) did. But it would be sensible to determine where the advantage lies and avoid ten years of live testing of sub-optimal tyre profiles while bike and tyre manufacturers work out where they are heading.
I think there is no evidence that increasing the air volume of tyres will be the key to unlocking improved traction and performance from MTB tyres. Actually, that a 27.5+ wheel/tyre miraculously works as a drop in replacement for a 29in (Boost) wheel/tyre sort of gives away the game - there has been no attempt at working out optimal tyre profiles, it is just a matter of reproducing a 29er sized tyre on a 650B rim. A better approach would be to just host wider tyres on wider rims using existing rim and tyre diameters. That way the advantage of wider tyres could be assessed independently of the high air volume tyre gambit that may prove to be without any merit.
Until now...