Redline monocog 29er vs Monocog flight 29er
 

Can anyone tell me the weight differences between these two bikes Because I am going to buy a new one soon. Also does anyone know the difference between the Durable full Chromoly Frame, and the Japanese Sanko Double Butted Chromoly frame. I am a newbie to the new mountain biking but I used to ride the trails on a wal-mart bike for years then I stopped but now I am back and need something simple and fast up and down.
thanks

Can't help with your questions. I'm curious about it, too. Another question is why is there a chain tensioner on the v-brake version and not on the disc version?

The Flight has a tensioner built into the frame. It is a screw that pushes from the inside of the rear triangle backward.

The std 29'er has a different head angle on the size 17, 19, and 21" than the flight. Top tube length is different. Fork offset is different. Wheelbase is different.

I think the Flight 29'er is kind of a waste. It's like $1000 or so. The std. 29'er is $450 or so. Either way you're getting a fully rigid singlespeed 29'er. If I were going to pay $1000, I'd want a susp. fork and at least a rear derailleur.

I know that prob. doesn't make sense to the rigid singlepeeder's of the world, but I'd much rather have a $450 beater that does pretty much the same thing just for the fun factor. I've heard that the genius and beauty of the Mono29'er is that you can spend less than $500 and have a "super fun" bike that really doesn't need any upgrades except possibly the headset. Don't buy faster wheels, lighter this or that...just ride it and enjoy it. There's no shifter/derailleur performance to deal with to necessitate upgrading drivetrain componentry. There's no suspension to worry about flex or stiction. Just pure simplicity that you can enjoy for $450.

I would imagine that the flight feels a tad lighter so it would be less "work" and the disc brakes are a nice upgrade...but hardly worth the extra $500 unless it's a stellar weight savings.

Save the extra $500 and get other bike stuff.:D

I'm partially in agreement with the other poster...although I disagree with the suspension comments. The 29er will roll over stuff a lot easier than a 26 inch wheel. Also it makes you a better rider because you know that you have to absorb anything or choose a better line, rather than thinking "ehh...the suspension will eat that bump...and that one too..."

I've got a fully rigid though so I'm a bit biased. Came from a full suspension with gears though and although I was skeptical I haven't looked back, or ridden the full suspension since...

The butted steel is going to be lighter. Basically the tubes will have variable wall thicknesses in order to loose some weight. I'm also a big fan of being able to use disk brakes.

At any rate...either will make for a really nice 29er. I guess it depends on how serious you are about riding and the purchase. Both will do what you want them to just fine. The flight will just be a bit of an lighter ride and have some nice little additions...

I disagree a little bit. I have a fully rigid and a dually. The rigid is my commuter, but it is a MTB and I do ride it on the trails.

A fully rigid will make you a better "line picker", but not necessarily a better "rider". I rode rigids and HT's for a long time. When I switched to my dually, I was riding it like it was a HT...picking lines carefully and the like. It was costing me time and energy. When I took advantage of the 5" coil sprung suspension, my time and energy was conserved and I could go much faster through sections that I used to have to dilly-dally through just so I wouldn't pinch out. Now, I can keep up my momentum through that 5" rock garden and keep a more consistant speed instead of speed up/ slow down. I can bomb through it at 30mph instead of dropping down to 10-15mph and bobbing/weaving around the rocks. So that "better rider stuff" used to be my mindset as well, but I don't believe it anymore. It makes you a different rider...not always better. It will make you more conscious of the trail and everything on it. It will necessitate a higher level of concentration through certain obstacles.


Agree'd

I could rave on and on about the Sanko (can't say Reynolds 853) double butted killer frame with better geometry and disk brakes and better tires etc.. BUT having ridden both of these bikes back to back in dry, traction rich conditions, they don't feel that much different. Okay, maybe bombing a root infested hill with a couple hard switches would tell, or hammering an uphill, but I am inclined to say, how much are you really getting for the extra $500? I don't know really, but if I had the extra money, I'd go flight, no question. Maybe I'm vain. Maybe it's the color. Maybe it's the look of the disks.. Still, riding them, $450 is a bargain for the way it rides. If I could just ride, and not look at the bike, I'd probably go with the standard and never look back.

I rode both bikes back to back and bought the monocog 29er. It's a great bike and value too. That was two years ago. Last fall I bought a new Gary Fisher Rig with the fox fork and G2, a little more than a new flite but a lot more bike overall. I still have the monocog and ride it almost as much as my new bike.

The Flight looks better, but I don't think it would really perform that much better. The most notable upgrade is the brakes, but I really don't like BB5's considering that if you bought them they aren't ususally that much cheaper than BB7's. The BB5's require a lot of cable pull in order to start braking, but then go from slow to stop quite quickly. BB7's are so, so, much smoother and better modulated. I say take the money you save and put BB7's on the standard Monocog.

I haven't ridden either of them, yet (I have a monocog on order and will have Juicy brakes put on). But the double butted tubing promises a lighter frame as well. I don't know what the difference is though.

I think that in your case the Flight is a serious commitment to rigid single speeding. You first need to see if rigid single speeding is your thing. I know it is not my thing and I had a Unit which is somewhere in between these two bikes.

So here's a scenario, what if one could get the Flight for about $150 more? Does that become a no-brainer?

I'm interested. I'm on the precipice of getting the flight anyway. If you are offering this as a real option, I want to know how!