well biked

I've been out of mountain biking for awhile, but have the urge to get back into it. My plan is to go 29", steel frame, fully rigid. Something I've had on my mind for quite a while.

I've ordered an '09 Jamis Dragon 29er frame (Reynolds 853 steel), and I'm planning to build it up with a rigid Salsa 29er steel fork. I've got some pretty nice parts laying around, including some new old stock Shimano XT stuff from a few years ago that I plan to use for the drivetrain. I'm going to build what I hope will be a nice durable wheelset from new XT disc hubs, Mavic TN717 rims, 36 double butted spokes for both the front and rear. I'll go with Avid mechanical discs for the brakes.

I've never owned a bike with disc brakes, and never owned a 29er. So here's a question regarding the rotor size: 160mm or 185mm, and why one over the other? My planned use for the bike is XC trail riding. As for tires, I've used Stan's tubeless system on 26ers and loved it, so I plan on going that route with the 29er. I want a fairly large volume tire, say 29 x 2.2 to 2.4. I'm not sure what the Dragon 29er frame can handle as far as tire clearance, but I'm hoping it can handle most of the 29 x 2.4's out there(?). Tires I'm considering so far are Maxxis Ardent in 29 x 2.25, Panaracer Rampage in 29 x 2.35, and Continental Mountain King in both 29 x 2.4 and 29 x 2.2. Any tire recommendations, insight, etc. is much appreciated-

IAMTB

160mm rotors will be fine. Go 185 in front if your worried about it. I'm a heavy rider and have 160s on my 29ers and have no issues.

As far as tires go you'll have to see what the frame can handle. I'm running a Bontrager XDX tubeless on the rear of my geared 29er(GF Ferrous). I am pretty happy with it's performance. I don't have any experience with any of the tires you listed.

You will get more responses by going here: https://forums.mtbr.com/forumdisplay.php?f=61
This forum is mostly anti-29er.

kenhill3

Really?

Elisdad

I run 160mm rotors on both of my 29ers. I've had no problems with them stopping my 170 lbs of weight.

As for tires, I've got the 2.4 Mtn Kings on my rigid SS and they are wonderful tires in all kinds of trail conditions. Be aware that they run smaller than Conti claims them to be. I think these tires are only marginally wider than the 2.1 Ignitors I have on my hardtail. FWIW, the Ignitors are a great tire on dry hardpack, not so great on slick trails or in the mud.

well biked

Thanks for the responses so far. I think I'll go with 160mm rotors, I'm just new to discs and wasn't sure. As for tires, thanks for the info on the Conti's, Elisdad, I may give them a try, but still not sure. Good to know about their actual size. If I get them, I'll try the 2.4's. With no suspension, and with Stan's system, I want a high volume tire at low-pressure to soak up the trail-

craigcraigcraig

we don't dislike 29ers