sherpaPeak

which one is better ---- IT DEPENDS.......on many factors.

I will give you my very limited personal opinion.......As the average IQ of this forum took a nose dive since wheelhot, or whatever, started posting here.......I feel really stupid and insulted.....two things really upset me recently......One, kids with minimum or no knowledge of bikes or mountain biking has taken over the forum and flooding every thread with their childish remarks.......and, two, some very wise veterans are paying unnecessary attention to this attention hungry self centered brats.

Now to your question....

It depends on the riding style (XC, AM, FR, or DH).......terrain......riders preferences....conditions (fitness, strength, age, injury....etc)

I like Hardtails.....simply because that was my first bike and I like the simplicity and sheer elegance of the hardtail design....For, easy to moderate terrain (for XC type to AM type riding) the pedaling efficiency of the Hardtail is a significant factor.....I would argue that in these situations a hardtail is more efficient than a Full Suspension bike....Now, I have not ridden a lot of Full suspension bikes...my limited experience is with some Santa Cruz and Iron Horse Full suspension bikes....

For comfort over rough technical terrain, Full Suspension bikes are much better. I would also argue that on rougher terrain Full Suspension bikes are more efficient and comfortable. I am not saying that you can not ride a Hardtail on a rough terrain, but probably not with as much comfort and efficiency.....like, on a technical down hill condition, a Full Suspension bike will give you more speed and maneuvering capabilities...

Budget........its kind of obvious that good full suspension bikes cost substantially more than hardtails...but keep one thing in mind.....the debate is not between a quality hardtail and a low budget full suspension......cause thats not a fair comparison.....I think it would be productive to compare hardtails and full supensions of similar quality....I bet that a crappy hardtail will suck as much as a crappy full suspension......

Now, I ride pure XC and some easy AM type terrain (dont ask me to explain that, cause I dont have any clue)....and I am fairly fit with strong legs.......So, I can handle a hardtail on rough trails.......mind you that on long rides my legs, knees and lower body takes a considerable amount of pounding.......As, Santiago pointed it out a few months ago that a Full suspension may be more comfortable for me down the road.....and I am open to the idea.....just, not yet....

C Law

no it won't .

the crappy rear suspension will elevate it to another level of crappiness

sherpaPeak

I respect your opinion....dont necessarily agree.....

junkyard

No offense,
but proper grammar is appreciated.

C Law

I respectfully accept your disagreement.

good day sir!

wheelhot

hmmm, hardtail vs full sussers, here is what I think (If its a XC rig), it all depends on how much money if you are willing to pay.....you could get a Specialized Epic and it would be as good as a hardtail (in pedalling and etc) and it would be able to absorb nasty bumps. If you cant spend big money on a bike, get a hardtail

ghettocruiser

Get one of each just in case.

dminor 

Can we finally lay this myth to rest? The "skill" hardtails "teach" is being a careful line-picker to avoid obstacles that can slow you down or crash you - - a "skill" that later has to get unlearned when you graduate to full suspension.

mcoine

This is mostly true, but these skills are always useful. A rider on a FS who picks a clean line may be faster than the rider on another FS who doesn't.

Also, I think for many riders, due to riding style and terrain, may be better off with a quality hardtail than a not so great FS bike. Bike companies have made people believe that they absolutely need FS when many really don't.

PiratePete

Get a FS with a shock and fork that have lockouts. That way you have a FS, HT, and a rigid all in one. If price is an issue consider getting a 'pre owned' bike.

never

But with a dually, you will be able to pick lines you never considered before with the HT.

Flak

Lets compare apples to apples here. XC bikes, say, Stumpjumper HT vs Epic FS. I think the epic with its brain shock does everything the stumpy does just as well, and does other things better. The advantage of a HT is its rigid in the back and allows efficiant power transfer with no bob. The epic does that too with its brain shock...effectivly negating the hardtails advantage.

Assuming a decent sized budget, i really don't see where a HT would be my choice unless i wanted a dirt jumper.

CaptMatt15

Do you really love the lamp Brick? Or are you just saying that because you saw in the room?

hooligan

Wow half the posts in here didn't even contribute to the original threadmaker.

HTs vs FS.

HTs can be divided into several different categories, as can FS.

HT can be cross country, trail (slightly beefier), freeride or park+trials. All of them are pretty stiff bikes that are usually lighter than their FS counter parts. While the HTs have park/trial (TRIALs not TRAILS), FS has more extreme FR. HTs are cheaper too.

On the trail, the hardtail teaches you to choose a better line, but causes you to focus more on riding properly than necessarily having fun as a beginner. As an advanced rider, you may find a hardtail more challenging to ride with but more fun becuaes you have more "snap" to hop over obstacles down the trail and pretty much instant response. I also assume a HT has less flex as there are less joints on the bike. This means a snappier handling too.

A full suspension will let you plow through things at a heavier weight. For hardcore cross country, it's mainly for comfort and traction, I think. The time you spend doing a cross country track may be enough to wear you down if you're riding an HT, whereas an FS will be easier on your muscles an joints. However, the price is greater and it will cost more to reduce weight (compared to an HT, since the frame is already heavier). You're paying more for something you may not need. As trail/enduro bikes, the full suspension category is a do-anything bike. If you see a large drop, then you can usually hit it and your bike can take it and your body will cope more easily than with a HT. Again, the difference is price and weight.

Overall, when you look at an HT, you see the following characteristics:
-Lower weight compared to FS.
-Less flex.
-Easier to control for precision manuevers, such as techniques used in trials.

When you look at an FS, you see the following:
-Higher price.
-Higher maintainance.
-More comfort.
-More go-big factor.
-Perhaps a more aggressive riding attitude.
-More traction.

I ride a 2004 kona scrap. At 135lbs (lost some weight) and trying to ride a DJ hardtail, it's hard enough as it is to maintain total control over the bike when doing tricks. With a FS, I could hardly dream of it. Many of my richer friends got FSs simply for the heck of doing bigger dirt jumps. They can't throw down tricks becuase the bike weight really does make a difference.

hooligan

Also, a stumpjumper HT vs similarly priced Epic would allow the stumpjumper to have better components and be lighter. Some people prefer the snappy feeling of HTs too.

Maelstrom 

I was going to stay out of this, but I just wanted to clear up that this is purely a xc point of view.

For the most part duallies will make a rider faster given conditions where the dual suspension is required. Really technical terrain uses both the negative and positive travel on a bike giving it more traction and generally better speed. However, if you aren't riding terrain using the key aspects of suspension than the ability for the suspension to offer noticable improvements will not exist.

junkyard

The answer has been updated to: 8.31

pinkrobe

I thought I was in SS/FG for a minute...

Terrapin Ben

i suppose i just like the snapy feel and the simplicity of a hardtail. i really like picking clean lines and being able to feel the trail underneath my saddle. but a bike is a bike just as long as your spinning your legs.

Flak

I really like my hardtail, but id sell it down the river for a decent fs.

Maelstrom 

Why what could they possibly argue about there. Its either ss or fg...sheesh

bajaslider

No debate here, it is a fact that I go faster on a HT riding singletrack and xc stuff than on a FS. Since this is the stuff that you are riding are there a lot of people on the trails you will be riding? Because the cool factor can only be measured by the shear number of people who see you being cool. You know you want the full boinger so just go get it, ride around on it for a while be cool, then you can sell it and buy a HT and be pissed off at all the FS guys trying to be cool.

I like both and ride terrain that suits both types of bikes.

Jameson

NO Billy and Mandy fans huh? Oh well, FredFred Burger is the MAN!!! Nachos are pretty cool too. Hard tails are nifty, dual sus is nifty keen.

mlh122

i like my hardtail (Trek 4500) for reasons of:
versatility - mtb, road, commuter
simplicity - im lazy and don't get around to maintenance till long overdue
money - i don't skimp on what i need, but i like to get by with just what i need

my wife had to have a fs (Trek Fuel Ex 7 wsd) and here's what i like about it
verstatility - can lock out F and R suspension so it it can pretend to be rigid, hardtail, as well as FS
adjustability - can adjust firmness of F and R suspension from the handlebars while riding
comfort - some of our fireroads have like 2 inch ridges (i guess for truck traction?) for miles and miles her bike on full plush goes right through, my bike is ok if you stand the whole time, shakes you hard if you sit though
looks - her bike is pretty - mine is rather plain

Our bikes weigh about the same though the FS cost 3 times as much.

Az B

I split the difference. Short travel FS that weighs 24lbs and has 98% of the same efficiency climbing as a hardtail.

And my butt likes the FS ride so I can ride longer. Still can't do big drops, but I'm not really into that anyway.

Az