2 Hardtails Under $2K Tested: Specialized Fuse vs. Marin San Quentin | Pinkbike Field Test

You can always cut them while they last longer or you can change them if you want or for longer and that is completely wrong because you don't cut something if you want it for longer Hi guys, this is Daniel Sapp, Tekkit or a pink bicycle. Here in Whistler, British Columbia, we have been

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ing hard towels for the past few days as our budget hard towels say they are totally capable and good for going to the bike park or anywhere else you want to take them, so we have Two different bikes, we have the Marin San Quintin Three and the

specialized

Fuse Comp.

Alright guys, the first bike we're going to look at is the Marin San Quentin Three, it's their top of the line bike in the San Quentin series and these are bikes. which Marin designed around aggressive trail riding, they even say downhill on their website downhill and dirt jumps will say a bit of whatever the San Quentin has an all aluminum frame it has a head tube angle of 65 degrees, a 75 degree seat tube angle and on the medium size that I'm riding here that goes up to four hundred and forty four millimeters, the chainstays are 425 millimeters, so it keeps everything fast, responsive and agile.

It is very easy to lift the front of the bike and there is plenty of clearance in the rear. The end of the bike so you can run fairly wide tires, at least 2.6, has a lot of clearance, so this bike has a variety of components designed to more or less handle whatever the Marines barn stem has in 35 .mil length stem, 800 millimeter wide bars, we have some pretty gnarly tires from Vee, these are the instant flows, they are 2.6 and we have FSA comic cranks here, shimano SLX derailleur and then Shimano brakes, we also have a shock reveal rock 4 has one hundred and thirty millimeters of travel adjustable compression rebound is the air fork, so you can set it up for whatever you're riding, you know, whatever the weight of your rider, the san quintin also has a seatpost ex fusions manic telescopic perfect to get the most out of it.

On more technical trails it has one hundred and fifty millimeters to travel quite radical. That fully spec bike costs two thousand US dollars, not bad, so the San Quentin is long, loose, comfortable, accelerates and pedals very well up to 75 degrees. The steep angle is a little steeper than the wick so you're sitting a little further forward, everything feels pretty comfortable so for the last few days I've been riding this at Whistler Bike Park on a variety of trails, flowy trails and more technical trails and with the 27.5 wheels everything is really easy to maneuver, it's fast and the bikes are responsive and have a lot of traction it has the smallest wheel for twenty seven five wheels super useful, make it a fun bomb 1675 dollars, you get a bite It's very fun to ride, won't fall apart in the bike park and has some really good parts, you know we start with a frame, it's a

specialized

m4 aluminum frame this year with the

fuse

from previous years, ranges are up about 20 . millimeters in all sizes, it's a little longer, lower and slacker, the head tube angle is sixty-six and a half degrees and the chainstays are adjustable, ranging from 420 millimeters to 435, so that you have fifteen millimeters of adjustability so you can You can make the bike a little tight, you know, it's easier to lift the front or a little more, a little more stable speed, okay, so you know, just the 420 to 435 chain stays, probably eighty nine at this point, frame 29 has internal cable routing. so you have internal routing for the dropper, shifter and rear brake, it's really neat, there are two water bottle holders which we like and there's also a third bottle here so if you want to put some kind of bag or a specialized exchange, you have your exchange. box, you can put that in there and carry a spare tube, whatever else you want for a burrito, so with the bike set up as it is with a 130 millimeter RockShox fork, you'll run a 74, it takes it out of 74°.

The seat tube angle with a 74 full suspension bike may not be as steep as we would like to see, but with the hardtail and the fact that you no longer sink into the 74 suspension it is a super appropriate angle. Well, the bike components are nice. good for entry level components, entry level components 10 years ago would just fall apart, these are really solid, we were riding the bike park all day with them, no problem at all, we have Stram level brakes, it's the entry level brake, are your two. Piston plugs, a one hundred and eighty millimeter rotor in the front and a 160 in the rear as far as gearing goes we have Schramm's sx transmission, it's their la

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and entry level Eagle 12 speed transmission so What here you have a great hit of 52 and it offers you everything.

The gearing you need to go up pretty much any hill is the only thing that will stop you, so your legs have a specialized butcher in the front and a purgatory in the rear, they are specialized inner tires, they have been super solid. I've been riding them on various bikes for a while, no problems, especially with the rack housings, they have a really good tread pattern and the Purgatory is a little more open in the rear and then you got the butcher a little more traction in a small block. ER on the front, so one of the things I like about a bike like this, and especially for riders who are new to the sport or even writers who have been riding for a long time, is that it's simple, There's not much to worry about, you just understand.

Get on it and ride it, the technology of all the new bikes and you know the full suspension bikes and everything, it's super cool and it's easy to get nerdy with all that stuff and it's exciting and those bikes are definitely a blast to ride, but there is something. The thing to say about simplicity and this bike is that there's also something to be said about learning to ride a hardtail. General thoughts for me. I like to pedal up and down on both bikes. Pedal well. The wick feels a little lighter and a little snappier. The tires are lighter and you have 29 inch wheels if I were to choose either bike so that would probably be the

fuse

but that doesn't mean the San Quentin isn't an amazing bike and is a Great bike for many riders , you just have to look at where you're going to ride and what your style is, and there's also a few hundred dollars difference in the budget of those two bikes, so if you have a little more money, San Quentin, if that suits your style, that could be your choice, neither bike will disappoint you and you can go out and have a good day in the mountains with either one.