The only thing that concerns me is the lower bottom bracket. I have a Rocky Mountain Altitude 27.5 that I love. I also have a Rocky Mountain Altitude PowerPlay 29er that I’m just not that comfortable on. I don’t really like the 29 inch wheels. It has a flip chip and I can change the head tube angle by 1 degree. I just have to see how much it lowers the bb. Great video. Thanks 🙏🏽 🖖🏽
@@bob4q Hopefully it doesn’t lower the BB too much. Thanks for the feedback 👍 Also see the Marine Corps logo 👍 My dad’s a marine and I’m in the military as well (prior Army, current Air National Guard)
My bike started as Polygon Siskiu d5 with 27.5 stock wheels and put a 29' pike on it and a 29' front wheel, I rode it for a bit . The thing I noticed the most was all the pedal strikes and the terrible roll over on the back wheel. I bought a new set of 29' light weight wheels and I love it so much better. The roll over is so much better , no more pedal strikes and I think It handles better than a mullet set up. It's defiantly a lot faster and think with the D5 having shorter chain stays helps with making it more playful as a 29' set up. Thanks for the video ,keep up the great content.
That's funny this is exactly what I did with my polygon D5 I am now in the process of putting a 29" rear wheel on but I could not find any with 141mm in a i30 so I had to go with a i25 wide wheel in the rear. I think we have more pedal strikes with the D5 because our bottom bracket is lower than the T series bikes. I can't wait to try mine now after reading your post!
@@PHFishingBiking actually if you can find hubs that have removable end caps and replace with qr end caps you just use a 148 boost hub . The 148 boost is 141 with qr end caps . That’s why I used dtswiss because I knew they had qr end caps for there hubs. I know other manufacturers of hubs have them also
Mullet was the budget answer when my son outgrew his 24” hardtail. I found a 2008 Specialized FSR 26er and threw a 24” rear wheel on it. This slackened the bike by 1.7* and lowered the standover by 0.875”. This also lowered the BB, but those old XC bikes are tall to begin with so no big deal. A set of 160mm cranks eliminated pedal strikes. And, because the saddle was low and forward, the slacker seat tube angle did not affect things much. He was able to climb everything. He has since outgrown the bike and it now awaits his little brother to grow into it.
@@JaredHoff Thanks! He loved it, and it just made so much sense from a budget standpoint, since he was a tween and we knew he would quickly outgrow it. Keeping with the budget theme, I also installed an 8spd Acolyte (12-46t) drivetrain, a wider set of riser bars from a friend’s parts bin, some RockBros pedals, and finished it off with the Entity lockon grips and saddle from my Polygon T8.
My freeride e bike is a standard mullet. Mullet is much funner at ski lift bike parks and in general. Those Hunt wheels are the best on the market in my opinion for the money. Hunt wheels use very high end spokes and brass nipples with high end steel washers and make incredible e bike wheels too. The hub is a six pawl high engagement design too. Hunt is a Privateer Bikes UK brand that is all about durability. I just bought some after watching this video. Cooll video man
I just mullet my YT jeffsy 2024. There is a flip chip for high low so I put it on the high position and from the measurements it when to 64 deg, which was fine because it's normally 65 deg on low setting with 2x 29er wheels. Also I've read because your slacking the head tube angl, you also inadvertently shorten your reach. To compensate, they say to lower your stem/handle bar by removing some spacers under from the stem. This will bring more weight forward and increase your reach slightly. I may get a slightly long length stem too.
@@gaddobronx6740 yes, I’ve heard it effects the reach and chainstay length. I think it changes a bit too much for it to work on this Polygon N9. The N9 rides so good as a 29er anyway.
Yeah...I might put back the jeffsy as a full 29er. I've only had 1 ride as a mullet. As you said the down hills and also corning is better with the mullet
If the bike fit is already borderline size wise , it makes the reach shorter so I try to start with a bike that has a slight longer reach for me. Size up or a brand that runs big.
We have some fire trails in NorCal that get crazy steep so going up hill they really need an xc bike. I’ve tried all the hta on mullets, 65-64 is the ideal sweet spot. 63.5 is do able but starts to get floppy. The new Santa Cruz Bronson 2025 has basically 64 hta and a very steep seat tube angle. Very interested in riding that up hill.
I also love my Hunt wheels. Quick tip: if you have a set of their wheels that you want to use but it has the wrong hub you can just order the freehub you need. It can save you a ton of money
I make a lot of hardtails mullets. I just do it on 27.5 designed bikes. And if the bb starts at 315-320 that’s great. Also if I size up I can push the seat forward to get steeper. As long as I end up with 65-64 hta I’m in my sweet spot 63.5 starts to effect steep climbs. I do 170 cranks, I’m 6 foot, I don’t know if I would like 165 but I’ll try. A well balanced mullet with Good geo numbers and some Maxxis dissectors (fast rolling, great cornering) tires , it’s so fun. Santa Cruz makes a number of their bikes mullet only. That way they can get the geo just right. YT does the same on the Capra. I would like to try a bike that can make both set ups sweet
The example you use when showing the lower bottom bracket against a rock is a good demonstrator but in reality that rock could be way bigger (or smaller). As Paul Aston says, pedal strikes can happen when pedalling but also while pedals are level, descending through rocky trails. Best way to to mullet a bike is to start with a 27.5 and switch out the front wheel for a 29. You get a higher BB.
I put a Marzocchi Z dirt jump fork on an old Trek 8700. It raised the front up a ton and of course changed the geometry. BIke felt insanely good going down fast stuff. BIke was a dangerous creature in the air, very dangerous, absolutely no stability in the air at all. It would "flop" over mid air and force a table top and landing it on loose was impossible. I didn't buy an old late 90s trek for jumps so I kept the fork on, upside to all this was that once I got on a bike with a normal geometry again and the feeling has lasted for years, every other bike feels insanely stable. Having a bike move so poorly in the air REALLY taught me how important geometry is.
The classic is wolfpack adventure 29 to 27.5 vid, everyone should watch that masterpiece 😂 I'm glad you tried this Jarred (edited I called you Jake 😅) I mulleted 27.5 with 29 forks before but my giant trance X29 was the first 29 bike I've tried but the flip chip raised the BB almost as equally as the 2.8 cm overall smaller wheel so a nothing burger, I'm back to 29/29 since that's what I like right meow but it's doable in mullet.
Great video! I’ve been thinking of running a 27.5 rear wheel on my own collosus but I didn’t know about those headsets neither I thought about the shorter cranks. Thanks for the info
This is what I'm looking into right now with my new bike. It comes as a 27.5 or a 29-inch Cube Stereo Action Team 160. I've got it running the 27.5 with the Fox 38 170 mm and Float X 160 mm rear. The 140 29er comes with Fox 36 160 mm and Float X 140 mm. So you see where I'm going with this! It's the exact same frame, just the travel is shorter on the 29er! This has got me thinking now. About the shock travel on a non flipchip bike Would it need a headset change? leave the rear 160 mm for a mullet setup or need to drop the travel? Or will it just work as the way it came 170mm X 160mm as the bike comes in 2 options with nothing different but wheel size and 20mm shorter travel in rear 10mm in front to my 27.5 running 170mm front and 160mm rear I have longer travel why I got it. It does get abit over whelming when never done it before and have a Carbon frame! Maybe up the rear travel in your own 10mm see what the difference is if clears the frame? Just thinking with my cube they lowered the rear 20mm on the 29er but front 10mm so 10mm all in and it's an amazing bike but would like a bigger front wheel on my 27.5 160
I tried a mullet set up on a Fuse 27.5. It was great for everything but climbing - the font was so deweighted and drifty. But I also increased the travel by 20mm. Maybe it would’ve been rideable as a mullet but not with the increased travel.
I own the polygon N7, and I recently made mine a mullet and upd the fork travel from 170 to 190. Keep me mind, it is only a park bike for me so I don't have pedal strike issues
My input would be forget the geo numbers just do it and if it feels good and it rides well is what matters Then check the numbers. I took a 09 Iron Horse 26 and threw a 27 fork and wheel and it was waayyyy better
@@JaredHoff yeah I've been curious about it also . When I went to Florida to ride Alifia bike park. Not sure if that's how it's spelt lol. I rented a Status that was mullet it was fun. I know I can get a Cascade link for my Enduro. But probably don't wanna to spend the money on a new wheel plus link ect ..
I recently made the same experiment and have to say I dont really like it. The low bb and slack headtube combined makes it easier to wash the front. I have crashed two times. I think its a combination of less weight on the front and that you have to lean the bike more in corners to get the same arch. Climbing is also more tiring. 64 degree on a full suspension seems to be my sweetspot for head angle for me. The only way I can see this setup work well is with enough side knobs on the tyres. Then maybe it could be a good DH/Park setup.
I think it’s not worth converting a non-mullet bike into a mullet setup. If the bike came from the factory with that option, great. When you start messing with the bike’s geometry too much by installing parts to get it close to how it came from the manufacturer, you’re probably changing the riding characteristics that the manufacturer intended it to be/feel like. IMO, save yourself the headaches and money on parts and look for a bike that has mullet options from the factory. Love my ‘21 SJ with optional link for that purpose!
I'd be more worried about the bottom bracket height. The standard 175mm cranks seem to cause pedal strikes on everything. I would imagine 5mm lower would have to eventually get annoying.
The only thing that concerns me is the lower bottom bracket. I have a Rocky Mountain Altitude 27.5 that I love. I also have a Rocky Mountain Altitude PowerPlay 29er that I’m just not that comfortable on. I don’t really like the 29 inch wheels. It has a flip chip and I can change the head tube angle by 1 degree. I just have to see how much it lowers the bb. Great video. Thanks 🙏🏽 🖖🏽
@@bob4q Hopefully it doesn’t lower the BB too much. Thanks for the feedback 👍 Also see the Marine Corps logo 👍 My dad’s a marine and I’m in the military as well (prior Army, current Air National Guard)
My bike started as Polygon Siskiu d5 with 27.5 stock wheels and put a 29' pike on it and a 29' front wheel, I rode it for a bit . The thing I noticed the most was all the pedal strikes and the terrible roll over on the back wheel. I bought a new set of 29' light weight wheels and I love it so much better. The roll over is so much better , no more pedal strikes and I think It handles better than a mullet set up. It's defiantly a lot faster and think with the D5 having shorter chain stays helps with making it more playful as a 29' set up. Thanks for the video ,keep up the great content.
@@bradvdb4136 thanks for sharing man! It’s always good to hear real stories about what people are trying out.
That's funny this is exactly what I did with my polygon D5 I am now in the process of putting a 29" rear wheel on but I could not find any with 141mm in a i30 so I had to go with a i25 wide wheel in the rear. I think we have more pedal strikes with the D5 because our bottom bracket is lower than the T series bikes. I can't wait to try mine now after reading your post!
@@PHFishingBiking Nice, I bought a new take off set of race face arc 27 with Dtswiss hubs and 2.4 recons. it’s a great set up, enjoy!
@@bradvdb4136 Cool the wheels are hard to find in the 141mm boost spacing these days.
@@PHFishingBiking actually if you can find hubs that have removable end caps and replace with qr end caps you just use a 148 boost hub . The 148 boost is 141 with qr end caps . That’s why I used dtswiss because I knew they had qr end caps for there hubs. I know other manufacturers of hubs have them also
Mullet was the budget answer when my son outgrew his 24” hardtail. I found a 2008 Specialized FSR 26er and threw a 24” rear wheel on it. This slackened the bike by 1.7* and lowered the standover by 0.875”. This also lowered the BB, but those old XC bikes are tall to begin with so no big deal. A set of 160mm cranks eliminated pedal strikes. And, because the saddle was low and forward, the slacker seat tube angle did not affect things much. He was able to climb everything. He has since outgrown the bike and it now awaits his little brother to grow into it.
@@jeremybrown3429 heck yeah 👍 Sounds like a great setup.
@@JaredHoff Thanks! He loved it, and it just made so much sense from a budget standpoint, since he was a tween and we knew he would quickly outgrow it.
Keeping with the budget theme, I also installed an 8spd Acolyte (12-46t) drivetrain, a wider set of riser bars from a friend’s parts bin, some RockBros pedals, and finished it off with the Entity lockon grips and saddle from my Polygon T8.
@@jeremybrown3429 heck yeah 👍
My freeride e bike is a standard mullet. Mullet is much funner at ski lift bike parks and in general. Those Hunt wheels are the best on the market in my opinion for the money. Hunt wheels use very high end spokes and brass nipples with high end steel washers and make incredible e bike wheels too. The hub is a six pawl high engagement design too. Hunt is a Privateer Bikes UK brand that is all about durability. I just bought some after watching this video. Cooll video man
@@trailpimp6369 nice bro! Loving my Hunt wheels 🤘 Privateer bike coming soon…
Love my Hunt enduro carbon wheels . What a difference 🤘
@@CleanAll-Paul for sure! Unbeatable price too.
I just mullet my YT jeffsy 2024. There is a flip chip for high low so I put it on the high position and from the measurements it when to 64 deg, which was fine because it's normally 65 deg on low setting with 2x 29er wheels.
Also I've read because your slacking the head tube angl, you also inadvertently shorten your reach. To compensate, they say to lower your stem/handle bar by removing some spacers under from the stem. This will bring more weight forward and increase your reach slightly. I may get a slightly long length stem too.
@@gaddobronx6740 yes, I’ve heard it effects the reach and chainstay length. I think it changes a bit too much for it to work on this Polygon N9. The N9 rides so good as a 29er anyway.
Yeah...I might put back the jeffsy as a full 29er. I've only had 1 ride as a mullet. As you said the down hills and also corning is better with the mullet
If the bike fit is already borderline size wise , it makes the reach shorter so I try to start with a bike that has a slight longer reach for me. Size up or a brand that runs big.
We have some fire trails in NorCal that get crazy steep so going up hill they really need an xc bike. I’ve tried all the hta on mullets, 65-64 is the ideal sweet spot. 63.5 is do able but starts to get floppy. The new Santa Cruz Bronson 2025 has basically 64 hta and a very steep seat tube angle. Very interested in riding that up hill.
I also love my Hunt wheels. Quick tip: if you have a set of their wheels that you want to use but it has the wrong hub you can just order the freehub you need. It can save you a ton of money
@@tracymcmanus550 heck yeah 👍 Hunt Wheels for the win 🥇
I make a lot of hardtails mullets. I just do it on 27.5 designed bikes. And if the bb starts at 315-320 that’s great. Also if I size up I can push the seat forward to get steeper. As long as I end up with 65-64 hta I’m in my sweet spot 63.5 starts to effect steep climbs. I do 170 cranks, I’m 6 foot, I don’t know if I would like 165 but I’ll try. A well balanced mullet with Good geo numbers and some Maxxis dissectors (fast rolling, great cornering) tires , it’s so fun.
Santa Cruz makes a number of their bikes mullet only. That way they can get the geo just right. YT does the same on the Capra. I would like to try a bike that can make both set ups sweet
@@michaelrieser9928 agree 👍 I got an adjustable headset but haven’t installed it yet.
Thank you for the video Jared 👍There are also offset bushings to push your shock up.
@@ryansteiger6960 nice 👍 that’s probably needed as well.
The example you use when showing the lower bottom bracket against a rock is a good demonstrator but in reality that rock could be way bigger (or smaller). As Paul Aston says, pedal strikes can happen when pedalling but also while pedals are level, descending through rocky trails. Best way to to mullet a bike is to start with a 27.5 and switch out the front wheel for a 29. You get a higher BB.
@@willahumma you’re not wrong 👍
I put a Marzocchi Z dirt jump fork on an old Trek 8700. It raised the front up a ton and of course changed the geometry.
BIke felt insanely good going down fast stuff.
BIke was a dangerous creature in the air, very dangerous, absolutely no stability in the air at all. It would "flop" over mid air and force a table top and landing it on loose was impossible.
I didn't buy an old late 90s trek for jumps so I kept the fork on, upside to all this was that once I got on a bike with a normal geometry again and the feeling has lasted for years, every other bike feels insanely stable.
Having a bike move so poorly in the air REALLY taught me how important geometry is.
@@messagedeleted1922 definitely 👍 that modern geometry 📐 no need to mess with it.
The classic is wolfpack adventure 29 to 27.5 vid, everyone should watch that masterpiece 😂
I'm glad you tried this Jarred (edited I called you Jake 😅) I mulleted 27.5 with 29 forks before but my giant trance X29 was the first 29 bike I've tried but the flip chip raised the BB almost as equally as the 2.8 cm overall smaller wheel so a nothing burger, I'm back to 29/29 since that's what I like right meow but it's doable in mullet.
@@LaurentiusTriarius nice 👍 I’m excited to try out a Gen 6 Slash this weekend and see how the 29er vs Mullet goes.
Great video! I’ve been thinking of running a 27.5 rear wheel on my own collosus but I didn’t know about those headsets neither I thought about the shorter cranks. Thanks for the info
@@mauriciomaycotte2514 glad to have helped 👍
This is what I'm looking into right now with my new bike. It comes as a 27.5 or a 29-inch Cube Stereo Action Team 160. I've got it running the 27.5 with the Fox 38 170 mm and Float X 160 mm rear. The 140 29er comes with Fox 36 160 mm and Float X 140 mm. So you see where I'm going with this! It's the exact same frame, just the travel is shorter on the 29er! This has got me thinking now. About the shock travel on a non flipchip bike Would it need a headset change? leave the rear 160 mm for a mullet setup or need to drop the travel? Or will it just work as the way it came 170mm X 160mm as the bike comes in 2 options with nothing different but wheel size and 20mm shorter travel in rear 10mm in front to my 27.5 running 170mm front and 160mm rear I have longer travel why I got it. It does get abit over whelming when never done it before and have a Carbon frame!
Maybe up the rear travel in your own 10mm see what the difference is if clears the frame? Just thinking with my cube they lowered the rear 20mm on the 29er but front 10mm so 10mm all in and it's an amazing bike but would like a bigger front wheel on my 27.5 160
Great video 📹 👍
I tried a mullet set up on a Fuse 27.5. It was great for everything but climbing - the font was so deweighted and drifty. But I also increased the travel by 20mm. Maybe it would’ve been rideable as a mullet but not with the increased travel.
@@dayinnymtb oh man. Mullet with increased travel would be a stretch.
@@JaredHoff ya, it’s a full 29er now and works great - still worth the experimenting.
I own the polygon N7, and I recently made mine a mullet and upd the fork travel from 170 to 190. Keep me mind, it is only a park bike for me so I don't have pedal strike issues
Being a full 29 I had to many issues with my but rubbing on the rear tire on bigger jumps and certain drops
@@Looking_4_downhill1 Got to do what’s right for you and the riding you like to do 👍
Definitely give the mullet a chance with that headset angle steepener and ride it like that for a bit
@@beauharvey8138 I really thought about doing that, but the N9 rides so good with 29ers the way it was designed.
My input would be forget the geo numbers just do it and if it feels good and it rides well is what matters
Then check the numbers.
I took a 09 Iron Horse 26 and threw a 27 fork and wheel and it was waayyyy better
@@wallyworld6249 nice 👍
I'm wondering what it would be like mulleting my older 27.5 giant reign? Put a 29 fork and front wheel.
Same... I have a 170mm fork on my Reign, so I'd probably need a 150mm 29er fork to roughly keep the geo the same.
@@matthewwalter3423 I’d try to figure out what setup will give you the geo you want. 62.5 degree HTA on this N9 was no good.
@@owenmore5675 yup! Definitely want to keep that geo right.
If it ain't broken don't fix it 😂 good vid brother
@@MTBSHOGUN thank man! I don’t think I’m going to keep the mullet on this bike, but I’d like to start testing out more mullet options in the future.
@@JaredHoff yeah I've been curious about it also . When I went to Florida to ride Alifia bike park. Not sure if that's how it's spelt lol. I rented a Status that was mullet it was fun. I know I can get a Cascade link for my Enduro. But probably don't wanna to spend the money on a new wheel plus link ect ..
@@MTBSHOGUN for sure! That’s where I’m at with this N9 already spent too much. I’m sending the geo shift headset back to get my $105 back
I recently made the same experiment and have to say I dont really like it. The low bb and slack headtube combined makes it easier to wash the front. I have crashed two times.
I think its a combination of less weight on the front and that you have to lean the bike more in corners to get the same arch. Climbing is also more tiring.
64 degree on a full suspension seems to be my sweetspot for head angle for me.
The only way I can see this setup work well is with enough side knobs on the tyres. Then maybe it could be a good DH/Park setup.
I think it’s not worth converting a non-mullet bike into a mullet setup. If the bike came from the factory with that option, great. When you start messing with the bike’s geometry too much by installing parts to get it close to how it came from the manufacturer, you’re probably changing the riding characteristics that the manufacturer intended it to be/feel like. IMO, save yourself the headaches and money on parts and look for a bike that has mullet options from the factory. Love my ‘21 SJ with optional link for that purpose!
@@dntfakethefunk I agree with you 👍
From a guy that made a 26 / 24 mullet hardtail back in the day. Preference wins over whatever geometry was trending when the bike was made.
@@PabloGonzalez-hv3td 👍📐
@@JaredHoff If it bolts up and it works, it works. There aren't any rules!
I mulleted my 29er hardtail and it felt like a chopper lol. I switched it back right away.
What is the weight of your collosus after your upgrade
@@akosyjonathan I had it down to 36lbs, but it was just over 37 with this setup due to heavier Maxxis tires.
I'd be more worried about the bottom bracket height. The standard 175mm cranks seem to cause pedal strikes on everything. I would imagine 5mm lower would have to eventually get annoying.
@@Cubersebhoops I agree with you. I’m currently looking at the Privateer 141 Gen 2 that is designed for a mullet setup.
usually it's better to mullet a 27,5'' bike and put a 29er fork up front. drop 10-20mm of front travel and it should be pretty bang on
@@gnar_tar I hear ya 👍
Why don’t you just use a geo calculator ? Then you can visual see changes and what you need to change, ie headset adjusters or offset bushings
@@troymortimer3487 Is there a MTB geo calculator website or something
What if you add a longer stem and move your seat forward?
@@jf8534 I’m not sure how that would feel 🤔
Honda Motocross started that in the late '70s
@@Juno_Beach thank for the info 👍
Pedals strikes ain't a thing to be bothered about if you can pedal correctly lol
@@WannaJumpBikes that’s true at times but it makes a difference on the super technical climbs.
wear the sweet mullet wig for the entire video = likes (you still got my like)
@@Tankmachinegun. thanks for the feedback. Maybe I’ll do another video with the wig lol
@@JaredHoff YESSSSSSSS
@@Tankmachinegun. 🤘