What's The Best MTB For Climbing? | Hardtail vs. Full Suspension!

Modern full suspension mountain bikes have complicated designs aimed at making them better on the way up the hill as well as on the way back down - but how far have they come, and are they at a point where they can beat the trusty hardtail at a climbing challenge? Rich and Isaac headed out to the woods with bikes, power meters, and waterproofs to do some Science and see how a modern full suspension trail MTB and a modern trail hardtail would perform up against the clock!

⏱ Timestamps ⏱
0:00 - Intro
0:34 - The Bikes
1:37 - The Weight
2:54 - Traction
4:05 - Weight: Does It Matter?
8:24 - Comparison Test
9:27 - Test One: Fire Road Climb
11:15 - Test Two: Tech Climb
14:11 - Test Three: Steep Climb

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Were you surprised by the winner? What hardtail vs. full suspension challenge would you like us to try next? Let us know in the comments 💬 👇

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[gmbn]

Were you surprised by the winner? What hardtail vs. full suspension challenge would you like us to try next? Let us know in the comments 💬 👇

[williamlarry]

I would love to see a hardtail vs full suspension when it come to long distance rides, bikepacking, adventure riding etc.

[Radingtonbear]

Great show, loving Isaac and Rich as a presenter combo. Please don’t be afraid to nerd out and do science, especially having someone who understands and can explain it.

Here’s hoping for more GCN for grown ups. There’s loads of us who don’t mind some longer form and intelligent content.

Top work lads. 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

[engine]

Surprising to see how close the results were, and also a bit surprising to hear Isaac’s comments on the differences in feel. Great to see such attention to the scientific details too!

It’s not all about performance though (or even cost)- I really don’t choose my bikes based on what is faster or more efficient. I choose my bikes based on what is the most fun to ride on my favorite trails…which is why I only ride hardtails now!


(When I get a bit older I’m sure I’ll have more fun on a squishy bike tho lol)

[rufuswainwright]

Best video for a long while.
Goes to show that decent modern Hardtails are very capable bikes 👍🏻👍🏻

[bryanhall]

My local bike shop recommended my first real bike being a hardtail. After watching this, I'm glad they did. Been fun learning on it, that's for sure!

[Milessongs]

Well done, Isaac & Rich! You took a potentially vague and multitudinous set of variables and kept it all very 'real world' in the testing. I enjoy geeking out on stats as well, but you resisted the temptation to lean too much on that stuff and kept it real! Good on ya.

[AntonyLD]

I wasn't surprised at the overall result but really surprised how close on the rooty damp middle test. Excellent test and top job from Rich, showing yet again his expertise at delegation 🤣

[AbundanceRun]

My first dually arriving today! Love the comparison content

[MTBPerspective]

When I used to race marathon XC category mtb, after several seasons on a hard tail I went to full suspension. Being able to save some energy by having the bike absorb some of the abuse, and more line options makes a world of difference over longer distances and time. Even a suspension seat post can be worth a tiny bit of extra weight.
YMMV

[chrisstasinopoulos]

4:50 Poor Isaac, he gave an entire "physics lecture" and none of this made it through the editing 😂

[TestTubeRabbit]

I'd like to see a comparison of some of the budget bikes that people actually learn on. Cheap new hardtails (£500-700) used bikes, parts bin bikes.
Is a 2023 £600 hardtail better than a 2013 Used full squish. Just my thoughts.

[BlackFlag]

Great pairing of presenters... very enjoyable video for sure!

[blurglide]

I think for the technical climbs, even though he was putting the same power to the pedals, his heart rate was probably higher on the hardtail because he was having to work a lot to absorb the bumps.

Just for fun could you do a test where a person goes up a trail with a lighter bike 10-12kg with a weighted vest (10kg) and then with a heavier bike 20-25 kg (maybe even electric with no motor help) without the vest?
Would be a fun comparison and video.

[vrwgqq]

a full squish built for pedaling will be easier to clean more technical climbs. Its nice to stay in saddle and spin away than having to manage body position and weight transfer (kinda like dynamic yoga) on a HT.

that said, the amount of watts spent on a FS always be higher and a HT will be more 'effecient'.

what will leave you more tired at the end of the day will depend on the trail

[sifromtheblockoldog]

great video, don't mind a bit of nerding at all. Didn't know which way it was going to go. I guess though for energy conservation putting those same watts on the sus vs the hardtail, is going to be less effort on the sus? So over a full XC race for example you stay fresher longer?

[stat]

It comes down to the efficiency of the hardtail. You will not losing Watts from the bombing of the suspension no matter how small how supportive it is. The hardtail has an insert in the wheels which makes it harder to rotate, it's heavier than the full suspension but still one on anything but the most technical climbs were traction is the most important factor all due to the efficiency of the drivetrain.

[esan]

Surprising. Im new to mountain biking. Coming from road cycling, definitely feel mkre confortable with my hardtail. I guess as you suggested, learn on this, and maybe later upgrade.

[streetstangcobra]

I think you can get more details on difference in efficiency, maybe some tire patterns faster on hardtails and some faster on full suspension, and the difference in weight of rotating mass as on rims and tires might be double the effect of bikes weight difference