# Santa cruz chameleon 29 or + bike?



## dakotap (Mar 24, 2018)

Hey guys, 5'8" 290lb. Looking to get more serious into riding and losing some weight. I'm looking at a couple bikes today while in Houston and will probably be taking something home. I'm almost totally set on a new Santa Cruze chameleon. Looked at the 27.5+ version last night and wow the 3.0 wide tires are massive. Looking at a 29er later today. With my weight, would the 27.5+ be the smarter option with the wider raceface wheels over the wtb on the 29er? Also looking at the Orbea Alma and Scott scale 980. The santa cruz is definitely top of the budget by far. 

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## HuskyDoo (May 22, 2012)

dakotap said:


> Hey guys, 5'8" 290lb. Looking to get more serious into riding and losing some weight. I'm looking at a couple bikes today while in Houston and will probably be taking something home. I'm almost totally set on a new Santa Cruze chameleon. Looked at the 27.5+ version last night and wow the 3.0 wide tires are massive. Looking at a 29er later today. With my weight, would the 27.5+ be the smarter option with the wider raceface wheels over the wtb on the 29er? Also looking at the Orbea Alma and Scott scale 980. The santa cruz is definitely top of the budget by far.
> 
> Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk


I am 5' 8" and started last May at 280 on a 26" Specialized Rockhopper. Put 1000 miles of trail and road on it with no issues.

The bikes you listed will all fit your needs. Buy the bike that fits you and you feel most comfortable on.

I bought a Salsa Timberjack 27.5+ this spring and love it!! Loads of traction, bike handles like it is on rails and the plus tires give it smooth ride. It will take 30 seconds on the trail to get used to the wider tires.

Good luck!

By the way I am now down to 225 on the MTB weight loss plan 

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## Battery (May 7, 2016)

HuskyDoo said:


> By the way I am now down to 225 on the MTB weight loss plan


That's awesome! How often do you ride?

BTW dakotap, that bike is awesome too! I really want one as my 2nd!


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## HuskyDoo (May 22, 2012)

Battery said:


> That's awesome! How often do you ride?
> 
> BTW dakotap, that bike is awesome too! I really want one as my 2nd!


I try to hit the trails at least twice a week and the gravel/pavement twice a week. Weather permitting. Hitting the gym 4-5 times a week

Biggest help has been tracking calories in vs. calories out. I use MyFitnessPal app to track everything I eat and drink. As well as tracking exercise.

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## mtnbikej (Sep 6, 2001)

I'm not sold on the whole 27.5+

I built my Chameleon up as a 29er. It's an awesome rig. I tend to be hard on bikes, but the Chameleon is overbuilt enough that I'm not concerned with it.

Pavement is going to feel a lot slower on the 27.5+ However they will be nicer if the gravel is deep or loose.

I think in 29er form it will be faster.


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## dakotap (Mar 24, 2018)

After riding the 29" variant they unfortunately didn't have the 27.5+ in stock at that specific shop, but they offered me to swap the wheels from a 27.5+ FS juliana that had the same raceface ar40s but had Maxxis Rekon+ 27.5x2.8's. Swapped it out for me and I went out on the test ride. The 27.5 felt better to me. Both were similair but the 27.5 seemed more responsive in the way of turning and switching directions. The guy said he would send me home with it like that if that's what I wanted, no extra charges. Couldn't have nicer things to say about Sebastian and the rest of the crew at Planetary cycles in Houston. They went above and beyond to make sure I was happy and get me on my way back to Louisiana with the right bike. Took it on a quick spin the trails and couldn't be happier. This bike is nearly perfect. All I want is a dropper post next up.









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## B1KER (Jul 19, 2006)

I'm planning on buying one of those here shortly. I'm super excited to ride it. I'm going to be building out 27.5+ too. I think as a big guy that extra tire just hooks up so much better for us. The first time I rode 27.5+ I thought to myself this traction must be how it feels for skinny guys to ride regular wheels.


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## slapmaxwell1 (May 17, 2014)

Kool post! I've been looking at the chameleon as my next bike. I just sent them a msg about their rider weight limit but seeing we are about the same size I should be fine. The only thing that I'm wondering about is if I can ride it in the streets. Most times I have to ride some 5 or 6 miles just to get to the trailhead...


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## B1KER (Jul 19, 2006)

It’s a bike it can definitely ride in the streets. ; ) I’ve had my Chameleon for awhile now. I’m digging it a lot. I’ll do a bike check on my channel here soon to talk about it.


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## rkwfxd (Jan 8, 2019)

B1KER said:


> It's a bike it can definitely ride in the streets. ; ) I've had my Chameleon for awhile now. I'm digging it a lot. I'll do a bike check on my channel here soon to talk about it.


Very cool. For some reason I thought you sold yours. Looking forward to your bike check.


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## slapmaxwell1 (May 17, 2014)

Definitely looking forward to your update. What made you pick the santa cruz over the Scott scale? What chameleon build did you wind up getting?


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## fat_rider (Nov 21, 2016)

here's my chameleon built from frame 29er 
wheelset is Duroc 50; front tire is maxxis minion dhf 2.5 rear is maxxis minion dhr 2.4. I have another bike that is also a hard tail that has 27.5x2.8s and i can say that this chameleon 29er is better in all aspect


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## Alex (May 1, 2004)

slapmaxwell1 said:


> Kool post! I've been looking at the chameleon as my next bike. I just sent them a msg about their rider weight limit but seeing we are about the same size I should be fine. The only thing that I'm wondering about is if I can ride it in the streets. Most times I have to ride some 5 or 6 miles just to get to the trailhead...


It's a great looking bike, one that I would like if finances allow. I have a similar concern though, not just for this bike but for most modern MTB's. I also ride a fair distance, either to get to trails or just to explore, and my current (old) bike has 3 front rings - up to 48t.

Most modern bikes seem to be a single ring up front. If you have to ride 20 to 40 miles, you really need a big ring to get up some speed. People here have told me before to get spinning, but I'm not really interested in being Sonic the Hedgehog, I just like to go far and fast at a cadence I enjoy. Maybe I need two bikes? I might have to think about a road bike and an MTB if I upgrade.

I suppose what I'm saying is that bikes have become specialised - they used to be more multi-tasking but are now limited (but admittedly better in their chosen field).


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## slapmaxwell1 (May 17, 2014)

I thought about getting two bikes as well. But as an over the road truck driver I only have enough room for one bike. I really like my chameleon, true it is more of a trail bike than anything else, which is why I went with the 29er build. With the stock tires I can average about 10 to 15 mph on the road depending on grades and weather. But i have to be honest I'm also 60 lbs over weight and just overall out of shape. With that said I cant blame my speed on the chameleon which I think is an excellent all around bike. The last piece of the puzzle for me to figure out is the tire shell game. Which tires are best for xyz scenario. I'm kinda leaning towards putting an ardent or race ardent up front and ikon in rear for road and light trail. But I need to test it out. Over these last few weeks I've been looking and chatting with other chameleon riders and found one that rode his chameleon in a 100k race and is now training for the death ride tour of the California alps?? The 100k is definitely doable but 15k feet of climbing over 130 miles on a heavy hardtail??? I think he was messing with me 
or seeing if I would be crazy enough to train and try it with him...lol ~Tailwinds


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## eb1888 (Jan 27, 2012)

Alex said:


> It's a great looking bike, one that I would like if finances allow. I have a similar concern though, not just for this bike but for most modern MTB's. I also ride a fair distance, either to get to trails or just to explore, and my current (old) bike has 3 front rings - up to 48t.
> 
> Most modern bikes seem to be a single ring up front. If you have to ride 20 to 40 miles, you really need a big ring to get up some speed. People here have told me before to get spinning, but I'm not really interested in being Sonic the Hedgehog, I just like to go far and fast at a cadence I enjoy. Maybe I need two bikes? I might have to think about a road bike and an MTB if I upgrade.
> 
> I suppose what I'm saying is that bikes have become specialized - they used to be more multi-tasking but are now limited (but admittedly better in their chosen field).


There's *nothing* wrong with a triple and front derailleur. Although mtb is 44-32-22, normally. The current single got rid of extra shifting problems created by going to a front double without a 32. A triple has a 32 or 30 center front ring many singles use. You can also go 44 - 32 on a double to get a usable range with 10sp.


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