Riders in our All-Mountain Forum are sharing their long-travel hardtail setups.

Lets face it, mountain biking is an expensive sport. Technology may be getting better, but drivetrains, components, and suspension arent getting any more affordable. One way you can claw back some cash from the cycling industry is to stick with a hardtail, rather than a full suspension.

Provided you dont mind the lack of rear suspension, theres a lot to like about modern trail-oriented hardtails. Their geometry is as long and slack as any full suspension trail or enduro bike. On top of that, hardtails are lighter, much more affordable and require significantly less maintenance. With no pivots to service and no shock to set-up and maintain, you can spend more time riding and less time wrenching.

For more than a decade, riders have been sharing their long-travel hardtails in our All-Mountain Forum.

Here are a few of our favorite builds from Mtbr members.

N-Ks black and bling Pace RC529

mtnbkrmikes killer Honzo ST

M320sGuerrilla Gravity Pedalhead with Santa Cruz Reserve carbon wheels.

Lans built up this stunning custom Ti hardtail. The frame bags are a nice touch.

Check outBossH0gsRitchey Timberwolf with a long-travel Lefty suspension fork.

Last but not least, heres another beautiful titanium hardtail. This one isVictor1977sNordest Bardino Ti

How much can a hardtail handle?

If you still doubt how much a hardtail can handle, check out this video of Bryn Atkinson putting Norcos new Torrent HT through its paces.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The post From the Forums: Awesome All-Mountain Hardtails appeared first on Mountain Bike Review.