The Tallboy is lighter and that makes it an easier seated climber though the 429 pedals better, on or out of the saddle. The front of both bikes lofts easily. Donl;t be fooled into thinking that the Tallboy is “active” if you have 5″-6″ bikes in mind or even 29ers like the RIP9 or Sultan. It is not. It is really firm and while that makes it climb well, it also slows it down and hangs it up in techincal sections…slow or fast.

In slow sections, it helps if you stay light on the seat. otherwise, the compresion forces compresses the shock too much and there is not much travel left to help track over the rcok. Here, bikes like the Sultan and Rip simply leave it in the dust. Same with fast and rough downhills.

The Tallboy is fantastic on smother trails and still very good on rough trails as long as you are not coming off a longer-travel bike. It is quite similar in feel to the Mach 429, another racier 29er. The mach 429 is extremely laterally stiff. The Tallboy is stiff enough but not as stiff. Somewhere in the linkage area, there is some flex. It isn’t as bad as people may imagine but compared to the 429, it is flexier. It is nowhere near as flexy as the old Intense 29er so reast easy. It corners very well sine it is balanced so well. I do not like bikes with heavy rearward weigh biases and the Tallboy does not dissapiint. Just lean in and guide it through the fastest turns and it will bring you through…unless you just suck at fast turns.

Overall, it is a fantastic short-travel bike that can really fly when pushed. On trails where you can really pedal, it will leave most behind with equal riders on board. It’s a fun bike that I consider in the top 3-4, unless you are looking for a plush and active ride, in which case, the 429 and Tallboy are outgunned. Stick with the Behemoth, RIP9, Sultan, Intense Tracer, etc. It is also one heck of a light platform to build a light trailbike or racer. At a frame weight of 5.25 lbs to 5.5 lbs, it is hard to neat the weight advantage of carbon. Just toss on some helicopter tape and a BB protector if you ride really rocky terrain.

I’ve recently bought a XL tallboy. I’m about inch taller than you and at the age of your riding buddes. Of course it will depend on your leg length more than anything but I find the XL great sizing, if anything I wondered about the XXL, so as you are slightly shorter I’d say the XL should be spot on.

Not sure about the fork. I’ve stuck with the standard 100mm Fox on the front and have no complaints, I’m using it for big rides 50+ miles or 3+ hours and I’m not sure a heavier fork would be good for that. Guess it will depend on the kind of riding you do.

Andy.