the field guide
Setup, tech, and buying guides for people who actually wrench on their own bikes. Every guide is built around a real question riders ask, and wired into the tools in your Garage and Builder.
Wolf Tooth Locked-In Bar Ends: The Most Hyped MTB Part of 2026
The Wolf Tooth Locked-In Bar Ends are a $34.95 pair of bar ends that bolt into your handlebar so the outside of your hand has something to push against instead of squeezing the grips. They fit bars with an 18.0mm or wider internal diameter and need grips with an open outboard end.
Read the guide →
Michelin Tires, Explained: Racing Line vs Performance Line, and Every Tread
Michelin bundles the casing and the compound into a single word, so one of its tires is two decisions instead of three. Here is what Racing Line and Performance Line actually buy you, why the DH numbers are not a scale, and the pairing to run.
Read the guide →
Schwalbe Tires, Explained: Radial vs Diagonal, Every Casing and Compound
Schwalbe renamed most of its mountain bike range, killed three treads people liked, and is the only brand selling radial casings at scale. Here is what radial actually does, whether you want it, and how to read the new sidewall.
Read the guide →
Continental Tires, Explained: Kryptotal, Xynotal, Argotal and the Rest
Continental threw out its old mountain range in 2022 and replaced it with a grid: five treads, three casings, five compounds. Here is what each axis does, which combination to actually buy, and what the 13 new options added this month unlock.
Read the guide →
Maxxis Tires, Explained: Every Casing, Compound and Tread (Plus the New Minion DHX)
EXO, EXO+, DoubleDown, DH. 3C MaxxGrip, MaxxTerra, MaxxSpeed. DHF, DHR II, Assegai, Dissector. Here is what every one of those actually means, which Maxxis tire belongs on which end of your bike, and where the brand-new Minion DHX and its reworked DH casing fit in.
Read the guide →
What Size Mountain Bike Do I Need? Size Chart by Height, Then Reach
Start with a height chart, then settle it with reach. Here's the size chart, how to measure the bike you already have, how to break a tie when you're between sizes, and what you can still change after the frame is bought.
Read the guide →
Are Dropper Posts Universal? Diameter, Travel, and What Actually Fits
No, they are not. A dropper has to match three things on your bike: the seat tube diameter, how deep the post can slide in, and how the cable gets to the lever. Here is how to check all three with a tape measure.
Read the guide →
Coil vs Air Shock: Which One Belongs on Your Bike?
One uses compressed air as the spring, the other uses a steel coil. The ride feel, the maintenance, and the tuning are genuinely different, and some frames flat-out can't run a coil. Here's how to pick.
Read the guide →
What Is a Mullet Mountain Bike? Mixed Wheels, Explained
A 29" wheel up front, a 27.5" out back. Why race bikes went mixed, what you gain and give up, and what actually happens to your geometry if you convert a 29er yourself.
Read the guide →
Mountain Bike Geometry Explained: Read the Chart Like It Matters
Reach, stack, head angle, chainstay: a geometry chart tells you how a bike fits and how it behaves before you ever swing a leg over it. Here's every number that matters, in plain words.
Read the guide →Is There a PCPartPicker for Mountain Bikes? (Yes, and Here’s How It Works)
PC builders have PCPartPicker. Mountain bikers now have BuildMTB. Here's what the two tools have in common, where the MTB side of the fence is way messier, and how the compatibility engine actually works when you spec a build.
Read the guide →
Hardtail vs Full Suspension: Which Mountain Bike Should You Actually Buy?
The first real fork in the road when you're buying a mountain bike. Here's what actually changes between the two, how each one rides, and the honest budget math that decides it for most people.
Read the guide →
What Order to Choose Parts for a Custom MTB Build (Frame First, and Why)
Building a custom bike is really a chain of decisions, and the order you make them in saves you money. Here's the part-picking roadmap, from frame to the bits that barely care, and how each choice quietly decides the next.
Read the guide →
How to Build a Mountain Bike From Parts (And the Compatibility Traps)
Building a mountain bike from a bare frame is mostly one thing: making sure every part fits the next. Here's the build order, the compatibility traps that bite people, and how to check fitment before you spend a dime.
Read the guide →
How to Set Sag on a Mountain Bike (Front + Rear, by Discipline)
Sag is the first thing you dial and the thing most people get wrong. Here's how to set front and rear sag right, what numbers to aim for by discipline, and the o-ring trick that tells you if you nailed it.
Read the guide →