Specialized Fuse Expert 29 Review

Should I Buy This Bike?

There is a good chance you should buy this bike. Riders who are seeking modern geometry in a budget-friendly well-spec'd hardtail mountain bike will love the Fuse Expert 29. This bike is as fun as a barrel of monkeys when ridden hard but is just as happy meandering along some tame terrain. In our eyes, the combination of an attractive price point paired with fun, well-rounded, performance will always be a winning recipe. Our only major gripe is the low-end fork, but hey, you're getting a totally ripping hardtail at $2,150, a few corners have to be cut. In our eyes, the wide, aggressive rubber, solid drivetrain, and dropper post heavily outweigh the clunky RockShox Gold 35 fork.

Looking to log some serious miles on a hardtail. The Ibis DV9 is a swift pedaling, mile-crushing, hardtail. This light bicycle has more conservative geometry compared to the Specialized. As a result, it sets the rider up in an extremely efficient climbing position and delivers crisp, razor-sharp, handling. If you want to enter a cross-country race or two or spend long days in the saddle, the Ibis is the bike for you. If you are looking to get aggressive and prefer a more progressive geometry, the Fuse is the better choice. The Ibis is available in carbon fiber only with build kits starting at $2,550.

Do you like to have fun? The Santa Cruz Chameleon is a fun-loving hardtail. This bike has more of a compact wheelbase and somewhat of a dirt-jumper-inspired attitude. The Chameleon enjoys being pumped through rolls, snapped through corners, and blasted down flow trails. Given the very short rear end, this bike prefers buff trails to bony ones. Having that rear axle tucked right under your bottom gives it a harsh feel over rocks and roots. In addition, it can loop out more easily on the climb. Still, if you are looking for a supremely fun hardtail, the Chameleon is an excellent choice. The Fuse is a better daily driver for the masses. The Santa Cruz is available in carbon fiber and aluminum with build kits starting at $1,799.

Frame Design

The new Fuse is currently available in aluminum only and has the ability to run 29-inch or 27.5+ wheels. Adjustable dropouts give you the ability to adjust your chainstay length by 15mm and the option to run a single-speed setup. The threaded bottom bracket is a nice touch on a bike at this price range. Oftentimes, manufacturers cut corners on bikes of a lower price point. One way to do this is to sacrifice the user-friendly threaded bottom bracket in favor of a simple, but difficult, press-fit bottom bracket where the bearings are simply pushed into the frame. Tip of the cap to Specialized on this one. We were disappointed by the lack of chainstay protection, and we quickly zip-tied a section of an old tube on there to reduce the loud chain slap noise.

We don't often comment on the aesthetics of our test bicycles as so much of it is personal preference. That said, this polished aluminum frame looks clean and sleek. We love it.

We measured our large test bike to have a 465mm reach and 642mm effective top tube. The head tube angle is 66.6-degrees and the seat tube angle is 73.5-degrees. We found the wheelbase to measure 1178mm and the bottom bracket is 320mm off the ground. Our test bike hit the scales at 29 pounds 14 ounces setup tubeless without pedals.

Design Highlights

• Available in aluminum only

• Adjustable dropouts to run a geared or single-speed drivetrain

• Accepts 29-inch or 27.5+ wheels

• Internal cable routing

• Boost spacing

• Threaded bottom bracket

• Designed around 130mm fork

Downhill Performance

The Fuse offers ripping downhill performance. This bike has the attitude to get radical on moderate terrain and inspires you to keep pushing the speed limit. Handling is crisp and it feels great in both high-speed situations and slow, ultra-tight, ones. You are very aware you are riding a hardtail when charging over rocks, but the 2.6-inch tires do help take some of the edge off compared to standard 2.3-2.5-inch tires.

Specialized nailed the geometry on the new Fuse. The measured 66.6-degree head tube angle and 1178mm wheelbase work beautifully together. This bike isn't nearly as long and low as the gravity-focused hardcore hardtails we've tested, but it still feels awfully stable and planted. In other words, the geometry is progressive enough to feel stable and confident at speed, but still reasonable enough to handle pretty darn well at slower speeds. The Fuse isn't the best choice for truly steep and rowdy trails, if that is your jam, we suggest looking at some of the hardcore hardtails or better yet, a full-suspension bike.

Charging down fast flow trails is exceptionally fun. This bicycle operates confidently at speed. The geometry and aggressive 2.6-inch tires allow you to keep pushing the speed limit. When you get this sleek silver shredder into moderately choppy situations, the Fuse holds its own. To be sure, there are better hardtails on the market for aggressive riding. Those bikes may have enduro-esque slack geometry with meaty 150-160mm forks. That said, the Fuse is more than capable in most situations.

When ripping downhill, you are very aware you're riding a hardtail. The slightly wider 2.6-inch tires can be run at lower air pressures compared to narrower rubber. Testers found the sweet spot to be somewhere near 22-PSI in the front and 24-PSI in the rear. This helps take some of the edge off of the generally more harsh nature of hardtails. We have found the 27.5 x 2.8" tires are more effective at providing some damping since you can run even lower pressures.

Handling is crisp and the fun factor is high on the Fuse 29. At moderate to high speeds, the bike responds to minimal rider input. Simply dip a shoulder into a corner and the bike snaps through. Manuals, boosts, and bonks are highly encouraged. This is another benefit of Specialized using semi-conservative geometry. Shorter bikes with steeper geometry handle quicker and often provide a more fun-filled ride while ultra-long and slack bicycles can feel too grounded/planted to engage in shenanigans. Testers agree, if the Fuse could be described in one word, it would be fun.

The build kit on our $2,150 Fuse Expert was decent and there are very noticeable highlights and a very notable lowlight. The combination of the 2.6-inch Specialized Butcher and Purgatory worked well together. The Butcher is aggressive enough to back up aggressive riding and the Purgatory delivers a nice blend of rolling speed and braking bite. The SRAM Level TRL 4-piston front and 2-piston rear brakes were fine. These binders are far from our favorite, but they work well enough. The 150mm Trans-X dropper post was a stealthy but functional specification. Our main gripe with this bike is the RockShox 35 Gold fork. The fork has a sturdy-feeling chassis and 35mm stanchions, but felt terrible out of the box and immediately needed to be serviced. Even after the service, the fork felt harsh and had a hitchy or sticky feel in the mid-stroke. At this price point, sacrifices need to be made somewhere within the build kit. We can live with this fork because the rest of the bike is so radical, but this would be a target of an immediate upgrade.

Climbing Performance

The Fuse is a stellar climber that delivers solid traction and decent efficiency. This bike shines while scooting up smooth and buff climbs. Working up and over techy climbs requires a bit of a finesse approach to ensure a comfortable experience. The Fuse is no featherweight at nearly 30-pounds, that said, it never feels clunky or cumbersome on the ascent.

This Fuse sets you up in a nice climbing position. The 73.5-degree effective seat tube angle is about par-for-the-course for a trail-oriented hardtail. While you are not straight on top of the bottom bracket like some other bicycles, you are in a respectable position to put some power down. We loved the longer top tube and airy 465mm reach measurement. The Specialized has plenty of real estate for riders to shuffle weight around as needed. Need to get forward on a steep punch? No problem. Need to get some weight over the rear wheel on a loose section of the climb? No problem. For how fun and versatile this bike is on the descent, it still delivers a comfortable climbing feel.

Efficiency is respectable aboard the Fuse. To be sure, there is no confusing this bike for a super-light mile crusher like some other bikes we have tested. If you plan on hammering big, long, climbs frequently, we recommend looking elsewhere. That said, the Fuse doesn't feel piggish like some of the most aggressive, enduro-inspired, hardtails in our test. In other words, it occupies the highly desirable middle-ground that makes it such a versatile bike.

The 29 x 2.6-inch tires offer nice rollover abilities and generous amounts of traction. While narrower tires are lighter and produce less drag, wider rubber has a larger contact patch to scoot up those technical bits where traction is at a premium. The outgoing Specialized Fuse ran 27.5 x 3.0-inch tires. These mid-fat tires offered supreme traction and a little bit of a more comfortable ride. That said, they didn't feel all that precise. The tires were so wide, it was tough to feed them through a tight line. In addition, they produced a good bit of drag. We feel the 29 x 2.6-inch tires are an improvement for the overall ride-quality of this bike, but they do require a slightly more confident and experienced pilot since there is less traction to bail you out when things go wonky.

Uphill handling was sharp. The measured 67.5-degree head tube angle steered well through uphill switchbacks and tight corners. Longer and slacker bikes can feel bulky and sluggish through the bends. The Fuse has moderate enough geometry to handle well without sacrificing the descent. The mid-length 430mm chainstays work well on the ascent. The rear end isn't so short to want to wander or lift up on steep, seated, climbs. In addition, the slightly longer chainstays make for a more comfortable climb by moving the rear axle slightly rearward and out from under your bottom. This translates less of the trail surface to the rider.

The build kit on our Fuse Expert was generally quite solid. The SRAM NX Eagle 12-speed drivetrain is serviceable. While it is nice to find 12-speed drivetrains on budget-oriented bicycles, the lower-end systems can be a bit finicky, and the cassette is very heavy. The combination of the Specialized Butcher/Purgatory delivered plenty of bite to scoot up some loose tech sections without being unnecessarily burly or heavy.

Photo Tour

Value

The Fuse Expert 29 is a strong value, no two ways about it. At $2,150, you get a tremendously fun bicycle with a respectable build kit. Yes, there are lighter hardtail mountain bikes. There are also more aggressive hardtails. However, we feel the Fuse offers the most fun, well-rounded, ride out of all of our test bikes. We love it, we think you will too.

Conclusion