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Some godforsaken piece of human waste stole my bike yesterday. Straight from my front garden. Now my two kids are scared the same people might return. Honestly, this kind of crime rates up there with rape and murder.

So now I have to spend money on a new bike. I did love my hardtail with a setup between a mtb and a forest trail racer. I especially loved week long trips with luggage attachments clipped onto the post and stem, frame bag too.

The only things I really envied were when I was on rough terrain on a luggage laden long distance trip watching the mtbrs on full sus go whizzing by. Sometimes with dropper seats.

Now I have to go and buy a new bike, I would love a cheaper full sus mtb. Problem is, can I go long distance on it, and how/where/with what do I attach luggage?

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    If your intent is to get similar component quality, have you compared how much more the full suspension bike will cost than a similar quality hardtail?
    – mikes
    Commented Jun 15, 2018 at 0:19
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    Remember that "cheaper full sus mtb" (or even pretty expensive ful sus mtb) means a heavy bike that needs more maintenance, and factor that into your decision-making.
    – David Richerby
    Commented Jun 15, 2018 at 18:09
  • Before you replace your bike, think about how to prevent this happening again. Store the bike inside is best, then your back garden (locked in a shed/garage) Is bad if the bike can be seen from the street.
    – Criggie ♦
    Commented Jun 15, 2018 at 23:46
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    Separately, how can you help your kids learn from this experience? A camera covering the front might alleviate their concerns, but realistically cameras don't stop bad stuff happening.
    – Criggie ♦
    Commented Jun 15, 2018 at 23:48
  • Quality dropper posts cost the same as some "cheaper full sus mtb". You need to qualify what you mean by "cheaper". You will probably find a plus or fat hard tail better suited to you budget and riding conditions than a soft tail.
    – mattnz
    Commented Jun 16, 2018 at 0:19

2 Answers 2

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If you query Google Images with "full suspension backpacking", the results reveal several useful points:

  • Yes, people can and do backpack on FS MTBs.
  • Among the attachment points are handlebar rolls, seatpost-mounted panniers, seatpost/saddle bags and assortment of frame bags (inside triangle, over top tube, under bottom tube)

As an additional source of info, check out this thread on MTBR, it provides a useful anecdotes (for example about backpacking on FS MTB for 600 miles) and links (more relevant and useful resources).

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There are rear racks such as the Thule Tour Rack which attach directly to the “seat stays” or fork of a full suspension MTB: Thule Rear Rack Thule Rear Rack attached to a full suspension MTB

I’m not an expert on MTBs and don’t own one myself, but apparently a disadvantage of this solution is that it makes the luggage part of the unsprung mass which should be as small as possible. However since you are probably not riding demanding trails with 20kg of luggage attached I doubt it’s going to be much of a problem.

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