Introducing our first 32″ mountain bike, the Starling Big Bird – an experiment in putting cynicism to one side and giving new standards a go.
Photos: Emm Whitaker
Thanks to: Hope Technology, Ryan Builds Wheels, IntendBC, Maxxis/Madison
>> Skip straight to the Big Bird Product Page here.
We were pretty cynical when they first appeared. “FFS, not another bloody standard” might have been mentioned.
But, we were also really interested to give them a shot. After all, what’s opinion without experience?
So, because we can, we made our own 32″ mountain bike right here at the Starling Cycles workshop in Bristol.
Introducing the Starling Cycles Big Bird, available to order now for a limited time.
The new Starling Cycles Big Bird is a hand-built, steel mullet frame with a 32” front wheel and 29” rear.
It has 120mm front/rear travel and is built in-house at Starling in Bristol, UK.
Like many of our frames, it has a Reynolds 853 front triangle and heat-treated CroMo rear triangle. It has simple, single-pivot suspension, two bearings for zero-faff, and all of the bells and whistles of a V3 Starling frame.
At the risk of spoiling the punchline, we should say that the frame is now available to order via Starling Cycles, alongside a range of 32”-specific components, including the IntendBC Samurai 32″ fork and Maxxis Aspen 32″ tyre.
But, does that mean we’re 100% convinced with 32”?
No, not entirely.
In Joe’s words: “It’s really fun to ride. But in my opinion, 32” doesn’t make mountain biking more fun, more affordable, or more accessible to more people.”
“In the short term, people with money can gain an advantage (if there is one), but this is lost if everyone is forced to change wheel size and we end up back where we started. It potentially devalues the perfectly good wheel sizes that came before it.”
“But it seems the change is coming, and as a small company, we can get ahead of the curve, so we’re interested to give it a go. I’m an engineer, I like to make things and test them out.”
Building the Big Bird frame was pretty straightforward.
We build many of own frames in-house in Bristol and can make small batches, limited editions, experiments, and one-offs. They call these their ‘RARE’ frames – stuff like the 26″ Dive, the Sturn DH bike or the Beady Little Eye.
We started with the Murmur (our classic 29” frame) as the base and adapted the front end for the bigger wheel. The axle of a 32” wheel is approximately 40mm higher than a 29er, so the headtube went up to accommodate that.
We also reduced the reach a little to account for that higher front end. A standard large Murmur is 485mm, the Big Bird gets 470mm.
But why no 32” rear wheel?
This was part engineering and part rider preference. It was more straightforward to build and didn’t need us to reinvent its swingarm.
Plus, we really like mixed-wheels, and keeping the rear end as playful as possible felt like a good move.
A far bigger challenge was the 32″ components.
Right now, 32” components are rarer than unicorn eggs, even less so if you want some choice about what you run.
We went with a prototype 32” IntendBC Samurai 120mm fork, made using an adapted 29” fork with extended dropouts. This is pretty much the only 32″ fork available to buy right now and is INCREDIBLE on the trail.
Wheels were handmade by RyanBuildsWheels using Nextie carbon rims and Hope Hubs. Tyres are especially rare, and the fast-rolling Maxxis Aspen is one of the few 32″ options available. They’re pretty hairy in the wet-and-wild British slop, but, we’re having fun with them.
Obviously, the engineering side of the project was interesting. But what we were really excited about was riding the thing.
So, Joe strapped on his waterproofs and got stuck into some very wet British conditions.
“Straightaway, I felt comfortable on it, no issues at all, it just feels right. The higher front end felt really good. The bar height is definitely higher, but it didn’t feel like a problem at all. I don’t feel like I need a negative rise stem at all – we’re building a trail bike, not an XC race bike, so the bar height is fine as it is.”
“We all expect the bigger wheel to roll over better. I’ve always been a bit cynical about roll-over, and I’ve always said that it’s more to do with gyroscopic stability than anything else. But with the 32″, it really does genuinely feel like it goes over rocks and roots better. It just seems to be more composed over chattery roots and rocks and genuinely feels really good.”
“The big wheel has greater gyroscopic stability than a 29”, and is even harder to move out of plane. It tends to track better and doesn’t get kicked off line, but you have to put more effort into leaning it over.”
“You have to really lean to get it over, but once it’s there, it really tracks. You have to set up for the corners even earlier and lean the bike in even more than a 29″. But it’s just like any other bike; it’s just about getting that timing right and getting used to it.”
So is Starling sold on 32”?
Again, yes, and no, according to Joe.
It’s fun to ride. It doesn’t feel unwieldy and sluggish like many suspect.
But does adding more standards and sizes benefit mountain biking? Does yet another wheel size get more people on bikes? Does it create more smiles, more bike time, and help riders feel fitter, faster, more confident and happier?
No, probably not.
“As a rider and an engineer, I enjoyed it. Is it good for mountain biking as a whole? I just don’t know. But I’d like to spend more time on it.”
For the 32”-convinced or curious, the Starling Big Bird is available now for a limited time only.
It’ll be handmade in the UK as part of a small batch. Sizes Large and XL only.
Orders will be open till approx 31st March, with a 12-week lead time on frame production.
We can also supply the IntendBC Samurai 32” fork, IntendBC Hover rear shock, hand-built 32” wheels and Maxxis Aspen tyres.
As more tyres become available, we’ll look to offer these alongside.
