Mechanical disc brakes make use of 160 mm rotors. If you were wanting to replace the rigid fork with a suspension fork, then you would probably be hard pressed to find a fat mongoose bmx bike fork that would fit. The bike has a 1 1/8th straight headtube. The stock seat was very narrow and hard. That is the seat I bought to replace the stock torture device.
Shifting worked out of the box and functioned well. To be honest, I don’t think my son has ever used a front derailleur until now. One-by systems have all but taken over the mountain bike market. I have a 7 speed Shimano thumb shifter and aluminum mountain bike pedals on the way.
Likewise, this isn’t the most agile of bikes either. Those big tires won’t turn on a dime and they certainly wont take the sharpest of corners. But then again, when they are capable of simply rolling over just about anything that gets in their way, the point is mostly moot anyway. The most notable feature on the Beast, at least from a visual stand point, are the massive 4-1/4″ tires.
They are heavy but like it’s said above, more of a workout. The Mongoose Argus Trail is most certainly a unique bike that meets the needs of an extreme niche. The component build is competitive, keeps cost down, and functions as needed. My son was apprehensive to let loose with the rigid platform. He did say that he noticed a difference in the handling with the big tires and it felt kind of like his Kawasaki KLX 110. Gradual climbing up our neighborhood trails was OK for a while.
After an hour or so I found myself getting very uncomfortable in the saddle, even while wearing padded shorts. I’m over 6’2″ in height and often felt kind of cramped, even with the seat extended to its highest point. Clearly Mongoose didn’t have high performance in mind when they built the Beast, they were simply looking to create a bike that is fun to ride. If that was indeed their aim from the outset, I’d say they succeeded. While riding the Beast I found myself pleasantly surprised with how enjoyable it was to roll down a trail with relative ease. I’m sure that on more than one occasion I pedaled along with a goofy grin on my face as my big, oversized tires crushed everything that dared to get in their way.
Fat bikes are heavy and not ideal for every day riding. That isn’t to say the ride was all sunshine and roses. There were a couple of aspects of the Beast that made it a challenge to ride for extended periods of time. For instance, I wasn’t overly fond of the stock seat that comes with the bike.
They slowed my son’s riding down when needed but functioned as any mechanical brake set would. They are not hydraulic and even I could feel that when testing myself. The job is getting done but there is more arm pump and fatigue when wrestling more weight with a lower grade brake system. The rear end of the bike also has quick release dropouts with 190mm hub width.
Parker is our resident tester and inspiration. One of the main components of any bike is the drive train. The Argus’ drive train uses a 2×8 system with a Microshift derailleur in the front and a Shimano Tourney in the rear. Most mountain bike steerer tubes are designed for tapered headtubes. If the diameter is 44mm then Cane Creek does make a headset to adapt a tapered fork to the headtube. Keep posts and comments free of disparaging remarks.
The drive train is setup for either snow or sand riding and my son seemed to ride comfortably. Taking the Argus out was a different experience than the norm and we both had fun. Mongoose has given the “go-ahead” to do a long term review to assess the handling and function of the Argus once winter comes. So if you’re curious about how the bike performs in the snow, stay tuned…..