This Is the 32" Hardtail MTB We've Been Expecting
Mountain biking has a long and polarizing history of debating (and hating) new wheel sizes, and if you've been around long enough, you've watched 26 fade, 29" face criticism and adoption, and 27.5 get caught in the crossfire. So when someone shows up to the party with a 32-inch wheel, the instinct is to roll your eyes and keep scrolling. But history repeats itself, and we all hated on 29" back in the day. Don't do the same with 32", and BTCHN' Bikes backs up my point with the Alpina.
BTCHN' Bikes
BTCHN' Bikes has just announced a production run of the Alpina, a handmade-in-the-USA steel hardtail built around the emerging 32-inch wheel platform. This isn't just an experiment; this is what's happening. The core idea here isn't gimmickry. It's composure. Specifically, the idea that a calmer, more composed ride creates speed, and that a platform intentionally designed around 32-inch wheels can deliver that in a way a scaled-up 29er simply can't.
BTCHN' Bikes
BTCHN' Alpina Details
- Wheel Size: 32”
- Tig Welded Reynold’s Steel
- Wren Inverted 32” Fork (Intend BC Inverted fork Upgrade available)
- Madrone Rear Derailliur
- Astral Jester Alloy Wheelset (BTCHN’ Carbon wheel upgrade available)
- Maxxis Aspen 32 x 2.4
- White Industries M30 Crank
- PNW Dropper Post
- Super Boost 12 x 157 Spacing
- MSRP: Complete Bikes Starting At: $6,800
Available atbtchnbikes.com
Weights
- CompleteBuild (Medium Frame, Base Build) w/o pedals is 29.17lbs
- Frame: 2380g
- CompleteBuild (Medium Frame WITH UPGRADES) w/0 pedals is 27.44lbs
BTCHN' Bikes
The Alpina is handmade and batch-built in partnership with Falconer Bikes out of California, offered in three stock sizes (MD, LG, XL), and TIG-welded from Reynolds steel tubing. Frame construction is domestic, and the build kit leans hard into that ethos with components from White Industries, Astral, and Madrone - brands you don't usually see paired together at this price point for complete builds. Shifting duties fall to a mechanical drivetrain with a mix of SRAM Eagle 90 for pulling the cable, and a Madrone JAB to move the chain around on the SRAM GX cassette.
The fork is a 32" specific, inverted Wren (really hitting all the buzz-words there), and the rolling rubber comes in the form of 32 x 2.4 Maxxis Aspen tires. The frame has clearance for up to 32 x 2.6 if you want to push it. The Wren Inverted 32" fork is stock, but if you want an off -the-rack bike that feels custom, an Intend BC inverted fork upgrade, with carbon rims, and a titanium bullmoose bar is available for those who want to live their dreams. A well-rounded spec sheet that feels cohesive and purposeful rather than a selection of parts to “just make it work”.
BTCHN' Bikes
With 32" being a thing now, the Alpina is using Super Boost 157 rear spacing to give these wagon wheels a bit more rigidity - something I imagine will become the norm as 32-inch wheels become more and more popular. Similar to what we saw with boost spacing and the rise of 29". See? It's all in a cycle.
What makes the Alpina interesting from a geometry standpoint is how BTCHN' is using the wheel size to rethink where the rider sits in relation to the bike. By increasing bottom bracket drop relative to axle height, the Alpina puts the rider "in" the bike rather than perched on top of it. Anyone who has spent time on a bike that feels like it's trying to eject or buck them will immediately understand the appeal of that decision. A planted, stable-feeling bike without sacrificing pedal clearance is hard to get right, and it's the kind of detail that separates a well-considered design from a wheel-size experiment.
BTCHN' Bikes
The resulting ride character, according to BTCHN', is noticeably calmer than one might expect from these new wheels. Fewer corrections, more maintained speed, less energy wasted managing the bike - could 32” wheels be finding their place?
These claims make a compelling promise for riders who want to push the pace on technical singletrack and their normal trails but are apprehensive about adopting this new wheel standard. It also makes the Alpina a natural fit for long backcountry days where you’re racing daylight to camp.
BTCHN' Bikes
At $6,800 to start, a complete Alpina is not a casual purchase. The base build comes in at 29.17 lbs without pedals, and the upgraded build drops that to a respectable 27.44 lbs. The frame alone weighs 2,380 grams, which is honest and expected for quality steel construction. This is a handmade, domestically produced bike with a thoughtful spec sheet, and the price reflects that reality and is really opening the door to the world of 32” wheels.
The 32-inch wheel story is still being written, but BTCHN' Bikes is making a genuinely compelling argument that it deserves a chapter. We all know how hard it was for 29” to become a standard, and personally, I keep seeing the same arguments being made today.