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Road Guy
Well-known member
you need your own bike mech youtube channel!
Ive really been wanting to go ride but these god damn wildfires are so crazy almost everything outside has a thin layer of ash on it. its like a pollen almost...
But hey at least Ive got Cycle Bar tonight!
Ive really been wanting to go ride but these god damn wildfires are so crazy almost everything outside has a thin layer of ash on it. its like a pollen almost...
But hey at least Ive got Cycle Bar tonight!
I had to look that up. At first I thought it sounded pretty good, but was immediately disappointed when I discovered that it wasn't this.But hey at least Ive got Cycle Bar tonight!
Road Guy
Well-known member
Yes its not that
We did that for a company outing a few years ago, it was a blast, not sure how they get around letting everyone drink on that on open roads but it was pretty fun, highly recommned..
Cycle bar not so much, I just hope to not be last!
We did that for a company outing a few years ago, it was a blast, not sure how they get around letting everyone drink on that on open roads but it was pretty fun, highly recommned..
Cycle bar not so much, I just hope to not be last!
Quick ride last night - f'ing miserable. Trail was open, but shouldn't have been. Slicker than goose shit, sketchy as all hell. Then my dropper post crapped out again, this time in the lowered position. Had to ride the entire uphill section with my knees damn near in my ears. 0/10, would not recommend.
Finally did a thing. Only two issues right now - dropper post lever is sticking. It's one of those hydraulic Reverb posts, so I ordered the bleed kit for it. Hopefully that fixes it, otherwise, I'm ditching it and buying a mechanical dropper from PNW.
The other issue is that I'm a fat boy and need climbing gears. My Trek is an 11-46 cassette with 32 tooth chainring, and this one has a lowly 42 tooth cog out back. Ordered a cheap 30 tooth chainring to try up front which should give me most of the low end back. Otherwise, I'll have to fork over the dough for a new cassette, which aren't cheap or plentiful for an 11 speed with XD driver.
I'm not @csb cool with an enduro bike, but this should be a fun ride around these parts. Looking forward to waving a bunch of in-shape people riding crappy bikes around me as I crawl down the trails like an out of shape snail.
The other issue is that I'm a fat boy and need climbing gears. My Trek is an 11-46 cassette with 32 tooth chainring, and this one has a lowly 42 tooth cog out back. Ordered a cheap 30 tooth chainring to try up front which should give me most of the low end back. Otherwise, I'll have to fork over the dough for a new cassette, which aren't cheap or plentiful for an 11 speed with XD driver.
I'm not @csb cool with an enduro bike, but this should be a fun ride around these parts. Looking forward to waving a bunch of in-shape people riding crappy bikes around me as I crawl down the trails like an out of shape snail.
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TLDR - gearing on new bike makes it harder to pedal up hills vs. old bike, so I'm trying the cheap fix that sacrifices top speed for climbing ability.
You can add a dropper to almost any bike. The limiting factors are usually a) are there any protrusions in your seat tube (like rivnuts for water bottles), and b) how tall your seat tube is. If your seat tube is really tall, a dropper doesn't give much benefit because you'll never really be able to get the seat out of the way.
Took the Tallboy out on a ride last night (which was a mistake since my back is not healed yet, so I'm feeling it today). The bike is actually pretty tricky to get in the air. Even if you preload before hitting the lip of a jump, it's got a pretty long top tube so you're in a very forward position.
But, that thing is FAST. It's crazy how much more confidence inspiring it is at speed. The Fox shocks are so good at small bump compliance that you don't even feel any of the normal chatter, and you feel better and better the faster you go. I was EASILY 25% quicker than I was on my hardtail. Rear traction is crazy good. It's also strange to feel zero slop in the hub engagement when you start to pedal.
Things I need to change - seat, just not comfortable for extended periods.
Handlebars - previous owner used really narrow 740mm bars, I like around 780. Between the long stem, narrow bars, and slacker head angle, I actually drifted off the trail a few times not realizing just how hard I had to move the bars to make it want to turn.
Stem - too long, has me in a very forward riding position, need to get more upright/weight back.
Chain ring - 30 tooth is going on the front. There is no way I can make it up any sort of extended climb with the 32 tooth. I just barely made it up the short punchy ones and wanted to kill myself, was always hunting for about two more gears.
Volume spacers for the fork/shock - I like where the air pressure is, but too easy to use up all the travel. Needs some volume spacers to firm up the mid-end stroke.
I did hear the BB creak the PO mentioned, so I'll probably replace that when I do the chain ring since he gave me a spare. The dropper lever is also not working right and needs to be bled. If a bleed doesn't fix it, I will probably get rid of the reverb dropper and go to a mechanical dropper. It also drives me nuts how low the levers are on the XT shifters. The brake levers are in the right spot for one finger braking, but the shifter housing is already up as high as it will go, and you feel like you really have to wrap your hand forward/reach down to upshift.
All in all, I don't regret buying the bike one bit. It's so good it almost makes me look like I know what I'm doing, I can't even imagine how hard someone good would be able to push that thing.
Biggest con to yesterdays trip - they reversed the direction of the trail we ride most often (I think they do it every year), and it SUCKS in the new direction. The jumps are gone, the pump track section is now just a murderous uphill climb, the rock garden is now uphill, and all of the berms are on the uphill. I'm super bummed out by it.
But, that thing is FAST. It's crazy how much more confidence inspiring it is at speed. The Fox shocks are so good at small bump compliance that you don't even feel any of the normal chatter, and you feel better and better the faster you go. I was EASILY 25% quicker than I was on my hardtail. Rear traction is crazy good. It's also strange to feel zero slop in the hub engagement when you start to pedal.
Things I need to change - seat, just not comfortable for extended periods.
Handlebars - previous owner used really narrow 740mm bars, I like around 780. Between the long stem, narrow bars, and slacker head angle, I actually drifted off the trail a few times not realizing just how hard I had to move the bars to make it want to turn.
Stem - too long, has me in a very forward riding position, need to get more upright/weight back.
Chain ring - 30 tooth is going on the front. There is no way I can make it up any sort of extended climb with the 32 tooth. I just barely made it up the short punchy ones and wanted to kill myself, was always hunting for about two more gears.
Volume spacers for the fork/shock - I like where the air pressure is, but too easy to use up all the travel. Needs some volume spacers to firm up the mid-end stroke.
I did hear the BB creak the PO mentioned, so I'll probably replace that when I do the chain ring since he gave me a spare. The dropper lever is also not working right and needs to be bled. If a bleed doesn't fix it, I will probably get rid of the reverb dropper and go to a mechanical dropper. It also drives me nuts how low the levers are on the XT shifters. The brake levers are in the right spot for one finger braking, but the shifter housing is already up as high as it will go, and you feel like you really have to wrap your hand forward/reach down to upshift.
All in all, I don't regret buying the bike one bit. It's so good it almost makes me look like I know what I'm doing, I can't even imagine how hard someone good would be able to push that thing.
Biggest con to yesterdays trip - they reversed the direction of the trail we ride most often (I think they do it every year), and it SUCKS in the new direction. The jumps are gone, the pump track section is now just a murderous uphill climb, the rock garden is now uphill, and all of the berms are on the uphill. I'm super bummed out by it.
csb
Well-known member
It's so pretty!
Why the heck would they do that? That sounds hideous.
Why the heck would they do that? That sounds hideous.
I have no idea. I think they reverse it annually or for some portion of every year, but the local FB page seems to indicate that about 85% hate this variation. It's genuinely awkward. I'm hoping the other trail that's part of that system was left alone, because I like it better and this will convince Mrs. Supe and Junior to prefer it too.
Bled the dropper today. Lots of air, but only marginally better after the bleed. Considering chunks of o-ring were floating into the syringe during the bleed, I'd say the button is in need of a rebuild, so I'll order the kit and get around to doing it sometime this winter or spring when I have the fork and shock serviced.
Also, I didn't realize that the damned chain ring was the RaceFace cinch type, which is proprietary. So back goes the cheap SRAM, and a 30T Wolf Tooth oval chain ring is coming on Saturday. Mostly because that was what Amazon could get me the fastest, but also because I have zero cadence with a round chain ring and I'm hoping this will help smooth things out. I basically pistol squat my pedal strokes.
I did get the new bottom bracket in while everything was apart though, so at least that's one thing off the list.
I was finally able to get a pair of Bontrager XR grips. They were the ones that I had on my Marlin before I turtled and they got destroyed. At $15, they're the comfiest grips I've used yet, including the stupid Ergons that are just OK. I almost did an REI curbside pickup, but decided to walk in instead. Glad I did, because they showed 4 in stock but could find them nowhere after three employees combed the inventory rooms looking for them. The local Trek store had several on the wall despite showing zero in stock.
They're also made from recycled fishing nets, so I basically saved the planet today by buying bike parts.
They're also made from recycled fishing nets, so I basically saved the planet today by buying bike parts.
engineergurl
Resident Sweet Cheeks
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I like to hijack threads... just so when I look at the website I see my profile pic on all different areas... if anyone reads this, you should laugh because I chose this thread just because of Supe and the fact that he is awesome...
Road Guy
Well-known member
Our REI's are in sad shape, they closed most of them and the ones that are open are bare!
I feel like I totally wasted the summer bike season - especially waking up to 22 deg this morning, oh well, March will be here soon enough!
We doing Ragbrai next year right? Ill get YMZ on the Shirt design asap!
I feel like I totally wasted the summer bike season - especially waking up to 22 deg this morning, oh well, March will be here soon enough!
We doing Ragbrai next year right? Ill get YMZ on the Shirt design asap!
So I spent $100 on a new dropper lever instead of the $50 for a dropper button rebuild kit. Money well spent, fixed all my issues, and was easier to bleed. They should have sold them with the lever to begin with.
Also got my shifter cleaned out. The downshift lever was sticking and not wanting to return. Opened it up, full of muck, gunk, and corrosion. A steady bath of WD40, some brushing with an acid brush, and some compressed air has it looking 1000x better. Put a drop or two of the dry teflon lube in there. We'll see how she does if I ever get a chance to ride it with it being dark out now at 6:00. I put some riding lights on my Amazon wish list, so we'll see if anyone bites for birthday or xmas.
Also got my shifter cleaned out. The downshift lever was sticking and not wanting to return. Opened it up, full of muck, gunk, and corrosion. A steady bath of WD40, some brushing with an acid brush, and some compressed air has it looking 1000x better. Put a drop or two of the dry teflon lube in there. We'll see how she does if I ever get a chance to ride it with it being dark out now at 6:00. I put some riding lights on my Amazon wish list, so we'll see if anyone bites for birthday or xmas.
Had a chance to ride on Saturday morning. Dropper lever worked great, as did the shifter after cleaning all the gunk out. Only two current mechanical issues are 1) a really creaky saddle, creaking where the rails are inserted into the plastic, and 2) the dropper post can be a little sticky on the way down. The outer seal is pretty chewed up, so it's probably just overdue for a service.
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