I’m 36 this year and I’m thinking of getting a “nicer” and tweaked version of my Karate Monkey made for my 40th. Rigid specific, bit slacker, few other geo/sizing tweaks, nice colour, XT level build with nice wheels etc.

I’m looking at Curtis and 18Bikes in the UK.
Further afield I’m looking at 44 Bikes in the US (http://www.44bikes.com/) Retrotec, Soulcraft, Hunter and Indy Fab.

My fortieth bike

Gone (stolen) but not forgotten. I’m surprised it hasn’t turned up yet to be honest, they aren’t exactly common!

The replacement trounces it on everything except “titaniumness” 😉 No bike is for life, but all bikes are good.

had an absolute hoot around Cannock Chase today and honestly, there is no need to change anything.

I love Cannock, but the first thing I’d change on a Soul to enjoy Cannock more is the frame…and get a full susser. The many braking bumps must get a bit tedious on a hard tail

You’re not alone with that. I think the Shimano cranks look odd. The more traditional type, even beefier than the old-school ones look better.