Well it’s been one of them weekends… long and complex with squillions of thoughts, plans and debates… Some riding too 🙂

The debate ranged between keeping just 1 bike, having a lightish Full Suss, or a Steel framed Cotic HT.

In the end, I thought “lets go with what we know and loved”

I ended up buying another Salsa Spearfish. !

It comes with a pretty nice spec actually, so I’m happy with that, although i’ll debate the brakes and depending on cable lengths I may swap the Cookers brakes over to the Fish. Only minor downside on the spec is I guess the Wheels, which are a bit of an unknown quantity but I don’t expect them to be silly light, but I have the HOPES to swap over anyway.

I had some cracking days out on the old Spearfish and it could easily be argued I should never have sold it… But in my defence, the Commencal I replaced it with did fit what I wanted last year perfectly and did a great job of giving me the extra GRRRRRR to go ‘bigger’ . But I do know that the Spearfish is fast, smooth and exactly what I want/need from a bike for this seasons riding 🙂

Rockshox RLT Reba forks

Monarch rock shox rear shock

Carbon fibre RaceFace handlebars

Thomson stem, Nukeproof headset

XTR rear dérailleur , XTR shifters, SLX front mech

RaceFace Atlas crankset

Hayes Prime Expert Hydraulic brakes

On One Reetard wheels

Race Face seat post,chroma seat.

Deposit paid and will collect on Saturday.

Looks nice. Drivetrain looks incredibly clean.

Welcome to the club 🙂

Very nice. Hardly looks used at all.

I’m just hoping these pics are ‘now’ not ‘when I first built it’

LOL. I’ll find out on Sat when I get over to collect it 🙂

I believe that i have your first Spearfish. Still doing valiant service………

theotherjonv – Member

I believe that i have your first Spearfish. Still doing valiant service………

Does it still have the ‘interesting’ colour forks ?

🙂

define interesting?

lol they were sky blue on an orange frame 🙂

Nice choice

sky blue on an orange frame

Aaaaah! My eyes!

(I have a very orange El Mar, and this year’s colour is lime green. Don’t know what it is with Salsa and eye-searing colours…)

Aaaaah! My eyes!

(I have a very orange El Mar, and this year’s colour is lime green. Don’t know what it is with Salsa and eye-searing colours…)

LOL they were a pair of SID’s with the right steerer type/length… At the right sort of money too… so had to be done…. but yes… they were a very interesting colour scheme !

Well, that went reasonably for a first spanner.

Whilst the guy was great at cleaning, his bike skills require a little work. Nothing major just the front mech rubbing the chain in most of the gears, couldn’t index it out so had to lower the mech about 3mm to get it in the right place, re-tension and re index… All good. Some of his bolts were a bit tight, some were a bit loose too lol.

I need to swap over the front rotors as my Formula brakes don’t like whatever rotor he has on the front end and gives a yukky judder. But the brakes are swapped over, so that’s good.

Levers and shifters are adjusted nicely now.

Rear brake on the new ones is a bit rubbish… but I think it just needs a bleed. Seems to be the same bleed kit as Forumla from what I can gather, so will drop that over to Crusts over the weekend and get him to give it a bleed for me

Off out testing after a coffee.
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Good one… Hmmmm fairly.

As with all used bicycles there are a few things. With this it’s basically a squeaky shock. With the way the ‘bob’ is on the bike it’s quite a creaky one for a chunk of the ride. I’m pretty sure it’s not bearing/bushes so the shock itself. I’ve used some Fork Juice on it and left it so it will grease/lube the shock for a few hours and we’ll see.

Apart from that, it rides really well. I need a quick re-visit on the indexing of the front mech to get rid of a small bit of rub, but it’s all good. Goes well, rides well, handles well… Excellent piece of kit

Most happy.

If anyone has a 165×38 shock that’s quiet they can lend me for testing, or even sell for a reasonable price I’m more than listening.

HAd a 42 mile ride on Salisbury plain with Crosshair of this here forum yesterday, apart from it being incredibly hard, the Spearfish was truly epic 🙂 Very happy with the purchase.

Front mech needs a tweak in a couple of the smaller cogs, but apart from that it’s superb 🙂

The right decision for sure 🙂

Welcome back! Green ones are faster anyway!

I’ve never seen one of these in the flesh before. Is there a pivot missing from the rear triangle ? Does the rear triangle flex as the suspension compresses ?

Curious now.

Rear triangle has a pivot at the bottom too matey. You can just about see it above the crank in below pic

In some write ups there’s a little discussion about rear-end flex, but I’m up near 90kg and have never noticed it on either of the ones I’ve owned.

The seat stays do flex with the suspension.
Same as my Horsethief

Rear triangle has a pivot at the bottom too matey. You can just about see it above the crank in below pic

The swingarm obviously pivots around it’s axis at the attachment to the frame. The shock mount at the top of the seatstays if unrestrained would travel through a corresponding arc as there’s no pivot at the rear of the triangle. However the shock linkage’s arc isn’t going prescribe the same arc as that allowed by the swingarm. So, something has to bend every time the suspension moves.

New concept to me.

D.

Don’t worry about the squeaky shock I rang up tftuned about it and they said that model of shock can be squelchy due to the oil returning back through the valves. So long as it is working fine you have no issues.

fd3chris – Member

Don’t worry about the squeaky shock I rang up tftuned about it and they said that model of shock can be squelchy due to the oil returning back through the valves. So long as it is working fine you have no issues.

I don’t have any issues now mate, I swapped the shock out for another. OK, so arguably it’s not the best shock on the planet being the Suntour Epicon LOD. But up to now it’s silent… works well enough and after a few rides I’m starting to get it setup nicely. The shock was only £66 from Taiwan and arrived in 7 days from ordering, so I’m more than happy.

Until the Epicon fails (or hopefully doesn’t) it will remain on the bike.

I couldn’t accept the noise, partly because I don’t accept noises but mostly because having previously had a spearfish I KNOW the shock can be silent… so this one having noise wasn’t right IMO.

I was tired yesterday so only did about 15km on it.. but it was a very nice 15km 🙂

I actually sold the bike to the guy in sudbury. He owned it a few months and passed it on as it day too big for him.

fd3chris – Member

I actually sold the bike to the guy in sudbury. He owned it a few months and passed it on as it day too big for him.

MAybe I have your bike then ? lol

You definitely have my old bike lol I only sold it due to it not suiting my short forest rides but to be fair I hardly rode it. Neither did he in the time he had it.

I want one of them. In orange.

Nah the orange ones are rubbish 😉

I want one of them. In orange Carbon. 🙂

fd3chris – Member

You definitely have my old bike lol I only sold it due to it not suiting my short forest rides but to be fair I hardly rode it. Neither did he in the time he had it.

Slightly disappointed that when I emailed blokey last week he seemed shocked at the noise from the shock. Although I’m guessing from your earlier post the noise was there when he got the bike..

Doesn’t matter… I just don’t like people not being honest.

fasthaggis – Member

I want one of them. In orange Carbon
Oh lumme. That is nice.

*edit*

Chuff me. That is worth more than BOTH my cars together.
http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/salsa-spearfish-carbon-rs1-complete-2015-5578-p.asp

But not THAT much lighter than the ALu version in all honesty ?

Carbon does not equate to lightness, that’s not the only reason for it being carbon, not by a long way.

Greg – your first pic is the Borrowdale Bash, but where’s the castle in the second?

boxelder – Member
Greg – your first pic is the Borrowdale Bash, but where’s the castle in the second?

First pic is somewhere around there yes, it was in the middle of a 100km ride round the Lakes last summer in prep for WEMBO. I just remember a lot of carrying.

The second one is Conwy castle before I rode down the Sarn Helen trail to Swansea in 70 very relaxing hours.

I just remember a lot of carrying

you were going the wrong way – that’s the bottom of the ace descent from Watendlath (Birkett’s Leap)

boxelder – Member
I just remember a lot of carrying
you were going the wrong way – that’s the bottom of the ace descent from Watendlath (Birkett’s Leap)

Not on that section. I’m not that shit.

I’m talking about a day that took in 7 passes in total some of which may have been a bit … sneaky.