Viewing 39 posts - 1 through 39 (of 39 total)
  • Make mine more… hardcore.
  • Kryton57
    Full Member

    Can i make my 100mm 26er more hardcore? Its sitting unused, an while im looking at a P7/Bird Zero im wondering if i cant just plump up this bike for some fun, and some playful learning of skills. I cant sell it. It was a 40th present and of course isnt worth jack to anyone else.

    Its Ti Enigma Ego, currently with 2×10, a fox float 100mm, and American Classic wheels with RoRo’s. So heres the challenge – can i make it more burly – safely? Your suggestions are welcome…

    chiefgrooveguru
    Full Member

    What’s the head tube?

    Kryton57
    Full Member

    1/18 straight. And wheels are both QR. Its old school!

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    oldnpastit
    Full Member

    Dropper post?

    iainc
    Full Member

    You can’t change the geometry…

    chestrockwell
    Full Member

    I tried to do this with my old last of the steel 2007 Clockwork as I loved the frame. Tinkered around with it and certainly improved the ride but not to the point where I would choose it over the full suss so sold it on.

    Now got a p7 and use that as much as the full suss. 😉

    crashrash
    Full Member

    How much do you want to spend?!
    Shorter stem, wider bars, dropper from brandX, biggest tyre you can on the front end. Possible angleset on the fork to slacken the head angle.
    Halfway to a new bike though……

    Scienceofficer
    Free Member

    This thread is a perfect example of why ‘a bike for life’ is such a naive concept.

    I reckon the best you can do is put a 120mm fork on it, widen the bars with a correspondingly shorter stem (be mindful of shortening your cockpit though) and put bigger tyres on it.

    Fundamentally though, it’s geometry will be of it’s time, and will be the limiting factor.

    Kryton57
    Full Member

    Not much. I think i was hoping a 120mm fork and a pair of WTB vigilantes will help it be more fun orientated. Maybe its a pipe dream.

    Bez
    Full Member

    This thread is a perfect example of why ‘a bike for life’ is such a naive concept.

    Tell that to the bike I’ve had for the last 25 years 🙂

    Anyway, OP, have you actually reached the limits of the bike? Is its alleged lack of burliness really what’s holding you back from learning these new skills? Be honest 😉

    Scienceofficer
    Free Member

    If you’re still alive, it’s not a bike for life yet. 😯

    matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    Tyres. Bigger. Grippier. More supple.

    flange
    Free Member

    Personally I think you’d ruin it if you tried to do that. From what you say it was a gift and therefore doesn’t owe you anything. I’d be more inclined to leave it as is and ride it, or hang it on the wall and buy something that tickles your pickle.

    scaredypants
    Full Member

    I cant sell it. It was a 40th present

    Fair enough. If you have to change it (see Bez above) then I think you’re prob heading the other way with it – tourer; gravelaxe; commutah; winter road bike

    shifter
    Free Member

    Sounds like it’s about to become your “bike for riding with the kids”, or even “the wife’s bike”. I’m sure she’ll be pleased, didn’t she buy it in the first place??

    sirromj
    Full Member

    Have you seen what Sam Pilgrim did to the bike he found along the street being given away for free?
    [video]https://youtu.be/Mlyx2S2MBBU[/video]
    [video]https://youtu.be/F4kXgYwg3d4[/video]
    [video]https://youtu.be/o3Fam8LqZjA[/video]

    senorj
    Full Member

    120mm fork and maybe a shorter stem.

    RustySpanner
    Full Member

    Enjoy it for what it is.

    knightrider
    Free Member

    dropper post

    fat tyres ( i like chunky monkeys)

    stem/bars (brand x 60mm and 740 bars)

    depending on the year of the float you can expand the travel by removing spavers on the air spring for free!!!

    I have an inbred that runs pretty much like this and is great fun

    howsyourdad1
    Free Member

    what senor j said. I’d also think about what you want a p7 etc for. I personally find ‘old school’ geometry easier to ride dirt, bunnyhop and manual . a P7 is fantastic for corners, singletrack etc but then so are full sussers. That of course may just be what im used to but i think there is a little truth in it.

    if it is just that you want a new bike, cool go for it, but if its for the above skills I don’t think it will make much difference. Unless of course it means you get out and practice more, which is ultimately what boosts skills .

    Andy-R
    Full Member

    Isn’t it about the same geometry as something like a Cotic Soul was in 2010 – 71/73 degrees? And didn’t everyone rave about how well something like that handled real-world riding?
    So, nothing’s really changed, unless your riding is radically different to what is was seven years ago.
    If it was mine – 120mm forks, something like a 50 or 60mm stem, 750mm bars, dropper post and as wide tyres as you have clearance for (2.4”?).

    Last year my wife bought me a Ti Singular Hummingbird frame as a birthday present. I’ve been riding steel Hummingbirds for years because I love them and the Ti one is just the same but, in this case, with (to me) rarity value.
    I’ll go down on record as saying that the Hummingbird is the best handling bike that I’ve owned and yet now nobody would give one houseroom. And yet I still think that a less slack and less long bike has its place in this world.

    docgeoffyjones
    Full Member

    You can’t change the geometry.

    -1 degree angle set from works

    Kryton57
    Full Member

    unless your riding is radically different to what is was seven years ago.

    It is. I then wanted it as a SE singletrack HT and part time race bike – I built it on the light side of trail – XT, SID, AC – its been and still is great for that.

    Since then I’m full time racing, and specifically this year XC Marathon racing. So I have a Carbon 29er HT for the short races, and intend to replace my 2014 Anthem 29er with a Scott Spark over the coming months. My view is the Spark can accomdate both short and long races, so both the Carbon HT and Anthem will go. But I want a) a winter bike and b) a bike I can use to enable me to push the boundaries of my current skill set – hence leaning towards a P7 in the other thread or this modification in this one to save the money in not buying the P7.

    I realise I can replicate the P7s geo with this, or its140mm fork – but can I slighly modify the Engima to make it a tad more “slack”? Its already long in the TT as per the old Kona geometary, but yes has the steeper HA. It seems the consensus is bigger tyres and a 120 Rev or similar…

    Euro
    Free Member

    OP, as said, wider bars, bigger fork (maybe a set set of older U-Turn Pikes/Revs so you can play about with the height), chunkier tyres, short stem. I’d also drop the 2x (just remove the wee ring and shifter). Unless you’re keen to spend money i’d not bother with a dropper. Slam the seat and stand up everywhere! Will do wonders for your legs and will give you the confidence to throw the bike about in a hardcore stylee.

    Fundamentally though, it’s geometry will be of it’s time, and will be the limiting factor.

    That’s not right. Rider is always the limiting factor. It might feel a but weird at first bit the old school geometry will only limit you if you think it will.

    plus-one
    Full Member

    I done same with my genesis io..

    60mm stem 750mm bars and cheap dropper it was ace for a few months 😀

    Bought a pinnacle iroko and after using it the genesis became a dust collector 🙁

    bigblackshed
    Full Member

    120mm Revs you say?

    I have a set for sale if you’re interested.

    oldfart
    Full Member

    That’s pretty much me with my Cove Hummer , I then bought a Kona Raijin which is a 29er , much quicker than the Hummer but even that is now outdated (2012) 69 H/A , I’ve thought of something like a P7 but trying to tell myself the Raijin is significantly different to my Process but the P7 wouldn’t be .

    NormalMan
    Full Member

    Clearly you are going to keep the bike so why not try some chunky tyres and wider bar/shorter stem combo. Then ride.

    It might be old school geometry but doesn’t mean it can’t be fun.

    v666ern
    Free Member

    a fox float 100mm, and American Classic wheels with RoRo’s

    Sell the posh stuff for £££ good stuff is still good stuff

    can you + the frame, or presuming its too XC id keep it for retro XC duties – have you ridden it recently?

    kiwijohn
    Full Member

    why not try some chunky tyres and wider bar/shorter stem combo.
    Then ride.
    It might be old school geometry but doesn’t mean it can’t be fun.

    I’ve just done this to my 95 DBR Axis TT.
    Not convinced the bar & stem work with the short & steep geometry so I’m swapping them back.
    The tyres are staying though.

    Garry_Lager
    Full Member

    Keep it for the kids (if you have them). Young teens get tall quite quickly, so unless it’s a massive frame they could prob ride it at a relatively young age.
    My 9yo is already on my wife’s MTB, and in a few years will prob be able to ride the 26 FS I have that never gets ridden.

    v666ern
    Free Member

    and in a few years will prob be able to ride the 26 FS I have that never gets ridden.

    dream on – you’ll be relegated to that and they’ll be on your gnarpoon!

    ferrals
    Free Member

    I would get some rigid forks over longer suspension forks to shave a bunch of weight off the front, keep the same wheels but put some chunkier tyres on it, wider bars if you have some kncoking around.

    taxi25
    Free Member

    You say “make it more hardcore”. But has your riding changed to “more hardcore” if not the bike might very well still be the best bike for you. It sounds great I’d love to have it 😀
    But wider bars and definitely a dropper might make it more fun.

    padkinson
    Free Member

    Personally I’d keep it as an ‘XC’ winter bike, SS would be cool. For pushing the boundaries of your riding the Spark will be perfect (perhaps with a dropper), and far more capable than you’ll ever modify the Enigma to be. Spend the money on a set of chunky wheels/tyres and a dropper for the Scott.

    Kryton57
    Full Member

    I think thats a great idea Padkinson, thanks. It has specificity included as well 😉

    That allows me to sell the Anthem and 29HT (gulp!). Maybe I’ll keep the HT… who knows!

    I’ve a lot of thinking going on – I’ve learned I’ll be spending so much time either on road/turbo intervals or training on my mtb/race bike that the many compromises I often speak of have to go. I’m staring forlornly at my TT bike which won’t get used this year as well!

    padkinson
    Free Member

    Along those lines, I find I go completely mental if I do all the road based training in my plan on the road bike, so I’ll often go out on the cross bike or MTB for endurance work, keeping it on flat-ish trails for constant effort. I’ve found that riding the nice XC bike on some proper trails at least once a month, taking that one day to stop worrying about bearing life and so on, keeps confidence and skill level up over the winter. I did have one season where I only rode a rigid steel bike through the winter, and on switching to the race bike it felt totally weird and it was about a month before I was back to being comfortable on it.

    TL;DR: road bikes are great for training but remember you’re a mountain biker.

    padkinson
    Free Member

    And I think you’ll be amazed with the capability of the Scott, modern geometry on a sorted XC bike is far more capable than the trail bikes of a few years ago.
    Even with my ‘head down, arse up’ position, and no dropper yet, my Top Fuel is the best cornering, most planted thing I’ve ever ridden, and I’ve yet to take it properly out of it’s depth yet.

    Kryton57
    Full Member

    Thanks for the advice.

    Yes, I’ve done some Z1 and Z2 stuff on the MTB or SSCX. My weekend rides are prescribed as MTB yet non zone specific, its the weekly work outs which are very specific as you’d imagine and its my choice whether to use MTB/Turbo/Road for those. There are odd weekend occasions such as 2-3hr Z2 which are far easier to do on the road.

    As for the Spark, one of the reason’s I chose it is famed capability which swaps to trail as well as race and also its 68.5 HA. My 29er HT has exactly the same TT, HA and STA as the Spark and for a 100mm bike I find it suits me and handles amazingly well which is another reason for my choice.

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