Anyone have/had one of the above? How’d they find it, are they ok with a 140mm fork?

Looking at a 2008 frame.

Currently have a 08/09 CC with a 140 Talas fork which seems to suit it well.

Nicolai recommend 120 to 140mm fork travel. The 140 fork makes it a bit slacker which works for me. I do occasionally switch to 110mm for steep rough climbs to keep the front end planted but most of the time 140 is perfect.

Such a lovely bike to ride, get it.

2011 CC here

Forks now swapped to Talas 110/140. Does everything very very well as said drop it to 110 for super steep climbs, or when running at short travel at the rear for instant short travel bike.

Nothing I would swap it for at the moment

Here’s the spec sheet –
http://www.nicolai.net/files/helius_cc_09.pdf

Have look here for loads of CC builds –
http://forums.mtbr.com/nicolai/nicolai-helius-cc-helius-travel-setup-database-341287.html

Thanks chaps

Absolutely fantastic bikes. I’ve sold mine now but a quick check of my records I found this info:

I currently have Fox float 140mm forks fitted, and I have measured the head angle at 67 degrees and the seat tube at 73 degrees, with a 33cm BB height. This almost the same as a current 18″ Orange 5, exept the Nicolai has a slightly lower bottom bracket. It feels much stiffer than a 5.

That was taken from my sale advert.

I know this is a bit of a cliche but it was a real ‘sit in’ type of bike rather than ‘perch on top’.

Selling mine if interested?

Picking frame up tomorrow, looking forward to it. One of the few bikes I’ve admired from afar. Gonna stick my lefty max on it, then out testing somewhere in north Wales on Monday. 🙂

Absolutely fantastic bikes. I’ve sold mine now

I bought it. 😛 Best trail bike I have ever ridden. 140 mm floats on mine and it feels perfect.

Quick question, is it the top or bottom hole that gives maximum travel?

Top

I bought it. Best trail bike I have ever ridden. 140 mm floats on mine and it feels perfect.

And as you can’t be arsed to post a pic… 😉

Thanks

And as you can’t be arsed to post a pic…

Oh go on then 🙂

Untitled by redmancunian69, on Flickr

I can’t find a cc with the added gusset like mine has, were they a special order feature?

I can’t find a cc with the added gusset like mine has, were they a special order feature?

Yes, headtube gussets were an option and the odd person added them.

Christ you don’t hang about!

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/fsswap-nicolai-helius-cc-frame

Don’t you like it lodders?

Had it over at CyB today, not sure it’s my cup of tea. I think I have Maverick blindness…

I might change the rear shock and see if that makes any difference, been a while since I’ve used an RP23 and I got tired with the fettling and still couldn’t get it the way I wanted it. With my Mavs the monolink was just a fit and forget affair.

Plus for the first time in my life I was thinking it would be improved with a dropper post.

Had it over at CyB today, not sure it’s my cup of tea. I thin k I have Maverick blindness…

It must be all in your head. I heard all bikes ride the same.

That’s exactly what I was thinking whilst I was riding, that that post would come back to haunt me. I have a feeling that a change of shock to a coil will transform it so it may yet be a keeper.

The CC suits a normal volume shock better than a high volume one. Try a Fox volume tuning kit if it feels like it’s blowing through it’s travel too easily and you’re having to run more pressure making it feel harsh over small bumps.

Shame you didn’t like it. They definitely work better with a low volume shock so well worth fettling with that. Also, I’ve no idea of the axle to crown of the Lefty Max – if it’s less than the ‘reference’ in the tech sheets it will steepen the head angle. You can compensate by dropping the travel at the rear – on the CC that will slacken the head angle and lower the bottom bracket.

The CC has a relatively high BB compared to a lot of current bikes, especially if it’s run with a long fork, so reducing rear travel works well for some people.

If I was riding it I’d get all the spacers out from under the stem and put a much flatter bar on – it would both climb and descend better with more weight on the front.

loddrik – Member
Picking frame up tomorrow, looking forward to it. One of the few bikes I’ve admired from afar. Gonna stick my lefty max on it, then out testing somewhere in north Wales on Monday.
POSTED 4 DAYS AGO # REPORT-POST

VW Touran with it on the back? I followed you east up the M56 yesterday – thinking mmm lefty on a cc, not sure about that!

Ha ha, yup that was indeed me.

Gonna keep hold of it now, will stick a DT shock on it and see how I get on with it.

Happy with the spacer/bar arrangement though, I’ve always kinda ran the front pretty high, plus if I did go back to a Mav at any point I’d need the length on the steerer.

Love my lefty, no plans to go back to a ‘conventional’ fork whatsoever.

will stick a DT shock on it

Do you have that already or are planning to buy it? Most people rate Fox much more highly on the CC. Settings change with the different models but you rarely want much, or any, platform damping,.

Had a DT on my Epiphany and definitely preferred it to the Fox. Have bought it now. I like the complete lockout feature plus mine was nice and plush with minimal phaffing about with settings etc.

That’s on a different bike though (about the shock)! You say you’ve always had your bars set high too…have you tried them lower? Looking at your setup, it will be like steering a penny farthing. You can’t say that you don’t have problems with the front end wandering on climbs setup like that? You can change the steerer on the Lefty if you change frames…leave an extra inch on it though, so you probably won’t have to.

Looking at the pictures I’m struck by the height of the bottom bracket due to the lefty and the use of a layback post. Both of these will have the effect of shifting the riders weight even further back and risk compromising the handling… causing wandery climbing… and then you have the long stem and high bars. I realise that fit and feel are a very personal thing but to my eye that does not look like it is going to ride very well.

I hope you get it to work for you.

Messiah – Are you thinking the BB looks too high? If so, that’s just how they are. The Lefty shouldn’t be any longer than any other fork with the same travel. A Rockshox one might even be 10-20mm longer A-C.

Maybe it’s just the angle/view in that pic that makes me think that?

I re-look and I’m not so sure now 😳

That front end is unfeasible high with that fork, spacers, stem and bars.

Lads, I appreciate your concerns, but I’ve been riding bikes for a long long time and the way I have my bikes set up suits me fine, there is no ‘right’ way to have a bike set up, just what feels right for the rider. The shock I had in it was in a low tune state, and not very responsive as a result. I like a nice snappy rebound which I wasn’t getting. Yes my DT was on a different bike, but I had only good experiences with it so am happy to try it on this frame.

I’ve had lots of ‘advice’ over the years on how a bike should be set up this way or that way, I tend to disregard the prevailing wisdom in favour of what I know feels right for me.

Please don’t take offence at my comments, as I always appreciate advice.

Lefty looks like 510mm A-C against a reference of 500mm on that generation of CC which will raise the BB a few mm above the specced 14mm.

As a comparison the Helius AC is specced at 11mm.

I tend to disregard the prevailing wisdom

That’s all I need to know. Thank you and goodbye. 😛

Surely a low rebound shock will be more ‘snappy’ as it has less rebound damping so will rebound back faster?

I had a DT Swiss SSD190L on my CC but swapped it out for an RP23. The DT could feel more ‘plush’ but I suspect that was down to a total lack of compression damping. I found it a devil to set up – too much air and it was like riding a harsh undamped air spring, too little air and it felt plush but blew through it’s travel way too easily.

Good luck with the DT, perhaps they’ve improved now.

Rp23 felt slow even at its fastest setting.

I’m a fat **** so more air in shock suits me fine.

Just put a DT on it, it feels much much better…