I’d really like a bit of an education on a couple of things if anyone can assist?

Lateral Stiffness – How does a bike that is not stiff manifest this problem, especially a suspension bike?

Fork stiffness same again really I’ve heard that this is incredibly self evident not front to back which I can’t see an axle helping but twist wise, how do you know if the forks are stiff enough, how does the tyre contribute to this?

Cranksets – I understand that my XT cranks are very stiff indeed but that XTRs would be even stiffer why does this matter and how can I tell if mine are stiff enough for now?

Brakes – My brakes stop my bike and do this well and repeatedly without any noise or bother, if I squeeze hard they brake hard if I don’t they don’t sort of thing is this normal or have I missed something?

I have been reading MTB magazines these last few days and I am very confused. It appears I am riding the equivalent of a penny farthing in comparison to a modern MTB and I never noticed..

I have been reading MTB magazines

There is your problem. Modern kit is so good, they have to invent stuff for you to get worried about/justify ditching your old kit for new kit.

The job of magazines is to make you feel so bad about your outdated,overweight,unsophisticated P.O.S you bought 11 months ago you have to rush out and buy a new one….which is exactly the same but with new acronyms and B.N.G.
Do you enjoy riding it?Would the extra perceived enjoyment of having “cutting edge” technology outweigh having a house sized mortgage to be able to afford one?
If you race ignore all the above….if theres an outside chance of it being faster YOU MUST BUY IT.

test ride a cutting-edge bike at a demo day. like it, feel the difference? buy it if you can. it keeps the industry going. but whether it will improve your actual enjoyment of riding is a much bigger question (if you really love riding for the sake of riding, it won’t, much, probably)

lack of lateral stiffness = a flexy frame that won’t track well, or a natural springy flow. take your pick..
flexy forks – bad for suspension, good for rigid, to a point. the point depends on taste / rider weight / riding style etc.
cranks – stiffer is better, that’s one’s true. but how stiff you need is down to how hard you pedal. a 6 stone 10 y/o does not need XTR )
brakes – it’s about feel and overall control. ever hit a tree cos your brakes weren’t any good? if so, upgradings not a bad idea.

riding is made far more complex than it should be by some of the media and some bike companies. i hope i’m not part of one of them, but ultimately we all need sales to keep us afloat so you have the continued choice of bits to buy, or to ignore, or to discuss.

and there is a good reason why a lot of journo’s and bike brand staff spend a lot of time on either borrowed, all-singing all dancing test / loaner bikes, or their own ‘old slippers’ bikes that are often very simple and almost anti-tech. industry folk on ereally expensive own-bikes may not have been in the industry that long )

fork twist – I still have a marz shiver sc fork (“upside down” stanchions). Said to be ludicrously twisty, you can hold the wheel between your knees and turn the bars easily but it’s a great fork

lateral flex – you definitely feel something odd when the bearings are gone (but there was half an inch play when I actually sought help from a bike shop because I didn’t recognise the weird feeling), no idea about flex (ie I can’t feel it – bullit and trance)

A lot of the time flex is much more apparent when doing a static check as described above, and has no bearing in how a bike feels when on the trail. For example, off the bike, hand on saddle holding the bike still, hold the rear wheel of a suspension bike and push back and forth to mimic lateral stiffness. All bikes will flex, but you generally don’t feel it when riding. I believe tyre pressures and spoke tension are more noticeable than frame flex.