Fresh Goods Friday 358

Brace yourself, because what I’m about to tell you could blow your mind.

You know how you’re reading this and it’s Friday?

‘Well duh, it’s Fresh Goods Friday – of course it’s bloody Friday!’

But wait, this isn’t Friday, because I’m actually typing this message on Thursday (also known as Friday eve). Like, totally from the past man! Yes, this week’s Fresh Goods Friday package has travelled through time via the magic of the internet and WordPress scheduling.

The reason why? Well, right now Chipps, Rob and myself are currently in North Wales punching out laps at Antur Stiniog. We’re armed with eight sets of disc brakes that we’re testing for the next issue of Singletrack Magazine, and we’ve got our hands somewhat full (of brake). We’ve left the office a little bare, given that Hannah The Shreddah is still swanning about on holiday, so we’ve pre-packaged todays Fresh Goods for you in advance – how organised is that*!

*Pre-packaged Fresh Goods Friday is not a standardised package and should not be expected as a regular event in future.

Before we hook into this week’s Fresh Goods pile though, we’re going to start things off with the best mountain bike video on the planet right now. Starring Micayla Gatto, this is an absolute ripping parody of Kendrick Lamar’s track Humble, and we think you’ll enjoy!

And so with the right foot having been placed upon the ground, it’s time to stand up and pay attention for this week’s edition of Fresh Goods Friday!

Santa Cruz Tallboy Alloy

• Price: £3299 (£1799 frame only)
• From: Jungle Products

Joining the YT Jeffsy 29er that arrived at the office last week, the Santa Cruz Tallboy is destined for some quality Barney-time as part of an upcoming three-way group test. It’s the alloy version of the Tallboy, which is regularly overlooked by it’s pricier and more exotic carbon brother. However, the alloy model offers the same geometry and the same suspension design, all in a more affordable package starting at £2699 for a complete bike.

Our test bike is dressed with the ‘R’ build kit, which lifts the price up to £3299 by upgrading to a Fox suspension package, and features SRAM Level brakes, and a SRAM 1×11 drivetrain. Rear travel has grown to 110mm over the previous Tallboy model, and the frame is rated for a 120mm travel fork when setup in 29in mode, or 130mm when setup in 27.5+ mode.

The Tallboy test bike is setup in 29in mode for the group test, though there’s a flip chip in the upper VPP linkage that allows you to change from ‘high’ and ‘low’ settings, depending on the wheels you’re running. Pretty neat!

Flaer Revo Terra

• Price: £250
• From: Flaer

And now for something completely different… It’s an automated chain lubrication system from UK brand Flaer. Having already produced a version for road bikes, Flaer has just unveiled a mountain bike version called the Revo Terra. It features a chain oil reservoir that bolts onto your frame via the bottle cage bolts, and feeds oil down a small hose to the rear derailleur. Here a bolt-on applicator delicately sprays the chain with a very small amount of oil at regular intervals while riding. How crazy is that?!

Check out the above video to see how it works.

We’re interested to see how useful the system will be for typical British riding conditions, and have got one of our high-mileage testers lined up to put the Revo Terra to the test. Will it be a revolution in automated bicycle maintenance?

DVO Sapphire Forks

• Price: £899
• From: Silverfish

Joining the existing DVO Diamond fork (a fork we tested and reviewed last year), the new Sapphire is a slightly lighter and shorter travel fork equipped with Boost hub spacing and the capability of fitting regular 29in wheels, or 27.5+ tyres up to 3.0in wide.

Compared to the chunkier Diamond forks, the Sapphire uses skinnier 32mm stanchions (instead of 35mm), and shortens the travel down as well. Our test fork is running the full 140mm of travel, though it can be stepped down internally in 10mm increments to 100mm. Weight wise they’re claimed to be a lot lighter than the Diamonds; 1880g for the Sapphire vs 2210g for the Diamond.

Given how impressed we were with the Diamond, we’re very interested to see how the lighter Sapphire goes on the trail. Stay tuned for a more in-depth feature about the Sapphire.

 

Fork Cork

• Price: £27.99
• From: Gone Biking Mad

An ingenious little gadget that could be the ideal storage solution for some riders, the Fork Cork comes from the good ol’ USA, and is basically a plug for the base of your fork’s steerer tube. Using an expandable silicone ring, the Fork Cork wedges into the steerer tube to form a watertight compartment.

Much like Specialized’s SWAT system or OneUp Component’s EDC tool, the Fork Cork makes use of that unused space inside your fork’s steerer tube, though this little guy looks to one of the simplest solutions. The question with the Fork Cork is; what would you choose to smuggle/carry inside your fork steerer tube?

Smith Optics Attack Max Glasses

• Price: $249 USD
• From: Smith Optics

These are the brand-spanking Attack glasses from US snowsports and cycling brand, Smith Optics. Available in two different lens sizes with the Max being the larger of the two, the Attack and Attack Max glasses slot into Smith’s Performance line of sunnies as a new rimless sunglass option that offers a rather clever design for switching lenses.

Much like the existing Pivlock glasses (such as the Pivlock Arena glasses I’ve used previously), the new Attack glasses allow you to remove each arm from the lens, along with the nose piece, and simply refit the arms and nosepiece to another lens.

Compared to the Pivlock series, the new Attack glasses feature the sorcery of magnets to lock the arms onto the lens. We’ve just had a play with them in the office, and it’s super quick and easy to remove and install the arms onto each lens. Clever!

Two lenses came in the zippered case with our set of Attack Max glasses. There’s the green mirror-finish ChromaPop lens for bright sunny conditions, and then a rose ChomaPop lens for riding in darker conditions.

Shimano Deore XT Ice Tech 6-Bolt Rotors

• Price: £34.99
• From: Madison

In preparedness for any attack at Singletrack Towers, we’ve got the versatile Shimano Deore XT Ice Tech ninja star…I mean, rotors. They’re destined to be paired with a set of Zee disc brakes that we received last week. In fact, they’re probably howling down the side of a cold and wet Welsh mountain as you’re reading this.

Singletrack Magazine Issue #114

• Price: £5.50
• From: Singletrack

Oh yes, and the freshest good of all this week at Singletrack Towers is the brand new issue! Number one hundred and fourteen to be exact. Not that we’re counting or anything. Issue #114 is already with subscribers, and is in stock at all ace bike shops and select newsagents around the country. Wanna get a copy of your own? Then head here to get your digital or print copy, or better yet, if you like what we do and want to support our 100% independently owned magazine, why don’t you head through and subscribe to Singletrack? A digital subscription starts at just £1.49 per month, which we think is pretty shit-hot value (not that we’re biased or anything :-)).

It’s now time for us to return to brake testing, so we’ll leave you here with a slow groove courtesy of the combined talents of Lana Del Rey and Nick Warren. Yes, we’re also sad that summer is almost over, but there’s no point moaning about it, so get out there, get on your bike and ride the heck out of what remains of the warmer weather!

ST Out.

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