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Went crazy and bought this
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160mm on a 29er is of course crazy, but with skills like mine you can never have too much bounce.
Just need to work out which dropper for it. Debating being a cheapskate and getting an rep plummet
A lay forward seat post?
There seems to be something badly wrong with the currently seat post and saddle setup....
I did spot that, but I'm not holding it against the bike, it's not the bikes fault.
I think most people are more likely to question the quality of the owner rather than the bike
Exactly. But it will now have a loving competent owner
I'd be questioning whether the seller was the owner or just the possessor...
Elaborate?
eBay advert here, nothing jumping out at me
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/131919355473?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
A agree Weeksy - nothing shouts stolen to me either - Enjoy!
For a start, he's got a proper bike stand.
Then there's the pedals not included bit.
Your garage doors have delusions of grandeur.
Anyhow, what's the bike? Can't tell, but reminds me of an Enduro. Enjoy new bike day 🙂
Specialized enduro comp 29.
It's his garage, I don't collect until Wed
I'm sure it'll be fine, but...£1300 with no description other than a one liner and a cut and paste of the bike description.
Apparently ridden (with the seatpost backwards and the saddle forwards and upwards) 10 times?
all with little>no feedback. I'd be a little wary, that's all.
Picking up from his house, so can't see it being anything other than fine.
He's sent me address and phone number etc
[url= https://checkthatbike.co.uk ]Check the frame number[/url]
It'll cost nowt to check and if it is stolen then it may pop up.
Seller has removed his reverb and slipped an old post in just to sell, I reckon.
Nice bike - enjoy!
Owner is apparently selling it because he still gets a sore a#se, even with all that suspension...strange that!
It didn't come with a dropper on this from what I can see
https://www.evanscycles.com/specialized-enduro-fsr-comp-2015-29er-mountain-bike-EV212254
That doesn't mean he didn't put one on it though.
That doesn't mean he didn't put one on it though.
True, but i can't say the seatpost has made me wary about buying it, more made me laugh.
The only minor debate i'm having with myself is whether i 'need' a bike with 150+ travel, but the answer to that is more 'probably not, but why not anyway'
True, but i can't say the seatpost has made me wary about buying it,
I just meant that's why it's at a weird angle that nobody would want to ride. It's probably never been ridden with that post in.
🙂
It will be when the OP has a test ride before leaving........ or do you tell the seller he's an idiot and sort it first?!
In a massive turn around, i bought a bike from an STWer instead. Nice to keep it in the family so to speak.
It's a Kona Process 153. Highly regarded MTBs and should be an absolute blast.
Sadly, i won't have it tomorrow for my first time at Surrey Hills but will have it at Swinley on Saturday... It will be overkill at Swinley of course... but fun
[URL= http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg167/weeksy59/Kona/s-l1600_zpsy270exoa.jp g" target="_blank">
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Have you actually paid for it yet or will there be another last minute change of mind? 😀
Great bike btw, I would have that over the enduro any day.
I've paid him enough deposit that I won't be bailing on it.
Go for it, oldtalent, He has another one for sale at the same price!
Why can't you buy bikes with droppers! 🙂
Excellent saddle angle on that Kona.
Why can't you buy bikes with droppers!
Better to buy your own I reckon, 'cos there's a good chance you'll need warranty
I bought a cheap non remote hi lo dropper that should arrive for the weekend. I'll decide then if I should get a new reverb, I missed out at merlin over the weekend as I never noticed their 15% off until it was too late, would have made it £150 for a new reverb
Met up with Chakaping this morning and after a bit of faffing round checking things worked, adjusted, seat height, brake bite point etc I decided I'd take the Kona and off we went on the trails. Couple of stops after the first few sections followed by a tubeless rear not speaking fully and the debut ride wasn't exactly going to plan.
So we binned the tubeless and kicked on with the ride.
The geometry of the Kona is at first very very alien, I knew it would be as its similar in many ways to he Pivot I hired and the Bird I tried. But the steering was precise, poised and happy. I struggled with seat position and height quite a bit, even in a large it's quite a low top tube, so I've ended up with quite a chunk of seatpost showing. But its now pretty close to where I need it.
Hard part was getting out of the faster faster faster mindset and accepting its not an xc whippet and not to try and ride it like one.
Onto Stickler which is a forever and never ending turn of left right, right, right left for what seems like hours and hours, I was happy I could throw the Kona into the bends without the usual settling dab of brake I often use on the Spearfish, but maybe that was because I was going slower than on the Fish, not sure. But the Kona felt great and went exactly where I wanted.
The only thing really letting it down was the rolling ability, or lack of it. Its got a super tacky compound Magic Mary fitted, in a similar context to motorbikes this would be the same as the stickiest compound tyre you can get. Which is fine on motorbikes but on cycles its causing drag. Its also exceptionally heavy, weighing in at just under 1400gr, which is more than double the weight of a Rocket Ron. But, its soft, sticky and compliant. It grips superbly and rolls over stuff with ease.
The 160mm of travel on the Pikes soaks everything up you throw at it.
By this stage the bike was beginning to feel like 'mine' and not some alien machine. Throughout the day this didn't change, it just felt right and happy.
Hitting some of the faster red runs of shows to me its happy in the air too, it flies well, lands well and doesn't get out of shape.
The thing I noticed most was its ability to change direction, its sharp and responsive in spades. Really useful on some of the tight trails at swinley.
I then eventually got it home, time to start sorting out the aesthetics. Not mess as such but a lack of care and attention to detail. Just things left badly done, bolts not right, tape not installed and paint chips not fixed. But not everyone is like me I guess, to them its just a bike. But this guy paid nearly £4000 and in my book that means a higher level of care, not his it seems.
Mechanically though its mostly excellent, although one of the crank arm bolts was about 200nm lol.
However he's a really nice fella is chakaping and clearly a very good rider, was great at times trying and failing to hang onto his wheels.
All in all I'm very happy with it. I'll get some spare wheels and quicker rubber for most stuff and keep the burly rubber for uplifts.
Who fixes paint chips? Wow!
These things are tools, things to be used and ridden.
Perhaps Cha****ng was too busy riding it and not taping it. Hence why you struggled to keep up?
Maybe ride more and sort less paint chips?
It would appear the answer is, me.
Lol I've ridden 2000 miles give or take in the last 12 month, along with having a poorly mum I drive on a 5 hour round trip every weekend and an 8 year old child, I do what I can with riding.
However, an hour here or there in the evening to fettle bikes is quite nice.
MAybe i'm a bit weird, maybe...
So this morning while the world are sleeping i finished off the frame. Couple of more touch ups on the swingarm/rear triangle and then some electrical tape on the areas that are most likely to get marked up. Including around the BB shell to protect from chain drops. Although i've got a chain guide to fit later on just to be on the safe side anyway.
I then removed the chain and that's now in soak, then sorted out the cleaning of the rear mech, stripped it down, removed and cleaned the jockey wheels, made sure the whole of the mech arms are clean and free from any obstructive dirt. Re-fitted it all back together and away we go 🙂
Just waiting to pick up some faster rolling rubber today at 11am which will go on the rear for now, then i've won a front wheel which will mean i can swap easily between the Rocket Ron for day to day stuff and the MAgic Mary for gravity assisted stuff.
Being this ridiculous about spannering does sometimes have benefits though.
Wheel off, tyre off and whipped the brake rotor off so i can clean the hub bits behind it easier, then looking at the cassette and thinking "Hmmm, that's not the cleanest either", so went to take that off, the nut/thing holding it on wasn't even finger tight, was just resting on there... OK, so it wouldn't have caused a major disaster, but it's now stripped, cleaned and put back together correctly.
[URL= http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg167/weeksy59/Kona/IMG_20160904_121317_zpsjovs8q6a.jp g" target="_blank">
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Not sure of your circumstances, or ability etc etc but as im sure you are aware, thats more bike than is required for swinley.
Try aston hill, tidworth freeride, the enduro trails at qcep, rogate, stoughton.
All within an hour or so from me based in basingstoke and way more fun than swinley, depending on the sort of riding you enjoy of course.
Agree 100% mate, you'll get no argument there. It was bought with the aim for more techincal and trickier stuff over the course of the years, next up is BPW for it after a day at Jedi first. But Swinley due to location and riding buddies etc is the bread and butter, so making it as Swinley friendly as possible with one of the sets of wheels was a necessity for me.
I've noticed a tiny bit of play in the rear wheel when fitted, i think as it's a 142x12 i need to tweak the little grub screw a smidgen, looking at the wheels they've got spacers on the end for converting to 142x12 and are Superstar hubs, so i can't see them being the type of bearings you need to tighten up etc. So can only assume it's the little grub screw as the lever on the axle is very very soft/light at the moment. So that's next job.
Hmmm. Seems its the swingarm. When I remove the wheel I can wiggle it a bit.
Not mess as such but a lack of care and attention to detail. Just things left badly done, bolts not right, tape not installed and paint chips not fixed. But not everyone is like me I guess, to them its just a bike. But this guy paid nearly £4000 and in my book that means a higher level of care, not his it seems.
Have you been tested for Aspergers? I'n not an expert but I believe OCD-like beahviour and a lack of social skills are classic symptoms.
Lack of social skills ? WTF. I thought i was quite a sociable guy.
I don't have OCD, i don't sit switching the lights off 46 times, i just look after my kit, be it motorbikes or bicycles etc.
Rapid Rob front & rear? Says it all really.
Why have you put towpath specials on there? They must be mind blowingly crap 🙂
I think it's the main pivot/frame bearings.... spoke to the seller and he said "no problem, if you're happy to swap i'll sort...." So i thought i'd ease them out ! Sheesh... it wasn't easy ! wasn't easy at all.
Anyway I had a look and here's where we are, 6804v-2rs x 2 to begin with. Not insane money and one of them is half reasonable under the grime, the other one barely moves... So even if that doesn't sort the movement and i've got the wrong bearings, these ones really needed replacing anyhow... so it's all good.
[URL= http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg167/weeksy59/Kona/IMG_20160904_164228_zpszpqflm0b.jp g" target="_blank">
http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg167/weeksy59/Kona/IMG_20160904_164228_zpszpqflm0b.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]
Rapid Rob front & rear? Says it all really.Why have you put towpath specials on there? They must be mind blowingly crap
In simple terms, my local riding is Ridgeway and nothing much more exciting that towpaths, your generic bridleway rides and dull boring trails. I want to spend time on the bike, getting used to it, getting used to the geometry differences and feel compared to the Spearfish, so it makes sense for them rides to have appropriate tyres fitted. Then when it comes to the bigger days, i'll have the DH rubber on there. Whilst the Rapid Robs may not be awesome, they're good enough for the local riding.
Not trying to add to the bashing, but what is that chairing, 30t? Surely that's too small for bridleway riding, you'd be spinning out on the flat.
Yup it's a 30T. The majority of the riding will be bigger stuff once the winter arrives, i've still got a Charge Cooker HT running a 38T front when i want to do faster stuff. The RR's only cost me £16 for the pair used lightly on ebay, so they were a no brainer. For Swinley the 30T was fine and happy, despite the bike being over-biked for there as people have already said, the gearing was the same. That said, i had a 32T 1x10 on the Spearfish and you were not spinning out until over 20mph on the road, i know for a fact i'm not doing 20mph on the majority of trails, if i am, i'm using them to coast and recover as i've just climbed to get there.
I don't mind the bashing, although i'm not really sure why. But it's an open public forum and everyone is entitled to their opinions.
Yes bashing seems a bit unnecessary, hope my post isn't included in this? it wasn't intended anyway. That's usually reserved for the tedious politics threads.
Anyway if you want to ride at any of the spots I mentioned give me a shout.