It’s peak holiday season and we’ve installed a revolving door at the front of Singletrack Towers to deal with the high turnover of suntanned/stressed-out staff.

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By ben_haworth

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Fresh Goods Friday 613: One In One Out Edition

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I can’t decide whether the HB916 or the Seeker 20 is the better looking bike. On balance that seeker looks amazing!

Wear sunscream

If you want to go faster?

The only two things that are preying on Benji’s mind: the pedals (not pictured, slippery-looking metal flats), and riding inner tubes again.

Riding tubes! The horror!

#PrayForBen

Oh yes, a nice overhead cagoule.

I had a cotton one, treated, for years as a sailing instructor and it was ace….

What’s the difference between Bum Butter and Singletrack Salvation, please?
I seem to have an unopened pot of each.

I had a voodoo Bokor. Managed to go tubeless with the original rims and tyres. So all he should need for a couple of quid is some tubeless valves, sealant and rim tape. Sorted.

Ah man, I have enough trouble keeping Stars in Their Eyes out my head anyway. Thanks @singletrack.

BTW, love the carbon weave finish on that Hope, always been a sucker for that finish since I owned a pair of Pace RC39 forks.

So all he should need for a couple of quid is some tubeless valves, sealant and rim tape. Sorted.

Weeeeellllll. I wonder whether that’s in the spirit of the original article? The point of this bike was that it was alright out the box.

For folks with half a jar of sealant and maybe some tubeless valves the in the shed, and experience of using both, it’s more-or-less trivial to go tubeless.

For a hypothetical beginner, maybe less so.

THe Hope bike looks stunning. Have they now adopted normal standards for the bike or are they still doing thier own wired sizing that only they make parts for?

Dam kids bikes are so good nowadays!

Thought that Craghoppers cagoul was a Berghaus jacket until I had a look at the logo pic.

THe Hope bike looks stunning. Have they now adopted normal standards for the bike or are they still doing thier own wired sizing that only they make parts for?

148x12mm rear wheel, post mount rear brake which of the same as the latter HB130’s.

T47 BB which is basically a screw in shell and press fit bearings… My HB160 BB still fine after 4 years. Also no issues with the radial mount brake or 130x17mm hub.

@Vincent Gregory. The difference between Bum Butter and Salavations is the addition of thyme in the Singletrack Salvation… so you now have Thyme on your side… your backside.

And the container.

I think modern day kids should be made to ride a Grifter first.

There’s a garden centre called “doing Thyme” opposite a prison that I pass on the way to the beach – made oi larf

So the kids bike is more expensive than the Voodoo which has a suspension fork🤔

Could we not say “approved for downhill racing” please? There’s not really such a thing.

They say “astm rated” which I assume means ASTM F1952 since that’s the downhill-ish standard, but ASTM’s not a standard requirement for downhill racing. Possibly in America, not sure, but not in the UK, or the world cup… Basically it doesn’t have the industry acceptance, for a bunch of good and bad reasons.

So the kids bike is more expensive than the Voodoo which has a suspension fork🤔

Probably because the kids bikes is made on much smaller volume while all the manufacturing design/development/business costs are largely the same. Volume of metal employed is approximately 3/4 of **** all parts cost of the finished bike.

Is the Early Rider too expensive? Dunno but I want to have a child purely so I can buy them one, it is so cool. Maybe I’ll steal a child so I can buy them one, that’d be easier. Probably might as well steal the bike too then. TBH it all sounds like a lot of hassle. But it is awesome.

Is the Braag even the best value bike in the Halfords range? At a glance the Sulcata that’s the same price looks a better option.

That Hope is lush though. I can’t afford it, but I guess if I’m stealing a child then even a very expensive bike is still a softer sentence?

Don’t use those tyre setting tools on FSA road rims with conti tyres, they bend the rim! Ask me how I know

@northwind I dare say if you leave it until later in August we’ll be far enough into the summer holidays the parents are unlikely to report it for a few weeks just in case they get the kids back before school starts.

Should give your a week or so to buy the bike, insta the whole thing and then return both with minimal cost.