Suck it up and buy some silver DMR Vaults.

I’ve tried most of the above. The Superstars are OK. The Neutrons are rubbish. Accept now substitute.

Correction – Rag-tag bunch of misfits

I rated it. Especially Rocket’s deconstruction of their Quirky Mini-boss squad status.

Race face Ambush if you can still get them. Love mine.

This thread has inspired me. Am doing a 13k before low-carbs breakfast every morning now. Not sure of progress yet, give it two weeks I reckon.

*cough* Kona Process *cough*

Hmmmn, not sure whether I am a crypto-bearing-jet-washer – I do take pretty good care when cleaning them.

I ride a lot in muddy conditions, through the winter, so suppose that it part of the mix.

Why should we have to take apart products from new to make them run right? *harrumph

I have a road bike with sora, the bb and headset are going a-OK after since 2002.

To be fair, less stress on the road, but ten times less?!?

Strangely the XT bb was the longest lasting.

Durability of MTB stuff in general appears to be rubbish.

I know it is because it all has to be light-weight, so you won’t get moto-vehicle levels of durability, but still.

Chains, cassettes; rubbish.

Only the tyres and disc brakes seem to have a decent life-span, touch wood.

Am with you cdoc. Hardtail pride.

Alex

Don’t go Nukeproof – don’t last long and hard getting spares for when the bearings do wear out.

M:Part seems to be doing well thus far as a replacement. Quad sealing.

I should imagine it depends very much on the overall impact. If you get hit by a lorry at 50mph nothing is going to make a difference, but a car at 20mph could make the difference between life and death.

Having broken a few helmets mountain-biking I wouldn’t be without one off-road. Last time I dislocated my shoulder after landing on my head. Think it would have been a gonna…

I should imagine it depends very much on the overall impact. If you get hit by a lorry at 50mph nothing is going to make a difference, but a car at 20mph could make the difference between life and death.

Having broken a few helmets mountain-biking I wouldn’t be without one off-road. Last time I dislocated my shoulder after landing on my head. Think it would have been a gonna…

*bit wasteful.

Freudian slip…

Fat Albert fronts?

I’ve run softer over the winter to not much avail.

Ruinous in the North downs Wiggle event – to be fair most tyres would have struggled – but had OK grip with the NN on back.

Dampfs are amazing on dry woody trails. I basically want something similar, but with better mud-shedding. Not massively keen on High rollers and similar – I like an intermediate.

Have considered Rampages and Bronsons also.

Miaow! xterramac!

matttg

I am a local – live in Epsom – so know that place reasonably well :D

Good to see some extra bits mind. Enjoyed some of the ‘stream-riding’ sections.

The really nasty bit was the muddy descent from Ranmore road down to the railway line. Wolvern’s lane not so bad imo.

Nobby nic on the rear seemed like a good compromise… Big hans dampf + mud guard on the front gummed-up.

Proper claggy. Agree with awptechnical – that was a nasty bit – I was riding Hans Dampf and the front tyre looked like a Fat bike.

I thought the epic section around Holmbury was pretty good, but the final 3rd around Polesden lacey dragged on and on – down the side of a field, up the side of a field X repeat.

Good event mind, well organised and nice to see fig rolls at the feed stations – made my day!

That bloke who used to work for Freeborn Esher – Esher-shore on some forums.

I used to work down that way, so have had a few chats with him. I reckon I might get the Easton. Little bit dearer now X4s reduced on CRC.

What the heck.

If you want to do the downhill stuff round Morzine I would go for a 180mm free-ride bike – something like a Scott Voltage – plenty of bounce and solid as a rock, but a bit more playful than a full DH bike – I assume you’re not a racer boy?

Probably go coil too. Cheaper, less to go wrong and no worries about weight with uplift.

MBUK is more or less entirely illiterate. It used to be FHM for MTB, but now is at a Nuts/Zoo level.

The MBR chaps are quite nice – they had a chat with us at Afan last year and weren’t giving it all that big industry type stuff.

I think Danny Milner is good – shame that he has to spend so much time editing nowadays – good article on PinkBike for instance.

Small world, his sister is my mate’s girlfriend. She is a Times journo, must be in the genes.

Depends entirely on which shop. The saffa blokes at the Wandsworth branch are routinely excellent, I’ve alwe thought the Kingston one they didn’t care.

I have delivery from them and was A ok. That being said jejames and crc are probably the slickest.

Basically you got unlucky.

Couldn’t agree more – although the front one is useful at keeping the mud off the fork seals

Mudhugger rear on the other hand is excellent. Completely dry even after multiple puddles. What’s not to like.

Geax tyres are pretty indestructible.

Geax sturdy – it’s all in the name.

Okay as a rear tyre – centre blocks hoof you up quickly.

I am finding mine a bit sketchy in the wet. No good in mud. Clear quite well mind.

I think Schwalbe make better tyres. The Hans Dampf are awesome in the dry, for instance.

AJT

I have middle length ones, very effective. Wear ordinary socks underneath.

For the front yes. For the back, no.

Alex

They are very tight down at Swinley. I got caught out too.

Awesome Fivespot.

What are the dimensions of the joystick then?

I have heard tell of 23.5mm, 24mm and 25mm

Can you confirm?

Alex

Awesome Fivespot.

What are the dimensions of the joystick then?

I have heard tell of 23.5mm, 24mm and 25mm

Can you confirm?

Alex

Interesting Davousaurusrex.

Anyone know the diameter of an exposure joystick?

Alex

I have a bit of hi-viz on me normally [back-pack, cycling top], I always wear a helmet when off-road and increasingly when on road .

But… I would be very, very angry if my employer started dictating my choices outside of work.

Frankly we are creeping towards totalitarianism on many fronts, how long before a urine test at the start of the day [for a desk job]?

Ultimately the UK has some of the safest roads in the world, to reduce casualties further would task either;

1. Massive capital investment e.g. tearing up congested, small city streets.
2. Massive inconvenience for users e.g. 20 mile an hour zones.

I drive, I cycle recreationally and I walk to work. I’m happy with the risks of all and as a pedestrian-cyclist I’d happily put up with a lot more 40mph speed limits in exchange for smoother, wider roads.

Alex

kimbers save yourself some pain. Don’t. :wink:

Sektors are good. Frankly you’d be hard pushed to tell the difference between them and a revelation.

I have to say I haven’t enjoyed it as much as Educating Essex. Essex kids have more gift of the gab and it was a more amusing show as a result.

In my experience of teaching up North and down South there is a bit more spite in the southern kids.

We had the Essex head-teacher do our INSET last year and he made a great impression. Harlow is a pretty depressing no-wheres-ville and I get the sense they deal with a lot of hard-knocks there.

Those two qoutes from … Essex from Woody74 were really bang on the money. Kids get a much worse deal nowadays – stressed-out guilty parents who try to buy them off with stuff and try to be their mate, combined with stressed-out teachers who are playing the numbers game.

British education is a meat-grinder – children go in, statistics come out, the teachers just turn the handle.

Some suspension systems work well with bigger wheels, some it is a squeeze and the geometry [especially seat tube] gets weird to fit it all in.

Single pivots end up with very long chain stays.

Horst links seems to work pretty well.

Maestro and other twin links seem to have issues, because like single pivots they have a forward arc. Pivot and Niner get around this, because their lower link is more forward.

29er giants didn’t look right and the seat angle didn’t work.

For me, I think you want a straight seat-post and short chain stays, and this is much easier to achieve on 26 and 650b.

The major plus point of the front mucky nutz is keeping shite off of your fork stanchions and seals. This helps cut down on cleaning and prolong life between services.

Frankly, on on the rear makes little difference, except if you have a silly full sus, designed in sunnier climbs, where it can be useful keeping the spray off your rear shock.

Hans Dampf if you ride forests, something with bigger blocks, like a Der Baron, or High Roller, if your normal terrain is rocky…

2014 Ardent race. Safe. Job done.

Are they comfy?