Are you replacing an existing one? What type? Do you want an external headset with as low as possible a stack height as possible (Crank Bros are about the lowest I’ve seen), or an internal headset… even lower again?

This is where we all find out that the graphics are some hideous graffiti pattern or have flowers all over ’em!

😀

SCUD: Now you’ve got me scared…Wouldn’t put it past On-One though..

But if you post up pics it’ll ruin my surprise – mine’s going to be at least a week getting to Oz 😥

I’m mixing/matching two halves of a nukeproof headset (already have the half that fits the top, just needed a larger lower). Got lucky last night and found a 31.8 to 27.2 seatpost shim down the back of the shed. The ti seatpost lives to fight another day!

The seatpost is 31.6mm??? Bastards! Just preordered my frame and a new 31.8 seatpost clamp… Hopefully I’ve got an old shim and seat clamp in a drawer somewhere…

Amazing how nobody at On-One knows anything about the frames (thanks for the headset sizing info off Shedfire, Brant! – Sleep well :D). Looking at Brant’s “production sample” it looks like they’ve reverted to exposed cables/cable stops, but the site still brags “continuous cable routing to keep things running when it’s gritty” Even the graphics/colours are apparently a complete mystery. How did they order the frames? “Just stick some stickers on when you’re done, be good if they said On-One or something similar, any design or colour will do….”.

Love the product (this’ll make three in the shed…), but the organisation/management seems to be getting worse (let’s not talk about the promises of the Carbon Race/Lurcher/Ti29er..).

2Hottie,

Great riding in Adelaide. I can do a 50km loop one way, or a 40km loop the other, nearly all singletrack (legal) from my doorstep, yet I’m a 20 minute ride from the centre of the city. Can get bloody hot for a week or two in summer (38C+), so you drink in the day and ride at night. Winters can be damp and cold (c.14C during the day). Autumn and Spring are brilliant (c.25C). Personally prefer Ignitors to X-Kings, lots of loose over hardpack stuff here :-).For living near the riding look for places in the south eastern suburbs (Belair, Blackwood, Lynton).

Have a look here http://www.amtbc.com/

Feel free to get in touch when you touch down (see… we are a welcoming, friendly bunch – or is just ’cause I’m an expat Jock from the 70’s 🙂 )

Still snigger when I see “Cat Boarding” billboards/signs. I really want to give catboarding a go. Surely as much fun as shopping trolleys?

But there was no hucks or stunts… Hope you weren’t just having fun 😀

Specialized Epic (c. 2003?), bought new, crashed most rides for a year before I gave up… just too steep in the front for me. Guess it’s not it’s fault (plenty of others obviously don’t have my issues 🙂 ), I was just riding where it wasn’t expected to go…

The Octanes use the same bladder as all the “backpack” camelbacks, so no compatibility issues there… I’ve also got one of the “bum-pack” camelbaks. That’s got a very different shaped bladder – more like a small rugby ball bladder, but I’m sure it could fit my lobo/octane packs on it’s side

Never done the “Resort Diver myself”… but have seen flocks of chinese doing it on Green Island, off Cairns. My feelings go out to the instructors – most chinese don’t swim (apparently), so it’s a real challenge. Looked to me like you do a mornings training in the pool, and then the instuctor escorts you on your dive, but you are expected to be able to look after yourself (while the instructor looks after the really wobbly ones…)

Nothing wrong with doing all your training in Thailand (especially with the savings – it’s a supply and demand thing compared to the UK :D). You may find you love diving and want to keep going in the UK… but it will be very different diving in the UK! Not neccesarily worse, just different – but probably not the kind of “glamourous” tropical diving everybody imagines is “normal” diving…Maybe another option is: We get a LOT of people who come to the Great Barrier Reef and “need” to go home saying they’ve dived it.. they do the PADI “Resort Diver” (IIRC) which gives them a few dives with minimal instruction, escorted by an instructor. If you love it, the couple of days spent doing it count towards upgrading to Open Water Diver later on at another PADI schol elsewhere in the world (don’t personally like PADI, but will resist a rant :-), the important thing is to find an instructor you feel you can trust).

Looking at your tentative plan… please be aware you should not fly within 24 hours (preferably 48 – that’s the rule I enforce here at work)of diving. Cabin pressure is lower than sea level (especially at night when they drop the pressure to send everybody off to sleep – or to stun the pi$$ed football team…), so there’s a further chance of getting the “bends”. I know airlines here in Oz will not let you fly if they suspect you’ve been diving within 24 hours (a mate was kicked off a flight 23:50 after a dive – and that was into the departure lounge, not even onto the plane!).

Oh dear, it’s starting to sound scarey again… sorry, I work managing divers now and OH&S is at the top of my list ALL the time… You will love diving – I’m probably getting a bit old and jaded on it :D, so have to keep reminding myself how awesome the early days were! Get to the warm water and indulge yourselves!

Sorry…. not meant to be scarey. Diving is brilliant (and sure beats working for a living :D). Just wanted to make sure that you got clearance from a doctor that actually understands what the issues are. BBSB’s on the money with finding one through a local dive club/agency (I’m sure you can find details of the BSAC – British Sub Aqua Club on t’web). The snorkelling reccomendation is if you want to have a holiday and have the “swum on coral reef” lifebox ticked off, it’s a hell of a lot easier than going through the diving training rigmarole. If you’re wanting a few days of “underwater exploring” then go diving – and only dive as much as you feel comfortable doing. It’s no fun to push out the maximum number of dives in a day just because the trip offers them (and you need to tell mates about how EXTREME! DUDE! – sorry to shout – you were :-)). You’re on holiday, RELAX, do a few dives, graze the smorgasbord, lie in the sun, have another dive, RELAX 😀

Such fond memories of flogging a 10-speed with cowhorns and cyclocross knobbies over the Himalayas putting green next to the Old Course (great mogul field) and crashing in the bunkers on the 17th green in the middle of the night :-). Was back in the 70’s and probably shouldn’t be condoned as suitable behaviour anymore… Maybe bunnyhopping the Swilken Burn would be more De Rigeur these days?

Doctors concerns are valid. Any hyperbaric doctor would be concerned about the possibility of scar tissue creating a nucleus for bubble formation during decompression – predisposing you to “bends”. Shallow diving is no safer. Bubbles form in your bloodstream on EVERY dive -if you stick to the decompression tables they’re just more likely to be non-pathogenic. Get clearance from a hyperbaric doctor – check with local dive shops. If you just want to see the reef/fishes go snorkelling. The visibility in most tropical waters lets you see everything just snorkelling(there’s bugger all extra below 20m – yes, a generalisation, but trust me on this that’s what years in marine science teaches you!). If you’re fit, snorkelling is heaps easier (less equipment)and safer – if you’re unfit… dive snorkelling deaths here in Oz are split about 50/50 – mostly snorkellers having heart attacks…If you feel you must dive please get hyperbaric medical clearance before you leave home. Assuming you get clearance (quite likely) speak to the instructors and find one you trust will look after you, not just your money, and have a ball! To (hopefully :D) dispel any thoughts that this is a random internet opinion I’ll point to 34 years diving experience (including mixed gas commercial),30 years marine science diving (half in tropical waters – Great Barrier reef, a horrible job, but somebody’s got to do it :D), and 20 years as a Dive Medical Technician.

To quote from the man himself…. “better a has-been than a never-been…”. Guess it applies to the current crop of Idol “stars” (“never-shoul-have-beens” :-))

Got mine (lynskey) a couple of years ago and it still amazes me at the kind of cr@p it can pull off. For me, the reviews were right on the money. I’ve been chasing (high level downhiller) mates on their 5″ Commencals etc down rocky tracks and holding them as well as I could if I was on a 5″ meself..(and on 2.1 tyres to their 2.4s!- I’m on 140 TALAS forks). Yes, it’s still a hardtail, so it puts the effort (and skill) back into riding hard, but just seems to love it. I noticed a lot of give in the rear end over my previous scandium Kona. It’s been enough to convince me that the new 29er I want will have to be a Lynskey. That’s gonna hurt the wallet, but it’s worth it. The 456 will never be sold (even though the headtube looks sooo skinny compared to everything else these days).

To qoute from the local rag (south australia): ” If the whole England team had been batting for the other side, we would’ve won the ashes…” 😀

Is that the original Kelvingrove from the 70’s? Guessing not… but that place was sooo much fun. Remember feeling like a legend for getting my red badge(at all of 15 yo :-)). All this talk of skateparks is too much. I’m off to my local skatepark/12′ pool tonight for a session! (God bless summer evenings in Oz)

I have no issues bleeding mine, where they’re pressure bled with the syringes from the caliper upwards (there’s a good description of the process on Bikeradar.com). The only thing to watch out for is when you release the held back lever, do it slowly as you inject more fluid at the caliper, if you just snap release it it stuffs up the whole bleed.

5’7″ on a 16″ Scandal 29er (and the same 16″ in a 26″ Tinbred), both are lovely and roomy with an 80mm stem.

Tried to go to the “one” bike a year or so ago, and thought I’d cracked it with the Ti456. Awesome bike, does everything I want, but then thought I’d better try this 29er lark (Scandal)…. brilliant bike too. Maybe a ti 29er could replace them both? Either way I now have two XC/Trail hardtails and it can get a bit annoying deciding which one to take out on which day…

All the spare bits were then built onto an ebay frame to make a commuter that (hopefully) won’t get nicked (although all the “old” parts, like v-brakes are bloody good stuff, so it’s ended up being my lightest bike at c.9kg with full gears!).

One bike can work, but you have to stop riding with other people (who keep upgrading)/reading magazines/browsing ebay/t’internet, so rampant consumerism is kept at bay. Then you can just enjoy the bike your on…

Prices were getting way better for a while there… I bought an Avanti Ridge Rider in 92 for $800 – rigid, all steel, with cantibrakes and the "new" SLX. A mate bought an Avanti Ridge rider in 07 -Ally hydroformed frame, coil rockshox, deore, and hydro discs for $750. I feel ripped off for buying in 92! Same bike now is about $1500. Guess there's been a few changes in the big old world over the last few years…