Oh, I don’t ride it. I just polish it in the garden and marvel at it’s shinyness…

After a looooong wait for the frame to arrive, it’s only been built up for a fortnight or so. Have managed a few 2-3hr rides on it so far, nothing that gnarly mind. I’m averse to jumping! Given the limited time I’ve had on it, the initial impression is very good. Whilst not as springy as the Cotic Soda, it seems to cope smoothly with rockier sections. It’s firmer but still has some of that spring. I’m still fiddling with the rebound and compression on the fork (which seems quite stiff itself), so time will tell. It handles fine on the steeper, tighter corners of my usual rides. As expected, when cornering it’s more direct than the Soda. Also, compared to the 100mm-forked Kinesis Virsa I’ve been riding lately, the front end isn’t as easy to pull up. Though, at 70mm, the stem is 20mm longer on the Brodie.

I’m really hoping that this is going to be a bike that lasts me a good few years. It seems like a strongly built frame. I hope it is, as I’ve had a couple of hardtails fail at the seat tube/top tube weld. The welded brace on the Holeshot should take care of that…

Another pic…too small…doh

Here’s mine – I like it a lot.

Skidmark camouflage

You should be worried that you are going to run out of Marmite more quickly.

I found this[/url] calculator to be accurate (for a Hope XC/Mavic 717 combo). Always worth double-checking by hand though before hitting that BUY button.

If mine ever arrives, I’ll let you know. Grumble grumble…

Is that supposed to be funny?

Pedros Tyre Levers have never let me down. Cheap, wide, strong and well shaped.

Those hubs are fat and shiny – what are they?

Lovely looking bike by the way!

Marin Pine Mountain
Pace RC200
Marin Riftzone
Whyte 19
Cotic Soda
Kinesis Decade Virsa
Brodie Ti Holeshot…if the damn thing ever arrives!

Will keep an eye out for them. Sounds like the thieving barstewards came prepared.

Headless chicken on the pitch, brainless twunt off it.

He’ll doubtless be drunk somewhere at this very moment offering out all and sundry.

Runs sideways too much. Who does he think he is, Shane Williams?

Try this[/url] for waterproofs

Now 20 months old, BabyFish has been commuting 3 miles each way with me for 8 or so months in all weathers. She has a waterproof jumpsuit thing for wet weather and a snowsuit for cold/wet weather. Both suits have built in gloves/feet and hoods to keep the extremities dry & warm. A scarf around the face (ninja-baby!) is also required for very cold weather.

Yes. Have run the XMC130 for 18 months (paid £400, ex-display) and just bought the XMM140 for a new project (paid £490 from Germany). No issues with either so far…which is more than I can say for the Pace/Fox/Manitou forks used previously. Having said that, I wouldn’t pay top whack for them.

Hmmm, that’s annoying. I think I’ll check mine in the morning then.

Black Heat!

717s on Hope XC. Built by CRC for £160 in 2002. Still going strong on a mate’s bike. Not necessarily the best wheels in the world but reliable.

Try and find one of these[/url]

It screws into the BB axle and you use a large spanner to turn it and unscrew the BB.

I have found that ensuring both seat clamp bolts are torqued to roughly the same amount helps prevent the creak from reappearing.

Just play the game and remove the logs. Stickman will appreciate it as it gives him something to do, aside from muttering to himself on his lonely woodland walks.

Cycling from Bradford-on-Avon back to Bristol via several pubs 😈

I wonder if the tyres match the grips…

Yup, it’s shit all right. Question is, do you let it stop you riding?
The chances of being mugged are miniscule. Don’t believe any keyboard warriors either. If you sense danger, turn tail and get out of the situation. Ultimately, it’s only a bike and it can be replaced. Put up a fight and you may lose more than an expensive piece of metal/plastic/etc.

You’re a lot more likely to get mugged for your bike in Henbury/Blaise, or on the Bristol-Bath cycle path than in Leigh Woods.

Carry a large spanner (for trailside maintenance)

Seriously though, over the years I’ve ridden all these trails solo many times (at night & during the day). I’ve only heard of a couple of incidents over the last few years and these have involved the car park areas in Leigh Woods (I guess the thieves are generally looking to drive stolen bikes away, rather than ride them).

That said, if in doubt, turn around and pedal like ****.

Back to the OP. I drove up Stokes Croft this afternoon and was very disappointed to see that the mob also smashed the windows of Fred Baker Cycles next door to Tesco. The proprietor had been previously quoted as sympathising with the anti-Tesco protestors…

Come on then, what’s so great about 853?

Prime number?

I have the Kinesis set up with a 100mm QR15 fork, 50mm stem and 700mm bars. I ride it mostly on twisty wooded singletrack – it’s fairly nimble. I also chuck it down steepish, switchbacky stuff and it copes no problem – it feels sure-footed.

I have no experience of the Soul, but having ridden a Soda with 120mm forks for a few years, I have a fair idea of how well the Soul might ride (same geometry, or used to be anyway).

Both good frames in my humble opinion.

I tried to contact Middleburn via email a few weeks ago requesting some related info. No response.

Thanks for the suggestion about the missing self-extracting bolt washer – that sounds like it could be the culprit.

Alas, I think the only way to check would be to saw through the crank itself around the area where the bolt sits. I’ve basically written off the cranks anyway. I had to saw the axle in 2 places so I could remove the spider for future use. I’m fairly sure I’ve voided the warranty somehow…

I did recently discover some fitting instructions with correct torque values on the Middleburn website (though I received no such instructions with the cranks when I bought them).

Just to update…

1. FAIL
2. FAIL
3. Not attempted due to having drilled out the bolt head during 2.
4. Ouch. The axle was made of cheese. Didn’t take long.

Now, what chainset next…?

Fiend Without A Face[/url]

Worth it for the stop-motion animated killer brains with antennae!

Lifetime warranty…does imply that the manufacturer believes most will last a very long time

‘Most’ being the key word.

I have broken a Ti hardtail frame. Lifetime warranty does not imply the frame will last forever!

I think Healey’s use of toxic hair-restoring products have caused noxious substances to leach into his eyes, therefore preventing him from seeing the bleeding obvious.