trail_rat – Good point, I suppose it depends on how they are cut in the factory. Would like to think it's done after the frames been welded as welding can damage the threads and in the larger companies sure to be done by machine. If it's clamped and a twin headed cutter is used won't be a problem but if the frame is flipped because it only has one cutting head could create a slight error. The geek in me would like to have a look at how bike frames are made in the bike factorys.

How strong do they have to be? EX721's make a really strong wheel especially in 36 hole but if you don't need them that strong as said flows.

Feel free to correct me if i'm wrong but I make it 11.31 deg. The above answer was 10/100 should be 20/100 as the difference is 20cm over the 100cm length. 50cm – 30cm = 20cm, 20 divided by 100 = 5 inv tan = 11.31 deg.

RustyNissanPrairie – Thats a bloody good idea.

Had both and as said above hope if you want fit and forget, xt if your on a budget. The xt's do run smoother and drag less as they are cup and cone but you do pay for that by servicing them more. I bought xt's last time as I couldn't afford hopes and I re-grease the rear every 500 miles and the front every 1000 miles. If you buy xt's don't get centre lock as the flanges are a lot smaller than 6 bolt and it builds a weaker wheel, which I found to my cost 😥

Well as far as BB's are concerned, there is no way that facing it would effect the angle the BB sits at, the threads would keep it all parallel.

Thats why a good quality facing tool screws into the threads to cut, thus keeping it parallel to the threads.

Some manufacturers face the bb, headset and if your lucky the brake mounts in the factory and some don't. I only know for sure giant do all of them, can't speak for the rest. Trouble is most LBS want between £30-£50 to do each one and it's only a five minute job, total rip off. I had a cyclus bb facing tool and the three frames I faced with it (kona, hinde and custom) were all spot on so I sold it (plus I needed the money).

Very nice, full on bike porn. Whats the fork like now dt swiss make them? I had one when they first came out and it leaked, sent it back and I was told a little oil loss was normal. Little yes, running down the fork legs, no 🙁

The woman who knocked the wing mirror off my works van while over taking something on her side of the road and in my lane then tried to say it was my fault. First week at work, great, thanks for that one 🙄

It's the beer god's wrath for ruining perfectly good beer by putting a slice of lemon in it 😆

IMO anything over 140mm on a HT is a waste because your always limited by no travel on the back What you would get if you switched is a stiffer fork, have you thought about getting 36floats and getting mojo to reduce them to 140mm? That way you have the advantage of stiffer forks without the downsides of 160mm on a HT.

I wouldn't use hammerite as it chips easily. If you don't mind only having a choice of metallic grey or black http://www.rustbulletuk.com/ can be sprayed and although it's primarily a rust treatment it drys rock hard. If you don't use cling film between the paint tub and lid once it's opened they stick together and you won't get the lid off!

+1 for the KMC X9. Wouldn't go for the X9L unless your light, not convinced on light chains durability for heavier riders. Suprised at the amount of recommendations for SRAM chains, imo they suck. Mind you I haven't used one for years, have they improved?

Not done the event but have ridden the route on a hardtail, hardknott after 100 miles was one of the hardest things i've ever done. Have you ever seen the winning times? 5hrs 47mins, an average of around 20 miles an hour with all that climbing, leaves me lost for words.

Crack and porn 😈

They're not water tight anyway, merely water resistant.

Totally agree, never thought they were. Wrong choice of words 😳

I'd find your local bearing dealer from the yellow pages and order a quality bearing from them. Price wise I would think it would fall between ebay and betd. I'd follow his advice on the re-greasing thing, he'll know how well they are packed from new. Trouble is if you take the seal off to re-pack it you break the seal and it won't be as water tight but it's worth doing if the bearings aren't well greased from new. As long as you have a good quality bearing well greased I don't think it makes a lot of differnce as bearings are ment to run continuously in a clockwise or counter clockwise direction. On a bike they are lucky if they move half way through their travel and IMO whether you put caged or uncaged etc it won't make a great deal of difference. Their cheap to buy, it's easy to do, might as well replace them after every winter.

Go and find a building regs book….

To find the answer or to take a dump in? 😆

I suppose someones got to say it, the fence needs a paint 😉

Like the build, great looking bike. I would love one of them, if only they made them in man sizes!

Welcome to the club 😀 probably the best upgrade i've done, not for the weight but as you mentioned the grip and improved ride by dropping the pressures.

A tip for you, if you use washing up liquid on the rim and tyre you won't have to pump so hard/much. Also found that when you start inflating if you have the valve at the top and press on the tyre where the valve is so that you seat it and make it seal a bit better the tyre inflates a lot easier. Sometimes you have to wiggle the tyre a bit but you can feel when its seated as the prssure from the pump pushes against the tyre.

I would go to the police not for the fact that they might do something but to have a registered record of what has taken place for any possible future legal action. What you have to remember is he thinks he can do this, it is his right to go in to your room and remove stuff. If he does it again and your frame gets stolen or even worse you come home and he has removed all of your belongings the previous police report shows a history of intimidation. Some landlords think that just because they own the property they can do what they like but they can't and as mentioned before there are very big fines for this sort of thing. Protect yourself why should you lose £3k worth of stuff you have worked hard for just because he's a f**king c**k?

Motor factors, windscreen washer jets feed pipe.

Washing up liquid and washing powder works a treat, stings a little bit on the cuts though.

+1 on 2unfit2ride number 1 option, you'll rule out if its a glow plug problem then. I had a diesel astra which was difficult to start in the mornings fitted new glow plugs but it still took time to start first thing so did the 3 times heating glow plugs and it started first turn. It's a bit of a PITA but a lot cheaper than trying to find the underlying fault.

+1 Nainosliw. It may damage our image in the eyes of car/van/lorry drivers but in general they show no consideration to us. In fact most of them drive like complete c**ts so basically I don't care what they think.

Drilling it would be my last option on a bleed nipple because of the filings going in to the caliper, not good! Drilling will also knacker the threads which means helicoil or tapping a larger thread and sourcing the relevant larger bleed nipple. Try the easyouts first with loads of wd40 but remember not to do them up to tight or they will split the caliper as mentioned above or as previously mentioned superglue/arradite a bolt in. Aluminium and steel don't mix they oxidize and seize the threads, such a pain in the a*s!

Other than the suggestions above try unbolting the caliper and cable tie it up out the way and ride around(carefully!) like that for a while and see if the noise stays away. The water could be lubricating another part of the bike and your confusing it with the brake this way you'll know for sure. If the noise comes back with the brake unbolted from the frame i'd inspect all the welds on the frame very carefully for cracks. All it could/would look like is a tiny black mark a couple of mm long usually just above or under the weld and thats a crack starting. If it's happening while seated pay particular attention to the seatstays and top tube/seat tube areas. Been unlucky enough to have 3 bikes with creaking noises that wouldn't go away and all turned out to be cracked frames and one was brand new!

+1 on SpokesCycles recommendation. Going on what you said you wanted don't think you'll get a better bike for the money, always liked the xtc in that colour scheme.

AFAIK lust are an in between tyre much like the spesh 2bliss and bonty tlr range that have to be used with sealant whereas the ust are a proper ust tyre

Thats wrong, lust is a lightweight version of the ust tyre and can be used without sealant, the weight saving comes from lighter side walls. Which you use depands on your weight and riding, if your heavy or/and do fr/dh your better of with the ust. But if your lighter and/or ride xc/am the lust is fine. IIRC there is about 100g saving on average between the ust and lust.

I had a few bikes, HT and full suss but had to sell all but 1 due to finances. The bike I kept was a HT as I think if you can only have 1 bike a HT is the better option over a full suss for where I Live (somerset). But to be honest I think you need both (or should I say it would be nice to have both!) as I miss having the rear travel for a good flatout downhill blast. Why don't you get a cheap hardtail or treat the orange to a suspension fork (if the geo/headtube etc allows it)

Rust in the filler neck from the fuel cap is a car killer – beware!

+1 on the rusty filler neck. Check it's not rotten and if you have any slight running problems walk away as that could be the cause and the only way to 100% cure it is to replace everything fuel related from the fuel tank to the engine

Before you buy a new fork you could try giving tft a ring. As it's a coil you might be able to change the spring and type of oil to improve the performance.

As stated above find a good physio as well as working on your back he/she will give you exersises to do which will help a lot. Once your on the road to recovery and the physio says it's ok try doing some core exercises. Back pain is caused by cumulative damage and having strong core muscles, good posture and lifting in the correct way can help stop further problems.

Headset spacers 😆

Is there anyone in the UK who you think would make a good President?

An avid follower of politics then, President, don't you mean Prime Minister 😉

Can't help with attaching without mounts but my tubus logo wouldn't fit on my 29er without an extension kit[/url]. It's a custom frame and the mounts are fitted on the dropout rather than on the seatstay as in the above picture.

For **** sake change the record. We get it you sell bearings!

6'6", 24" (custom) hardtail

I had a trance x and found that I had to run 30% sag rather than the recommended 25% otherwise it felt a bit harsh. Then used the pro-pedal a bit more on the flats and ups to compensate. IIRC they don't deal as well with square edge (if that the right term) hits as some other suspension systems.

It's about time somebody prosecuted ebay and paypal for their often illegal practices, bunch of hypocritical thieves!

Nonsense – Originally wrote "if your very lucky you get a caution" but edited it out.

You obviously have a far greater knowledge of the law than me but would you not agree that your more likely to be convicted in magistrates court than crown I think I read somewhere thats its around 80% magistrates and 50% crown. The main reason for this is the minor and less complicated cases are heard at magistrates court. The police would therefore have a greater understanding of the law involved so would be less likely to arrest as they know the probable outcome and know it's just not worth the wasted paperwork and target not met.

Irrelevant what police persons think. Their job is to arrest according to what the Law says, not judge a particular case. They can have their personal opinions, of course, but it's up to the CPS to decide to prosecute, and the courts to do the judging and sentencing bit.

You are 100% correct in what you say but generally speaking if a policeman arrests you for a minor crime you will either get a caution or go to magistrates court and get prosecuted. It's all about targets and if they don't prosecute after an arrest it affects those targets.