Can’t be bothered to read the whole thread..

I was at 417 yesterday doing an uplift day. I was chatting to the driver and we got onto e-mtb’s and he gave an interesting perspective. For Uplift trail centres, e-bikes don’t really make sense. They cost an astronomical amount and you lose much of the fun on the way down due to carrying extra weight. They aren’t as playful or nimble. You also expend a lot of energy on the way up which could be used to do more descents if using the uplift.

Compare that to an uplift day, £33 a time + a £2k trail bike. Say you go once a month to a trail centre, that’s £400/yr in uplift costs. That’s about £3k (inc. bike) after 2 years but with an ebike you’d need to replace the battery at this point too for £500, so the equivalent ebike will cost you north of £4.5k.

I think ebike have their place, but as an uplift tool they don’t make sense to me.

Now that I know I like the SolarisMax LS geo… does anyone want it so I can buy one of these :O

He’s just a classifieds poster, so he’s just going to shut the account and start a new one.
He’s not adding any value to the forum.

In typical STW fashion of recommending your own… Cotic SolarisMax Longshot.
Great bike! I love mine. You can have a ride if you want on my medium. Much better than my Whyte 529 was (same build).

Will take ‘normal’ cranks with 32t and below- that’s what I’m running.

Boost rear, but with the advent of ‘Boostinators’ you can run a Hope 135mm hub and just use the various end caps to be fully future proof; QRx135, 12×135, 12×142 & 12×148. I’ve got a cheap Pro2 Evo rear if you want a new hub.

I wish them all the best as there’s a huge number of jobs at risk.

That said, I had the worst bike buying experince ever from thir Reading branch.
Ordered a Trek Superfly- phoned to confirm collection (midweek at about 5pm).

I turned up and the bike hadn’t even been taken out the box. They built it up damaging the frame, forks, carbon bars and seatpost in the process.. they then stole the fork lockout from another bike (older spec with nasty leaver) as it wasn’t in the box, gouging the crown in the process. I waited 2 hours, with no appology and no update. I was just milling around and each time I enquired- ‘we’re working on it’..
Anyway, bike is ready to collect, covered in marks, grease and protective film. I was fed up and took it without checking as it was the end of a long day. Got it home and found all the marks, alongside lose bolts everywhere and none indexed gears. It was actually dangerous to the point that if an amateur would take it home and start riding there would be a serious crash at somepoint.

I was pretty upset as I rarely buy new bikes. Contacted customer service who where rubbish. Just a ‘sorry’ and no way of remediating the damage caused even after chassing.
It’s put me off Evans for life despite nearly buying 2 other bikes from there.

Really nice build that and I love the little details too!

Specialized enduro elite . Carbon rear end 29″ wheels. Lyriks. Around 160mm

Rides lovely

2500 quid down from 4200

Where are you seeing these?

Nice list and all bikes I’m interested in too.
I’ve noticed you can pick up the Whyte S150s for £2000 & S150CRS for £2900. Bit of a bargain to be honest..

Yup, Iburprofin and paracetamol ordered on repeat perscription from the NHS, ’cause it’s free ;) …

In all seriousness, little lost and it’s putting me off my next ride..

Cheers all !
Definitly not dehydration or helmet being tight…probably helmet aids. How long before I’m out of my misery ?

We’ve got a Dyson V8 Animal that’s used daily (we’ve got dogs). Brillaint little thing. Light, effective and battery lasts ages. Baggless too. We then have a Miele Classic for once a month duties to get the bits the Dyson can’t reach, mainly small gabs and carpet edges.
Porbably not the cheapest solutions, but it works so well.

Phil Pearce at the local group. His speed is effortless. Doesn’t matter what obstacle you put accross his path, he clears it with ease. Up, down, sideways, through- he’ll do it.. on 100mm FS XC machine (Spec Epic at the time).

The other one was Stephen Millyard, his Dad built the V10 Dodge motorbike and THAT famouse DH bike with the internal drivetrain and some other cool tech. We were both young teenagers, but he was rapid. Also handy at the skate park.

That looks fast! Very nice.
I think I’d last without a dropper for about a week though.

A couple people testing e-bikes claimed to have beaten or came fairly close to the uplift time however can’t confirm if these were exaggerations…

Wouldn’t suprise me. Last time I went it was painfully slow loading the bikes. Often we milled around for a few other riders before we’d leave. There was a fit young lad who’d arrive around the same time as us and he was riding up.

For me it’s more about best use of energy used. I managed 13 uplits last time and all my efforts went into riding. I was absolutley knackered at the end of the day and loved it. If I had to push up, I imagine i’d get 5 or so rides in and feel like I’d accomplished less. To each their own though.

Yes, it’s possible. It’s a relativley short. Not sure if you’ve been, but it’s about twice the distance as from BPW cafe to where the uplift road croses the trail, but less elevation. I’ve pushed up in about 12 minutes (I guess?) when I was knackered. I’ve seen people ride up the uplift road, but I think it’s frowned upon. It’s obviously far more enjoyable to just get an uplift and you save more energy for the downs/race runs. Personally wouldn’t bother unless I did the uplift.

How are you guys getting on with these?
Financial plans have changed so might have some money for one to join the Solaris..

The LS SolarisMAX works so well, this seems the logical bike to go for.

I really like the Burgtec components I’ve had. Bars, stem, grips & chainring were good quality with a nice finish and lasted without issues. The stem and pedals are overbuilt, which is comforting. They’re a small outfit too so always try to support them.

Wow, can’t fault the spec! Sounds amazing.

Is this to replace the Nomad?

Well, with a brakes and a frame like that, what is the rest of the spec?
Just interested in your choices and justification on the other components.

I’ve found Slik good for the off the shelf desgins where you just pick the colours. Quick turn around and superb quality. However, I have asked for custom work over the years from Slik, but they never get back to me.

I’ve also got a set fitted to a rear Hope Pro4. Nicely made and easy to fit. I didn’t have to redish and it’s running faultlessly. Well thought out piece of kit by Hope (as per usual) :)

+ for IKEA

We bought a King from there when we moved. I can’t tell the difference between that and the Double it replaced (now in the spare room) which cost three times more. Quick delivery, good warranty and comfy.

Still enjoying mine. Out yesterday on it’s first wet ride. Forgot how slippy polished chalk is. It still suprises me with how quick and stable it is. Booking onto an uplfit day at BPW and A417- never done a trail centre on a HT (Swinley excluded..).

Mazda 3- 2.0 litre petrol, naturally aspirated, big and unstressed engine with good performance, available in Auto yet £20 (£120 for the auto) VED. Comes well spec’ed on the SE-L and above- climate control, heated seats, Nav, cruise, parking sensors, nice display with smaller alloys for more comfort. I really like them. The driving performance get’s good reviews. I found it really comfy and refined. There’s a dealer in Oxford & Newbury too.

Something like this- HERE. Main dealer, FSH, 12mn breakdown & 12mn warranty too.

Got a mate that’s never left Cornwall. Intelligent chap with a BSc and MSc.
Always joke that he needs to get a passport to leave Kernow..

I got the vernier calipers out to measure up..

Fork spacing: 57mm

Rear end spacing with wheel fully forward: 64mm

Currently running Schwalbe Marathon Dureme 40c tyres measuring up as 43.5mm

I think I’ll try the 45c Riddlers- there should be clearance..

Johnners- no, they’ve moved to integrated frame mech hangers but still retaining the horizontal dropouts.

Really helpful, thanks BWD!
Seller says it was ’13 but I think it’s newer as it’s not got v-brake mounts or TT cable guides. I think it’s ’14, possibly ’15..

I didn’t no about the recall, but it seems to apply to forks supplied between June 2006 and April 2007. That said, I have noticed them flexing under braking. Something to get used to with skinny steel forks I guess.

I’ll try some 1.75’s and see how I get on. I really like the look of the WTB Resolute (42c) or Riddler (45c) which will hopefully fit.

Don’t show the welsh that..

It’s in the US where you can get pretty much any vechile road legal.
it also uses a rear drum brake. That’s probably enough stopping power for it’s intended purpose.
Would love something like that for a summer evening cruise to the pub.

Yup, you’ll be fine. Stantions are all the same length, just marked up differently for original travel.

Here’s a chart for what you need- yes, 27.5 & 29 are the same airshaft for the Yari.

You can get the bits HERE or send Ben at Bird a message.

Very worthwhile upgrade. Completly tranformed my Pikes. It’s now got small bump sensitivety! Very linear feel and ramps up nicely at the end. I ended up removing one of the tokens (all else being the same). Do it!

Seems everyone agrees with you..
I have only seen these on a few high end OEM bikes.
I’ve never seen them fitted aftermarket and not heard anyone rave about them..

Stick with a set of Sid’s and spend the rest on a set of carbon wheels and a holiday.

Isn’t Checkers in Berkshire ?

Nope, Chequers is in Buckinghamshire. Call yourself an STW P member… *Shakes head*

I won’t be going back to flats ever again.
Mainly because my shins now look like a canvas of scar tissue. I saw a horiffic shin injury recently where a kid slipped a pedal at the BMX track. About 15 inch 2cm wide gash. Could see tendons and all sorts. Grim.

I love my clipps. I never dab my feet and have become faster and more confident. I carry more speed to make sure I clear obstacles without issue. One drawback is that I find a difficult trials obstacle now and again where I don’t want to be clipped in to attempt it.. Other than that, I can’t think of a drawback.

I’d personally opt for alloy and spend more money on components. You’ll probably end up with a similar weight bike as the cabron, but with substantially better components.

Out of curisuty, do you also use iCloud?

Whyte S150

Bird AM9

Cotic FlareMAX

Work from home day scheduled then ;)