Calling Mboy to the thread!
I’d suggest calling Mboy, Mark, at Missing Link in Droitwich; 01905 312567
Nice chap and very knowledgeable.

Oh, and a crappy little GoPro one with a 20 minute battery life isn’t going to cut it when you’re going to do commercial work

Comparing a £700 drone with a £4000 drone is missing the point, fantastically.

Stooge with Moto bars- great bike. It’s got the right angles, good finish and looks fantastic. Lots of tyre clearance for winter.

Old photo- bike is now very very muddy.

I recently had a similar ‘problem’ picking a new bike- check the thread HERE.

In summary, I love the T130. Fantastic bike- more nimble than the T129 it replaced and I’ve already tackled some bigger drops/jump than I ever dared before. Easy climber and descender with good build quality. Owned for 1 1/2 months now and my ridings come on leaps and bounds. Short back end and long TT make the bike playful without being too much of a compromise for longer XC rides and steeper climbs. Originally looked at the G160 too but decided it was too much travel, and I don’t regret going for the 130/140mm. Great bike!

If you ever venture towards Reading, feel free to have a go. Medium T130.

Edit: Both fantastic bikes, just buy the one that feels better (mixture of spec, geo & suspension platform)

I know several freelance video/photographers that are getting the Karma package. Lots want the flexibility of having a drone available for shoots/events, but there was nothing on the market that was mobile and offered quality. The Gopro nails it for them, and it’s a relatively good price.

I recently test rode the G-160 S ’17- absolutely amazing bike! Nice and long with slack angles and short back end. Very playful bike and great spec for the money. Lots of tyre clearance and very well built- I had a T129 that had no issues despite riding in all weather and giving it stick. Paint is also durable. I settled for the T130 RS as i didn’t need the extra travel.

Get a test ride booked, you won’t regret it!

GM- great story 😆 !!

Bike looks reasonably priced for what it is, and inline with other boutique brands but with the benefit of the Pinion.

I’d like to see it without that chain tensioner though- I also reckon that would get filled with mud and potentially damaged.

Putting some kit together to do some bike packing over winter.
I’ll need to mount 2 bottle cages to my forks (Rigid Stooge) to clear space in the frame for a frame bag, and I’ve spotted a fair few on here doing it. What are you using to mount them?
Looking at getting 2 cheap alu cages and then mounting them onto the forks with 2-3 jubilee clips and rubber pads. Would that be secure enough to hold 2x750ml bottles (1 each side)?

Too cool. That looks amazing! How did you clean and finish the block

Love this! Looks fantastic and geometry looks good. Love DT’s ethos too.

Good fun for a day out;
– short tracks (max about 3 mins)
– not difficult (chicken runs available too)
– friendly staff (apart from some uplift drivers)
– cracking Cafe
– it’s really nothing like other trail centers/uplifts
– indoor pump track & dirt jumps are alright

If you don’t build it up to be BPW and just go for a laugh, then it’s good fun. Something available for complete novices and experienced riders.

A rather nice Ti Stooge! Not mine, but it’s what I want (although it’s missing a set of Moto bars..). My Mk2 Stooge will do for now.

Nice – have fun 🙂 an efficient and fast ride

I had a Superfly 9 ’15 that I bought to race XC- I changed the stem (shorter) and bars (wider). It was very efficient at what it did but it took all the pleasure out of riding. I was hoping it would feel a bit like the Epic I had tried (in terms of Geo), but it was just dull. I ended up taking an inappropriate bike to inject a bit of fun in the end. Nothing critical wrong with the bike- it wasn’t stiff and it wasn’t flexy. I got down some descents that people on longer travel FS bikes struggled with without any issues. Tyre clearance was fine and spec okay. Adequate in all departments, apart from ‘fun’, which is what riding’s about.

I’ve since had a go on various other Xc bikes and found them much more fun. I cant place my finger on what it was as the geo was similar, but the Superfly was truly dull. I found changing the printer cartridge more entertaining or discussing the merits of different GSM and paperweights for business cards more fruitful. Never again.

wwaswas, that’s truly shocking! Have you got a link to government spending by any chance? Genuinely interested in these figures.

Funkmasterp- yes, my first Stooge (mk1) was built with the sole purpose to be a cheap winter bike and explore SS. I used bits lying about, second hand stuff and some special offers. It cost me £450 all in. I loved it! I rode it through the winter slop and the carried on into summer. Fantastic fun. I ended up rebuilding it with nice components because I spent so much time on it.

I’m now on my second Stooge, mk2, with a nicer SS build, plus the addition of some Stooge Moto bars. They really are good. Nice and wide to help crank up hills and also high rise to take pressure off your hands. The MK2 has plenty of tyre clearance, even with 27.5×3.0 tyres.

So, start with a cheap Stooge build, but be prepared for it to turn into your main bike and therefore (possibly) spending money to get the nice spec it deserves.

That ace electric motor sound when shifting!

Very brave, Sir

Not sure the mudguard is helping your cause :p

Love these! I spotted my first one in a shop the other day and couldn’t stop coming back to it, despite there being various other bikes costing 5 times more. There’s something so right about the tube size and the frame proportions.

Mboy, if you ever sell- let me know 😆

The carbon layup is stunning, especially with the clear coat finish.
I’ve not seen any other manufacturers using the 3k fabric like they have. Looks really nice over the copious others using the UD as a finish. I really like the shape of the frame too and the Nicolai-esk rear triangle is also really nice. I can only Hope ( 😆 ) this makes it to production!

Yes, I work for a startup in the Healthcare sector. I like the ethics of the business and there’s some genuine innovation going on. As the company is so small I get to do a whole host of different tasks that have nothing to do with my job description. I work closely with the CEO and his family which is ace in understanding his vision, influencing his thoughts and helping to shape the path of the business. Taking a new product/service to market with such a small team is a real insight. I’m given a lot of free reign and get to outsource certain work which is also fun.

Ping me an email at cokie.stw@gmail.com
I’ve got a spreadsheet comparing the two spec and some other bits.

The whole SWMRS- Drive North album.
Such a good band. They opened The Pit at Reading this year and their stage presence was amazing despite being so early and pretty empty.

Listened to their album and thought it was awful at first, couple plays later and it’s one of my favourite bands.

Much the same as Future To The Left.

Far too late for that. Bit of a vulgar thread really. can we start “who earns the most?” Now?!

So British.

I don’t think it’s vulgar at all. I like reading about what people spend and why. After all, you don’t know where the money’s come from- could be loans, debt, lottery, profit or something else. It’s just people sharing bike stories.

Interesting thread- seems very few buy the blinged out INSERT Carbon bike with Enve wheel upgrade- which is odd, because the STW demographic matches the trail center guys that do ride those bikes.

Personally, I could buy any bike I desired (up to about £12k), but A- I would never forgive myself because I hate spending money, and B- I can’t see it providing anymore joy than the £2.5k budget I set for my new bike. I’ve poured the money into a few startups I’m playing with instead. No doubt they’ll fail, but I find that equally as fun as riding.

Is anyone skilled enough to blow up that geometry table or point me to a site I can read it. Ta

I can’t find a high enough resolution photo to do that for you, sorry!

Those Sram jockey wheels are awful! Mine ceased many times. I’ve been lucky and caught them, so just flushed & repacked them with grease. Sorry- no help.

So generic it could be anyone..
Looks nice though.

Interesting read!
As a side point, all of my friends that smoke weed have the least problems in their life. Those on harder drugs or no drugs at all have the most problems. Possibly this is just my experience though.

Just disappointed it’s not hydro actuated

They can’t! SRAM have that patented, hence why all other droppers are cable actuated.

When I was on an ultra low carb diet, I ate copious amounts of scratchings and lost 12kg 😆 . I probably had a bag every day for a few months.. along with lots of cheese and meat stacked sky high. I ate like a middle-aged king. I feel disgusted with myself looking back.. everything in moderation, yes?!
It worked very well at dropping weight though. It’s pretty much turned me veggie these days.

Hoping this is reliable and priced well.
They tend to release solid components, thought this is a new direction for them.
Would have been nice to have a Di2-wireless option and larger travel options.
Will we see a 27.2mm version?

I’ve had a Mk1 and got a Mk2, and I’ve run/running 650b Plus- definitely worth getting the Mk2. The tyre clearance is substantially more over the Mk1.

Great bike by the way! Get it bought 😀

You’ve not mentioned a budget.. so, how about a Cotic Solaris?
What was wrong with yours that she rode? You know they are lovely and some of the colours aren’t boring.

Great great bike.
I’ve got one too. I’ve ridden things I never dared to on the T129.
Enjoy!

I’ll go with Stooge

Disappointed it’s not a 29er.

Something Ben at Bird said 11 months ago about developing 29ers

Ive experimented with some dark side prototypes and the issue right now is that by the time I inject enough fun into it (slacker, longer travel etc.) I find I’ve erased pretty much all the speed while having the downsides of things like heavier wheels etc, which kind of defeats the point of a 29er

I’ll get there soon enough I am sure, but the first incarnation will be alu most likely.

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