Very interesting, any chance of a photo of the outer race inside the rocker housing

Will do in daylight – but it appears the damage is inner only then wearing through the linkage plate too.

It occurs to me that the BB seized and was replaced in Les Gets too – not having much luck here!

Was an epic thread on this about 6 months ago – some world class examples. Can’t find it now – anyone link to it?

Cleaner – have used Muc Off maybe 3/4 times on it, but generally use washing up liquid and plenty of rinsing. On a separate note, I have used Muc Off disc brake cleaner and it has stripped the paint off other forks and removed the black anodising off spokes! Really nasty stuff.

I hope you got a good deal

I thought I did but now not so sure!! Have emailed Nicolai so we’ll see what they say. Dunno what to do about the forks. I think I’m going to have to take that on the chin and rag them till they die – I have no proof of original purchase – they may have been on more than one bike for all I know. More concerned about the frame!

Fork feels tip top. It was the sight of oil coming out the top seals (mind you that was under fairly severe loading in hot weather) that made me think it might benefit from some TLC. I’ll be putting it back together tonight and hopefully riding it tomorrow night so will be able to compare before/after.

Oil was actually ok – I don’t think a service was necessary but after 2 weeks in the Alps I thought it wouldn’t do any harm. All I’m doing is cleaning and replacing the lubricating oil in the lowers. Some oil was leaking past the seals in France after lots of riding so I thought they’d be dry/contaminated but no – not really. And it really is a doddle to get the lowers off and have a look around inside although not really into the true workings of the fork.

The stanchions are a bit worn internally but I bought the forks 2nd hand so not sure how much use/abuse they had previously. I’ll maybe post some pics up later.

On Magura’s customer service, I’ve had mixed results. I bought 2 pairs of forks (on bikes) 2nd hand/ex demo from the Hub at Glentress. Both times they sent them away to Magura (I said I’d do the deal if the forks had a service) and both times they came back, fully serviced and with brand new lowers completely FOC. On one pair (Thors) the brake mount was (unknown to me) cracked so fair play for spotting it, admitting it and replacing no questions asked.

Since then however, I’ve tried to get some service on a couple of issues from the “official” Magura guys for Edinburgh and been completely ignored both times. I suspect this has more to do with the dealer in question than Magura but I dunno. May try via the Hub again but they’re not so handy for me.

Why the resistance to change on this forum?

No resistance to change here. Velcro works for me – I’ll stick with velcro thanks.

Velcro doesn’t work for you – fine – wear whatever the fork you want – no need to continue ranting at the rest of us.

Ridden countless miles off road on motorbikes (and a fair few on mtb) and never had problem with the velcro on any pads – and believe me more shaking on a motorbike offroad at 50mph than an mtb, and much bigger consquences of failure.

I have also used Asterix knee braces/protection, which include lace up support, and at £400 they are great, but not comfortable (for me) and much hotter than velcro eg Thor.

Problem I can see is getting the fit correct. A difficult balance but nothing to do with whether they are closed with velcro, lacing or straps.

Just my experience though – everyone’s limbs are different I guess.

Better hiring bikes and going round blue or green routes at a trail centre if you ask me.

Yes would be my preference too but he’s keen on organising something with a “goal”. I’ve only been as far as ratho so will maybe do a longer recce soon and gauge how the office troops will fare!

cycling to the top of the hill.

Always do that bit first – cafe after.

But remember that cafe not just for the hardcore “who needs a cafe” crowd – frequently Mrs DB and daughter potter about/ride the green/walk the dog then chill in the cafe while I ride. They tend to spend more time using the facilities than I do (and at the weekend there seems to be many families in the same boat – I bet the cafe takes a large percentage of its dosh from non-cyclists at the weekends), and they reflected the general view above which seems to be “new facilities are great – cafe is in a crap spot – old one is (currently) much more popular and has a better atmosphere”.

Oh dear – everyone in our office is wetting themselves. Very childish but very funny! :mrgreen:

and horses

lol

no decent views from the cafe

+1 I think the biggest mistake is that the outdoor seating area is completely shaded. Yes – great that is is under cover but why tuck it behind the building in the shade beside the midge breeding pools? Last weekend the atmosphere at the hub was great – loads of families outside in the sun. New cafe – not a soul.

Mol – beat me to it – the different sized wheels are just wrong! Fairly impressive ingenuity though.

The power rangers only come out at easter gone again by october so I wouldnt worry too much about them

Just like 90% of the mountain bikers you see at trail centres then?

4 total here and back.

Just bought a Cnoc 16 on ebay last night – going to pick it up after work – super excited too!

Blame it on the new Peel centre, it’s seems to be the cause of the worlds problems by all accounts

Dunno bout that, but have noticed that the “old” cafe is constantly rammed, while the new one has tumbleweed and a slight air of desperation.

Seems I’ve been subtly outranted by some of the replies!

I can’t for a second believe that verge creep (never heard that before) is a risk at Glentress!! And does anyone need the trails cleared so they can read the corners?

I still think it looks cack though.

meh – minor in the scale of things but 3 hours of riding through cut grass – makes you, well, makes me think.

Can I just say on a completely different slant that MountainMutant is a great seller and restored my faith in STW purchasing.

Don’t let one or two bad apples spoil the cartload!

Sad to hear – lot of it going about unfortunately – wife made redundant yesterday – seeing it as a boot up the arse to go do something she really enjoys rather than working away without stopping to see where your life is going.

Chin up – get out on the bike and clear your mind for the months ahead.

Yes not much for it but soldier on. As you say – plenty of work out there so we’re trying to be positive and take it as an opportunity to try something new.

Done it for 8 years. Dogs go with dog walker for 5-6 hours a day from about 9am till 3/4pm. On their own for a couple of hours max (when they’re knackered anyway). Both love it. No hesitation.

MisterT – we’re leading parallel lives. Same forks, tyres, dropper and older angles!

eleven hours at nursery

Our kid goes 8-6 – so 10 hours – as do majority of the kids there. Another hour make a big difference? Not ideal maybe I agree but if that’s what your life/work permits then what’s the issue.

And, er, what about boarding school?

company took all the staff to Morzine for a long weekend MTBing

They got any jobs going? :P

Currently 3 springers in our family – Thorn, Possum and Bridie.

Think Thorn is a great name for a springer.

And our Lab is called Jake so obviously I’d vote for that too. :D

The riders we found were also mainly male, full on Dh style

I would have to give that a +1 – bit of testosterone overload in the lift queues, but we found that 95% of these guys were riding the DH courses only. 200m away from the top of the lifts the trails were invariably quiet.

Another Nicolai AM here. Big bike in all respects but huge flexibility. With some swapping of components I can ride it 31lbs on trailcentre trails (although would say I’m overbiked for that, so have a CC which I ride 75% of the time on these trails) and with some DH tyres and a chain device I’m just back from 2 weeks in Les Gets riding DH trails and XC. Performs flawlessly and is indestructible IMO. Beautiful piece of machinery – it was my first Nic and led to another and now I’m hankering after a hardtail.

Another plus point IMO – in 2 weeks in Les Gets/Morzine I saw thousands of other bikes, and only 1 other Nicolai and that was a full on M-Pire. Stands out a bit.

Was there last week and had a great day out with someone who was on a mountain bike for the 5th time only ever. Wot others said about trails. She coped fine although tired at the end – there’s more uphill on some of the (XC) trails than advertised!

seiko divers mechanical

+1 – or a Citizen – eg Linky

IMO the Ward watches are all copies of much more expensive watches. The beauty of a Seiko or a Citizen is that they are not trying to be something they are not, while at the same time being suitable for proper outdoor use and looking good while dressed up too. Will last forever.

Not my main watch, but I do have one of these and love it.

Another Link

the contention that male heterosexuality is inherently negative

I think you need to read beyond the first sentence as the entire article argues the exact opposite. It is VIEWED as negative, and the article argues that this is wrong and it is NOT negative.

Wife had a DSG Touran. Sold it afer a year. 2 reasons – the lag was a complete PITA. Made parking a nightmare – bit more gas, bit more – WHOA too much!! And mainly because it burnt way more diesel than the manual version with exactly the same engine. Now have a manual Passat and would never buy one of the DSG ones again.

Your mileage may vary as they say.

Must say I read this yesterday too and agree with the OP – interesting and I agree with a lot of what’s said FWIW.

Cookeaa – I like your theory. I too had one of those old school action cams but it chewed through batteries so fast and was very temperamental writing to the card so I sold it after 2 or 3 goes. But a similar cheapy might be the way to go. Captures the feel of the action, but without spending a fortune. If you spend £300 on kit, you feel you have to create LifeCycles style masterpieces. If you spend £50 and get some shots trundling along the trails then great. If footage is crap or can’t be bothered to make a video afterwards then so what – no real loss.

45p per mile?! I missed that and have been charging 40p! Glad you pointed that out geoffj – just made me £50 on my June expenses! Owe you a pint for sure! 8)

This is one of those rare occasions when a Land Rover makes economic sense. Just had a service and my tyres were measured at 7mm out of 10mm remaining. They’ve done 34,000 miles.

certainly no hero on the bike – more for my own memories than anything – no intention of posting crap videos online!

I agree with all the arguments above – which is why I’m torn!

Oh Oh going there on Friday – you’re pics have got me all excited!

God – seeing that picture of a Commando just about brought a tear to my eye! Had one for ages and loved it – no idea what happened to it sadly.