Just built mine up. Here she goes oink oink. It’s 14″ and feels perfect for me at 5’6

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P1010476[/url] by DavidHodgson[/url], on Flickr

Squeeze the tyre – want it more like an orange than an apple

I’ve eaten my apple for today. Will a tin of pineapple chunks suffice for comparison?

as asked above, 3-4psi really does make a difference between them gripping and pinging off everything.

I don’t think my track pump, or my eyes are capable of gauging such a small difference!

They’re full of information and advice that’s just wrong. Reading them is no different to browsing Wiggle or CRC. Their features tend to be about bikes and new bike stuff rather than riding bikes.

Dirt and Singletrack are great. Privateer is also great if you can stomach paying £1billion pound for a copy.

I happen to subscribe to MBUK ’cause the subscriber gift is worth more than the subscription cost and I was going to buy it anyway. MBUK is a truly terrible, patronising piece of sh1t

Can people really tell the difference between 3-4 psi?

Pump it up till it’s hard then deflate till you can poke the centre a bit with your finger. Job done!

Go for a really muddy fast ride you’ll soon scrape all the crap off 🙂

This sort of thing might help

http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/pdf-printer-for-ipad-convert/id452188460?mt=8

I wouldn’t be happy with that finish. How much you paid is irrelevant – if they can’t provide you with a quality finish at that price they should be charging more, or at least warning you that it’s going to be pants.

Just cycle around them. Aye they’re being a bit inconsiderate but it’s hardly a disaster.

If you continually get angry/upset/outraged at little things like this you’re going to have a very stressful life

Kubuntu for mousy-clicky-computers and Debian CLI-only for servers. Went off Ubuntu when they introduced Unity. Aye you can disable it but you have to jump through too many hoops and I’m fickle.

I actually find Ubuntu/Kubuntu do a much better job of supporting stuff out of the box than Windows. Certainly much less faff.

Ordered stuff last Thursday 1pm. Paid for next day delivery. My order didn’t arrive until today.

No replies to emails. Phone lines shut at 3pm on Friday and couldn’t get through on Monday/Tuesday.

I won’t be using them again.

I just bought a 14″ Piglet. It’s getting a headset popped in just now but I’ll weigh it later.

Go out riding with people who’re better than you. If they’re nice, like all the better-than-me riders I know, they’ll tell you where you’re going wrong and help you improve.

How do you get 20% discount? Is there a code or something?

Skywalker – do you actually have anything useful to add to this thread or are you just here to argue and pick fault with everyone’s opinion?

Go on say something nice/constructive/helpful. I bet it’ll make you feel all warm and lovely inside.

Whichever you’re happiest carrying 🙂 As mentioned about there’s little cycling on the way up but it’s maniac quick on the way down so worth taking all the protection you’re prepared to carry.

It’ll be very busy on a Sunday so I’ve aim for a very early start.

Why do you think the Alpine would be worse up hill and on the pedally bits?

It has a steeper HA and weights pretty much the same as a Five AM.

It’s not conjecture. I don’t think it would be worse – I’ve ridden both and personally I preferred the Five. Maybe it’s the extra rear travel, maybe the shock wasn’t set up right, maybe I’ve just got different uphill pedal-preferences to you. Who knows, who cares! The Five felt nicer to me and that’s what I spent my money on 🙂

At the end of the day I’m really happy with my Five with the 160 Talas which is what the op was asking.

Did it also make it stiff but flexible?

I’m sorry your criticism doesn’t make sense. Are you simple or just looking to annoy people?

To clarify my previous statement for any other argumentative fools – I spend most of my uphill time pushing/carrying, however I do often find myself pedaling uphill too. If I had an Alpine 160 those pedally bits would be a nightmare. Instead I have the Five and they’re slightly less of a nightmare.

I had a plate put in and removed a few months later. It taught me some valuable lessons.

Out of interest, why did you get the plate taken out? How was the operation/recovery after the plate removal operation?

I can’t sleep on mine but not sure if that’s worth another operation.

I really don’t understand why people would want to put 160mm forks on a trail bike thats designed around 140mm forks, especially when they make it ride crap unless descending. If you need the extra travel and stiffness buy an Alpine, its not rocket science!

’cause I predominantly carry my Five to top of big mountains and ride down them. Having tried an Alpine I found the Five felt more lively and fun on descents and also peddled a LOT better uphill.

We don’t really get one of those “summer” thingies up in Scotland so I stick with big grippy tyres all year.

Currently loving Continental Rubber Queen Black Chillis. Previously a big fan of Minions.

The 160 fork makes it slacker and the extra stiffness from 36’s is really reassuring when ploughing down big rocky descents.

It does feel like a pig at trail centers or on XC rides though. Unless the bulk of your riding is big mountain stuff I’d maybe stick to a smaller fork.

I’ve got a hardtail so the Orange is reserved for big weekend rides. If I didn’t have the hardtail I would not have the 160mm 36’s on my Orange.

My Orange Five with 160’s feels magic although I agree it does feel like a dog climbing but that’s why I bought a Talas fork 🙂

I recently bought the On-One chaintug for £10. Seems to work as it should. Not as pretty as the Surly but half the price 😀

http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/FSOOCT/on_one_chaintug

I have wee hands and get on well with Lizard Skin Peatys.

+1. I’ve got wee hands which get sore when wearing thicker gloves. Peatys sorted it though.

Ordered a frame, headset and some other bits from CRC last Thursday at 2pm. Paid extra for next day delivery.

The frame arrived today, the rest of the bits were dispatched this morning.

Not exactly next day. No replies to my emails or status updates from them. The Parcel Force tracking number they gave me said my frame spent the weekend in Belfast for some reason.

I’ve only got good things to say about SS though.

I’ve been using a standard Crossmark tubless on my the rear of my Marin Rocky Ridge for a while. I really like it. Plenty grip on rock and mud. Nice and fast. It’s no Minion but for a fast tyre it’s magic.

I use that bike for commuting (5m on road/cyclepaths), XC and trail centers.

I’m not a fan of them for the front though. I prefer something bigger and more bulby to absorb impacts on rocky descents.

I’ve used Nobby Nics for a while too but prefer the Crossmark. Much faster rolling.

The steep road in the Pentlands over Redford Bridge is ideal for bedding in brakes. Although you get some very confused looks from people out walking

I love my Satmap Active 10.

Big screen. glove friendly buttons. OS maps. Battery lasts for days. Cheap replaceable screens.

That’s lovely! What fork is that? They look like 36’s?

My Marin is a lot older than that. It’s the brown metallic colour. I’ll put a few photos up when I get home.

I agree completely about the ride. I spend most of my riding on it over my Fiva AM. I never, ever feel underbiked and tend to have way more fun on the Marin.

I keep my bike downstairs in our office kitchen. No way I’d leave it outside to get stolen/rained on/lonely!

I subscribe to MBUK ’cause it cost me £25 to do so and they gave me free shorts worth £30. Seemed like a no brainer.

Every month I vaguely flick through it and hate it more every time. It’s easy to forget you’re reading a mag that you’ve paid for and not the new Evans catalog. Loads of the skills and mechanical advice in it is simply wrong.

Yes – worth it. I’ve found upgrading to lighter tubeless wheels make my bike feel more playful and chuckable and improves acceleration.

Can’t say I notice the weight on climbs. Don’t think 400g really matters when me + my bike + water and gear weigh 90,000g!

Saying that, bunnying and general hooning about feels ace with lighter wheels. No science to back this up, but the difference in how it makes me feel is real for sure

I ride a Rocky Ridge, which I love. I can’t help but wonder whether the fuss about steel is for real, or just hype. I’d be keen to hear back from you once you’ve ridden your new bike for a week or two.

I love my Rocky Ridge to bits as well! I really love how it handles. Although that might just be because I’ve had it so long (7 years) and I’m so used to it.

My Ridge is a medium which, to be honest, has always been slightly too long for me. I’ve got a 50mm stem on it which helps, but I just fancy a change after trying my pals Blue Pig.

I don’t really get the ‘steel is real’ thing either. Saying that I’ve never had a steel bike so nothing to compare it to.

I’ve never found the Ridge overly harsh. In fact I really love the out-of-control, riding-the-fork feeling it gives you on rough descents. The back end bucking around and the threat of wiping out always near!

Got any pics of your one? What year is it?

To give you an idea, this is how broken they considered to be “too broken”.

Just had a shocking nights sleep with mine,seemed ok before I went to bed but in agony now,does the bone move around easily before it’s healed?

Yeah mine did. You can feel them grating on each other, which in my case wasn’t that painful but does feel awful.

For the first few days I found it easier to sleep on the sofa with my arm straight down my side, full of painkillers to make me sleepy.

If you haven’t already, go to the Miner Injury clinic at your local hospital for an x-ray. There’s a chance that it’ll be too broken to heal naturally (like mine) in which case they might stick a plate in there.

Seriously, the plate is amazing! I went from crap to OK in a matter of days after the op. I was back lifting weights and doing push ups within a few months.

Now, 1 year later it’s like nothing happened. Full use of my arm and shoulder.

Best of luck, you have my sympathies.

Also, importantly – don’t panic or worry. You will return to normal full strength in no time. That was the worst thing for me, not knowing how well I’d recover. But really a bust collar will heal up nae bother

That’s an amazing machine

If you can, get a plate put on. Mine was really really broken so they plated it up and I was back out on my bike in 4 weeks.

Not much pain really. Just really annoying not being able to use an arm. I fashioned a sling out of a belt tied around my next so I could still use my hand and control the arm with my neck. Meant I could continue working and doing stuff, but also meant my elbow didn’t seize up whilst out of action.

I used to own a Scirocco GT2 but I don’t think that’s what you’re talking about..