Had my Spesh Levo Turbo nearly a year now

Its great for trail/xc if i didn’t have it i wouldn’t ride those disciplines, makes climbing so much more fun

Ive still got my Transition Patrol for bike parks/downhill use (anywhere little pedaling is involved)

Ive used the Levo for jumps and downhill and it just isn’t as good as the Patrol, the Levo is heavy and cumbersome on fast downhill twisty trails

I couldn’t beat any of my PB’s on the Levo at Windhill bike park the other week

When you buy an e-bike find out from other people what the shop is like for any warranty issues

You will have an issue at some point, maybe battery or motor related (im on my 2nd motor)

Some shops take a week to fix an issue, others have no clue and have to send back to manufactuer

I’m lucky as the shop i use do a same day service on swapping motors and can help with most issues via the Levo/Kenevo Facebook page

The hubs on the lower spec specialized bikes are just generic formula/joytech hubs

Higher spec spesh’s use dt swiss internals (but they use the cheaper dt pawl free hub not a dt ratchet one)

As yours looks to be the formula/joytech hub then i would contact spesh UK and formula/joytech and say your shimano free hub has died and can they give you a part number/direct you to where you can buy one

Finding a snapped spoke and then remembering your running tubeless

Remove cassette or disc

Remove tyre, get used sealant on you and everywhere else

Remove rim tape or cheat and puncture rim tape to fit new spoke

True wheel checking all other spokes are ok

Re tape rim or if you just punctured the tape to fit spoke then patch repair using new tape

Re fit tyre trying to save as much sealant left in it as possible

Top up sealant

Re inflate tyre and try and get it to seat on rim

Clean up rim and tyre of any leaked sealant

Spin wheel to get everything to seal up

Refit to bike

Clean up any sealant mess on floor

Forget about having tubeless until another spoke snaps (2nd one in 3 years)

Nothing wrong with cheap valves and sealant along with some gorilla tape

My tubeless conversion cost less than £20 works perfect, done this to 4 bikes now

Decathlon valves £8.50

Decathlon sealant £7.99

Gorilla tape £3

Ive always used just a track pump to get them up and seal with no issues, trick is to get one bead seated using a tube first especially on new tyres

If you do need a big shot of air to mount them then a Co2 canister does the job

At that size and external the only real option is the KS Eten

Ive got one on my hybrid, its not the smoothest/best dropper but it does the job and costs under £100

Also have a Reverb and Brand x, shame Brand x don’t make an external 27.2mm dropper

Thomson do make one but your looking at near £400

Cool one of them will go nice with my 85% off Oakley sunglasses!

I presume the increase is due to the changes coming up at BPW

They are going on grid for electricity and water which cant be cheap, bonus is they are looking into showers for those muddy days

The fire road to the top is being widened in places so there are less passing points which should shave some time off the drive to the top

They are trying out a new uplift vehicle soon and if it works out they will be buying more, those tranny’s take a beating going up that road all day every day fully loaded

3 new trails opening soon too

Also the cafe menu is being revamped with a new executive chef

These things cant be cheap, i don’t mind paying £40 ish to ride there 3-4 times a year, even with fuel divided between 3 of us (£20 each) its a £60 day out, most normal people are happy to blow that on beer and a takeaway at weekends!

More info on the changes here

https://www.bikeparkwales.com/the-next-steps-for-bikepark-wales

I’m 9 months in to owning a Specialized Levo turbo

Been great so far, im not easy on bikes and the Levo has taken everything Ive chucked at it and its still going strong

They are based on a Specialized stunt jumper but are made to be an e bike from the ground up

https://www.specialized.com/gb/en/new-arrivals/bikes/turbo-e-bikes/e-mountain-bikes/c/emountain

Sell the road bike then if you come into a little money later you can always buy a cheap 2nd hand hybrid/road bike for a round £250 for fitness if that’s all your really using it for

Learnt a long time ago to never sell a bike that you really enjoy riding

The UK’s wildlife can be bloody dangerous, Ive had the following incidents

Rabbit ran out in front of me on the mtb and hit my foot it bounced back then ran forwards again straight into the person behind me front wheel, it was very messy!!

Turned a corner on the road bike to be confronted by around 20 young pheasants, knowing how stupid they can be i slowed down only to be hit in the side of the head by one!

Had numerous incidents with rats on a cycle path through a nature reserve

Tend to now stay on track and not try to swerve to avoid most animals (dogs on trails annoy me but i will try to miss them)

As already said remove cassette, lots of washing up liquid and hot water and a good scrubbing brush will get it nice and clean, do the same to the chain whilst your at it

White spirit can be used

Personally i prefer to remove the chain and scrub it in the sink using washing up liquid and then a good rinse and hang it up to dry before re oiling

Tried the chain cleaning tool way before and was never happy how clean it got the chain

Been using the sink and scrub method for years with no downsides (apart from a little mess if your too vigorous!)

All depends on what kind of trail you like

For me i have to ride insufficient funds every time i go, along with rim dinger and A470

Most of the black runs aren’t too bad, some more technical, the big ones are 50 shades of black which has a pro line, enter the dragon has some big jumps at the start

Be aware that some trails will be shut in June due to work on the overhead power lines but they will be opening new trails to compensate for this

Is there no mention of how waterproof the gearbox is?

Looking a the bike it looks to be very similar to a e-bike around the crank/chainring area i.e not much free space for mud to just fall away like on a normal mtb, instead it looks like it will build up in that area which will then inevitably end up being washed off with a hose pipe and could lead to an ingress of water

£25 via Paisley Freight

https://www.paisleyfreight.com/

You can add insurance up to 5k for a little extra

Ive used them for years and have sent 8k road bikes via them with no issues

Been to BPW 3 times and off again this Sunday

Drivers lunch breaks are staggered on weekends

During the week they all lunch at the same time

Good to see they are making some changes as the cafe food can be a bit hit and miss sometimes

Not surprised they are sorting out the road to the top, it kills the transits, most feel like the rear axle isn’t actually connected to the van, their local garage must do well out of them for repairs

The first two bike slots on the rack at the front (one either side) will take 3in tyres, none of the other slots will take a tyre over 2.75

BPW don’t advertise this, i presume to put off lots of people turning up with 3in tyres and then not being able to all get on the uplift vans

Ive been commuting with a Dueter EXP Air Race rucksack for 5 years ( averaging 5000 miles a year) with no wear to my clothing

As long as its strapped tight to my body there is very little movement

Saw all the bike stuff in there today

The exact same stand can be had on eBay all year round for the same price delivered to your door

Even all the lubes and cleaners can be found online for the same price from well known bike brands

They do some good deals in there but they aren’t always cheaper than well known brands if you do a little research, they rely on people thinking it must be a good deal because its in lidil

Have Shimano 10 speed deore clutch mech on my hybrid and the clutch is adjustable, you need to remove the clutch cover to do so

Currently have Sram GX and XO on my two mtb’s

My previous mtb had Shimano XT M8000 and after 8 months i had enough of it, much prefer the feel of Sram’s shifting and braking

The only thing i do like about Shimano is the ability to push or pull the shifter to change gear where as Sram is push push

Ive got a 2017 Spesh Levo turbo with a Brose motor

Gets used in all conditions including the boggy/claggy mud chalk mix of the SouthDowns and in the recent snow too

Been reliable but i did have rough feeling bearings after 8 months, took it a well known dealer who does same day motor swaps under warranty and he fitted the 2018 motor which has better bearing seals

Main thing is not to wash with a hose pipe around the motor, best to use a wet brush and wipe away dirt

Also before you buy whatever e bike you decide on join that bike’s Facebook page and chat with owners to find out who the best dealer in your area is for price and for ease of any warranty work

For example the dealer i used for my warranty work gets people who drive 2-3 hours each way to get any warranty work done by him due to his same day service and his knowledge and he’s happy to chat on messenger to help work out whats wrong before you go to him

Have heard stories of a big name shop having a bike for a week and not being able to fix the fault then told the customer that they would have to remove the motor and send it back to Bosch (it was a Brose motor!!!)

Luckily he joined our Facebook group, chatted to our dealer and had a brand new motor fitted the next day

Also when you go to buy ask about ex demo bikes, these normally have little use, come with a full warranty and a big discount

As long as the rim isn’t badly damaged i.e cracked then it should be fine

Used to bend bmx rims back straight after dinging the brake track when hooking up the rear wheel on ramps

I used to use a set of mole grips, lock them onto the ding and gently pull the bend out, the mole grips will leave a mark on the rim but nothing that a little light sanding & finish off with some wet and dry wont remove

Top tip, get some electrical tape and tape together where each spoke crosses another spoke

Then remove all the spoke nipples and you will pull out the hub with all the spokes still in place

Fit into the new rim (making sure the valve hole is in the right place) refit the spoke nipples, tension and true the wheel and then finally remove the electrical tape

Been doing it this way for years when ever replacing just a rim

Wiggle only have their office staff based in Portsmouth now

Their warehouse is now located somewhere up north where i heard its quite grim (im a southern softie!)

Chipped both my elbows riding the mtb over the last 20ish years

It only takes one fall where you cant get your arm out in time and all your weight lands on your elbow or you smack your elbow into a rock

Chances are slim but it does happen

I run Dainese hybrid elbow guards, main thing to look for is good protection, good fitting, not going to slide down/move around whilst riding and they are comfortable

The weight on the descents isnt really noticeable its on the twisty stuff i tend to find my spesh Levo e bike just isnt as good as my non e-bike but it makes up for that on the climbs

As for the battery thing, it all depends on how many miles you do and what settings you use to how many miles you can get out of it, you can even get extra batteries that fit into the bottle cage that give you half the power of the standard battery

I don’t let it bother me when im out on the e-bike

Tend to ignore any comments or just smile at them

If i feel like replying to their comment i just say well im having more fun than you on the climbs or my favourite is to point at the battery and show them its turned off as i pass them

People who say its cheating have never spent time on one, yes you can make it easier/more fun but you can also make it harder and more of a challenge

Mine is controlled by an app so i can make it a real workout (much harder than a normal mtb) or set it up to blast round the trail and just have pure fun!

Ive had Shimano R785 disc brake set ups on two previous road bikes, one bike was a commuter with 5000+ miles under its belt

Discs are great for commuting, great when its wet, work much better than rim brakes in most cases

My current bike runs Campag super record caliper brakes matched to campag’s special pads and a set of Bora one wheels with their 3diamant brake track

Honestly in dry conditions there is not much difference between the two systems, in some cases the campag caliper braking system feels stronger

I’m in no rush to go back to disc brakes on my good weather bike but for a winter bike/wet weather commuter then discs all the way

One thing i do notice when i ride my old 1992 Colnago master Olympic is after a few miles you adjust to the bikes braking ability as you get more involved in the ride

I cant see caliper brakes disappearing completely, even if large manufactures drop rim brakes altogether smaller companies with still produce them for custom frame builds

Nope

As soon as the Bike needs something or something needs to be fixed/repaired it gets done

Bike has to always be ready to go at moments notice!

I run a Specialized Command IRRC dropper lever on my Brand X dropper

Works perfectly and like you say isn’t as wobbly as the Brand X one

I like the idea of being able to set the cable up at the lever end rather than on the bottom of the dropper post

Ive mixed various sealants over the years with no noticeable issues

Normally buy whatever sealant is cheapest at the time and add it to the tyres when the old sealant gets low

Ive been looking for one of these for my hybrid fitted with a baby seat for a while now

For under £150 there is pretty much nothing apart from the KS Eten in 27.2mm external routing

Ordered mine this week from amazon for £88

Had an Eten before on my old fat bike and had no issues, good post at that price

Have you checked that the tiny allen key bolts that bolt the button to the lever blade are nice and tight?

Dont bother spending too much on it, £15 max really as your not going to make it back

Theres plenty of cheap bmx’s out there so you may be stuck with it for a while

Not worth much im afraid

Its not old enough or a top of the range brand/model (GT haven’t been the company they were for 20+ years) to hold a decent value and its not new enough to be worth anywhere near its original price

Your prob looking around the £50 mark

Had my Levo 8 months and love it

Demo as many as you can as its not just about the geometry but also how the different motors work

Some are noisier than others, some have a real kick when you pull away, others like the Levo’s Brose motor make the bike feel more like a normal bike and are easily custom tuned via the app

Once you have made your choice join that bike’s Facebook page and ask some questions as you will get honest answers

Ask who the best dealer is local to you and who is good for warranty work as you will need some at some point

I know a great dealer who does a same day motor swap and is happy to advise via messenger on any issues before you go to him, Ive heard of others who after a week of trying to diagnose the fault (with no luck) then remove the motor and send it back and wait for a replacement motor to arrive which took another week!

Ask the dealer you choose about ex demo models too as these normally have little mileage/use and come with a warranty and a nice saving on top

Dont think anyone offer a skills course at QE (never seen one there & its my local spot)

B1ke offer skill courses and run them in the Surrey Hills which have some great trails

https://www.b1ke.com/mtb-skills-training/

Ok so i read between the lines that your a bit of an a**ehole

Sorry OP i was only trying to help from my own experiences, i wont bother commenting again

How is it obvious that he is trying to avoid that method????

He dosent mention how he is currently cleaning his chain in the OP

For all we know he could of been using a crap chain cleaning tool and has heard/read about sonic cleaners and decided to ask about them

Just remove the chain from the bike (kmc quick link) rub it all over with washing up liquid and a drop of water to lather up, scrub with a good brush until all the grime is loose and rinse off, hang up to dry then refit and oil

Done this to all my mtb chains including Dura Ace, Ultegra & even my Campag Super Record on the road bike, gets the chain really clean, saves making any mess on the bike by removing it

Oh and i do this once a month on a chain and that chain lasts for around 4500 miles