I'm about 13.5 to 13.75 stone in full bike gear and have recently started running my shock at 190-195psi, which (imo) gives the bike a perkier pedalling response without too much loss of sus.travel.

FWIW, the shock is a '10 RP23 'boost valve XV' version.

However, if she doesn't really like technical descents and enjoys more XC all day rides then better to go for a bike that excels in that and just avoid the technical descents… don't you reckon? After all, there's no point having a bike that excels at the type of riding you don't enjoy!

Yep, this is the sort of riding she prefers, and exactly what she reckons with the Orange. I'm kinda sad 'cos she looks great on the Orange – fits her a treat and it's a beautiful looking bike (I know the Fives looks can be a bit 'marmite', but I like it anyway!).

Oh well, looks like I'm gonna have to get an advert together :cry:

ooops…since my posting a couple of mins ago, I've just seen Stoos response. Hmmmm…..(goes off to scratch head!!)

Cheers for the feedback. MountainMonkey – as far as kind of rider etc. I think it'd be fair to say that she really lacks confidence on technical terrain/descents – despite a couple of professional skills days (which is why I reckon she might be better off sticking with the Orange). She is slowly gaining confidence on descents – but I think she's read the stuff about the back suspension staying active under braking on the Trek, and thinks this will be good, because she drags the brakes on a lot during descents.

Personally, I would have thought the slacker head angle and decent brakes of the Orange is going to have a more confident feel than the steeper Trek?

I've suggested getting some lighter wheels for the Orange and maybe custom tuning the shock, but she doesn't seem convinced.

hmm…ta for that timmys. Sounds like I'd be best off trying to find somewhere with a large and medium in stock, so that I can try both – tho it does sound like I'll need the large in the 2010 model.

Thanks alp_girl & jahwomble. The translation does match the materials that the box was made of – the wooden outer box and lid were lined with steel sheet and there was a thick cloth and rubber gasket around the edge of the lid. Surpised that the lining was ferrous metal, 'cos of risk of sparks – but I guess non-ferrous metals would have been in v.short supply at the time. (as you say, the box wasn't quite air-tight any more :)

The areas that we were riding around saw extremely heavy fighting and it made for some quite creepy/atmospheric rides. According to the local museum, when the German army eventually withdrew (or were blown up) they left tons of stuff behind – which I'm guessing anything useful was taken by the locals. One of the local guys said the scrap metal fellas were certainly kept busy until the 1960's!

Oh, I've found out that the large first aid chest that was there was known by the army as a 'battle-box' – apprently it was the main kit for use by trained army medics.

p.s. er…I'm assuming you're interested in this of course :oops:

FWIW, I've just returned from France and Cav seems to be very well liked by the French. (now Lance on the other hand…..)

Crikey, what a thread – nothing like internet forums for some extreme views eh?! :-) 'It's all f*****' (name your villain here) fault!'

I'll preface what I say by mentioning that I'm self employed & run my own business, and I started work in the 1970's, so can remember the effects of various Govt's handling of the economy.

IMO, although it's obvious hard cuts in spending were needed, this budget goes to far, too soon. Perhaps the worst thing is the VAT increase. If the VAT rise has the same effect as previous ones, inflation will go up, followed by interest rates – this will kill growth.

Cuts wise, the most stupid decision has to be the decision to cut the Govt loan to Sheffield Forgemasters, and the cancellation of £20M for a manufacturing business park. It's pretty obvious this has been done to p*** off Cleggs local constituents – and this is from a Govt who claim to be on the side of business! (Grrrrr)

To give people who don't know an idea – Forgemasters were after the loan to help them build a new machine that would make them one of only two place in the World that can produce pressure vessels for Nuclear Power Stations. The demand for these pressure vessels is extremely high and although China & India want to build similar forges, Sheff Forgemasters have a hugh advantage, as they are years ahead of China & India in knowledge of specialist steels required. The loan that the previous Govt had arranged was borrowed by the Govt at 1.5% interest and Forgemasters were going to repay it at 3.5% interest – so the Govt wouldn't exactly be loosing out! Oh, and out of interest, the local Regional Development Agency had managed to get £40m funding from private industry to put towards the project. (as per usual, the people who slag off things like the RDA's haven't the first idea what they do for local businesses like mine!).

So, IMO, it's the crap budget that I expected – anyone with a mortgage or business, I suggest you start stashing some money away now.

an Orange Five is a strange bike to have if you're a weight weenie

Yeah, I know, it's a daft habit I have :-) TBH, I'm lucky enough to have two Fives. Built them both myself from frame only buys. One's built up as a bit of a bruiser, but I've gone for a lighter weight more XC set-up on the other – and it's turned into a bit of a weight-weenie project now (sad, I know :roll: ).

Great contrast between the two bikes though.

er…yeah, didn't think of that……Doh!!!

p.s. if I get a 350mm post to replace it, that'll give me 3" in frame and about 1/2" to 3/4" overlap below top-tube junction. What do you reckon, would I be better off trying to get a 375mm?

If you want a bargain, my missus is selling the wheels that were on her previous bike. (she doesn't like 'em now because they don't colour match her new bike :roll: ) They're Hope Pro 3 32 spoke straight pull hubs, sapim race spokes and DT 4.2 rims. Weight wise, I think they're around the 1600g to 1650g mark (dunno if that's light enough for you). I er…borrowed them and tried 'em on my PaceRC405 and they're brilliant, light but not fragile feeling like some 24 & 28 spokers – also nice and stiff (and I'm 13.5 stone and really wang the bike around on berms & stuff).

I think she's looking for about £220 plus postage. (still got the wheel boxes and spare spokes in the garage). If you're interested, drop me a line.

Rebas are very good for the money. Also, (if I can mention the F-word) I've found Fox F100RL's are good – dunno what pricing is like though. Wife & I have both got 'em on our short travel bikes. I'm 90kg with full kit on and have tested the forks down some pretty challenging terrain and have been pleasantly surprised. These aren't the latest forks with 'FIT' damping though – tried one of those and it's small bump sensity was non-existant (Rebas/normal F100's felt much better in that respect).

Nice one, I was hoping so. The money saved can go towards a new camera :D

Just make sure your toilet is in good working order :D

Thanks for getting back to me Dave.

Crikey, the intelligent auto sounds fantastic. Get the feeling the technology has moved on just a wee bit since I bought my current compact (about 7 or 8 years ago). There's so much choice now, I didn't want to make an expensive mistake.

I've got a Digi SLR that I tend to use for work stuff only, 'cos it's such a PITA to cart around when travelling or biking etc. I get a bit worried about it getting damaged aswell. Also, as I've got older, I've become much lazier with non-work photos – hence wanting something tough & weatherproof that I can just point & shoot with minimal faff, whilst still getting reasonable image quality. From what you've said and the reviews I've read, it sounds the perfect camera.

Cheers.

Cheers Guys. Dave, sounds like it's good in the cold & wet then :-) – just the sort of thing I'm after. You might be able to help me on a couple of specifics. I normally just use pre-set 'scene modes' to take landscapes or fast moving biking shots. Are the sports and landscape modes easy to access, or do you have to go into menus etc.?

(From the picture I've seen, it looks like the sports setting is on the 'menu dial' …er…or whatever they call it.)

My TZ10 arrived from Amazon yesterday!!

Nice :-)

Maybe you could le me know if the GPS can be disabled? pleeeeease :D

I decided against the TZ10 due to higher cost and few extra features I wanted, I believe the GPS flattens the battery rapidly!

Yeah, it's the battery flattening potential of the GPS that puts me off. I'm gonna try and find out whether it can be programmed not to come on every time the camera is switched on. I wouldn't mind having the GPS as a back-up for navigational emergencies though (save carting around my ancient GPS unit). I do like the zoom range and lens quality on the TZ's though.

The top dial on the TZ's sounds a bit iffy aswell. The dial on the TZ10 that I had a very brief go with felt a bit insubstantial. The camera will be used mainly in the 'sport' or 'landscape' presets on the dial – so it'd be good if the dial didn't self-adjust on its way in & out of bags.

p.s. Elixim looks interesting.

FWIW, I had an RC405 (large frame w/DT shock) and never had the exact problem that you're having. I used to run 10-11mm sag – initially the shock did have a more 'bottomless travel' feel, however, there was a problem with the damper on my shock (I just thought it was normal to sound very squelchy :?. ) After the shock was serviced it got more of a pedal efficient and progressive feel (which I didn't mind too much) and it was silent.

I'm wondering if your shock might benefit from having the compression damping tweaked?

As far as the rockers hitting the frame though, that does sound a pretty bad design oversight. Although I guess that if the shock is performing properly, this should never be a problem, even with a little more sag than the 7.5mm you're currently running.

Certainly sounds like there's a problem with the shock you've got, so I guess your first port of call is going to be the shop that you bought the frame from. Reckon you should be looking to get a free shock service – by someone that knows what they're doing with RS shocks, like TF Tuned.

Best of luck with it (be interested to knwo how you get on).

Great stuff fellas – thanks for the info. Looks like I'll be OK with a 2.25" Crossmark (allowing for the additional width/height 'knobliness' of the Nevegal). Cheers all.

Ta for the feedback.

Anyone else run them through a sloppy winter??

Another vote for Lezyne Alloy drive. Best mini pump I've used in years.

Hmm….thanks for the feedback.

TBH, as I've some knowledge of metallurgy, I was a little sceptical about the longer term viability of alu nips. But the hopeless bike tart within me thought how nice red spoke nipples would look on my new red/black/white bike :roll:

As I'm looking for a pair of wheels that'll last me 10+ years, it looks like it'd be more sensible to go with brass nips (and perhaps save some weight by going for super comp rather than comp spokes?)

stevede's plan sounds a good 'un – I think the earlier bikes def have better geometry for climbing than the latest ones. The new 'slackers' are insanely good fun on descents though 8O
Pedalling action on the new 'uns is fine, it's just that the steering can get a bit floppy on really steep climbs unless you really keep your weight on the bars – swing & roundabouts I s'pose?

Electoral system understanding fail once again.

yyyup :-)

Ride more, get fitter. It will climb better then

heehee..naughty

Yeah, wife and I have both got '09 and '10 Fives with 'Boost Valve' RP23 shocks and compared to the my Pace 405 (that I've just got rid of) and particularly my new Giant Anthem X, the Fives feel more sluggish on climbs ('tho the Giant weighs at least 2.5 lbs less than the lighter of our Fives – and it's much more of a XC biased machine).

IMO, the new 'boost valve' RP23's are excellent, the choice of the 3 ProPedal settings really come in handy – and I very rarely run without PP on. The PP threshold is un-noticeable when you start really hitting stuff – I've had full travel out of the shock in the firmest setting and not really noticed that its giving up full travel (if ya know what I mean?!).

For this year, Orange have tweaked the boost valve tune and the '10 bike climbs slightly better and the shock is more controlled in the mid-stroke – the bike has a perkier feel than the '09 shock tune (with the same sage setting).

So I guess you could try an RP23 with the latest tune – guessing it's gonna be cheaper than a new bike :wink:.

er..apologies if you already know, but it might also be worth trying running your existing shock with a bit less sag. Our local Orange dealer recommended 20% for more pedally rides and up to 40% for mucking about type stuff. I normally run about 30% sag, but when I tried 20% on the '10 bike it reet perked it up on the climbs.

Good luck!

It's an optical mouse and I have to admit it's being used on a rather stained archaeological mouse mat (it's worked ok on it for months tho). I'll give the desk surface a good clean and try it on there.

Cheers.

Yeah cause Labour have done such a good job with the economy!

er yeah, when this was mentioned, one of the fellas did point out that there wasn't a massive Global economic crisis in the 80's and 90's – apparently, the earlier recessions were 'home grown' varieties.

Cheers for the beta on the Shimanos – like the sound of the easy bleeding. If I do end up with the Juicy 3's, I guess I'm gonna have to shell out for a proper Avid bleed kit at some point, as I've just bought a bike with Elixirs on it. (Elixirs are great at the mo, but just thinking of when I come to renewing fluid in them)

Cheers for the advice. Sounds like they're quite serviceable then(?). Do they have a 2 piece 'split-able' caliper like the original Hope Minis? ('cos they were a doddle to strip and service).

I was in a similar boat a few weeks back. I wanted a lightweight FS to complement my 'burly build' Orange Five – basically, wanted something for singletrack in local woods and the more groomed trail centres.

Luckily, managed to get (several!) decent length back to back demo rides of several bikes on very familiar terrain over 2 days. I demo'd Trek EX's, Spesh Stumpy & Epic and Giant Anthem X2. I eventually went for an Anthem X, because for the type of riding, it completely blew the others away.

Personally, I didn't get on with the brain-equipped Spec's – endless faffing with the brain settings to get a decent suspension/pedalling response, and I could still feel (& on one, hear!) the brain valve activate. The brain also adds quite a bit a weight to the back end.

The Trek EX9 was my second fave. On level and falling singletrack it was awesome. When ridden aggressively you could really feel the front end gripping & ripping around corners – thru the trees, it'd got a real Star Wars feel to it! Suspension action was quite 'perky' and the ride was a bit more jiggly than the other bikes, even after running more sag. However, the downside for me was on short sharp climbs, the bike just lacked the snap of acceleration that the Giant. It's not that the Trek is bad – and it was very nearly as good as my Pace RC405 (which I've just sold), it's just that the Giant is exceptionally good – but then it does have less travel!

To me, the Trek EX felt like a very good all-rounder, and it had a good stiff, indestructible feel about it – just that, in some sections, it rode heavier than it was – if that makes sense!. However, I think what you sacrifice in snappiness on the ups, you'd get back on a bit more capability on the downs.

The Anthem X feels a lot more biased toward outright speed…er…everywhere! It's a complete eye-popper. On very steep stuff, you are aware of the steeper HA and more compact wheelbase, but with a modicum of skill/care it can be got down quite hairy stuff, and I've been quite surpised by its capability. Can't believe the amount and type of inclines that it just romps up in the big ring. When you get the sweet spot in the suspension, the pedalling efficiency, traction and ride comfort are in a different class to any FS bike I've ridden, including my Pace 405 – which allegedly has one of the best suspension designs.

I think a lot of the bikes performance is down to its frame weight – 5lbs for the medium! I ended up getting an Anthem X3, as I preferred the colour scheme to the X2. Just upgraded the cranks and f.mech to XT, so apart from brakes, it's the same spec as the X2 (oh, I also put the Stans 355/Hope wheels off my Pace on it). Weight is around the 25lb.

I'll stop banging on – strongly recommend you get a demo of an Anthem X :-)

Thanks renton. That's good news – no probs with allen key job, 'cos hopefully it'll be a one off adjustment.

If you don't get any luck at Halfords, try your nearest motorbike dealer. I got a litre of a decent brand of 15wt fork oil for £7.50 – you can get 500ml bottles, just that my local was out of stock.
Good luck.

I thought Willow Koerber in particular looked tiny on her bike – didn't seem to stop her riding like the wind though!

Seem to recall reading somewhere that Willow's 29er has a custom built frame to suit her height. I agree with jd-boy, the 29ers certainly looked way smoother on the 'jiggly stuff' than 26er hardtails. Certainly aroused my interest in demoing a 29er.

I guess if you're on the short side the options might be limited in off-the-peg bikes tho.(?)

Another Mk3 owner here. I can def. recommend the Eibach (Mazda lowering kit). However, if you are having it fitted by a dealer, make sure they don't do the final torque up of the bolts until all 4 wheels are bearing the full weight of the car (in fairness to the dealers, the instructions that come with the springs are, or were, pretty useless). I've also fitted the matching stiffer Eibach anti-roll bars and they bring the handling back to the sort of thing you'd expect in a Mk1 (cornering is mega!). The lowering etc. doesn't come at the expense of ride comfort.

Whatever model MX5 you get and whether or not you go down the Eibach route, the suspension alignment is essential. If you're in the Midlands, I can recommend Chris Franklin at Center Gravity near Tamworth. He's done a lot of MX5's, along with loads of more exotic sportscars and his attention to detail is A1.

FWIW, one of the lads in the local MX5 club changed his Mk1 for an Elise and he reckons he prefers the handling balance of the MX5, as it's a bit more forgiving for road use and/or at the limit (build quality is also generally a lot less shonky on the MX5's – the roof on his Lotus is very comical!).

p.s. DIY servicing is generally a doddle, but there are quite a few decent specialists around if you need.

BTW, did anyone see the interest charges for the various Countries? FWIR, Germany and UK pay 0.8% and 1.2% respectively, as we have a comparatively decent credit rating – I think the Greeks are currently looking at about 15.2% on their debt 8O

That's nearly as much as the UK mortage interest rates were under the Tories!

Your post demonstrates such a sophisticated and nuanced understanding of the issues that I shall immediately accept any recommendations you make. For whom should I vote?

:lol: Nice one!

I've been told that pre-soaking kit in white vinegar gets rid of lingering stinkiness – haven't tried it myself tho, 'cos my kit is always lovely & sweet smelling (Cough :wink: )

This post brought to you by a rather horrible experience at Dalby.

hmm..prey tell – you weren't subjected to a big brown crack flash were you?

Yeah, we thought the parking might be a stinker. FWIW, anyone who's thinking of going next year – there are loads of options to park up away from the venue and take an easy 20-40 minute ride in (er, I guess depending on the number of kids and bike availability in your group). Just chained our bikes to a tree when we got there and walked the last 100 metres or so – marshalls even kept an eye on 'em for us (cheers fellas).

There were a few people walking their bikes between locations, but I didn't really see it was a big problem. Some of the bottlenecks a crossing points could be solved next year by maybe putting scaffolding bridges for riders to pass over the crossings. (maybe one scaff plank wide with a see-saw, kicker and and….. :D )