I don’t bother.

I’m going to buy something like a Fuji X20 for general day to day carrying & riding.

I used to carry a body & basic lens, but just want something smaller & lighter now.

The older MPH are a closed system, they only went to an open system later on when they swapped to mineral oil (essentially same brake as deore & tektro at the time)
I still wouldn’t risk it though.

It won’t work.
As nickjb says, Giant used DOT fluid in those & Magura Mineral oil.
I’d say they’re different ratios when it comes to the amount of fluid being pushed as well.
You’d be better off buying a cheapo used brake from the classifieds on here IMO.

They’re ok, I’m just a RS fan.

Worth it to get the Rockshox over the Manitou.

When on the hoods.
It is only a rough guide, but it’s one of a few fairly solid starting point when it comes to fitting.

I haven’t ridden a huge amount this winter, but I’m fitter than I’ve been in years!
You don’t have to ride to get & stay fit.
I’ve been using a combination of turbo sessions, circuit training, gym sessions & a few rides.

Ok, yes I will start riding more soon, but being employed as well as self employed & looking after my two year old son doesn’t leave much spare time for big miles.
to answer your question, I train for around 6 hours a week at the moment, but that’ll ramp up now to as much as I can cram in-probably about 12 hours per week.

6’2 on a 52cm Ridley?
That does sound so wrong!

I’m 5’8 & rode a 52.

I’d recommend going to a decent shop that do bike fitting.
Even if it’s only the basics, its amazing how badly some bikes appear to be set up for some riders.

Makes me laugh reading the comments about hating mud & rain-you don’t actually like CX racing then do you!

Sounds great though, just please don’t make it clash with Hell of the West if you’re thinking early October?

Not a clue to be completely honest!
They seem to vary so much from model to model & year to year ( I’m not convinced there are that many differences, but loads are listed)
Best bet is to take them to your LBS/Loco/J Tech etc. & get expert advice on which kit(s) you need.

Shimano.
I’ve had Time for the last couple of years. They’re great to ride on, but bearings seem to last about 500 miles & can’t be replaced! ( on the xpresso anyway)
Shimano last well, reliable, smooth, cleats last & are cheap.

Two different problems usually.
The lack of travel is often a failed seal in the bottom of the damper, causing oil to transfer to the lowers-retricting/stopping the fork from compressing.
Replacing the dust seals & foam won’t solve this-it’ll need a damper (moco?) seal kit
The oil around the stanchion could be either nothing to worry about & a bit of lube weeping out after service, or the dust seal was damaged somehow & needs replacing

You can get 32t road cassettes anyway, so pretty close.
*edit* sorry, I should have read it more carefully-you already know about bigger cassettes.

is it 10 speed?
Why not go 12-30/32 & a new mech if you haven’t got a long cage already?
Cheaper than a chainset swap

Great bikes.
light, stiff & well spec’d.
Some find them a bit short reach wise compared to others, but depends how you like them to feel.

Keep an eye out for unofficial stuff or you’ll get bored going around the marked trail.
There’s so much more in there than most people every find. If you see what looks like a deer track going into the trees-try it, it’ll most likely be another little used trail.

rigid SS is pretty much perfect for around there!
Nothing that technical, not rocky ( other than very small man made rock gardens in the ‘DH’ section)
but miles & miles of tight, twisty singletrack

Sherwood Pines Cycles.
They do a pretty good job of keeping it up to date.

It wasn’t too bad up there until a tornado went through a couple of weeks or so ago & caused chaos!

Depends which Reba’s you have.
Older ones are oil, newer ones grease.

I’ve never had it migrate below the air piston unless the seal has failed, so that shouldn’t be a problem.

Knowing what Gatcombe can be like in places, I thought the course was very good last year.
Nice difficult climbs, fast open bits & didn’t get anywhere near as sticky as it could have done!

I did think it was lacking a bit of atmosphere, but that could easily have been down to the layout with the new venue & needed tweaking.
Having said all that, I’m not riding this year as I’m working 🙁
Only the 2nd one in 12 years I won’t have been to

Black Revs have all gone now I’m afraid Gee.

Same as most mass produced/machine built wheels tbh.
Get them trued up & re tensioned by someone who knows what they’re doing & you should notice a difference.

I stand corrected sillyoldman, I was sure I’d stripped a 350 & found it to be the cheaper design.
If it is the same as the 240 etc. then get them!
Only niggle is the special tool to replace the lsat bearing, but thats a minor issue for whats otherwise a great hub.

Hope.
The DT isn’t a bad hub, but they seem to eat drive side end bearings on the 340/350/370/Cerit/Onyx as they’re not very big.
Having said that, I’ve had a couple of them & they’ve been ok, just prefer Hope for reliability (I know so many on here will laugh at that though..)

Whereabouts in the world are you?
You’re welcome to try my 51cm Planet X Uncle John if you’re anywhere near Shropshire/Mid Wales borders.

I went with a friend of mine to Brian Rourkes to get fitted for his new frame & applied similar ideas to fine.
Ended up dropping the saddle around 6-7mm from where it was, dropping the bars 15mm & found it more efficient (read faster) as a result. Maybe it’s a genuine improvement, maybe it’s a placebo either way I don’t care & it still feels good 18 months down the line

Out of curiosity I’ve just been out & measured mine, as I didn’t honestly know what the difference in height was between my xc race bike & my road bike.
Turns out my xc bike’s saddle is 5mm lower than my road bike. I didn’t think it’d be as different as that.

I’m building one up for my brother in law at the moment, but I’ve hilt & ridden several in the past.
About as stiff as a wet noodle (especially the front end) compared to many others, but light, look quite nice for what they cost & ride surprisingly nicely.
If you’re a bigger person or sprint hard you’ll really notice the front end flex, but other than that they’re not a bad buy at all.

I use Finish Line Ceramic wet or Muc Off ceramic wet lube.
Both last well even at this time of year.
Sadly not really possible to find a clean, long lasting lube at this time of year-especially on a commuter.
I’d rather clean my bike once a week-got to get the salt off it as much as anything else & doing the chain properly only takes an extra 5 mins.

Whereabouts in the world are you?
You’re welcome to borrow mine if you’re anywhere near Shrewsbury?

I’ve just bought one of the steel Ribble frame’s & it looks great tbh.
Bit on the heavy side, but who cares for a winter/commuter/hack bike.

Have a look on their clearance list, I paid £99 for mine instead of the £175 they’re supposed to be.
They run standard drop brakes as well, so one less thing to have to buy if you’re swapping from another bike.

Yes, same mounting.
You’ll just need to get the rollers that alter the cable pull for them to work with a road brake lever

Mini V brakes?
proper v brakes will a roller to increase the cable pull?

Onzadog,
longer spokes have their place (Mavic 819 etc.) when you need them so you can actually get a spoke key on them,
Longer in a conventional build but shorter spokes leads to a weaker wheel-far more evident with alloy nipples as it simply isn’t supported correctly, but the sample principles apply regardless.
But hey, what do I know, I just do it for a living..

Why do people have this idea that longer nipples means shorter spokes?
The right length spoke is the right length spoke, regardless of nipple length-look through the rim from the tyre side of a built wheel to see where the nipple is supported by the spoke, ideally the end of the spoke will sit in the middle of the slot-the length of the nipple has no bearing on that at all.

I use wet lube for building, rarely use thread lock as it’s just not needed if they’re built properly.
I’d agree with the above though, why not use a more substantial spoke if you want strength, stiffness & reliability? Sapim Race or DT Comp would be my choice.

I find my carbon hard tail 29er the perfect bike for Llandegla! Much quicker & more fun than my full sue bike around there.

Something doesn’t sound right, they can be a bit tight to start with, but they usually spin better than that.
If you can do a Shimano hub, you can do a Hope as they’re easy! Diagrams on Hope’s website & even videos on YouTube by Hope themselves.

I’ve put a heavier one than standard on my carbon hardtail, comfort would make much more of a difference to speed than the weight difference in a saddle!

Planet X?
Been very pleasantly surprised with my Uncle John-not the lightest, but great to ride, handles really well, even has disc & canto mounts