Liking the look of those Aiston ones… How do they mount, do they tilt down to allow access to the boot, and can they tilt upwards to get them out of the way when there’s no bikes on them?

Thirded, running Eskars on my Trance X and really liking them.

Avoid the Peripherique like the plague…

I’m 6′ on a Large and sometimes wish I had a Medium..

Don’t bother – look on CRC or wherever and get one of the discounted Dakine or Camelbak models for about £25.

Had two Tesco/cheap hydration packs and they’re utter rubbish compared to the decent ones. Filling cap split, bite valves leak, seams on pack split, sweatier and not as comfortable. Never again.

No aspartame in it..

Edit: ah, reference to aspartame removed.

Ingredients: Citric Acid, Sodium Bicarbonate, Sweeteners (Sorbitol, Sucralose), Malic Acid, Tri Sodium Citrate, Potassium Citrate, Magnesium Carbonate, Flavouring, Colour (Riboflavin), Maltodextrin, Calcium Carbonate, Polyethylene Glycol, Vitamin C, Green Tea Extract.

Doesn’t look too bad?

RealMan and cheez0 can bu**er off – everyone else, thanks for the advice and reccomendations! I love the idea of stuff like this: http://www.trailaddiction.com/gallery.php, just not the stuff with a sheer drop immediately next to the trail as I know I’d be going over the edge…

People worry too much about being over-biked tbh – mate of mine uses a Stinky Deluxe with Fox 40s for general XC stuff..
Edit: that weighs over 40lbs too..!

Don’t worry about multi-release cleats, once you develop the correct muscle memory for releasing from standard cleats you’ll be fine as it’ll be second nature. I’ve used SPDs solely virtually since they came out and have only recently switched to flats – rode Afan on a fully-rigid canti-brake-equipped bike clipped in and had no trouble unclipping when I needed to. Funnily enough, it’s only since I bought a FS and started riding more agressively that I’ve switched to flats…

It does irk me slightly when people say that they’ve had offs due to or problems with feet slipping off pedals, then get SPDs to “fix” it – sort your technique first (heels down, legs bent slightly and relaxed).

are people really that sensitive??

Apparently so… nothing beats getting offended on behalf of others <cough>The Guardian readers<cough> ;)

Its not completely straight forward

I have to say, I think it is – on the road at night with no lights means you’re squarely at fault. Glad you’re not seriously injured but as others have said, lesson learned.

Myself and OH aren’t even married yet and there is no such thing as “her” money or “my” money – all wages go into one joint acc from which all bills are paid, the remainder is split off into another account from which everything else is bought, including food/fuel/clothing. We check significant purchases with each other before buying them – if money’s tight that can mean stuff over £25! If we both have stuff we want to buy but can only afford one person’s, then the other compromises and waits til we have a bit more money. Always thought this was a fairly adult way of doing it tbh. She earns about 70-75% of what I do and have never begrudged her getting something she wants at the expense of something I want.

Yeah, that one was just an example… He might be open to a cheeky offer though, wait and see if it sells or not! ;)

Giant Trance X in Small: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280649342219

127mm/5″ travel but widely felt to feel like more, and said to be perfect with 140mm forks. Replacement bearings easily available, and carbon fibre down tube rock guards are only £25.

Love mine…!

Sounds like my landlord…! You don’t live near Tunnel Hill area do you…?

it was at tunnel hill the guy could’ve been an expert rider for all i know… but the feet slipping about on spds confused me![/quote]
If it was a grey Pinnacle full suss then yeah, that’s him! 5’8″ on an XL frame, decent fs with a gel seat and flat covers on spds! Nice guy tho, I’ve swapped him some proper flats for his spds now. Still, all these all these people are out on bikes.. ;)

“saw a guy out yesterday with his family – him on a new shiney expensive full suss… riding with no helmet and wearing slip on loafers sliding about all over the top of his spds. rest of the family on 49pound rigid supermarket specials… “

Sounds like my landlord…! You don’t live near Tunnel Hill area do you…?

“a dog that has the energy to run with you on an mtb AND be left home alone all day doesnt exist.”

Not always true – we’ve got a Boxer X Sprocker who stays at home during the day, gets a 30min runabout with our friends’ dogs (which includes his brother, uncle and grandad!) partway through the day most days (but it’s not a problem if he doesn’t) then an hour’s run off the lead when I get in if it’s light enough. Weekends he’s out across the army ranges with me on the bike or on foot for at least an hour. He’s just turned 1yr and has been coming out with the bike since about 4 months old (on very very short trips though, never fast) in order to get him used to the bike and trained early. Never had a problem, and he’s fit, healthy and happy! Gets a proper grump on if I take the bike out without him, mind…

Bought a pair of these and love them: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=48949

Just measured the headtube on my ’09 – 165mm plain or 175mm including the FSA headset.

I’m 6′ with a 33″ inseam, demo’d a M 2010 X3 last year with a 100mm stem on and it felt ok but I had to have the seatpost past max and looking at pics I dwarfed it! Bought a L 2009 X4 recently, stuck a 75mm stem on it and fits way better. Main thing was to get rid of the cone spacer beneath the stem and drop it down as the 2008-2010 Larges have a huuuge head tube which contributes to the gate look!

You won’t need a headset top cap – the conical spacer is just a spacer, the headset top cap is beneath it (or at least it is on my 2009 Trance X).

I’d start by keeping the conical spacer in place and move the standard spacers to above the stem to drop it a bit. If you need to drop it further, remove the conical spacer and buy some standard spacers so you can fine tune the position further – exactly what I’ve done.

Believe me, I’m headed back tomorrow with a shovel. Just shocks me that some people consider this acceptable.

Mythic Spitfire in Large? 720mm standover and 24″ top tube. I have heard rumours that they’ve had QA issues with the pivot bushings though, and are supposed to be switching to bearings but that’s just internet hearsay…

http://www.freeborn.co.uk/mythic-spitfire-frame-1

Look at the FS geo though – 670mm bars, 90mm stem and 68.5deg head angle on a 130mm bike? No thanks… Shorter, slacker and wider is the way forwards.

I’d say go for it – my OH has a Medium Camber that I, at 6′, could ride quite comfortably.

RockShox’s website lists 210mm as maximum rotor size for the Reba, so I thought it should have been ok.

Got a similar situation with 203mm Flame rotor on the front of a Reba SL fork with Juicy3 SL calipers and brand new OEM pads. Waiting til it’s properly bedded in to see if it goes away – if not, I’ll give SSC a shout and/or switch to G3 rotors.

Mid or high-top skate shoes with a decently stiff sole from TK Maxx, £25, job done.

As someone relatively new to modern bikes, I can agree with a lot of what’s been said. For me, the only time I can get to a LBS is at the weekend, when I’d rather be riding! I can order stuff from CRC/Superstar/whoever and have it sitting at my desk within two days. If I want instructions on how to do something then there are a myriad of forums and instructional videos on YouTube to tell me how to do it.

Half the time it’s actually cheaper to buy a tool to do a particular job than the labour alone to have it done – bleeding brakes for example; now I have a bleed kit I can do the job myself whenever I like, and in less time than it would take to just get to the LBS!

I think in the near future mobile bike mechanics are going to get more and more business, especially those that can offer on-site fork and shock servicing as well. No business premises to pay for, just a well-equipped van and the most commonly-needed service parts. Buy your parts online, mechanic turns up at your work in a van, fits them, job done.

Saying that, my LBS is very good – the OH got her Camber on C2W through them and they’ve been great. Still buy occasional bits and bobs there if we’re in for whatever reason, but never go there specifically to buy anything, and wouldn’t miss them hugely if they weren’t there tbh. I’ve never been into the whole LBS-as-mates, go in for a coffee and a chat, borrow tools, kind of scene so I suppose I don’t see it that way – I’d always rather be self-sufficient and fix stuff myself as then I at least know how well (or badly!) the work’s been done.

Feel for you – my company went under in November and I’d been there 12 years. It was a complete shock to the system to be honest, never underestimate how tough it is mentally. At least your company is still going, so your redundancy payment (which should be quite substantial, mine was) should see you through til you get a new job.

I’d advise taking a minimum of a fortnight off where you don’t even think about looking for a new job – spend it all on going out riding and doing the stuff you wished you were doing whilst you were at work.

If you have an other half, talk to them about your feelings over the whole issue as well as depression and feeling useless are the main outcomes of being made redundant – always remember that it wasn’t your fault and you are not to blame. I had real trouble dealing with this and my OH really helped me pull through it.

Chin up, and good luck :)

Worry less about the bike being women’s specific and more about the overall fit tbh…

Don’t discount non-female-specific bikes depending on how your OH is proportioned. Mine is 5’6″ and found the 17″ Myka FSR way too cramped in the top tube and so ended up on a 17″ Camber which she feels much more comfortable on.

Hmmm, not heard of the SS rotors rusting before – is this a commonly-known thing?

Specialized Camber is 120mm/4.7in but quite slack for the travel – have ridden the missus’ M Elite and it’s really nice and stable.