ermm .. as above what kind of damage are you trying to avoid?

If its just scratches and frame rub then a bit of helitape around the crap area will be the best solution.

I got a couple of 50ml syringes from ebay for under £4.

Can’t help on the bleed technique as I haven’t tried yet but for the older models I found Shimano’s video guides on you tube where very helpful.

They might have made some new guides for their newer brakes?

appears that google isn’t my friend

Seriously?? It tool me 2 secs to find this:

KS manual

:)

Just take it to a bike shop to check you aren’t doing anything wrong.

They should be able to identify if you are doing it wrong and point you in the right direction.

I think the Shimano SLX cassette comes with an Alu spider. No idea about Sram though.

Do the stanchions have sag markers for 120mm? If not then chances are you have the 100/80mm version only.

Your tyre carcass is not air tight.

Yes it does go off in the bottle but much much slower. I’ve had a large bottle sitting on the shelf for over a year and could see signs of clumping but the solution was still very usable.

I believe mark2 LEDs have been available for a while now from Cree but it usually takes a while for them to actually be fitted into torches. You prob won’t see anything until late summer.

assuming the stanchions are the same width yes I think so. but as said above you may need to reduce the travel. I think you might need the bushings resized too but it should work.

yep a shim should be fine, used them many times in the past. They all come in pretty much the same length but found superstar’s shims are slightly longer.

I have a KS LEV and totally love it!

No one really needs one but if you can afford it, it will allow to you to flow around much better and allow you to move the bike around more.

Its like suspension, sure you can ride a rigid down some technical stuff but its much more fun with suspension.

Same applies with the dropper post. It just depends on your personal views on where to draw the line with new technology helping you to ride better.

I don’t think you’re going to get something that climbs as well as the Trance but descends better without spending some mega bucks. I think going for the light wiegth route to make the bike easier to climb might be the way forward.

The Giant Maestro system is a very good pedalling system and Giants geo is on the conservative side compared to the modern super slack angles we are seeing today.

I tried a the Trek Fuel EX and Remedy as well as the Giant Trance X and Reign last year. While I personally preferred the Trek’s they we not massively different they were both roughly in the same ball park. the Giants slightly preferred to go up while the Treks slightly preferred to go down.

I did find that the Trek suspension was a lot more composed in its action and I felt I could have ridden the roughest of trails even on the fuel ex not needed the extra travel of the Remedy.

In the end I went for a Transition Bandit. It has a a very playful nature making the ride more fun. while this appealed to me I don’t think its right for your needs.

yep sounds like a seal is leaking somewhere. Have a look on TF tuned’s website for service kits.

sure there is a place in Sweden that services a fork? can you send it to them and get original place you bought it from to reimburse you?

or give it a go your self. its not hard but is slightly tedious to perform. just go through it slowly and methodically.

Merlin also do custom wheel builds and feedback from customers is very good.

Had a look on the Ison website already they have a dealer listing but for some reason can’t filter it to just Halo. Not sure if i’m being stupid or the website doesn’t offer that functionality?

I’m based in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire.

I’ve asked a nearby shop in the past for a wheelset and they were much more expensive than the wheel specialists like Merlin or JRA.

Decathlon have their own branded one too: Camera link

No idea of quality yet, waiting for some other people to try it out first.

You need a shock pump a normal pump will not work.

Shock pumps are high pressure, low volume while normal pumps are low pressure, high volume.

£30 for a pump is expensive. Normally Rock Shox after market forks should have come with shock pump. But if you need one quick for the weekend and can’t be bothered to do the customer service route then try Halfords. The Bikehut version is exactly the same as the one Rock Shox gave me and cost me £15 a few years back. Ebay is cheaper still but you won’t get it in time for the weekend.

So in summary yes they are great! :-) Good to hear, thanks all for the comments.

Been looking at builds from JRA, Merlin and Superstar. All are pretty much the same with Merlin about £15 less per wheel.

All know how to build wheels well and get good comments but seems as if JRA is a slightly ahead.

Down here in South Wales there is no snow. It’s bloody cold, mind, but there is no sign of the white stuff.

I was near the Black Mountains on the weekend and there was lots of the white stuff. Made riding a chore and the going was very slow. Low down everything looked fine but half way up the hill it was very different.

Also tried Cwm Carn the next day. A damp muddy track soon turned to ice the higher up you went. We bailed out early and took the road back down. Thinking most of the descent would be similar and didn’t fancy it. Might have been just a large patch but we weren’t up for finding out the hard way.

Then tried Forest of Dean the next day that was fine. A bit of ice on one climb but on whole the track was fine and a good laugh.

don’t assume conditions at the top and bottom are the same.

I was in south wales this weekend just gone. Low down things would look fine. Then as you climbed conditions got worse with sheet ice across the paths in large sections.

If you can’t cancel your booking then take plenty beer and entertainment, you’ll still have fun.

I prefer centre lock as changing it is easier, not that I’ve had any issue with 6 bolt.

But then how often do you change your rotors???

In reality both systems work fine, just go with what ever is cheaper and compatible with your hubs.

Was up there yesterday doing the blue and the red xc trails.

There is one section of hardpack ice but its on a gentle climb so not a big problem just take it easy we all managed without any sketchy moments.

Otherwise there are patches of mud and the odd bit of ice but on the whole conditions are fine.

First time I’d been up there and had a lot fun. Will defo be back for some more.

Not sure of the full bike prices but can you stretch to a Carbon 456?

I might be overkill for your needs but you’ll find it hard to get a frame much lighter for a reasonable amount.

Email replies can be slow at times but they will reply back.

Any of my customer support issues in the past have been dealt with satisfactorily.

not sure if you’re still looking for places to get your bike fixed but I’ve had great service from the guys in Cycle Surgery in Hemel.

I don’t buy a lot of stuff from there but the mechanics seem good.

glad I stumbled upon this thread. I just emailed Jedi earlier to day to get the same response ie “I’m fully booked till August”

He said his junior coach Nathan might be free. Any one had any experience with him?

Where do you want the stiffness in the fork?

If you want torsional stiffness then go for the 20mm option.

If you want fore and aft stiffness go for tapered steerer. The axle won’t effect this so will be fine with even a normal QR.

in terms of being able to handle the terrain they will be fine but they will have an effect on the geometry of the bike as Geetee says. Try it out beforehand and see if the bike still feels good.

Tell me more…?

The one I’ve seen is two press fit cups that have threads on the inside so you just fit a normal screw in BB.

The adaptor is pressed into the frame like a headset so prob best going to LBS to fit it. After that it straight forward.

Not sure what exact bearing are in your headset but almost always the bearings can be simply replaced rather than getting a new headset.

If you have caged bearings then simply replace with same size loose balls. Fill the cup fully with balls and remove 1 then reassemble the headset with lots of grease.

If you have cartridge bearings then take them out and have a look on the side of a bearing number. Then go your local bearing shop or online to find a replacement. If there are no numbers then you can search online using the inner and outer diameter and the height measurements.

Just make sure for skiing you get vented lenses otherwise they will fog up.

have a look on ebay for oakley ones. can get them much cheaper than rrp

which XTR brake do you have? different methods for old and new versions.

I prefer Rs forks as you can usually get rebound and compression adjust for a very reasonable price. the extra adjust-ability allows you to set the fork up to suit your needs. The Rev structure is also much stiffer than the float structure.

I find Fox forks dive too much for me unless they have compression adjust. And after market fox forks seem to cost an arm and leg.

I wouldn’t mind a RLC fork if it came as part of a whole bike but I’m not buying one after market.

cant help you with bearing size but try superstar for a removal tool

+1 try compressing them and seeing if they return. The RS system only returns to full travel after rebounding from a compression.

Had a quick scan of this thread and can’t help but think its gone a bit off topic and really solved the OP’s problem.

Buy a copy of What Hi-Fi – its not the best mag by far but it does have a handy database at the back with lots of components, costs and ratings. This should bring you roughly up to speed with whats good / bad and how much things cost today.

Then pop down to your nearest Richer Sounds store and see what deals they have going. I guess it vary from store to store but when I last popped into my local store (years ago now) the prices were very competitive and the help and advice was very good with no pushy sales and a full demo in a proper room.

With around £1000 to spend on a whole system you are going to be looking at a fairly low end / budget solution but it should still produce a good enough sound.

The most important thing is to have a demo and listen. A certain amp might have amazing reviews and cost more than you want to spend. But if you don’t like the sound or can’t justify paying extra for a slight increase in quality then there is no point in buying it.

I used hate my dads setup but it was his system and he liked it the way it was. Even after he listened to my more expensive and “better” system. Use the reviews as a rough guide but trust your ears.

hope that helps.

The 2012 Lapierre frames could be converted to run 140mm or 160mm.

You needed a different shock mount or linkage and different shock size.

Not 100% sure about the 2013 frames.

I had my phone stolen while seeing The Prodigy at Wembly as few years back.

Maybe the pick pocket is massive Prodigy Fan?

If your old fork was in working order, it probably makes economic sense to sell your old fork and buy a new one.

But as you’re having trouble fixing it your self, chances are you’ll have to pay some else to fix it. So im not sure its worth it.

I’d prob just take the hit and get it fixed, use this opportunity to possibly upgrade the damper or get it pushed or tuned to your needs?

And for what its worth a few years back I swapped some Fox Vanilla RL, regarded at the time as one of the smoothest forks for some Rockshox Revelations and noticed very little different in small bump compliance and no difference in smoothness. If fact I much preferred the extra adjust-ability the Revs offered and could set the fork up exactly to my needs.