I was going to say inbred, you have quite a few similar bikes there, but toys, 2 SC bullits?

I don't know anymore, though its spilled over to page 2
Turns out pretty much everyone else gets round to mending their bikes rather than trying to ignore the ever lengthening list of things to fix

If the seattube will allow you to reposition the front mech, and the chainstay won't touch it when bottomed out, then it should work better yes

There was a recall on at least EA30's some time last year If I remember rightly, not sure if any others were involved though?

"realised my tools weren't up to the job"
They do look a bit plastic to be fair ..

"paid for 2008 EA70s and got 2010s"
They look like 2008 graphics, at least my '08 ones are like that (I thought new ones had some yellow on). Though I'm not sure they've actually changed anything other than graphics in that time?

Also, how do you get the ODI end caps into the lockrings? I've never got mine to fit?

Have you had to change the clamp mounting on the shifters to make them work that side of the nicely spaced in brake levers?

Will a 10spd chain fit a 'widgit' chainring?

£80 seems insanely steep too

I don't really get why you want to limit yourself to a 28T ring only, gaining a bit for the ups at the expense of downs and flat roads

If you've got some properly steep long hills and can't hack a 32T ring then a double setup (eg 22/32, 22/36 etc) (or triple) would seem like a better bet IMO

If you zoom in to 1:25k* on streetmap it shows the permissive b.ways (in orange), the gradual descent from the top of the climb you say you already know is premissive is, but only to just before your second unsure point. The bit you pointed to is a bit naff, though where it descends back to the reservior is pretty good

*which actually shows the paths atop that climb in the right places relative to one another, unlike the 1:50k map

He should pay, he caused the accident, how bad you feel about that is down to you

You might be able to go through specialized's crash replacement scheme (40% of list price I think), though I'm not sure how many years from new it lasts for, or whether you have the receipt still

How is the bike?

EDIT: dammit, how many posts between zero replies, and me putting up mine (which is now rather redundant)

empty both (or have both equal)
set positive
set negative

more -ve will give more sag, less travel, better small bump sensitivity, more pronounced brake/impact/cornering dive, will bottom out easier

more +ve will give less sag, full travel, little (if any) small bump sensitivity, less brake/impact/cornering dive, won't bottom out as easily

Equal +ve and -ve works pretty well

Front QR lever wants setting 180 degrees the other way so it can't undo by snagging on something whilst riding, rear could be better too

Saddle wants to be flat (for XC riding presumably?)

Stem looks a bit short and uppity (making the bars higher than the saddle at pedalling height and generally reducing breathing space)

Conti Verticals are only available in wire aren't they, seem a bit cheap/heavy/etc when the bike has XT cranks and fox forks (though not quite fox/xt level frame all things considered either)

Otherwise, all very nice, I'd quite like an inbred

"not much you an do except dig it out ride 100yrds and dig it out again"
I find pushing briefly pushing the bike backwards often (but not always) helps better at getting the wheel rolling

You ought to be able to live 'full online' prices, the singletracks are very good IMO, way away better than humvees in pretty much every way

Maxxis don't do a 2.35" high roller folding 42a, they only do it in wire bead
A 2.35 high roller is also smaller than a 2.25" advantage too, so a bit odd 2.35" HR front, 2.25" advantage rear

What tyre pressure do you have your advantage, I found dropping from 40 to 35psi improved the grip (especially cornering) volumes
Which compound is it also? 70a or 60a?

The pad retention is bizarre, it requires a pair of pliers, ideally long nosed, to take out/put in the pads, so unless you're somebody who keeps their tool collection in your camelbak then pads wearing out midride isn't a problem.
I'm not sure about XT

No chance of trying to drill out the rest of the bolt and hopefully just turning it in the threads instead of drilling a hole all the way through

Down will be a lot easier, though some forks steerer tubes narrow at the base so much so that the SFN will be so bent up that it won't work anymore

I'd reckon bash all the way out and stick a new one in (from the top)

"the new recon coil they're doing for under £200, bit heavier but probably smoother than a smooth thing & could be extended to 120 mm"
Are you sure you can change the travel on non U-turn coil Rockshox forks? You can with non U-turn air forks, but I didn't think you could with non U-turn coil ones due to the preload adjustment? I could be wrong

"budget also also needs to cover new stem, brake mount adapter, probably headset, BB, cables etc, and maybe new seat post .. "
Merlin have 130mm RS tora solo air, Coil pike weight, but £110 posted if you wanted to keep the cost right down?

"would need a dose of nerves for me to take apart brand new forks and take a bit out, but seriously considering it."
Just follow the manual downloadable online, you've got to take it apart anyway if you're servicing it yourself

I should think the bits off of the 6" FSer would be much better than the bits off of the rigid hardtail given the mmmbop is designed around 130-150mm forks for steeper more technical riding (more so than the peak?)
Then switchback when you fancy a change

You'll probably not ride the FS as much, making it even less 'value for money' than it currently is

"the Bop is quite brutally harsh, but that's just hearsay and it will obviously depend on tyre choice, amount of seatpost showing etc."
Its got a seattube to take a 31.6mm seatpost, if you were to stick a (carbon) 27.2mm (or similar narrow) post and shim it out, that should atr least reduce the seated harshness, though shims can be a bit of a faff for putting your seat up and down

£285 for recons sounds pricey
There must* be something a little better with 120-150mm travel somewhere on merlin, crc or on-one at the moment for that sort of money?

*I would imagine

The SLX has steel 'lowers' which don't bend (as easily) as XT's aluminium 'lowers' which is 25-30g lighter
I've had an XT one bend on an alpine hire bike (though I'm 95% sure I never hit it on anything), but not on my own bike. When I've had enough of the amount of play (theres a lot of wobble) in it then I'll probably get SLX, though I don't know what the difference is with the newer deore shadow mech?

Chances are there'll be other things on your bike where the £/g weight saving is better than upgrading to XT (or XTR)

Just on looking at them (I've never used them), as per the minion dhf, (and high rollers, nevegals, any ramped traded tyre), running the ramps/the tyre forward will give better rolling resistance, better braking traction but lesser pedalling (and cornering?) traction
Running ramps/tyre backward will give better pedalling (and cornering?)traction but lesser braking traction and more rolling resistance

"Why would you want a super light weight dirt jump bike?"

My guess is it would be more manoeuvrable for tricks and whatnot. That and the novelty/showoff factor of a dirtjump bike as light as many peoples (low-)mid end road or CX bikes?

Awesome, so effectively £16.50 ea. posted. I've been eyeing these up recently, now the rain is setting in these ought to be worth a try

EDIT: I can't seem to find 'buyabike.co.uk', google comes up with is 'buyabikedeals.co.uk, I assume the same?
Anyhow, £34/pair is what its showing me, still £17ea. isn't bad, though thinking about it, I think on-one might still have 2.1" 50/60a Nevegals for £15 ea. posted. Goes to look ..

"i am wondering if i can go up 2cm on the the bike and go from rst's to zochi bombers 66's?"
It might be 2cm in suspension travel, but chances are it'll be more (and with bigger marzocchis, more than most) than 20mm in the length of the fork (axle-crown hieght)
66's? I assume older ones (which can be very high for the travel) given the current ones are 180mm aren't they?

20mm longer axle-crown hieght will slacken the front by very roughly 2/3 to 1 degree. Not loads, but enough to make a difference

2.2" Rubber queens on a C2 braked/rigid forked HT? (IMO of course) I can't see very many people getting anywhere near the most out of those, only needlessly slowed down by them?

I'd imagine (and no I've not ridden either) something like 2.4" Ralphs ought to suit better?

Its heavy for what it is, the Chris Boardman (available from Halfords) 120mm FS for the same money is lighter (28.3lbs vs. 31.5) and has slightly better finishing kit. They seemed to like the CB in the mag when they reviewed it relatively recently too, If I remember right, it got the singletrack recommended seal

How baout winding the low limit screw all the way in, so that the front mech will sit in roughtly the same place as where the plastic thingy would make it sit? You're only lining it up with the chainrings visually so it doesn't need to be in exactly the same place

"To bloody often"
+1

Theres always another set of tyres you just 'need' to try
Its like n + 1, where n is the number of bikes you currently have rule, only more like n + 5

If it had a 60degree head angle ..

"them cranks just came off my AM bike"
Those crankarms (the ones that come with the double/bash) are heavier than the ones that come with the triple, having steel pedal inserts and steel axle

That saddle is pretty awful though, it looks too big and out of scale with the rest of the bike, not sure what is going on with the angle of it either, especially with the low handlebar position, do you not like your nads?

" it would be more enjoyable on your geared FS as it can be quite knarly"
I wouldn't say it was all that knarly, just mostly rough, especially so for a trail centre

Whichever bike you take, mudguards may be a good idea as there seems to a huge number of puddles at penmachno and the narrow more hemmed in nature of the trails make avoiding them that bit harder

But would you say that a P7 with a 50mm stem is (very) downhill biased for the bike, where a 90mm might be a good all round length?

"the Trek ABP is a very clever way of sidestepping the specialized patent"
I could well be wrong, but isn't an ABP actually more active (or rather a chainstay pivot isn't 100% active) under braking?

"tracey moseley has done no better with trek than she did with kona
dont believe the hype? "
Didn't the race stab have a dope-kit on though? essentially making the kona a heavier more complicated version of the trek (ie essentially the same active brake pivot)?

"extra 1/2 inch of
travel but I doubt this will affect the uphills too much"
No it'd probably be the slacker head/seat angles, shorter/more rearward cockpit position, heavier/burlier build you'd end up with

With 150mm Revs on a nomad instead of the typical(/designed?) 160mm forks, which will be 17mm lower when fully wound out (not 10mm), could/would you not have a bit of a problem on the nomad of a too low BB height (as well as steepening everything up) or can nomads run with less than a 160mm fork?

I would have thought anything from a slightly slack (eg 69 or less) 120mm bike upto a not so slack 140mm bike (so not a 67deg orange 5/spesh pitch) might be where you want to be looking?

The 3rd one along should work/fit. The 2nd one along seemed have the pistons too far apart as the resultant bleed pulled straight to the bar

Titec do a couple of 450mm ones, but they look like this:

lighter/more expensive one
heavier/cheaper one

"is it a fork with a conical steerer?? "
partly, but just between where the top (standard 1 1/8") and bottom (1.5") races of the headset will sit
(So it uses standard 1 1/8" stems)

"the frame is 6.4lbs"
What frame size is that? Is that with or without (which) shock?

Specialized?

Are you sure you want a high rise 70-80mm stem though. Don't forget the effective length compared to 'normal' 5-7 degree stems will be much less especially with rises as high as 25 degrees (or more)

"bought a Truvative one 'cos it was cheaper and had to get the screws from Jensen USA"
CRC do the extra long chainring bolts too

The FSA one on CRC is cheaper and includes the bolts

A 34T chainring will sit behind an FSA 32T bashring, just the chain will be almost flush, fine for 1*9 chainguiding but not as good for out and out chain/chainring protection as using the correct sized chainring with bashguard