American Classis do them that weigh/cost in between the steel axled £9 Superstar and the much lighter £30-35 DT RWS

It would appear the american classics are almost the same as the superstar ones (external cam QR) but with an aluminium axle instead of steel. Also i think about £17?
IIRC the 10mm*135mm ones weigh 80g when JRA weighed one when I was umming and arring

I went DT in the end, I quite like the RWS, am going off the spiel that the new RWS’s won’t break like the old plastic ones and am not too keen on external cam QRs

OT:
i think the standard answer on here is that there are better options out there than paclite which isn’t cheap and not all that breathable. I know mine isn’t
Can’t remember the two materials that get recommended. I’ll be after one when my Gore stops being useful. Think the zips are going and its already got a few holes in it.

“Some cannondales might come OEM with 1.5” steerers? “

+1. Rize120 full suss does/did, at least the one the mag had in a couple of yeas back? 1.5″ steerer/stem but QR dropouts

from the leelikesbikes link:

Didn’t realise they were selling R8’s with 2.25″ maxxis. It does strike me as on the big side for that bike (100mm XC Hardtail?)

What rims are they on?
I know orange (used to) supply complete bikes with largeish 2.25″ maxxis on pretty narrow 17mm mavic rims, which would explain the ‘massively overvolumed feeling’
ime 19mm mavic rims with 2.25″ maxxis is on the limit (and 2.1″new/2.35″old on a 17mm)

You’ll likely find the 62a 2.1″ more expensive than the 60a 2.25″ or 70a 2.1″.
Supposidly the 62a has similar rolling resistance to the 70a and similar grip to the 60a. Though I’m going with what I remember of the marketting spiel

“170mm cranks in both instances coz she is teeeeeeeeeeeeenie! “
165mm XT’s out of the question?

Going off what my sister and mum use/(think they) prefer I’d say keep the low gear. They’re less* likely to sadistically carry on in too higher gear like some blokes might Perhaps getting off and walking could affect confidence in ability?

24/36 is almost (a fraction of a gear in it) as 22/34 though typically that’d have to be 9spd

You might find some 44-32-22 10spd SRAM cranksets, couple that with an 11-36t casette and that’d be about half a gear lower again. Though ime shimano SLX steel edged rings last very well

I guess in theory you could have bigger (balls in the) bearings?
and either narrow the Q-factor of the cranks/overall BB width, or make the weld area wider?
I guess they can make it lighter, and charge you more knowing there is less competition for replacement units?

Whether any of the different press fit standards do these in practice I don’t know?

“Does not putting threads in save that much? Really?”
I guess if something does go wrong with the threads/fitting a BB it could be a whole frame/front triangle that they’ve got to bin/recycle
If its press fit, then there might be less to go wrong in manufacture/fitting?

I’d strongly point you away from the biketart stuff
Cracks up at the first sign of impact, whether gravel or chainslap ime

“can sell you a replacement frame of that size, model and year?”
I somehow doubt they’ll have warranty stock from 9 (model) in stock?

Maybe a 2012 (or earlier?) 26″ epic, camber or stumpjumper FSR?

“Is this the time difference between hitting the pedal and the pawls engaging? Is it *really* that noticeable to justify the cost?”
Not really time difference as that’ll differ depending on what gear you’re in and where your crank is relative to the pawl/ratchet

I was referring to the number of freehub pickup points within one revolution of the freehub body
May also be referred to by the angle difference of the freehub between pickup points. Eg a 36point pickup XT/Saint/XTR/upgraded DT would be 10 degrees

I’d be more worried about an SDG Ibeam seatpost
Seem to remember a few threads a while back about those breaking in the cold

“all those full-suss bikes looked effectively the same (in fact some really were the same just with different names) so though they had a unique look it wasn’t a very comprehensible one”
You could say that about many other brands though?
Trek FuelEX,Remedy,Scratch; Giant Trance’08,TranceX,Reign,ReignX; Cube AMS110,130,150; Cube Sting,Stereo,etc; Lapierre Zesty,Spicy,Froggy; must be more
Granted there were multiple names for the same frame, but it didn’t take very long of glancing the catalogue or website to work them out
They stopped in 2009/2010 or so and went to a frame name and a spec number

“Full sussers changed quite a bit from single pivot to new quad link from last year”
Eh?
QUAD link 1 came in in 2003. QUAD link TARA about 2004/2005? so last single pivot would’ve been 2003/2004ish?

“had a 2005 Attack Trail (last with the TARA linkage), “
I thought they did them in 2006 too?
Then they made them 6″ only for 2007 once the 120mm mount vision came out

“They were always the mondeo of bikes”
I thought that was the spesh stumpjumper FSR?
(by extension the S-works version would be the Jaguar X-type.. )

“buy a Trek, similar design”
Err?
One is single pivot, one is a sort of DW link?

“Lastly, lifetime warranty on bearings, KERCHING”
The lifetime frame warranty is pretty good too
My brother had a 2003 east peak, it broke and he got a 2008 mount vision for £180 to cover the new shock, that broke and he’s now on a 2010 mount vision (came with a new headset). He was kind of hoping that’d break so he’d get a 2011 140mm MV

“mates who have spent about £150 a time on their Spesh FSR’s bearing replacement about every 2 years of careful use”
err?
The spesh bearings may be crap (mine didn’t last a year) but they were £40 a set? not £150?
Replacing for better ones from goldtec (£65ish for the set) and they’re still going 3 years on

I don’t get why they made the 2011 140mm one for only the one year?
It looked good (to me?) and it reviewed well enough (singletrack mag)
2012 one just looks like so many other bikes

“can’t imagine why anyone would spend more/less than the cost of a Hope”

Hope Pro II are annoyingly loud/buzzy/’ear grating’ to some
Hope Pro II normal (not the SS one) freehub pickup speed isn’t amazing. Quicker than basic shimano/DT, but SLX/Zee/and above and upgraded DT are faster again
Superstar Switch have the same pickup speed/almost same weight/axle options (which are cheaper?), but around half the cost. (Not sure on noise?), though of course the bearings won’t be as good and they’re taiwanese and not sold through bike shops so probably adds up?
Not sure on Evo models but I saw on here (and read of) quite a few hub body failures where the spoke ‘J’ goes through?

The noise and pickup speed put me off a Pro II rear with my last wheels. Went Pro II front for the stainless bearings, weight and JRA stocked them
If my 60 point pickup SSC Tesla turns out to be a real PITA (their 120 point ones can be?) I’ll probably rehub with a DT 350 with 36star ratchet

On topic, The cost of a king would steer me away. 72 pickup appeals, but a friend of mine who had some said he’d not have another for the service costs and how long it stays in decent conditon

“How can there not be enough room for a double and a chain guide, it has iscg tabs? “
et viola

V2 frame. With some extensive grinding to the chainguide backplate, filing to the chainguide mounting bolts and chainring bolts plus adding abother approx. 0.8mm BB spacer from another chainguide [the ‘safety tab’ on the shimano crank arm still dropped properly into the crankarm] it would work with some rubbing. On returning from the alps I did take it off though

re: monarch tune, IIRC the Titus spec V1 2010? El Guapo came with a standard can Fox RP23?
The High Volume can on the supplied monarch may have something to do with ‘excess’ plushness?
Using the coil shock rocker mounts with the monarch makes it less divey, with the option to switch back for more plush
On my (working) monarch there isn’t a great deal of rebound or compression range of setting unlike some shocks which at first would appear limited, but the range available is pretty much spot on the range od adjustment that makes sense
Apart from weighing a load more, the CCDB could have ‘too much’ adjustment if you’re not going to put in the time to set it up properly

How many of those are the manufacturer though?
They may fully design, market, import, stock and sell the bikes but they don’t make them, they get somebody else to? (who presumably mostly buy in the tubes from somebody else)

“hated Pro 2 SS Hub”
Why so?
Was thinking about one of these for the 48point pickup speed

“new forks ,brakes and bb”
If it was once a decent fork, a fork service?
If the brakes were once good, a brake bleed?
If the BB is still smoothish I’d be running it until its rough/has noticable play. If you want to drop weight off the bike then when you need new chainrings/casette/chain and ideally the BB on its way out too, then I’d get new cranks then

‘correct’ frame size, but ‘correct’ stem length also?
You could make more of a change with stem length than between a small to a large frame size with many bikes

basic outer, basic inner, whatever mechs/shifters plusmiddleburn cable oilers

Spray WD40/GT40/alike something in every so often and push the crap out when it starts to play up
it used to be that the standard red pipe with WD40 was a perfect fit. Some I’ve had more recently they’ve changed it. May require a little file work
4mm for gear cable normally. (5mm for brake)
Position them along the outer where the cable normally contacts/rubs the frame and they’ll make good anticable rub bumpers as the o-rings sit proud

“I used a DT Swiss RWS skewer, but the superstar ones are OK apparently”
Superstar are steel axle so not the lightest
DT are light but not cheap
American classic do some in between in price/weight that appear the same as the superstar but with an aluminium axle
IIRC about £17 and 80g (SSC being £8 and 110g-ish)

I went for DT RWS (bit lower than RRP but still £30) to stop me worrying about an external cam QR lever. Newer RWS levers aren’t supposed to strip the teeth like the old ones did, so I’ve read. I’ve yet to find out how long this one lasts

clamping stuff to carbon tubes that were never meant for anything clamped on them?
If I’d spent that much on a frame I wouldn’t consider it

A seatpost mounted something maybe possible?
A beam rack with a seat on it?
I’m likely wrong, but at least a beam rack with child + seat on a rigid seatpost ought to put similar loads on the frame as a bigger bloke sat on saddle clamped back on a layback post?

I’d maybe ask ibis about a trailer though. Again not really in the design remit for the carbonyness?

(some) works components (angle adjusting) headsets do this too

at least a 44/49.6mm external lower cup will accept taper or straight steerer with a change of crown race

which reminds me, I ought to get round to buying one. My On-one smoother (will accept taper, I’ve a straight steerer crown race adapter) is getting a bit rough and the HA a little steep when things get hairy

What size wheel is this for?

The wheel size (between 26 and 29) will throw it out by about 1 gear.
ie same chainring, a 36t on 29″ about the same as 32t on a 26″ wheel?

“assumed the 970 was on par with xt “
more like a ‘higher end deore’ eg hg62?

id took them as:
950 similar to deore hg52
980 like slx (3 biggest on carrier)
990 like xt (5/6 biggest on carrier), though 990 almost as heavy as 980

on topic, my steel bodied xc does this with a deore (hg52?). Just keep it in check my filing down the burrs

If you’ve worn uppers, ime it’ll be a worn bush thats done it (thats caused my lack of oil/lots of use)

It might depend on how 150mm is designed around the frame and how that affects your riding will depend on lots of other things

how high your BB height will be with the fork at 150mm relative to what the bike is designed around/waht is normal, may sway things as to whether an in between travel would be useful in inbetween situations like twitchy singletrack or techy climbs.
If the BB height were low ebough at 150mm, the 120mm setting could become rarely used

Not talas/2step but my 120-150mm RS U-turns I found I was in the middle all the time on a bike where the upper travel was at the upper height the frame would work with but now they’re on a bike where the 150mm is on the low-side for what the bike will take, I rarely drop below 150mm, only for ‘lay on the floor at the top for a bit’-steep type climbs do I drop to 120mm where the BB height becomes a problem on anything mildy rutted

Aren’t these a touch high in BB height with a 26″ wheel and normal ish tyre?
Upping to 650b wheel, fork and fattest tyres available aren’t exactly going to help out the BB height?

Is there space in the frame, design and production scope for a new set of swingarm rocker’s made up that would aim to drop the frames BB height a fair bit to offset the 650b height changes?

Presuming the dropout braking wear problem would still be present? ie where the dropouts vibrate/rock about under braking once it wears over time?

“hes had to buy a longer fork and shorter cranks to get over the low BB issue”
Had to? Its not that bad
Even with a leaking 150mm Rockshox (and 175mms) 0mines only really a problem if I drop the U-turn down to 120/130mm and ride up rutted stuff

So you can drop A2C by dropping travel

How striaghtforward this will be will depends on what model year your fork is?
afaik 2013 require a new air assembly for a new travel
and afaik upto 2012 are doable at home. Drop the lowers (As per a lowers oil change), then open up the air spring side, disamble as per the rockshox service instructions and add in 20mm of sapcers into the air spring (as per instructions).
If I remember rightly, the RS spacers are a total rip (Fox being £1 ea?) so I bodged mine with a stack of metal washers beyong the travel limit rockshox say you can*. Subsequent services have revealed no damage, though they were out of warranty so less worried

*2008 Revs were stock 130mm, say you can drop to 115mm. I dropped to 100mm (now 120mm) with wasghers. I suspect the 115mm limit may stem from Rebas of the same age were max of 115mm

RS service instructions will be somewhere fairly easy to findI think wihtin the service area of the RS/SRAM site. You’ll just need the model year to get the right instructions

EDIT: Seems I read but didn’t take in the RL(T) Ti bit. So 2011 onward
Find the service instructions for them and then look for a section on travel reduction, then you’ll know how doable it is

tbh I can’t really see past a Titus FTM or El Guapo. Well within budget but pre-selling to on-one were more out of budget than within (~£1700+)

All from on-one

Titus FTM alu. is a bit steep in the HA so Id be look to fit from new a works components angle slackening headset to get it to normal or slackish angles
Titus FTM carbon is very light, but afaik you can’t slacken the HA
Titus El Guapo with a fat/external lower cup headset will work with a 150mm fork. BB height is a touch low but you’ll get used to it where its tricky and benefit in the bends

EDIT: Didn’t realise £2600 S-works stumpys had come down that low. I’d defo be tempted. Though given the spesh warranty I’d not want to be voiding it with too longer a fork? [or selling it on] I don’t know if its 140mm or 150mm but defo check first, with it being the S-works carbon (10m?)* version

“up for Penmachno but I don’t think he’s too keen as 30k is
a bit long “
easy choice then, keep it short and just do loop 1

“you’ll gain an extra one at the top end”
More like half a gear no?

“noticed that E13 do a 33t ring “
On-one do unramped in stainless too

If you went 33t with a 11-36t casette you’d be getting around another 1/4 gear at both ends

chris boardman 130/130mm?

if they’re still as they were when it was in the magazine it’ll have an ‘XC double’ chainset rather than a triple or ‘trail/AM double’ with a proper low gear

“do i need anything else bar the bash guard
if you’re simply replacing your big ring with the bash it is unlikely you’ll need anything else”

ime not true, some bash rings are a fair bit fatter than a chainring
eg truvativ, shimano hone (and slx?), fsa polycarbonate
truvativ and shimano longer chainring bolts aren’t cheap (£15-20ish), The FSA polycarbonate (clear) bash’s come with longer bolts in the packet. They will also run with the torx chainring bolts from shimano cranksets

Not all bash rings are ‘fat’ though, there are many (mostly metal?) bashes that are quite narrow, so normal bolts should suffice

An FSA polycarb for eg, mine has took many a knock with only minor chipping
A Shimano 32t Hone is fairly thin/light (plastic) and after a few too many knocks (and overtightened bolts) will split. Though at £10 not expensive to replace
As far as I know a 36t Shimano SLX bash is fair bit chunkier

Not recent but rode what was open of the monkey trail (And some DH runs) on 2nd w/e of december and it rode very well. Maybe a little wet, but nothing given its december. I’d expect it’d be holding up well

“2.2 advantage is good in mud “
2.25″ advantage in 60a (or 70a) I find poor in the mud I’ve used them in. Dont’ clear as well as a ‘proper’ mud tyre and spin out, and lots of volume you’ve got to plough through the mud

“2.25 Crossmark R? .. Not ideal in full mud conditions but nothing that is will roll well at the trailcenter”
Agree on poor in mud, but disagree on nothing will roll well

A ‘race’ish mud tyre (ie not ‘ultimate’ish grip aka trailraker, 2.35″ swampthing etc) such as a 2.0″ (come up small) Bontrager Mud X or 2.0″ Spesh Storm (come up big) will give decent mud/wet grip/clearing and I reckon roll as well as any normal knobbly tyre. Not mega expensive either

OP, out of interest what is it about a 2.0″ Bonty Mud X or 2.0″ Spesh Storm that you’ve ruled them out?
The bonty’s I can see are small, but the Spesh blows up slightly bigger than a 2.35″ Maxxis (so smaller than a 2.25″ maxxis) or bigger/newer 2.1″ Maxxis, and as big as a 2.25″ Schwalbe

If its wet (and it will be ime) then I’d be tempted to leave loop 2 for sake of keeping the feeling in your feet so you can enjoy all the ace bits toward the end of loop 1

Its the puddles/standing water that makes it wet, not any mud

CyB almost had no water on it start of december iirc
~300yds on mbr there was a stream, odd bits of puddle (nothing on penmachno) on bits of dragons back I think when I was there, though they may well have been the bits with the stream corssings in them
I’d guess CyB would be holdin gup well

12mm maxle * 150mm won’t fit
There are no adapters available

What will fit:
‘5mm’ * 135mm standard QR
10mm ‘thru-bolt’ QR * 135mm
10mm * 135mm bolt up (eg hope)
10mm * 135mm threaded axle/nutted (eg very cheap cup/cone hubs)

I’d go (as I have) with 10mm thru-bolt. Though its not like normal 5mm QR is an issue. I guess the chainstay profile has much to do with it
afaik you can get hope adapters to run somebody elses axle if you’d like to stick with hope
I went with a DT RWS axle as I’m not a fan of external cam QR levers, though they’re not exactly cheap
Superstar do a cheap 10mm (or 9mm front) thru-axle, though not light with a steel axle
The american classic (from eg JustRidingAlong) one appears the same as the superstar one only it has a aluminium axle making it lighter (approx 80g)

“try and replicate this hopefully “
The closest/easiest replication would be most ‘triple’ cranksets and use a 22T granny ring, then the 36T casette out back

Obviously if you’ll rule out all but sqaure taper* then you have the option of a 20T

*middleburn 5arm and some others. I’m assuming all 20T options mean square taper cranks? (or a BMX style 3 piece single ring?)

I keep thinking a lower than 22-34 would be useful sometimes. Though not wanting to splash out to 10spd, have an alu. freehub and prefer the stiffness of a HTII bottom bracket I think I’m stuck as I am

EDIT: is that link talking about 16 and 17T rings?

It will fit with the BB, but if you have a 73mm bottom bracket shell AND you want to run a granny ring you’ll probably run into trouble like so:

Managed to get it going with a grinder reshaping the stingers back plate a bit and another thin BB spacer (making it wider than ideal), but sill got a little chainrub in lower gears