I’ve emailed with no reply and had an email saying it was dispatched a week ago. Will call them tomorrow if it still not here.

I though Kirroughtree was the worst out of the ones I’ve been to. Just a bit of a slog in parts. Glentress and dalbeatie my favs.

If thats the one I think it is then its definately gotten bigger as 3 years ago I was contemplating hitting it. Not a chance if its that big.

Uh? why?

Tesco food is average, can’t see their cycling helmets been all that.

I’ve bought a £40 Hex and an £80 Met UL Kaos in the past 5 years and I think the MET was worth the money. If your happy with a £8 Tesco job then fair enough but personally I’d put more faith in a bigger brand with more money for R&D. Above about £40 I guess you pay for less weight & features.

No regrets about spending money on such an important bit of kit.

Only on the rear for my but they are a great summer tyre.

I’d go minion or the highroller, especially for summer. I like all they’re tyres especially the advantage as a rear tyre or front tyre in the summer for xc. The crossmark is a great summer rear tyre.

I have a pin head too and they fit pretty well. Worth a try and relatively cheap for Oakley. I got the black iridium lenses which are great for places like the dales in summer but can be a bit dark in forests.

Oakley Five Squared

So if the damping isn’t working as well as it should in the rear shock will a home service/seal change help? Don’t fancy the repair cost of mojo/TF as prob buying a new frame next summer.

If you got it dirt cheap I wouldn’t worry too much. Give it a good check over and then just ride it – its a very capable and fun bike. If it cracks it cracks, not much you can do about it.

I have a Raptor 18 and really rate it. Once on even if very heavy I don’t notice it. As first I found it to hurt my back but after a little adjusting of the straps it has been faultless. The bladder is the big selling point, far better than the Camelbak mule it replaces. Sizewise its perfect for all day rides and short after work blasts as when only half full the straps pack it down really well. The magnet is simple but very effective.

I also have a dakine helipack which I use for commuting to work. Its absolutely bomb proof – nothing broken in the 6+ years I’ve had it and I’ve used it 5 days a week and for boarding, holidays etc. Not tried the nomad so can’t comment on how good that is for biking.

Camelbak would be my third choice although still a very good product.

Two of my mates have meta 5.5 and so do I. Both of theirs (2007 & 2008) cracked and they are now riding 2010 and 2011 replacements. Mine hasn’t cracked after 3 years of riding including two alpine trips and 6 foot drop offs.

Looks like a bargain if thats the price for the full bike.

Only about £70 more than the superstar ones and worth it in my opinion. Pro2 with Flow rims are a good choice.

I’d go for Hope Hoops over superstar.

I run my 5.5 rear shock with about the same psi as my weight in lb’s. Seems to work fairly well. Generally run it with 1cm of sack on the shock and on the hard side so I don’t bottom out the suspension.

Tempted by the 12mm rear but cost always put me off. Only QR on the front too – been to the alps, 6 foot drop off, light DH – all fine, the frame hasn’t even cracked – yet!

I think i’ll have a play tonight and try and work out my camera’s features better.

Thanks for all the help.

Thanks for all the advice, some pretty helpful tips.

I’ve only had the camera a short time and I guess coming from an SLR I was always going to be a bit disappointed with picture quality.

I would never have thought about using the flash in sunny conditions so will give that a go.

Sorry, went to the pub instead last night. Here are some pics, they all seem a bit flat and washed out.

This one seems ok to me:

Will get some pics up this evening.

Camera is a compact and does have an inbuilt flash but obviously no bolt on hoods, filters etc. I think there is some limited control on exposure etc.

No flash and weather was very warm.

I’ve got some examples at home so will post them this eve. Most of the shots were taken using the auto setting and some are good, some bad.

About £50 max. That Easton does look nice though.

Thanks for the advice. Any thoughts on the Nuke proof one? Should have said want it to be fairly stiff and strong, all-mountain if you like!

Think there was a thread about this last week, have a search and you should find a few more.

Beef curry sounds pretty good and simple.

I’ve just bought some Fox High Voltage – Light, good fit but fairly tight round the waist (ok for me, just)!

I was tempted by the altitudes though.

I had K18 then bought some Shimano Saints when they gave up after a couple of years use. The K18 were good but after a year required lots of maintenance and were never quite the same.

Had the Saints for a year and they have been superb.

Advantage front, crossmark rear – both 2.1″ for me. Great summer combo and can use the advantage on the back for the rest of the year or if you fancy something a little more grippy.

Twin Six from Always riding or wiggle. Mellow Johnny – expensive but can get reasonable copies from the far east dirt cheap.

Apologies for causing any offence.

Twin – I wouldn’t go night riding alone in Leeds either.

ti_pin_man – If you’ve not been to cwmcarn before I’d highly recommend it.

I did wonder about editing that (so I did).

A few of my mates that live down there go night riding at cwmcarn. I think they park outside the gates and the visitors centre and bike wash are closed. They’ve never had any problems going round but like most of the valleys the area is a big of a hole socially speaking. Prob best not to go alone.

Pretty standard on my commute. Never assume.

More demand.

Bike wash would be top of my list closely followed by a BBQ and picnic tables.

A good collection of tools will be really helpful so people don’t have to take there own and one or two workstands. A trackpump would also be good.

Slight hijack – how good are your dakine shorts for all day riding jedi and jambo? Thinking of the Syncline.

Transition Covert?