I looked at these last week as a Garmin alternative but then decided i needed neither and went for a Cateye adventure as all i really wanted over a standard computer was altitude, gradient and temperature. The Adventure has all these and was only £45 at Merlin.

Fuzzhead – trashed Zee how? Impact damage or just failure?

My SLX one (med cage 2×10) has been great but then it’s on a new bike so only has around 100 miles on it. Is there any difference in quality between the 3 (as in better materials on the clutch system etc)?

All black (XT or Zee) would match the bike slightly better but i’m not that bothered.

Tweeks are cheaper than On One by £6 (£63.74 XT, £52.49 Zee & SLX)

Edit – Cheers Northwind, that’s useful. I’m now leaning towards XT.

Done

I did a bit of trail maintenance up in the Lickeys last week.

I use a Fiskars folding saw (c.£15) and it happily went through 4″ branches in less than 30 seconds. Quite a few trees were down and blocking trails and it only takes one person a few minutes to clear it. Wish more riders did it instead of just walking around and carrying on.

Lighter than secateurs and no pointy bits to get in the way if you crash.

Just picked up 2 bars and felt almost rude handing over £1 for them both!

Rise is 22mm according to the packaging.

Wish all spares could be picked up so cheaply.

Cheers for the PSA OP. Although it’s your fault i had a McDonalds for lunch instead of a healthier ham roll if i’d stayed local…….

Like bigsurfer i had the same call. The bars are waiting to be picked up in the next hour. Worked out well seeing as i didn’t want the 25.4 stems.

I don’t need them and won’t use them as they’re too narrow for me but they’ll go into the spares bin for the sake of £1 and probably end up on a mates bike at some stage. Ditto with a post if they have any when i turn up.

DOH!

Just reserved 2 stems and 2 handlebars (for a mate) and just realised in my haste that the stem is 25.4.

At least the bars should be ok. It’ll cost me more in petrol to drive the 7 mile round trip to collect them than to pay for them!

I’m 6’7″ and love my XXL Fargo. Such a comfortable bike. The bars are several inches higher than on my 66cm roadbike so are about level with the saddle whereas all my other bikes look more like your Inbred in the picture with the saddle way higher.

Not a particularly light bike but rides beautifully.

That used to be my daily commute when i lived in London (only a little shorter from Cricklewood/Kilburn).
The A5 wasn’t actually too bad a road as it was mostly bus lane most of the way down to Hyde Park corner then easy past Bucks Palace, Parliament Square etc. Quite miss it actually as i don’t bike commute all that much now i’m back in the midlands.

Fargo Ti?

I have the basic steel one which is fab but too heavy for you. The Ti one must be a fair bit lighter. Designed as an offroad capable tourer so should fit the bill.

Pricey though but then all Ti framers are.

£26 each on Rose. That’s where i got mine last year (in the sale for £20 each).

Plus £5 postage sneeks you in under £30 each.

http://www.rosebikes.co.uk/article/continental-road-bike-tyre-grand-prix-4000-s-foldable/aid:194537

Merlin are £405 but don’t know if thats a 2012 or 2013? Is there a difference?

On One have very good deals on Reverbs at the moment and i’m tempted as i now run 3 bikes with a 31.6mm post so i could swap it between bikes.

My main concern (other than varying reports on reliability) is that all my bikes run layback posts whereas it looks like the reverb has no layback capability at all (outside the usual saddle adjustment)?

I switched from 120mm Reba’s to 130mm Revs and find them much better.
Biggest difference for me is the increased tyre clearance with the Revs which means I can run bigger tyres without the dreaded tyre rub that seems the norm with all the RS 29er maxle Reba forks I own.
Plus the Revs just seem slightly plusher but that may be in my head.

My latest 29er is running an XT double with 26/38 with the 11-36 cassette and i’m finding it very good indeed. The 26t is a far more useable gear (for me) than a 22t and the 38t is more than enough for 99% of the rest of my riding. A 44t would be good for the odd bit of road but then that’s what my road bike’s for.

I won’t be swapping over from all my other 3×9 bikes yet but any future bike purchases will likely be 2×10. And the clutch mech (SLX) seems very good as well and is certainly quieter.

Many moons ago i was a waiter in the local hotel and we had a group of people arrive on the Sunshine Bus with their carers.

Everything had been laid out ready but they brought more people than expected so we had to lay another table. I went over to give them all menus which they all took except for the last lady who just looked at me with a quizical look on her face. I just stood there offering her this menu for what seemed like an age before i suddenly realised she had no arms! I just wanted to ground to open up and swallow me.

A crack so soon is a bit worrying Gringo? How much do you weigh? I’m over 15st kitted up so i guess i’d better keep an eye on the frame.

The ease of return/warranty is one of the main reasons i chose this frame over a Chinese imported one and your experience with Planet X reassures me a bit.

Have to say though the bike feels so much faster than any of my other ones and so long as it stays in one piece then i shall remain very happy with it.

RD, is that up the Lickeys near the main carpark?

Always nice through there, shame it’s not a little longer.

I looked at these but found they weren’t wildly cheaper than getting a Planet X Dirty Harry so i went for one of those instead.

I figured it’d be easier to sort out any warranty issues rather than returning frames to China.

My XL Harry weighs 1250g and although i’ve only ridden it twice for around 25 miles so far it feels spot on and incredibly fast compared to my other bikes (this is my first foray into carbon).

Other main reason for picking it was the std BB shell rather than all this pressfit nonsense. So far couldn’t be happier but we’ll see how it bears up longer term.

I’m 40 and rode 1002 miles last month (my best ever) and got my first Strava KOM last night (i’m a gnarly towpath shredder!).

Probably in the best shape of my life so don’t quite feel middle aged yet although i have a feeling it’s not too far around the corner….

I tried to sell my old XL Kona Hoss (ss) as a whole unit on Ebay with a BIN price of £375 and got no takers.

Split it in the end and got around £525 (with no fees as on here) with a few bits left over. More hassle but worth it in the end.

Some of the models have a frame only option, but not all of them.

I seem to recall though that their frame only prices are not great when compared to their full bikes. It’d often be better to buy a full bike then sell off all the kit from it straight away leaving you with a cheaper frame than frame only.

I bough a roadlite off them 2 years ago and it’s been great. All arrived really quickly and i had no problems at all.

My one word of advice to you is buy a spare mech hanger now as they are made of cheese and mine bent when my bike fell over in my office.

I had to pay the £15 for a replacement but it was the £12 postage for a tiny part that really annoyed me. If you buy it with the bike it’s cheaper i think and also no extra postage.

Great bikes and awesome spec for the money compared to the Treks and Specializeds of the world.

I had my first ride on my new Dirty Harry in the Wyre and the conditions were near perfect. Left it until 4pm to start though so had the trails to myself, didn’t see another rider in there. Loved it.

Well i put it all together to be fair, it was just you who made it all work :-)

I’m learning bit by bit……

I built one up recently and had my first proper ride on it today and was very impressed.

My first entry into Carbon and i went for the Dirty Harry instead of a Lurcher as i liked the normal Bottom bracket rather than pressfit.

My XL frame weighs 2.75lbs (4.25lbs lighter than my Honzo!) and has built up into a 25lb (including pedals) bike without any weight weenie additions. Reba Maxle forks, Hope Pro2 on Arch Ex, XT 2×10 with a SLX Clutch mech. Climbed really well today in the Wyre forest and didn’t feel at all fragile with my 15/16st on it.

Bought mine the day before they put them up £50 to £450 which was nice too. I’d definitely recommend one after my experience today but obviously i have no long term test of it yet so time will tell how it bears up to regular use.

12 sets of pedals and around 40 tyres which are either mounted on my large collection of bikes or out in the shed all individually mounted onto spare rims that i’ve reclaimed from the LBS scrap bin so that they all keep their shape and can be easily picked up and stacked. That became a bit of an obsession……

He had a sizeable deposit although a large chunk of that would have been eroded as he bought at the top of the market. He’s playing the long term game, hoping that house prices will increase.

He also increased his debt my getting a BTL as well! He’s not exactly the risk averse type and things tend to work out for him in the end. Although he’d have been buggered if interest rates hadn’t fallen so much and halved his monthly repayments.

The thought that anybody has the nerve to try and claim ‘mis-selling’ by saying they didn’t understand infuriates me. If you don’t understand, don’t sign. Simple. most of these people were just greedy and would ask enough advisers until one eventually helps them, even if others had said they couldn’t afford it.

As AMT27 says, i’m not a great customer for my bank at the moment.

I went interest only 7 years ago as my monthly income can change with bonus so i liked the option to be able to pay chunks off as and when i decided to, rather than set monthly costs of repayment.

For the last few years my mortgage rate has been 0.98% so instead i’ve filled up my cash ISA’s where i’m getting 2.75% and i’ll decide to pay a bit more off in the future when the rate situation changes.

I’m sensible with my finances and know i’ll pay it off one way or another. It’s the people who bury their heads in the sand and then try to blame others for their stupidity/greed that annoy me.

My best mate owes £250k interest only and has not paid a penny off it in the 6 years he’s had it. No savings either. I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night. He knows the risks though and is happy with it.

I had the same problem recently. Reached for my trusty bit of plumbers pipe to realise it was too thin.

In the end i got the next size up in the piping which was a tad too small still but i cut a slot up the side of it and that allowed it to give enough to get the crown race on.

Can’t help you with alternative options though if you can’t get to shop although i’m sure lots of people will just say cut a slot in the crown race and it should go on fine?

My mate had a dicky tummy whilst out walking his two dogs and left a ‘rather runny deposit’ on the path and then turned around to find both his dogs happily tucking into it!

Saved him having to dig a hole i guess but gross nonetheless.

Safe to say i do not let his dogs lick my face!!

My mate had one and liked it a lot but it was unfortunately stolen off him late last year.

There were a few people on here with one and I remember a few threads about them which may show up if you do a forum search?

Nothing!!! Bloody post office cocking it all up!

New cranks, chain and cassette for my mates roadbike to be fitted for him this weekend when he comes up tonight from London.

Dispatched from CRC on Monday and bugger all has turned up. Bloody typical when you really need something. Can guarantee if it doesn’t turn up this afternoon that it’ll be here first thing Monday when he’s 130 miles away again. VERY annoying. :-(

Rode there Weds night and it was ace. The usual few muddy bits that take weeks to dry but 95% was dry and dusty so all good really.

Still quite a few branches around over trails (some natural, some not) but we cleared a few as we rode so if other people do likewise then it should all be pretty good soon.

I’m amazed that you’re too big for a 21″ Scandal seeing as i used to have a 21″ Inbred and it was fine.

As Clubber mentions above, the 23″ Rockhopper i have i sometimes think is a bit too big and i could have a smaller frame.

My legs are almost certainly longer than yours and my armspan finger tip to fingertip is a frankly ridiculous 7ft so i very much doubt (for your sake!!) that your arms are any longer? Must just be down to the personal differences of what is comfortable for you compared to others of a similar or taller height.

There was a thread on here the other day about that american company starting up for tall riders and they can do you a lovely 36″ wheeled bike with 220mm cranks and 250mm discs if you fancy one. Titanium only so it’s bound to be really cheap…. ;-)

Would it work out affordable to sell your bike/frame and replace with a full bike? Or buy a full new bike and immediately strip it and sell all the bits to offset the cost? a £600 Rockhopper would probably enable you to get back at least £200 for the bits and then £100 for the Scandal so it’s only £300 to get the new frame?

I’ve seen a couple of 23″ 29er frames on ebay over the last year. If you’re patient then something will turn up.

Canyon may also do a 22″ frame only option if you have a look?

Have a look on the Triton Cycles website at the Salsa and Surly frames.

Salsa go to 22″ frames (my full suss is a 22″ Salsa) and the Surly Ogre goes up to a 24″.

More stem spacers and/or a higher rise stem may also help with raising the front end (and higher rise bars as well if you run flats).

How tall are you by the way??

Plenty of people make them now.

I assume you’re on a 29er as that’ll suit your height better (generally – each to their own).

I have a 23″ Spesh Rockhopper 29er and it’s fine but then i also have a selection of other bikes ranging from 20″ to 24″. My actual inside leg is around 39/40″ and i’m fine on most 21″ bikes although my 20″ is a tad too short in the seat tube with a 410mm post.

Trek, Specialized, Cube etc all do bikes in up to 23″ sizing so it’s not a massive problem to find one (although arranging a test ride is a different proposition).

If you’re anywhere near the midlands you’re welcome to throw a leg over mine to try.

I’ve used this stuff for a while and found it very good.

Stays on well, doesn’t discolour and is pretty thick.

http://www.tape2go.com/Category/Bike-Frame-Tape/69

I had my honeymoon in Bali in 2011 (after backpacking there in 1996) and it’s a great place.

We hired a guy in a people carrier to ferry us around for the day to do a few touristy things and it cost about £20 (and a tenner tip) so it’s pretty cheap.

When i was there in 1996 i seem to recall i hired a bike from Ubud (go and see the monkey forest) and cycled around the rice fields and it was a lovely day out. Even came across a proper Cockfight (no sniggering at the back!) going on in one of the villages which was a real eye-opener although i’m guessing they may not do that now?

Kuta is very built up but interesting for a day but you will get hassled on the beach etc. There was a great bar further along the beach that had a swimming pool which was ace at night to have a few drinks then slip off your lounger into the pool to cool off. Can’t remember the name though.

People are really friendly but also very poor so a generous tip is very gratefully received and makes a real difference to them.

Singapore on the other hand, may just be me but i spent 24hrs there and could not get out quick enough although i’m sure i’d enjoy it more now that i’m a little older and wiser.