Another vote for RaceFace Half Nelsons. Fantastic grips and fit your requirements.

Love my Fenix 3 HR (non-sapphire). Had the Fenix 3 before it, and initially was disappointed in the wrist-based HR, but after the latest software update it works very well. If you want serious HR monitoring (including measuring things like VO2 max), you’ll want to use a chest strap, but for general use the wrist-based one works great and is fairly accurate.

I use it for trail running, hiking and MTB. The navigation features aren’t amazing but very usable. Keep GPX files smallish as it doesn’t seem to like very large files.

That is a beautiful bike.

Gents, when I said fun I meant it is a different kind of fun :). I bought a CX after years of riding 140-160mm bikes. Now on a slack 29er Ti hardtail. All of these are different kinds of fun. Variety is a good thing in life ;)

Sold the CX last summer and bought another mountain bike. Can only have one bike right now, so it has to be a mountain bike, but I’d have both if I could.

Senor j: yes I am local to Friston so fairly familiar with the trails.

I regret selling my CX bike. Was good fun off-road. Here is some riding footage from when I had it.

I have an older Thule RoundTrip which has taken a size large 29er with room to spare. I imagine the new model would be equally roomy.

Here is my second XTR PD-M985 failure, which happened last weekend. Replacement pair failed in the same exact way as the original.

Bike24.com (where I bought the pedals) refused to warranty them as more than three years have passed from original date of purchace. That is extremely disappointing.

With how frequently these pedals are failing, I wonder why Shimano hasn’t issued a recall or at least acknowledged the issue. There is clearly a manufacturing problem with these pedals.

Meanwhile, my old pair of PD-M520’s are still fine and super smooth after many, many years of abuse. They cost a fraction of what XTRs cost.

Thanks everyone for the input. I’ve ordered a steel one.

Titus Fireline Evo 29er

Three_Fish – Member
I use a small piece of 5mm tubing to hold onto cables/hoses. Much neater and more secure. Excess cable tie cut flush with a sharp blade.

Great tip. You can also use make DIY cable guides using cable ties and a section of plastic ferrules.

@DiscJokey I do agree with that, and already bought a “proper” light (the Exposure Axis Mk2) which does seem to be much better made than the cheap Chinese lights (and I don’t have to worry about it burning the house down while charging), but I do like those little lights and would like to use them if at all possible.

Ideally I’d like an Exposure Race for the bars but I can’t currently afford it!

@stevied Thanks for the tip! I might get in touch with Smudge if it looks like something I cannot put together easily.

@neilsonwheels: Sorry :lol: In my defence, with my current work schedule nearly all my rides start after 8pm.

@molgrips I bought them more than a year ago from a UK based eBay seller who doesn’t seem to stock them anymore. There was a thread on here about them.

+1 on the Alpine XL if you’re not running flats.

helitape key areas where cables can rub, clamps will grip and areas that are likely to get stone chips (ie down the bottom of the downtube) and that is it. Helitape has it’s uses to protect those areas, marks on other areas are mementos from every ride.

This. A few strategically placed patches of helitape is all you need to protect against cable rub wear, which can get pretty bad. Otherwise don’t bother.

I find Strava great for two things: 1) personal motivation (“Oh I’ve only logged X number of miles this week so far. I’d better get out for a ride instead of staying in”) and 2) exposing my own confirmation bias when it comes to riding different bikes on the same trails (instead of “oh this feels fast” it’s more “Looks like I am not as fast as I thought I would be on the shiny new bike. Better get fitter!”)

Three or four layers of self-amalgamating tape on the chainstay, clean and lube drivetrain often, grease on stem faceplate and pinch bolts threads, plus the above tips.

1 inch wide Gorilla tape or Nylon-reinforced packing tape.

I am all for preparedness, and I’ve gone through a multitude of hydration packs to find one that’s both comfortable and I can carry everything I “need” in (found the Osprey Zealot 16 pretty close to perfect), but these days I am all about sensible minimalism. Bought a pair of Specialized SWAT and Race Face Stash bib shorts with the pockets that go over the baggies. Brilliant kit. The setup is as follows:

On the bike:
1- One spare tube strapped to the top tube with a velcro compression strap used for camera tripods (£1 off eBay).
2- Two 25g CO2 canisters strapped to the bottom of the seattube with a Zefal CO2 holder.
3- One 610ml bottle in bottle cage

In bib shorts rear pockets (also works with roadie type jerseys with rear pockets. Must be fitted so that stuff doesn’t flop around):
1- Left rear pocket: Topeak Ratchet Rocket (by far my favorite tool) + small snack or energy gel.
2- Middle rear pocket: Another 610ml water bottle.
3- Right rear pocket: Small zipped pouch with micro CO2 inflator, tyre boots/patch kit, spare powerlinks, and Presta to Schrader adapter + a second spare tube.

Baggy shorts pockets:
1- Phone, £10 bill and cards inside a Timbuk2 Mission wallet.
2- Jellybeans in a ziplock bag in the other pocket.

I have a pair of the base model (Guide R) and have done 500kms running them without issues. I am running them with Hope rotors and so far they’ve been very quiet.

I’ve recently bought a slack titanium 29er hardtail after years and years of riding full suspension bikes. I’d be lying if I say I don’t miss suspension, but as others in said in this thread: it’s different, not better or worse. With full sussers my style was to just steamroller everything. With a hardtail you pay a heavier price with choosing the rougher lines, and it doesn’t compensate for your mistakes like rear suspension does. I am a pedal masher and I am enjoying the efficiency and simplicity of being back on a HT until I eventually buy a new FS. If I could have both, I would.

With the big wheels, a 120mm fork, dropper post and relaxed geometry, it’s great for 90% of my riding. I think unless we’re talking about full-on DH gnar or serious racing, the biggest bottlenecks are always skills and fitness, not HT vs FS.

I inflated an On-One Smorgasboard on my crest 29er rims with a Topeak Mountain Morph pump. This one was brand new, though. Wasn’t able to do the same with an older one with sealant residue.

Some strange comments in this thread indeed. Last I checked this is a bike forum, for talking about, sharing pictures, impressions and opinions of bikes, regardless of and without questioning the perceived riding ability of whoever participates.

@mboy thanks for sharing the nice review. It’s not a bike I can afford right now but it looks amazing, and I am sure it rides as nice as it looks.

Big group ride Thursday evening, 25+ riders. Sprightly ride leader/trail builder stopping every so often to guide people around and give riders new to the group some pointers about what to expect on the trails ahead. At a rest stop he’s doing his thing and says – in reference to the narrow, twisty and rooty singletrack – “If you go 10% faster, it becomes 20% harder”. Rider from the back yells out “You sound like my missus!” :D

Cheers, Del. Where did you order it from?

Optimum width for my liking is 760-780 with a 45-50mm stem. Anything wider than 740 on my local trails, which involve threading through tight and twisty tree lined singletrack for a good length of most rides, makes things not very enjoyable. I am running 720mm low rise Easton Havens on a 29er hardtail and, while not “wide enough” by today’s standards, it is appropriate for riding the local singletrack.

I went back to saddle bags, bottles and jersey pockets for short rides. Backpack comes along only on longer rides. Best saddle pack I’ve found for my purposes is the Ortlieb Micro. Waterproof, dropper compatible (attaches to saddle rails with a quick release buckle), and zipperless (roll closure). Takes a couple of tubes, tyre levers and a patch kit. I found it much better, especially if you’re using a dropper, than the Topeak Wedge which I’ve also used.

I have one. It is very sensitive to cable tension. Loosen the grub screw that holds the cable and make sure the actuation arm can move freely and the mechanism isn’t gunked up. If the cable has corroded in the outer this can also cause issues. Rule out cable issues first before looking into potential internal problems.

Manitou Hexlock thru axle by any chance? If yes, there is a particular way of doing it up which If done wrong will result in very noticeable play.

@mikeep I am potentially interested if molgrips doesn’t want them.

Thanks for the correction, z1ppy :)

10mm increase in travel will slacken the head angle by about 1 degree. I’ve run slightly longer than spec forks on many bikes and it was fine. I believe more than 10mm and it starts significantly negatively affecting the handling and geometry.

That looks lovely. What rims are those mboy?

Cracked frame thread is never quite right without picture of damage in question.

I have a set of 29er Crests built on Superstar hubs. They’re definitely flexy (or flexier than similar 26 wheels I’ve had, this being my first 29er, but 29er wheels are on average flexier than comparable 26 counterparts as I understand) but seem tough for their weight class. In corners the tyres rub the Mucky Nutz fender I have on the fork, but it’s a big tyre and very little clearance between the tyre and fender.

@eat_more_cheese that’s such sound logic, spend more to save more! :D

Good one! Ordered. Thanks OP :)

Saracen Hack also worth a look.

I am surprised no one mentioned the Funn Funnduro yet :lol:

Great stem for the money. Very well made.

@mintimperial I wish I got this a month ago. Attempting to do a lower leg service on my father’s Trace, I stripped the thread on the foot nut trying to loosen the damper rod :?