THanks @davros that’s a good shout as I’ve not looked at mine…

Will have to check clearances to the caliper, don’t recall it being too tight but didn’t pay too much attention if I’m honest

Thanks for the positive comments. Tyres are skinny as I was aiming for something fast & light as it will see some road / flatter trails where I live – I can always swap them for something fatter if the mood takes me (one of the reasons I went for this bike).

Dropper is a possibility, hadn’t planned to fit one at the start, but given the breadth of capabilities the bike has it feels like I’m short changing it by not fitting one – hoping to find a cheap brand X soon.

Weight – not weighed it yet, need to get it on the bathroom scales. Tried to keep half an eye on weight where possible, without getting too carried away.

Was out walking / riding Malvern today so still not had chance to ride it 🙁

Thanks for the comments and the sharing link….let’s try again…

so, guess the Border Force Gods were not smiling on me. Just had to stump up 20% VAT & 4% import duty.

Not the end of the world as I was only buying from Europe because there was availability (Forks & Brakes). Had I been able to source them in the UK I probably would have & paid the VAT etc anyway.

Mildly frustrating it’s seemingly random!

Not looking promising….‘ revised customs charges raised’

16/4/2021 10:40 International Hub Released from customs
16/4/2021 10:17 International Hub Revised Customs charges raised
16/4/2021 10:11 International Hub Customs charges raised
15/4/2021 19:22 International Hub Awaiting Customs clearance

Interesting how inconsistent this is!

I’ve finally had confirmation that my forks & Brakes have been shipped from R2-Bike via DHL. Let’s see how the tax lottery goes…

Really interesting thanks. So Thunder Burts possibly a bit too much of a compromise & not as fast rolling or grippy as Continental Race King’s according to https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/mtb-reviews.

I’ve never had a problem with the Double Fighters (3’s btw), but they’ve had an easy life on the old bike.

Would be interesting to know how they compared Rolling resistance wise with the Race kings. Typically not on https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com!

R2-bike listing it at 320eur, but not in stock til April. I managed to source a full XT set from my lbs for £430 (no brakes or BB).

Probably not the cheapest, but felt reasonable & he had it there. It’s now in my garage awaiting all the other bits I haven’t been able to source for my build….

Sounds like it’s still worth giving it a go. Based on the discounted cost, even if I get hit with the full duties I think the cost will still be ok, but availability is much better than uk.

If I get lucky then I’m quids in!

Thanks. Do you know if the bay is based on the RRP, or the price paid?

Thanks samualr. That is helpful, wasn’t sure if that was official / guaranteed

Apologies. I’m new here, had a look but hadn’t seen anything other than the r2 bike thread, which I wasn’t sure was conclusive. I posted a link on it but that wasn’t too clear either

spoke to Darren at length – he was very helpful & absolutely knows his stuff, but I’m still working through all the options…

Does anyone know what Hubs JRA use?

not sure if this helps
https://www.theguardian.com/money/2021/jan/21/eu-website-purchases-the-import-charges-uk-customers-have-to-pay

Thanks for all the inputs, had a bit of a search around some of the recurring recommendations. See below (Hopefully the formatting stays). Purely cost / weight / aesthetics so far, not got stuck into the detail but the SILTS are looking interesting. JRA a possibility if I can get rid of the lairy decals.

Hunt Looks great, fragile? £360 May 1657g
Dcr No pics, weight is 650b £400 1634g
Newmen Looks good £600 Stock 1600g
Jra traildog Don’t like the graphics £400 Stock 1600g
Strada wheels Stans arch & hope £555 ? ?
Silt Looks great, ratchet drive? £370 April 1510g

Definitely mixed feedback on the Hunts. Seems to be the old adage of light / cheap / strong…..choose 2.

I was hovering on the buy button until the price went up £30 & delivery went from Feb to may this week (2 days after calling to confirm availability!)

This thread has given me a big alternative list to wrk thru. DTs being a safe bet apparently & ive also realised hope hubs are heavy.

Wheels definitely the hardest choice for the build. Everything else is clear in my head!

Good spot thanks. It’s last years model, but if it’s still there it will give a pretty indication.

They aren’t too far from me either…I’ll drop them a line…

Any enthusiastic comments from owners would be good to hear as well!

Grrr. How do I quote someone else’s post?!

Sourced a rear tyre dropper on its way spin around the block its ace 🙂

124027553_10159127420711474_8905569158335350775_o by Richard Munro, on Flickr

That does look lovely!

Yeti ARC is a stunning bike & ive always loved Yetis, but I think I’m looking for something more SC

Thanks for the replies all – I’m even more confused!

Need to have another look at the geometry. I like the idea of a short chainstay (Highball / Signal) & want something efficient to pedal without being as twitchy as my Acid (545mm top tube / 70deg Head angle / 72 deg seat angle & 1050mm Wheelbase)

Interesting the SC isn’t seen as too harsh as that is a concern – I hadn’t considered a Chameleon as I thought that was a slacker ride…

I’ll check out the Broken road in more detail as well – Ti Bikes are sooo pretty…

I don’t need anything too Enduro as I use my Bronson for that kind of riding.

I could go to the next build spec, but that is just budget creep in the extreme. I started off looking for something around £2.5k….!

Pikes can be got for around £550, and I reckon I could sell the sektors for around £200? I have also been offered £300 in vouchers against the bike which I could use toward a reverb & invisiframe. Putting me around £3400 all in for bike, pikes, reverb & invisiframe.

Old one seemed pretty well liked, what makes you say you wouldn’t touch the old one with a bargepole?

Sorry, I should say, I’m UK based, looking a the ‘basic’ R AM build on a carbon frame, but with a fork upgrade. Guess it will come in around £3500…