Just turned 50 here, and off MTB with a herniated disc in my back, probably for about six months! Have seriously considered whether I should try to pick it up again or just buy a set of lawn bowls :(

Have decided I’d really miss the fresh air, camaraderie, and challenge of MTB, so will definitely aim to get back on the bike. Anyway, as the Physio said to me – you’re better off keeping up a sport of some kind or you’ll be more likely to get back/knee/etc. problems because of weight gain and inactivity.

However, I have to accept I will probably never get back to the same level of fitness I was when I stopped, and will also probably tone down the technicality of what I ride in the future, and leave the races for the younger set.

As always, the answer is “depends what you want to do with it”.

IMHO its an awesome cross country race bike, uber fast on the flowy stuff.

However, when the going gets technical, I still leave the Anthem at home, and ride my 26″ Trance, which I find much better for tight and twisty stuff, jumps, and rocky/rooty sections.

Have you thought about the new 27.5 Anthem? May be a bit closer to a do-it-all bike if that’s what you’re after… 2014 Anthem 27.5[/url]

I thought every had whacked them out with a big hammer and screwdriver at some point in their life

Not me! I’ve stripped everything else off donor hubs in the past to keep a favourite wheel running, but didn’t know the bearing cup would come out, until now… :D

Nice tip cynic-al, thought I go straight outside and try that with one of my donor hubs…

Success :D

Shimano SLX jockey wheels 7 Euro, and XT 14 Euro from the usual German shops. But reading between the lines you’re just looking for an excuse to buy a clutch mech, so… they’re not worth it – get a new mech! :wink:

I got the Turbocharger, and it certainly looks the biz. However, the plastic is real thin round the chainring bolts, and after clunking the thing on a couple of logs/rocks the plastic has split at all four bolts. I replaced it with an aluminium Blackspire instead, and although it doesn’t look so gnarr, stands up to the punishment better. By the way, the Turbocharger comes with longer chainring bolts, at least mine did.

Just recently I have been sent a barometer by air courier and ’tis buggered – wondering if the flight pressure is to blame.

Yes. Same happened to me when I bought one in Switzerland as a souvenir, and brought it home in my baggage.

The last thing that I’d be thinking about when moving half way around the world is whether I was a bit better off or not – ‘cos if its a 5h1t place to live the money will be irrelevant (see post on Dubai).

Culture, weather, family situation and quality of life are the reasons to move.

This.

TBH, if you’ve had the opportunity to go for a few years and haven’t, then its clear your heart isn’t really in it. To move half way round the world to a new country and a new life you’ve really gotta want to make it work. If you can’t decide one way or ‘tother, then it probably won’t work, so I wouldn’t bother….

there are actually 8 clicks on the left although there are just 3 displayed

There’s two different options for the front shifter – 3-speed which only has three indexed shifts, and micro-adjust which allows you to fine tune the position of the front shifter. IMHO, if you have your FD set up properly you shouldn’t need micro-adjust, and in fact just gives you more possibility of cage rubbing…

So I suppose if one were to change the 38 for a 36 it should be fine.

That would certainly solve most of the problems, so long as they were a properly matched ‘pair’ of rings, such as the M665 36/22 rings.

Any idea if there’s a noticeable difference between 24 front, 36 rear and 22 front 34 rear?

24×36 is 17.3 gear inches, and 22×34 is 16.8 gear inches, so they are pretty much the same.

Yes it’ll fit, any 64 BCD ring will.

However, I think you’re shifting will be ‘sub-optimal’ in a couple of areas. First, changing up is a big gap, and you may have to accept a bit of rattle-rattle-clunk. Second, on changing down from the 38, the ramps will send the chain off at the angle where its expecting to find a 24 ring. The 22 will, however, be lower, so the chain may occasionally overshoot the granny ring and end up on the BB shell. I had this when I used similarly mis-matched chainrings – in my case a 36T designed to work with a 24T and I paired it with a 22T instead, but the principle is the same.

Last, I have a 24/38 XT setup, and the chain already rubs on the bottom of the cage when in the smallest 2/3 sprockets on the back, so with a 22 granny ring this is likely to extend to the smallest 4/5.

So in summary, it’ll work, but the shifting won’t be perfect.

Have been using a pair on my hybrid/commuter with XT drivetrain for the last five years or so. Flawless operation, last well. Compared to the XO I suspect they are basically the same shifter painted a different colour, as the grips are interchangeable. In fact, that’s the only gripe I have that the ‘Amy’ grips that come on the Attack are too small for my large sweaty hands, so changed them for a pair of the XO grips straight away.

Its not the best place to be asking for a ‘diagnosis’ and you should wait for the report, but IMHO I would say you’ve got a nice case of degenerative disc ‘disease’ or lumbar disc degeneration there. There’s moderate to severe narrowing of the L5/S1 disc space with subchondral sclerosis (the white stuff) of the vetebral end plates. Its possible you’ve also got some modic changes (swelling/oedema) going on in the vertebrae too and a potential disc prolapse/bulge with bilateral nerve root compression at that level given the symptoms you describe (pain down the backs of your legs). An MRI would show this in more detail so I’d have a chat with your GP or neuro/ortho consultant about that.

It’s not the end of the world so don’t worry too much. Obviously its painful but your consultant/GP should discuss the options with you.

I would recommend time off sitting at a desk (it will be crucifying that disc) and spend some time lying on your back with an ice pack underneath you 20-30 mins at a time every 1.5-2 hours. But don’t put ice or a cold pack directly on your skin – you’ll get ice burn.

Obviously all IMHO so don’t take this as a definitive diagnosis or owt.

No, I’m not listening… I’m riding my favourite trail, the sun is shining, I’m younger and fitter, you’re all getting very faint… Wow these new pain meds are really good…

If it were me and I were a worrier (which I am) I’d be worried.

Now I’m worried that you as a worrier, are not worried because you think I’m not a worrier, which I am…I think?

BTW – the prognosis probably isn’t as bad as you think it is.

And now I’m really worried, because one of the few people on this thread who knows what he’s talking about is telling me not to worry, which obviously means it’s more worrying that I thought and he’s just trying not to worry me…

And on that note I’m going to pop a few happy pills and float off to painless slumber… have fun all :-)

You need to see an ATOS “expert”who will confidently diagnose that working is the best medicine, you good for nothing malingerer.

Oh cr@p! Someone’s rumbled me. Seriously, do you know me Nick1962 (looks nervously over shoulder)

Shh, has he gone yet?

Ok, back on track…

George, what does the percentage on the graph represent please?

I’m guessing it’s a relative measure of stress on the back, with it indexed at 100 for normal standing position.

That’s me straining to have a poo in the top right hand corner with the stressometer at 275 :D

Just to give an alternative view – I run UST rims and tyres without sealant, but then I’m blessed with thorn free trails. As for pressures, I think tyre manufacturers just put those on to cover themselves, and I’ve run mine as low as 20psi without any problems, especially as proper UST don’t burp like ghetto tubeless.

Oh do lighten up Sancho, sounds like you’re the one with the light bulb stuck up your arse!

I’ve been in pain and on meds for four weeks, I know the prognosis isn’t good, I’m not really asking for serious medical opinions, read my posts above – I’m just having a bit of fun to while away the boredom cos I can’t ride.

It’s my back afterall, not yours, and if I want to engage in a bit of frivolity to distract myself from the serious nature of it, where’s the harm in that?

It’ll get serious enough when I see the doc on Monday, and where will you be then, my concerned friend?

I am pleased you cant see the lightbulb.

There’s a bloody light bulb somewhere in that X-ray – no wonder my back hurts… Could I have swallowed it – or sat on it – er, accidentally of course :oops:

DrP, stop wasting your time on this thread with a bunch of whingers who probably won’t even turn up for the rest of the thread, and get back to my thread where you belong and diagnose my back problem. Sheesh – you just can’t get the attention of a real doctor moonlighting on a bike internet forum any more – what’s the system coming to…

It’s a trick question.. That’s not an X-ray…..(or more specifically, it’s not a plain lumbar radiograph)

No, it was one of those whizzy spinney things, a CAT Scanner I think you guys in the white coats call ’em.

Now there DrP, you’re being far too cryptic for me.

Do I take it I should hold off on booking the MTB holiday to New Zealand in six months time?

And sorry – no carbon for me, and anyway by the way things are going I may need to weld my two ally bikes together to make a wheelchair…

I must add I’m also little disappointed in the quality of the image. At a couple of million quid for a CT scanner, you’d think they could have at last wiped the lens with a tissue before they took a snap, so it didn’t look like it was snowing in there…

So – give it to me straight…. will I ever be able to poo again without it hurting?

Only with Picolax.

Oh shit!

What I”m about to tell you isnt strictly true, but it’ll do. The big gap down the middle of your x-ray is a tunnel that carries the spinal cord. At the level of every disc branches come off of it and go and do stuff to certain segments of the body – the beginning of those branches are called nerve roots. If the disc bulges into the tunnel those nerve roots get compressed and cause pain, numbness or weakness. The narrow level that you pointed out is L5-S1 – the bottom of your lumbar spine and the start of your sacrum.

So – give it to me straight…. will I ever be able to poo again without it hurting?

I’d be going for nerve root compression at L5-S1 caused by damaged disc. The two levels above it aren’t looking too clever either though.

Now that sounds like a man who knows what he’s talking about, I just wish I understood what you just said :D

Have you tried having a really good poo?

I’d love to, but unfortunately it’s too painful to .. er.. strain!

.. and last time I got my vernier callipers out to check, a 9sp chainring is exactly the same width as a 10sp one, and the spacing between chainrings on 9sp and 10sp cranks is the same. So, what the difference between 9sp and 10sp cranksets is, I just don’t know…

so we’re looking around late October / early November

Good call, as it can be too damn hot in mid-summer, especially if you’re coming over all pasty and white from a typical British winter – have to hide indoors in the aircon for about a week to acclimatise :lol:

Completely dismissed me on the basis I rode me bike in and riding on a regular basis.

I had an irregular heart rhythm a few years back and was on a 24hr recorder. Although they did tell me not to have sex that night as it “messes up the recordings”, they didn’t tell me I couldn’t ride my bike. So I rode in to the hospital to have it removed the next day and got thoroughly scolded by the nurse :oops: Still don’t really understand what the problem was – don’t they want a representative sample of what I usually do?

Coincidentally got my latest test results today – 11.2, so its creeping up…

Also, after what others said here I discussed options with the doctor and have switched from patches to gel.

Shoefiti, my levels weren’t as low as yours to start with, and I went on the mildest dose of patch, but I still noticed a marked difference in energy levels. So, when you get some testosterone flowing in your blood stream again you’re gonna feel like a teenager again :lol:

PerthMTB, already looked at them and they’re the best option, although 10 days, IME (not necessarily with them), has a habit of becoming much longer because it’s very depedant on the distributor having stock to push out to the dealer…

Yeah, I know what you mean. But I’d suggest you flick an email to them and ask exact delivery date. That’s what I did when they were showing 20 days or more on my 150mm, and true to form it arrived in stock and they shipped it to me on the exact day they said! They are German afterall :wink:

Yep that’s a standard Shimano 2×10 direct mount FD. The 38-44T refers to the largest chainring it’ll work with, its not the two chainrings. Standard Shimano SLX or XT 2×10 is 38 or 40T big ring, so it’ll work fine, not sure where you got 36T from, unless you’ve fitted non-standard rings?

Any other Euro sites worth a look at as potential for a Lev?

These guys are showing 125mm LEV in stock in 10 days time. Its where I bought my 150mm LEV a few weeks back. If you order now they’ll reserve one for you and it’ll ship as soon as stock arrives, and you’ll have it within two weeks of now. Don’t know what the warranty arrangements are – maybe have to return to Germany if you have problems?!?

Last year I was riding an XTC 26″ and my mate an XTC 29″ as our race bikes. Both good lightweight hardtail bikes, and the carbon frame even more so. I’ve now graduated to an Anthem 29er as my race bike as I’m getting old, and the hardtail was punishing my back too much on all day epics, but if you’re young and fit enough to keep your bum off the saddle for a couple of hours then go for it…

Really, you’d run tubeless but not put sealent in?

Yes, run both bikes tubeless now with UST rims and tyres, don’t use sealant, and haven’t had a puncture yet.

surely you’d still be defeated by tiny thorns etc then?

Well, proper UST tyres are thicker, which helps, but I’ll also have to admit there’s not many thorns around where I ride…

I’m with mickey and cloudnine on this one – proper UST rims and UST tyres are the way to go. Why anyone would muck about with rim strips, sticky white goo, compressors etc. is beyond me, when there’s a perfectly good system designed from the bottom up to work without all that cr@p – and they don’t ‘burp’ in use either.

Setting up the rear is same as 3×9, but front has some peculiarities to catch out the unawary. Like the position of the FD when in granny is set by cable tension rather than the ‘L’ adjuster screw, and you have to make sure you select the right ‘shift’ on the shifters, because they do pull different amounts of cable. Best place for instructions is the manual that comes with the FD rather than Park or Sheldon. If it’s a Shimano one, this is the procedure…

That’s interesting shoefiti and Endurogangster. I think I’ve got to the limit of my GP’s understanding on the topic and should probably ask for referral to a specialist endocrinologist if I want to know more…

Interesting anecdote about the guy who got a new girlfriend. I’ve heard about there being various positive and negative feedback loops involved with testosterone production (which is another reason why a one-size-fits-all ‘normal’ level isn’t particularly helpful), and one of the best documented is the ‘winner effect’. I read an interesting article about it here …

The testosterone feedback loop is known as the winner effect. The winner effect had been observed in nature for many different species, from cichlid fish to rhesus monkeys, and its physiology is well understood. When two animals square off in anticipation of a fight, they experience a rise in testosterone levels. This self-doping mechanism prepares the animal for competition, increasing the blood’s capacity to carry oxygen, quickening the speed of reactions, and, via its effect on the brain, increasing fearlessness and appetite for risk. In the aftermath, winners can emerge with a tenfold increase in the amount of testosterone circulating in their bodies, whereas losers’ testosterone levels can be suppressed by the same order of magnitude. This doping effect can sometimes last for months. Nature primes winners to keep winning and losers to keep losing.

The article goes on to relate testosterone levels in Wall Street traders and the winner effect to financial bubbles! But at the individual level I guess its not too much of a mental leap to imagine an event in your life, like getting a new girlfriend, kicking off a positive testosterone feedback loop, that can become self sustaining over a longer period of time…

Anyway, good luck with your test tomorrow, and I hope you get your Mojo back soon :D

Like MrTall, I buy mine cheap from Germany, so just go for the top of the range XTR as a matter of course, as they are supposed to be sealed better and so last longer, and are only a couple of quid more than the SLX/XT level ones. And yes they’re interchangeable – I’ve used XTR BBs with Deore, SLX and XT, in fact every type of HT-II crank except XTR!