If you can confidently set up a bike yourself, and know if something needs be fettled, a Boardman is great value. They use the same components as everyone else after all, its just the set up that might be off.

Because a) I want to get it working for adequately for a ride, as I won’t be able to buy any in time and b) it’s my rear brake and I hope I will be able to cope with the reduced performance.

Brilliant, thanks guys. There is a decent ironmonger within a lunchtime-breaks-walk from me. Why does everything always go wrong before a weekends ride?

Ok thanks. Will give it a go!

I second what emac65 says.

-Make sure that whatever you do, you enjoy it. Getting weight off and keeping it off is all about changing your lifestyle permanently, even if it’s only a small change. If you start out exercising like crazy and not enjoying it, you will probably give up sooner or later. Make sure you stay within your limits, and build up how much you do over time.

-I would say that it is also helpful to get a routine going – e.g. cycle the same days each week. If you exercise at random unplanned times you are more likely to forget/skip/give up in the end.

-Also, keep an eye on your performance, e.g. time yourself, so that you know when you get better. But don’t get down if it takes a while either! That way you can compete against yourself.

-Finally, if you can get a riding buddy of a similar fitness and incliniation to get fitter, you can organise regular rides and so will be more motivated to keep it going. Less chance of not bothering because its a bit damp/tired/footie is on etc.

Thats exactly what the Rebound is – £36, thin, light, quite breathable and zips up into itself. TK is probably worth a squirt though.

I use an Endura Rebound jacket, again it is showerproof and not waterproof, but I think it works pretty well and is not too sweaty. Good reviews, and looks good in black.

retro83 –

Not that i’ve used Hope, but I don’t think it matters if the smallest few sprockets are not on a carrier. This is the case with XT cassettes for example. I assume the reason is that with the small sprockets it is difficult to generate enough torque to cause damage, e.g. in comparison to the larger radius sprockets.

If you can afford Hope, and more expensive cassettes to run on them, they’re probably better overall. That said, I bought my XT/XM719/DT Comp wheels for less than the price of a Hope rear wheel.

My hardtail bounces when I do the drop test, should I be worried?

Centre-lock is for use with Shimano designed centre-lock brake rotors, whereas 6 bolt is for use with 6-bolt rotors which are used by pretty much everyone else (e.g Avid, Magura etc.).

But bear in mind that both sets of hubs will be considerably heavier than the equivalent centre-lock.

Chain Reaction suggest that Revolution are for XC use only. So like cynical-al said, if you don’t hammer your bike you should be fine, but unless your bike is fairly light already it might not be worth it.

Thanks!

Sounds a bit drastic!

Ah, the famous STW warmth and hospitality.

B&Q. But it was crap, so I ended up hitting it in with a hammer and a piece of wood.

2.0/1.8/2.0 double butted spokes are designed to be as strong as plain gauge but with reduced weight. 2.0/1.6/2.0 are reduced in both weight and strength. I would get 2.0/1.8/2.0, and if you are worried about strength then use 36 spokes.

Of course, if you don’t clean your drivetrain then you wear it out quicker.

I heard you can use the SRAM powerlinks with Shimano chains if you want. Not tried it though, and it only works for 9 speed as the 8 speed chains are different widths between brands.

I use a Park tools cassette brush to get between the sprockets, in conjunction with muc-off. Gets sparkly clean. As for chains, you can get things that clip on and wash them. I use SRAM chains, so I can just unclip them and clean them easily.

Youtube search:

Impressive, but not sure it’s a hardtail:

Don’t lend what you don’t want broken.

😕

Hmm. I don’t think it’s quite as simple as ‘you broke it you mend/replace it’. If you didn’t beforehand explicitly agree or even discuss what would happen in the event of a crash, then I think thats a mistake on both your parts. I would never lend an item of mine to someone if I thought they would have difficulty replacing it, so I think your friend made an error of judgement too.

Isn’t there supposed to be some sort of peer reviewed scientific article knocking around, that found bikes cause less erosion than walkers? Or is that a myth?

Brilliant stuff, thanks guys. I will be coming from Winchester, so Dorking will take a good 1.5 hrs, Guildford about 1hr. I think it’s worth it though for a change of scenery. Is there any public domain info on routes available? I know it can be a sensitive issue – nobody likes to see their trails trashed by excessive numbers of riders – so I won’t be offended if people don’t want to say!

Thanks again.

I think we need a Superstar brake pads sticky thread. Something along the lines:

We have a lot of forum users asking whether or not Superstar brake pads are safe and/or good value. For a definitive response on the matter, see below.

Q: Are Superstar brake pads safe/good value?
A: Yes/No (delete as appropriate)

Having said that, there was a thread yesterday where people were talking about another cheap brake pad supplier. it’s only a forum search away…

Did you put discs on? You can get some bolts from Hope, one of which is a cable guide. Expensive, mind.

+1 for Continental Sport Contacts – Very fast in my experience and look good too. 1.3″ at 90psi and you’ll roll very quickly. Can always go to 1.5″ if you don’t want to go the whole hog.

Me: You need stronger wheels on a hardtail to do the same stuff as on a full sus.
You: You wouldn’t do that stuff on a hardtail.

Both true.

ozzybmx:-

Fair enough. I just reckon that if you were doing, for example, 4ft drops on a hardtail you would need stronger wheels than doing 4ft drops on a 6″ full-suss.

Depends if the welding is done by a skilled craftsman or not.

You seem to have listed most of them. I would just read the reviews where possible, look at the weight/price etc. and choose. one based on that. I just bought a Small Block 8 for similar use, I chose it over the Maxxis Larsen because it was slightly wider and had a better width/weight ratio. Also, one tye you haven’t mentioned is the Racing Ralph – seems quite popular, but is apparently not great on rocks due to thin sidewalls. Can be found for a reasonable price here: http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/?fn=product&productId=1381&categoryId=153

I would be careful not to overbuild your bike – although nothings going to go wrong if you do! For example, assuming you ride the same ‘style’ on both bikes, you would arguably need stronger wheels on a 4″ travel hardtail than on a 6″ full-suss, because the suspension will act to protect the wheels. Of course… if you ride harder and more aggressively on the full-suss (as you say you do) then that makes everything a lot more complicated, but you get the idea!

Personally, for 6″ of air you definitely wouldn’t need more than XM719’s, and XM717’s would probably be fine too (Mavic user here).

Has anyone got any direct experience of the Aerozine BB’s? I mean, actually used them? Not being arsey, just interested if anyone has, and wants to share their experiences.

Hmmm…. Re: Pipe Cutters

If I already have the SFN inserted below the cut-line then internal burrs won’t matter right? The fork is a cheap steel rigid I am putting on a commuter bike for my wife. …

What is this saw-guide you speak of?

Ah, are they only designed for copper tube then?

All I could think of off the top of my head right now, probably worth checking out:

Santa Cruz Chameleon, Marin Rocky Ridge, Identi (I think) Mr Hyde, Cotic BFe, DMR Trailstar, DMR Exalt, Evil Sovereign, Dialled Alpine,

Bear in mind that ‘hardcoreness’, material, weight, fork length and slackness vary considerably…

Not in stock though. I was thinking about them.