There's avery good step by step guide on the fox website for servicing the forks. The basic oil/wiper seals change is easy and the seals are about £15 from Mojo. The Talas chamber service is harder but does not need to be done at the same time.

DeVs – Member
Will I die if I use a normal Deore 32t ring or does it have to be one with no ramps etc?

I use a standard 39T Shimano ramped ring with no issues. I cant see how the pins can interfere with the chain on a single speed.

That's great Ed, I've emailed you about booking a place

I would be up for either of the two Saturday dates suggested by Ed in November at Gisburn

The stop crashing skills days look good. Should we see if we can arrange 1 for a saturday in October?. Seems to be a min of 3 and a max of 6 people. My preference would be for lee quarry.

I've been thinking about the Ed-O ones at Lee quarry. Would be interested in a group one.

Very small for quoted size and no grip in any conditions. Tried front and back, They're awfull.

Going to a 36/22 front ring combination, shorter chain and using a dry lube (squirt) seems to have cured most of the chainsuck issues I was having with my 853 inbred. I have thought abut the indent and med cage mech as suggested by restlessnative and will probably do this if the problem comes back. The only time I have had chainsuck since was in really claggy conditions, a jubilee clip fitted behind the middle ring stopped the chain from jamming and causing damage, it isn't pretty but is hidden behind the rings.

Going up to Gisburn straight from work this afternoon, its been dry all week so should be good 🙂

As Surfer said. Have done it with my 9 year old. Take the initial climb easy and then it is a fairly easy ride back down – good for a first experience, I would probably take my lad on the red next time. Nowhere near as difficult as the Gisburn and Whinlatter blue routes if that is any help.

On a rare sunny day this summer

IME riding straight away helps to seal them, assuming they are only loosing air slowly.

There is a charge if it is out of warranty (12 months).
Tell them you want to end your subscription and they will probably replace it for free. It worked for me anyway.

izakimak – Member
i've got some kevlar one's which are great in the dry and interesting in the wet

Interesting in a good or a bad way? I was thinking of trying some next

Sintered last for ages, no complaints here. I've even managed to rescue some contaminated ones without the backing falling off.

The weldtite kit that uses what look like sticky pipe cleaners is good for small tears. I would certainly expect it to seal a 5mm tear

I bought some forks off them a couple of months ago. A bit slow to dispatch but otherwise okay.

Currently using the hope BB with the truvative type converter. Feels really smooth and free spinning compared to the original Truvative one. Too early to tell how long it will last.

They work pretty well off road, bit tricky on the technical stuff but thats more down to my lack of skill, they feel up to the job. Mine is set up with v-brakes, flat bar, 700c wheels with cross tyres and a road chainset modified to run singlespeed. Thinking of fitting some midge bars

Anyway of clamping the BB in a vice and using the frame as leverage? Has worked for me in the past. Otherwise try soaking in plusgas

+1 for the cateye strada, easy to use, clear and small. Should be able to get a wireless one for ~£30. Pretty waterproof too – mines just been through the washing machine 😳

28.6mm I think the new XT mechs are multisize anyway.

I've just set up that combination with the spacer above. Works fine, there is a video on the hope website explaining how to set them up.

Stumpyjon – File received thanks

Thinking of giving it a try on Friday, please could anyone who has a copy of the GPX file forward it to me martin@mhorrobin.fsnet.co.uk , cheers

hora – Member
Just dont buy an Exception series one. I know I know- its race only. Two rides, just two rides- 1.5hrs in Hebden and 3.5hrs on the Peaks and the sidewalls are utterly ruined- I spotted the innertube sticking out as well thread showing round.

I've been running a 2.1 exception advantage on the front for about 6 months now (mainly around rivington + some peaks) Running it tubeless, Some thread is starting to show but keeps pressure okay. Don't think they're that fragile

Did anyone see the guy doing it on the kids bike? must have been 10" wheels maximum. Saw him past Preston on my way back. Hope he made it

Nothing wrong with doing it on an SS, although I did get the urge to change gear towards the end. Pretty easy to keep up with the geared riders when its as flat as it was (or most of them weren't trying!)

That headwind was a killer, but helped coming back. 3 hours 45 going and 3 hours 15 return to Wigan (including getting lost in Preston), total 102 miles. Good day and well organised.

Can't you bend it back into shape? I had a similar problem last year, also on an 853 inbred, and the dropout got badly splayed. Using an old axle screwed into the rear mech hanger I managed to bend it pretty much back into shape and its been fine since. Probably worth a try before having a new dropout welded.

mrchrispy – Member
looking forward to it, looks like the rain should hold off.

Good timing – Its just started lashing down 😕

Yes, also planning to cycle back to Wigan making it ~100 miles, never been that far before. Will be on a SS Roadrat.

The topeak mini morph is a good pump if you find the mountain morph too big. Requires a bit more effort but no problems pumping 2.1s up to ~30PSI

I found them small, and narrow even in a bigger size. They didn't stretch/improve with time and I gave up on them eventually

Oury grips. The lock on version are great, but difficult to get hold of. Try descent-gear.com, I’ve found them very helpful

I’m currently set up 36/22 without a bashring. I left the front mech at the original height with no obvious problems. I kept the standard XT mech and 3 position shifter but have screwed it the H screw to stop accidental changes to the 3rd ring position

They seem to wear a lot better than XTR ones. You can get replacement bearings (enduro)from CRC for about £2

+1 for conti vapours. Don’t seem to grip on anything

I found the clamps really difficult to alter when getting the position correct, I had to take the whole thing apart and guess again rather than make small adjustments. Once set up correctly it has worked perfectly well.

B) Only been once but will be going again soon, it is an excellent trail and deserves supporting