Yes, it’s c£25 for the 120mm air shaft from bike24. 30min job or any decent bike shop should fit for c£30.

Ridden the 2015/16 Anthems, 16 Anthem SX and 15/16 Trances very recently. The Anthem is great and with 120mm fork very trail capable. Very light frameset too.

The 100mm rear travel is sufficient for most uses. In 100mm front fork guise it is very xc orientated.

I bought the 2015 Trance 1 though in the end.

These were ridden against the Whyte, Scott, Specialized, Trek and Cannondale options up to £3.5k both xc and trail bikes.

I got my mx3 11-40 off eBay (mtbriders.co.uk) and the 11-42 they sell has the b screw.

MX3 is considerably lighter than the ms3 although a bit more expensive.

The 11-40 will work with any medium or long rear mech (deore upwards) without a replacement b screw.

I run a 30t nw on mine, kmc chain and xt rear mech. Whole drive train is smooth as a standard 11 speed xt albeit only 10 speed.

Watch out as one of those is the ms3 not mx3 and it is considerably heavier.

I have just gone with the sunrace 1×10 11-40 mx3 from mtbriders.co.uk eBay store. Weighs 25g more than the 11-36 slx it replaced and no need to replace my 10 speed derailleur, chain, shifter etc.

The usable difference in 1×10 vs 1×11 ratio range at either 11-40 or 11-42 is negligible.

Coupled with a 30t superstar NW ring and it’s all good.

The functional range of 27 or 30 speed was only ever 30-40% of total gears including some crossover before derailleur rub or over stressing the chain line.

Fuuuuuuuu just ordered a load of stuff this week could have saved £20 Fuuuuuuu

Softshell Jackets are good as always. The black/blue ones I picked up earlier are easily as good as much more expensive ones.

Definitely wind / water proof

Screwfix do a whole range of very cheap options but I use these

http://m.screwfix.com/p/smith-locke-heavy-duty-screw-in-anti-slip-square-storage-hook-black-158mm/1998j

My favourite lhs offers 20% back on the bike purchases in accessories or components. This is a publicised local offer.

Others will not budge on price at all even selling the same bike.

I made this choice last week and went with the Trance 1 (2015).

My medium weighs 28lbs dead with no pedals which considering the spec on an alu frame including a dropper is pretty good. The frame looks awesome in the raw aluminium.

I found the giant t1 fit me better than the cannondale.

I spent the last 3 weeks looking at everything sub 4k and luckily I have a range of dealers within 30 miles that cover nearly all high end.

Brant….Brant….Braaaaant…

Oh…no wait, er you’re stuffed.

Give them a call, they are normally ok about things to be fair.

I have to say though, that looks a poor design for cf given the forces at that point; as it looks like it is a machined reduction in material rather than as part of the layup.

Bikes too heavy, that is all.

Park stand = propper pro so your bike should be 22-23lbs..

I have one of these and you could happily do chinups without it bending so i think you either built it wrong or have a dodgy one.

120mm stem x 640mm bars

….Doc called, he wants his flux capacitor back….

Loads of rear tyre clearance so although no boost could take 27.5+ 2.8 at least.

Yes its good, really good and crazy spec for the money imo. I had a blast on one and they have it dialled this year. But lol they go 29 with 120mm travel as the industry goes back to 27.5. Very light as well and proper 1 x 11.

Be aware like the other night halfords do flash 10% off sales periodically, usually twice per month and a 2 hour window. Click and collect for the discount. Was 900 the other day because of this. But I guess as ctw not an otion.

What remedy model and how much?

Lots of 2015 showroom stock still hanging around the dealer networks.

Spent the last month bike hunting and found most 2015 options from giant, trek and specialised at 30% plus off between the local independents.

Settled on a new 2015 giant trance 1 for £1800 in the end.

Cheapest I got a rear door replaced, fitted and sprayed on a mk iv astra was £650 cash all in. I had prices from that to 2k. That was after my neighbour reversed off his drive into it (ignoring his parking sensors). He paid for the repair and I wasn’t that fussed.

However, it wasn’t a great repair job but good enough.

The only way to do cheaper was find a mint condition scrap door in the right colour and have a quick blow over done on the door only to bring it up better but very easy to get poor panel match that way.

I would say to get done properly you are looking at £1500+.

Beast of the East 2 is best value in the range.

The £1 per gramm doesn’t seem to apply to lower end bikes. Once you get to deore/x5 level equipped bikes with reasonable own branded finishing kits and reasonable forks then it gets harder.

Nice bars thanks for the heads up.

External have always been fine it’s the internal/integrated I had issues with. Never pushed it though and went and got a proper tool when it wasn’t going to plan.

Some headsets will not seat right with the wood and hammer trick. You can buy the cheap threaded rod set ups on eBay or make yourself one for similar money. Much better and costs 5-10£.

To knock out a headset, use PVC pipe, think I use 28mm. Cut it lengthways so you can flare it out so it looks like the proper tools. Works a treat and no damage as you can have as much as needed protruding at the top.

What would be great is if you could have the option to select 10-15 of choice from the catalogue in either a photo book or as a book or collage of a4/a3/a2 art prints which can be wall mounted.

Would make thinking of inventive Christmas presents easier for my aging riding buddies.

What bike?

IMO, if its coming with cable bb7s as stock anything over deore would be overkill.

If it’s a lower end bike be mindful of the value of upgrades vs buying a better bike to start with. There really are very noticeable diminishing returns in this price bracket.

Mint sauce defined a pre smart phone/internet generation of mountain bikers.

For some reason mint sauce, dirt (vhs film free give away) and pro flex go hand in hand in my mind. I can still savour the smell of those 1995/1996 print editions.

Someone find me the grim reaper.

I’m a big fan of carbon bars, but that is scary light.Can you feel it flexing?

Oh yes, they are pretty compliant and there is quite a bit of flex. Nice and easy on the wrists.

I’m a big fan of carbon and when done right it really is strong but the cheap strong light triangle keeps bothering me.

It’s taken the fun out my riding at this weight so will order some replacements tomorrow regardless…

carbon.cc have been going for years – if people were dying on a regular basis I’m sure we’d have heard about it…

I appreciate that, and this isn’t meant to be a criticism of them but there is nothing to go on for their carbon bars, bar some sparse forum posts. I bought the bars from their eBay listings after a recommendation.

I will hack them open at some stage out of curiosity. Its an odd looking layup under the resin as well which doesn’t seem to mirror any other manufacturer.

other than short video’s of stuff in test rigs does anyone publish all this about their bars?

True, but then by the reputation and commitment of a brand such as easton along with regular product reviews, press releases, statements etc it builds confidence?

If renthal fat bar lites weren’t so gold, I would probably settle for them in alu.

Just trim the seatpost, they tend to put the longest ones on for oem to start, so it can be fitted. Easier than making a short one longer.

All my recent bikes have needed the seatpost cutting.

You only really need 100-120 genuine lumens on each light providing they have sufficient beam range and spread.

However, as you can get well over 300-500+ per light for decent money, knock yourself out and get as much as you can.

Regardless of lumens though, it is still hiding in the bushes, it will still stalk you and you will only ever see it out the corner of your eye until it’s too late.

I worded it badly.

What I was trying to say, is if you are already fit and healthy i.e. at your correct/target body weight, then saving weight off a bike (decent weight not punitive gramms) is going to be a bigger benefit. If you are fit with low body fat then unless you actually need to lose weight, there are probably no gains to be had from dropping a few kgs.

However if you are fat and unfit or have enjoyed a few desserts too many, then getting in-shape is the no 1 priority and will be of greatest benefit. Equally if you are underweight and lack stamina and strength then it is important to build that progressively.

@cookci

Don’t get too hung up on weights but when at an average level of fitness and not an unhealthy body weight then all things being equal, you will see the benefits in a reasonable full susser weighing in at a functional weight of 29-31 lbs (up to c13.5kgs) including pedals, bottle cage etc.

Body weight is only an issue if you are unhealthy. Unless you are at an unhealthy weight and unfit (out of breath going up a couple of flights of stairs) then saving on bike weight will be noticeable more than body weight. A drop in bodyweight is exponentially beneficial though, if you are starting from an unhealthy base and you start gain fitness and lose fat.

Once you get to a bike weight of 32+lbs then you will start to feel the weight on climbs when off-road regardless of fitness but it isn’t a barrier. Get up to circa 36+lbs which the Banshee is and it is very noticeable. Even at these weights climbing is very possible, albeit a bit slower and it helps to be fit. You need to decide how important climbing and xc speed is vs affordability.

Which spec / year is your Banshee, has it got the epicon air forks and shock as actually if it has, at least these lock out properly? You would need to spend circa £600-£800 to change over the drivetrain, brakes, wheels, tyres bars, seatpost, stem, saddle to decent lightweight kit but even then you are left with an entry level frame.

Climbing on a longer travel full suspension bike can be very hard work at the best of times, especially if it is a cheaper bike with poor quality suspension design.

Spending circa £1k on a Scott Scale 750 or Trek Superfly 5 or 6 will get you a light weight well specced hardtail bike.

Spending £1500-£2000 on a full suspension is really the cheapest end you want to consider if weight is a big factor for you.

But as has been said by others, focus on your fitness first and foremost, enjoy the bike and when it is nackered, then is the time to replace with something much better.

The Careers Banshee X is circa 15.5-16kg with pedals iirc but I reckon they feel heavier than that lol.

To drop 3-4 kg off that so you would even notice the benefit of any weight saving would cost you more than buying a better bike. Saving 100g on each tyre for example is not going to be noticeable.

Everything on that bike is heavy from the frame and forks right through to the finishing kit. Its not functionally heavy either, its heavy because its cheap.

Work on circa £1 to save every 2 to 3 gramms of weight in the first instance to get you below £14.5kg, then circa £1 to save 1g of weight with diminishing returns due to the frame weight after that.

A good hardtail like a Bizango or Boardman Comp at this entry price point would give you a much more balanced ride if you were concerned about hills.

Deore kit is good but quite heavy if weight bothers you. I weighed in the rear 11-36 cassette at 468g compared to circa 332g for the xt so well worth a swap if budget allows.

Expect to lose around 300g from the shifter, front mech and cables plus any outers with Deore kit. Deore chainrings are quite (relatively) heavy too, so expect to save 150g from chainrings and bolts on a triple. A hope retainer nw 32t weight is circa 42g. No harm in getting an slx or xt shadow+ rear mech if it isn’t already speced with one.

A mate always used to say that once you reach that 23-24lbs mark on a full susser and 20-21 on an ht, any extra weight saving won’t make up for the lack of ability or rider strength / fitness it is trying to compensate for.

Wow that price is crazy cheap for the spec, what’s the catch?

Except, the seller doesn’t actually own the CTW bike this early on in the process. Not sure if you have legal title to it, you may want to check.

Much like cars sold with finance outstanding are still owned by the finance company with ctw the administration company, whether the employer or CTW agent, can potentially legally own the bike.

Trek stache 7 or a specialized rockhopper pro evo if you want a more trails 120mm orientated 29er. I found dealers will do 10-20% off either if you turn up with the notes.

29ers are maturing nicely and the geometries on the newer longer travel trail orientated ones (ht & fs) no longer numb the trails (jk).

The way everyone talks about the pros and cons of 26, 27.5 and 29ers on the forums gives the impression they are on the podium every weekend.

The reality is very different for the average rider, try them all and you may be surprised.

26ers have had a long time to establish in design. I remember how average they were in the early to mid 90s but no one knew any different. 650b is closer to 26 imo so it benefits from the last couple of decades of design so has brought the trails alive much more readily and they feel more familiar to the typical rider.

I tried loads was going 650b but due to stock issues changed for a trail orientated ht 29er and don’t regret it.

No chance of anything building or buying decent new for that with 120mm recon level fork unless you buy a whole bike in the sale and get very lucky. You missed out on the sunn modular s1 £530 deal from CRC when the codes were stacking over Easter.

I would look out for an ‘as new’ used bike or good second hand kit.

Alternatively wait for halfords spend and save on bikes then every couple of weeks they seem to be doing an extra 10% off online only for 2 hours between 1200-1400. Get yourself a Boardman comp or voodoo hoodoo.

The orange clockwork are very heavy. Try to up your budget to the beone crd pro as has much better spec and frame with a tapered head tube. Otherwise, have a look at the beone website as the geometries won’t suite everyone.