What fork travel are you guys using in your AM9s?

Thanks!
I just bought back my old AM9 and upgrading the shock will be a priority for the build. I weigh about 93kg geared up and using full travel was never an issue with the RS Deluxe and original link when I had it. Still, the low leverage ratio combined with the stock Bomber tube made me wonder if it wouldn’t be too harsh

@Yetiman
Is that Marzocchi Bomber CR a custom or a stock tune?

Lots of speculation flying around here, which is fine, but let’s get some things straight.
– RF or One-up almost surely have their pedals manufactured by the far Eastern big pedal players
– just having different looking nuts or axles doesn’t mean the pedals are not made using the same tooling. Even different engraved logos in the plastic can be achieved by switching inserts within the injection mould or by welding (if it is to be definitive)
– just being made by the same tooling is only one of the factors for price and actual product quality. Oversimplifying, one could have same tooling as original model, identical look cheaper materials (just to mention the platform, there are countless different specs of nylon/polyamide with different characteristics and prices) or same tooling and materials but different process steps or same tooling same materials same process but less quality controls. All these produce similar looking products with different performances and prices
– it’s not as if the only possibilities are either it being a blatant counterfeit/copy or just that Oneup or RF picked it from a catalogue. It could be this. Or it could be a myriad of different things. Who developed the pedals? Was it a co-development? Who owns the tools/mould? Who has the license? For how long? There are countless different types of deals a brand can have with a manufacturer. Let’s consider this, injection molds are very expensive, companies try to offset this whenever possible. One way to do it is to approach the manufacturer with:
“here is my pedal design. I don’t pay for the tooling (or pay half) and I have an exclusivity for them for the first xxxxxx units, after which I may or may not keep ordering them but then you can also produce them at your will”. This is just a possible scenario among countless others

My Five Ten Impact Sam Hills are among the best approach shoes I’ve ever had. They glue like crazy on anything but mud

I think geometry will eventually start to be stable more or less around current Norco Sight, Enduro or Privateer 161 levels.

Gearboxes almost certainly. We know Shimano has something in their sleeves and Nicolai was hinting something relevant on the Pinkbike interview.

Like said above, more electronic stuff

The weight theme might also start to be shown as relevant again. I might be wrong, but I think I’m seeing weight to slowly creep into some press releases lately.

As much as I generally enjoy Seth’s videos, he went a little over his head on that one with all the “3D scan” speculation. It just shows how little people know about manufacturing and the component industry.

I wonder how bad/good a Solaris would be at “XC” type riding with a 120mm fork, low rise bar and light wheels and tyres.

Anyway, sad to see such a big name go, but there was a bit of an overlap with the BFE already, and that’s definitely not what a small brand wants

Big yes.
Most reliable, predictable and “comfortable” brakes I ever had. Also, very tough levers.
This after years going through several generations of XT brakes

Surly bikes were reasonably priced, and consequently made sense for what they are, for a while.
I remember when a KM frameset was under £500. We are talking 10 to about 5 years ago at most. I owned 5 of them, at a time when simple, versatile steel frames were not as abundant as of now or simply because they were pioneers of a certain genre (Pugsley).

As of now, looking at their MTB offerings:
– outdated geometry
– crappy paint jobs
– you always end up paying for a fork that you might or might not want
– way overpriced in Europe. Our US friends are starting to complain about the same there

At this point I think there are better alternatives out there.

Not much to add here, just wanted to say that anyone contemplating to buy a Bird is making the smart decision. People often mention price and value, but Birds are among the best frames in the market regardless of price.
I had an AM9 for an year, traded it for a Stumpy Evo an year ago. Guess what, I miss the AM9 so much I’m about to buy the frame back. BTW, I’m right between 6′ and 6’1 (184cm), monkey arms and was on a L.
Big shout out to Bird.

About the droppers, have no experience with Bird branded ones, but after plenty of different models by far the most reliable I had are a Xfusion Manic and a Brand-X one.

No experience with the newly released one, but can say the original Debonair shaft makes a noticeable difference Vs the Soloair on a Yari in terms of initial travel sensitivity.

However, I’d first look into upgrading the damper, if that’s an option

I’ve done WC level DH tracks and 8m gaps but I can’t wheelie…

Got an XL kit for the bike I had before, had it on for an year, current owner still has the same kit on.

Yes, they are marginally more “cushy” than regular vinyl tape, yes it seems to hold up well over time, and yes, some of the designs might look cool if one’s into that, but I can’t help but think it’s way overpriced for the actual coverage it provides.
I won’t buy one again, unless they significantly bump up the area of coverage in the kits.

Meanwhile, if the main point is actually protecting the frame, for the same price one can get a nice 3M 8671HS tape roll, which together with some love will much more comprehensive protection

I got a complete bike an year ago which came with a NX drivetrain. It’s comically bad compared to the XT M8000 1×11 I had before.
The only Sram component I like over Shimano are the Code brakes.

I refuse to give a single penny to Sram for drivetrain parts, and urge everyone with likewise experiences to do the same. Let’s rather give money to companies that actually bother to make proper kit

Don’t know what kind of pedals the OP uses, but if he’s using clipless I’d suggest trying to slide the cleats as far back as possible or even buy a pair of shoes that maximize this feature

I don’t think the Sentinel even intended to be similar to the Privateer. The later is aimed at privateer enduro racers (who would have thought…), the new Sentinel is being marketed as an aggressive all mountain, versatile bike.

Regarding price, it depends a lot on where Transition wants to position itself. It used to be an everydays man brand, maybe they’re trying to move upmarket

@BillOddie whats the source of the alloy info?

Reception around the interwebs seems to be somewhat lukewarm.
When it came out the MK1 Sentinel was meant to be an enduro LT 29er. But since then that market shifted and some people were expecting the new Sentinel to shift with it. Instead it stayed more or less the same, and Transition seems to be making quite a marketing effort to promote it rather as an aggressive AM all-round bike. I reckon I have more interest in that category, a good versatile AM bike you can pedal around and then race sometimes, like the Ripmo, Bird AM9, Ransom, etc.

I liked that they kept the geometry nearly the same, bar some corrections. I shows they are not trying to throw us incremental mm’s BS, they seem to genuinely believe in the concept they created for the MK1. Also the added progression seems to be a good theoretical upgrade, even more so than the 10 extra mm of travel.

The deal breaker for me is the material. Reliable, reasonably affordable aluminium frames have been staple of Transition for years. Many of us either don’t want to spend the money or simply don’t like carbon frames. I for one have zero interest

PS: I’m willing to bet they’re either updating the Patrol as a 29er or just releasing an all new LT 29er model

The moco damper is really subpar if you do any sort of aggressive riding.
Before even considering a coil, I’d drop a Charger damper and see how that goes.
The Debonair shaft makes a little difference in sensitivity, but for the price it might be worth a try

They are legit, used them several times in the past.
They have very competitive prices and you can trust their stock levels. Not the fastest to dispatch the orders.

One word of advice, avoid ordering from them sized stuff that you expect to return, like shoes or helmets. Their consumer service works, but it’s extremely slow, you always communicate with them through a text box in your account and up feeling like speaking with a robot

I hear you, and that’s a point, but today more than ever there are plenty of flat pedal shoe lasts available, as well as plenty of quite versatile models.
This is not a very objective comment on me, but I’d go as far to say that generally flat pedal shoes make better as an approach shoe than approach shoes make as flat pedal shoes

Buy yourself a bunch of standard Allen head M4x8 screws, dirt cheap.

Stick the screw head first in a hand drill, and together with a file use that as an improvised lathe to remove the threads at the tip.

Alternatively, just use those as they come, threaded all the way to the end. You might even find them either grippier that way, more durable of kinder to your soles

Still seems to be
Bike-components
Bike-Discount
R2 bike

Diese deutschen still seem to carry heavily discounted forks frequently. Just be careful if you buy a RS one, they set Soloair forks as being Debonair all the time

Try to get a brake adapter of the stepped, 2 pairs of screws type. This way you can do your best to recover the existing thread, install the adapter and then you can remove/install the caliper in the future without having to mess with the fork threads

I’m sure plenty of approach shoes with flatter soles with few lugs will be quite reasonable for calmer trail riding or bikepacking.

But then the question arises, why use an approach shoe when the market has more proper flat pedal shoes by the day? You have pretty much every kind of flat pedal shoe available these days, stiff, flexy, bulky, airy, water proof, etc etc.
5 years ago or so people resorted to approach shoes (I can recall some big bikepacking names back then) because the available dedicated options were a pair of models from Five Ten

I’m not sure what kind of riding the OP is most interest in, but after owning a good bunch of different steel hardtails over the last years I’ll just leave some comments.
I’d say most riders (with the exception of lycra xcers and guys after a sort of grownup dirt jumper) generally look for an hardtail that can in some way be as close as possible to a FS in comfort and performance. If you fall in this description, you can take this into consideration:

– consider 29er wheels, the bigger rear wheel helps to settle down the rear

– longer, slacker modern geometry also helps to calm down the bike and add more comfort

– you mentioned “springy”. If you were referring to the “feel” of the frame material, I’d say that most modern steel mtb frames (specially after CEN) don’t feel any different to most aluminium counterparts. They’re all pretty stiff and most compliance will come from wheels and tyres

– when looking at hardtail geometry charts, check if the figures are at static or sagged state. If you have a FS geometry that you like, don’t look for the same numbers on a static hardtail geo chart. Mind that, when sagged, hardtails get considerably steeper and longer.

If I was in the market for a HT, I’d also prefer to get a burly one and put lighter wheels/tyres if I wanted to pedal a lot. An aggressive hardtail pedals really well on lighter shoes.
My top picks would be:
– Pipedream Moxie (No1 by far)
– Cotic SolarisMax
– Stanton Switch9er
– Pace RC529
– BTR or Kingdom if budget allowed

Helicoil or any generic equivalent eBay special is your friend. Make sure you drill straight and not too deep, those are the critical steps in my experience. Applied a bunch of them on landy transfer cases and blocs and can confirm they not only work but end up being stronger than the original thread.

Pro tip: fork lowers castings are a crappy material to thread something on, specially something that needs to be periodically reinstalled like the brake caliper. Stepped brake adapters that use 2 pairs of screws are the best for this reason

When speaking about hardtails, one needs to compare the BB drop with a sagged FS. Static BB drops are meaningless

I’m no fan of carbon frames, the cost to benefit is way off one them, but let’s be objective. People take these absolute, simplistic stances on the eco footprint of things without taking into consideration the whole story. You see this everywhere, like saying electric cars are zero emission…

The material alone is only a small part of the equation. Manufacturing location and the company’s policies are enough to offset material differences.
And, like some already mentioned, metal frames are also likely to end up in landfill and it’s not like people are actually repairing them…

By the way, some of the pictures of huge piles of frames/bikes we see around are from the crash of the bike share bubble in China

Yeah, weirdly for a Sram product, the Codes seem to be “set and forget”. Winter, summer, rain, mud, dust, long descends, month after months the things keep feeling the same and braking the same. Not need of extra bleeds or any specific maintenance

I’ve been partial to Shimano everything for years. Then I had XT M8000 brakes for about 1,5 years. Not only the wandering bite point issue was annoying but also the levers were extremely fragile, broke 3 in that period.

Last year I got a new bike which came with Sram Code Rs. Being a Sram product , I was quite skeptical at first, but one year later I must say I’m sold. Enough power and very stable behaviour no matter how long and steep the tracks are. The levers are ugly but can really take a beating

Kept hearing about Fabric saddles and then spotted a Scoop Radius Elite at sale for 20€ and decided to give it a try. This was 2 years ago.

Turns out the thing is resilient and comfortable to the point of being boring. Best saddle ever for me.

Yes, saddles are a very personal thing, and yes, everyone’s arse’s different, but if you keep hearing praising a model chances are it might work for you as well. It’s at least a good indication to give it a try

My Super DH came with a detachable top cam mount and, honestly, is crap.
Not only it makes the lid way top heavy but also gets you awful footage.
I’d never choose an helmet based on that feature

Seems like a trail bike that actually makes sense, instead of the current crop of intentionally handicapped enduro bikes to make them “fun”.

My main helmet is a Bell Super DH I got heavily discounted an year and half ago.
It’s not the best half lid in the world (there are lighter and more compact ones) nor the best full face (traditional ones definitely feel cosier) but it’s great at both, very comfortable and just simplifies things so much. I often go to a new spot and after the first run decide if I want to go full face or not. Same goes for traveling, only need to carry one helmet.
On the other hand, the prospect of climbing without the chin bar and installing it at the top has zero appeal to me, I just leave the thing at home or in the car.

Also have a 661 Recon Scout that I use for bikepacking, very light and airy

Easy, a Nukeproof Scout or Ragley of your preferred flavour

Not that mini, but if you want a pump that lasts, actually inflates tyres and won’t brake the bank I’d have to recommend the SKS Injex Lite.

Tried a ton of trendy uber compact pumps over the years but they either fall apart, get clogged with dirt or simply can’t air up a tyre in any useful way. I keep going back to my trusty 8 years old Injex

At the Jefsy’s price point I’d definitely look into Bird’s offerings. Nicer frames and way way better warranty service.
If you could stretch it to 3k I’d either pic a better speced Bird or a Ripmo AF.

Regarding PF BBs, I don’t think they’re the end of the world, but I would never buy a bike with one when there is a much better option available

I think I’ve read something by Ben that could imply a release by the end of the year. Mind this was pre-coronavirus crisis

If you don’t want to wait, may I say that the AM9 really pedals exceptionally well, specially with lighter wheels, Exo tyres and a 30t chainring. The smaller chainring rises the already high anti-squat even higher.
Like I previously said, this bike is pretty much like a longer Ripmo, and plenty of people use Ripmos as trail bikes