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Yesss! Was hoping against hope that there’d be some more musings 🙌. Well done Carlo, had some friends that you might have crossed paths with out there and they said this year was brutal with the wind.

Agree 100% - I'm riding on Deore at the moment and it's flawless so SLX should be even better. I'd say that (apart from weight) Deore is as just good as GX on the SRAM side...

Hansi, it will definitely be worth an upgrade for a few reasons; 1) Geometry - modern bike will be "longer" and slacker (450 - 470mm reach and 67 - 69 degree head angle - definitely go large) which will make a handling / confidence difference that you can't believe compared to your older Trek with a reach likely closer to 420mm reach and a 69-71 degree head angle. 2) 1 x drivetrain - simpler, generally less maintenance 3) tubeless, larger tyres and 29 inch wheels - massively improved rollover compared to 26 inch wheels, 2.4 inch tyres compared to 2.1 will also make a massive difference to grip / comfort and tubeless is a non negotiable. Under R 15k - go hardtail as any dual sus at that price will either have very low end components or be old / abused. https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/hardtail-mountain-bikes/766121/specialized-chisel?referrer=top https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/hardtail-mountain-bikes/762784/scott-scale-965-slx-1-x-12-rockshox-air https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/hardtail-mountain-bikes/762706/2022-scott-scale-960-large

This is my new machine - loving it. Bog standard Trek Roscoe 7 apart from a Pike Select + and fancy bars and saddle that I had at home. This thing rips.

GMBN recently had a segment on the effect of heat - you can lose over 50% of your capacity above 35 degrees! Felt it yesterday too - you have to train in the heat and really consciously slow down your effort to avoid blowing up.

https://theradavist.com/2024-breck-epic/ Firmly on my “one day” list. Looks hard!

Sorry to be pedantic. Drivetrain.

Agree with the above. I've embarked on a "downgrade" for 2025 and although they aren't world class, the MT200 brakes with resin only rotors and pads on my new bike are not terrible. I believe that they're toxic in the wet, but on my trail rides so far, they definitely haven't been an issue. Will ride them til the pads die and then likely do the front caliper upgrade to the 420 and a better disc.

https://m.pinkbike.com/news/review-shimano-br-mt420-4-piston-brakes.html If the 447 is part of the 420 model range, they should be plenty powerful and avoid the Servo Wave Wandering Bite Point ™️ It may also be possible to buy just a 420 caliper and put that on the front using your existing brake lever - the NSMB guys talk about it in this review https://nsmb.com/articles/ruminating-on-treks-1650-usd-1880-cad-roscoe-7/

Thank you, agree 100% - had a Curve Kevin of Steel - that bike was amazing. Steel is cool. Going by Lucky Luke's reply, with a straight swap of my parts the bike would be under 12.5kg and well under 13 kg with 2.6 tyres on.

100% for a pure enduro application, but for a bike that does a bit of everything weight is a factor. My Tallboy weighed 13.5kg and that was about as much as I’d want to pedal on a marathon XC race or 120km gravel day.

@Nic Brigando @Super Sywurm @LuckyLuke @TheoG @BrandonH If you still have your Tigres (and I know that weight is not everything), what do your complete bikes come in at weight wise. If you could maybe just say "XC / gravel build", "trail build", "enduro build" or something for perspective? I'm debating moving across a GX Eagle drivetrain, Level ULT 4 piston brakes, light handlebar and saddle, carbon 30mm wheels with a rear insert from my XC frame onto a Tigre. Been searching for a Roscoe, just missed that Nukeproof Scout that was on last week and the Tigre is back on my radar as a do it all trail / XC race (yes, I won't be winning anything)/ fun enduro / long ride (yes, I will be slower than mates on gravel bikes) type machine. If it would be like 12.5 kg then I'm happy, but if it's 14 kg even with light but durable parts on, it gets a bit hectic for longer days...

Sorry OP most of the replies haven’t read that you are already in the UK. I brought a bike back recently and was stopped and the invoice checked for value against possible import duty in March - OR Tambo.

I’m 1.77 and generally ride a large - if you have longer legs and shorter torso you’ll likely be better on a medium and if you have shorter legs and longer torso large may work. To check, measure your height vs your “wingspan” ie stretch your arms as wide as they’ll go and see if that measurement is more or less than your height - more and you have a longer torso / arms.

What size do you need / how tall are you? For general easy trail and gravel riding? This looks great - sure you can stretch your budget a bit and negotiate the price down a bit - worth it; https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/hardtail-mountain-bikes/748022/signal-elite-l-gx12spd-fox32 also; https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/hardtail-mountain-bikes/746308/2023-silverback-stride-expert-12-speed-rockshox Avoid SRAM NX or SX - both are hot garbage so try to find something with GX. Shimano’s lower tier stuff is way better - Deore and above all good.

If I recall the e-bikes on site are pretty basic. Try Hattons, Callan’s Bike Tech, Hilton Bike Worx, GM Cycles and maybe Bike Guru - I don’t think any of them have a rental fleet but maybe there is a demo bike you could pay to try or something. Trails are soooo good at the moment. If you can, do two days so you ride an Outback trails loop and a closer to the club loop

“The designer” has designed the last number of Olympic and some World Champs tracks and is the best in the world. He was a) working with a rubbish dump that has been converted to a man made hill b) quoted on building after the design was done and didn’t get the contract to build so perhaps things were changed c) is not even remotely the person who has the majority of the say when it comes to the nature of the course and d) name an Olympic track that hasn’t been mostly fast with a few large, tricky features. Please correct me if you have personal experience with track design and the many likely factors in play at this level, otherwise (as usual on “Le Hub”) maybe just think before criticizing one person, especially someone we should be proud of for what he’s achieved on the global stage.

FFS guys. There is a 230 post long debacle about the effing DH World Cup selection. Please, for the love of all things holy, can we keep that "debate" on that thread and keep this one relevant to the title of this thread.

I know he got back onto another bike - did he finish the stage on a broken ankle?!

https://m.pinkbike.com/news/first-ride-specialized-chisel-fs-aluminum-done-light.html Mike Kazimer built one up to 11.8kg. Stupid light wheels but some other spec choices aren’t XC weight so 12kg definitely doable on a frame up build.

Good chiropractor not better place to start?

My Tallboy 4 has been unbelievable. Built like a brick sh1thouse but it pedals all day and just looks soo good.

Possibly XL but yes, use the filters on the classifieds and there's likely a lot of good options under R 10k for your stated use; https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/c/hardtail-mountain-bikes?minimum_price=7500&maximum_price=10000&meta_size[is_multi_select]=true&meta_size[value]=L%2CXL&meta_model_year[is_multi_select]=true&meta_model_year[value]=2023%2C2022%2C2021 Try for a newer (after 2020) bike as it's likely got better geometry and newer parts that would need less immediate maintenance / won;t run the risk of being obsolete or hard to find spares for.

What is the weight as described please? 100% agree that weight isn’t everything, but for eg 11kg vs 14kg is worth knowing.

My new bike has Level ULT Stealth 4 piston brakes with 180mm front and 160mm rear, new SRAM centreline rotors. They suck. Have been bled, new pads etc etc and they are mushy and need a hard squeeze to lock up. Compared to the G2 RE I have on my trail bike (also 4 piston with 180 / 160mm rotors) they aren't even close to as good. My bike shop knows what they're doing so I doubt there's a user / service error issue.- I have heard that the new Level ULT's aren't great - would be good to hear from others if theirs are better?