Dappere

Based on the way individuals steer discussions on the forum, I can understand why comments in the classifieds might not be a good idea. The seller lists an item for sale, only to receive predictions about their future, critiques of their item, remarks about overpriced events, and comments on how the roads in the SA are unsuitable for certain bike components.😆

It's a challenging situation to be placed in, and one could argue from either perspective. I presume this will become an increasingly common issue with the rise in popularity of electronic groupsets. Introducing a toggle to choose between a mechanical groupset and an electronic groupset when listing a bike could alleviate future frustrations. If 'electronic' is selected, a mandatory field asking whether a charger is included could be presented.

Maybe this can shed some light on the topic. Based on the ThreadMtb 2022 survey, the average bike price in South Africa, or the amount people choose to spend on their bikes, is R65 450. The dominating price segments are R15 000-R19 999 (6.02%) and R150 000 or more (6.94%). Source: https://www.treadmtb.co.za/south-africas-top-mtb-gravel-ebike-brands/

+1

@MudLark As a first pass I would check if there is a firmware update available. Don't have the 1030, but on the 830 switching off the Auto Beam adjustment resolved the issue. You could also reach out to the guys at Navworld. They managed to assist me with past Garmin issues I had.

And who has not 😉

As pointed out earlier in the thread: To provide more clarity, for the Cape Epic, I switch to a 34 due to the obnoxious amounts of climbing spread over the week. For most of my riding, I prefer the ratio of 36. It allows me to ride at a comfortable speed without having an extremely high cadence. The point I was attempting to make; we can't assume a blanket approach. Like most things, people have preferences. The OP was asking about max clearance as he too was suffering from only using the lower part of his cassette. I am not telling the OP what to do, but rather just sharing my own experience.

I can somewhat empathise with this. I was primarily using the lower few cogs on my cassette with a 34-round chainring. After switching to a 36, the usage distribution on my cassette has altered. Occasionally, I revert to a 34, especially for stage races. For reference; I mostly ride the trails at Bottelary, Jonkers and Banhoek - if that helps.

Horses for courses... Highly dependent on a lot of factors, where the above statement might or might not be true. Believe the OP asked for advice on the max chainring size they can fit on Titan Cypher/Cypher RS.

Do you have a budget in mind?

I completely agree with this statement. Even with the best-fitting saddle and bib shorts, when doing ultra distances you're likely to start shifting position on the saddle eventually. This is where chamois cream demonstrates its value. Also need to factor in that when doing events like Badlands, or related on a gravel bike, the rougher terrain contributes to moving around more than usual on the saddle as well.

Thanks for the heads-ups 😎

I can only speak from my own experience, but for short or training rides I do not use chamois cream. However, for ultra-distance riding and events, I do find chamois cream beneficial.

Speen salf? I've heard it works wonders.

Ass Magic or the Assos, whichever is available at my LBS.

🤣 You may be right, drunk people can do peculiar things sometimes. It reminds me of my university days. Good to hear there are programmes in place now to refurbish and recycle the recovered bikes and put them to good use. To my knowledge, at least when I was there, there was nothing formal like that in place.

I used to live there. They clean up around 15,000 bikes per year on average from the canal. It's seen as a big problem, but bikes aren't the only things they find in the canals. They attribute it to stolen bikes, vandalism and accidents. You'll notice most of those pulled out are oma-fiets or stadsfiets, which are the most popular bikes used for commuting.

That aligns with my experience using the rim strips, as additional layers of rim tape would be a similar thickness as the rim strips. Glad you came right.

I have heard about this issue from a fellow cyclist. At first, I couldn't relate as I'd had no trouble seating them. I realised the difference though - I have Bontrager rims that come standard with a rim strip instead of tape. I can only assume the rim strip has more volume and therefore allows the tyre to seat more easily. Have you tried the soapy water around the rim trick?

I used ESI grips for years and recently tried the Wolf Tooth Grip Cam Ergonomic Fat Paw -> https://bicyclegarage.co.za/products/wolf-tooth-grip-cam-ergonomic-fat-paw. It has all the elements I loved from the ESI grips and the ergonomic shape adds extra comfort. Well worth checking out.

I do understand that. I didn't provide enough context in my previous message. When I mentioned I only cycle on my mountain bike on certain trails, I meant I only ride at trails like Jonkershoek, Banhoek, Tygerberg, etc., where I drive to and cycle and then drive home. I'm trying to minimise my time spent on the road.

The lengths they're willing to go to nowadays. Thanks for the additional information. One of the reasons I sold my road bike and only cycle on my mountain bike at certain trails.

Sorry to hear that. I hope your friend makes a full recovery from any injuries sustained.

Bigger groups? By bigger groups I mean +- 12 cyclists