mountain_lion

Thanks for the comment so far. I am also leaning towards replacing / upgrading BB & crank rather than new bike (although a new bike will be nice and scratch the itch... ) I am also still confused by the chain line issue. Never seen anything like it before. This started after I replaced the rear wheel (new XT hub and cassette). New wheel was built by LBS. Took it back to them several times, but they never got it right. So fixed it myself. Problem is that the largest cog on the cassette is further inwards on the new hub. Chain was running at a large angle inwards even on front granny ring, causing the chain to jump on the front. Fitting the BB without a spacer solved the alignment problem, but then the FD did not have sufficient travel to select the granny ring. Only solution I could find was to sand down the BB spacer. I suspect that if I now fit an external BB, the crank set will move even further outwards, and thus the chainline problem will occur again... Staying with internal Isis BB with existing crank is an option, but Cape mud gets in there so easily that even with regular opening and cleaning (as best as you can with these sealed BB units) it does not last long. Tedious job to do as well.

I have been riding a small Giant Anthem 2 since April 2007. Could not fit the Anthem 1 in the budget at the time, but in general I am very happy with this bike. Problems I had were good excuses to upgrade. The Giant shock did not last long (I am 85kg and hammer the downhills) so the suppliers offered an upgrade to Fox RP23 at a very good price, so now I have a decent shock on it. Rear wheel Formula hub did not stand up to the Stellenbosch mud and was replaced with XT last year and rims are now DRC. I struggled a bit to get the chain line right (XT hub seems to be a bit narrower than the Formula), but after sanding down the spacer ring on the Isis BB it is now working fine in the largest sprocket on the cassette. It is starting to sound like the BB might be next to go after this winter... I would prefer to change to outboard BB, but then the whole crank set needs replacement plus if there was chain line problems with the Isis BB, I can't see how the outboard BB will work on this frame. Can the "dishing" of the rear wheel also affect the chain line? Anybody upgraded a 2007 Anthem 2 to outboard BB? So now I am wonderinig if it might not be worth while upgrading to a new bike and sell the Anthem2 while it still has some 2nd hand value. Big question: new bike or upgrade existing? If new, what to get? I am a fun rider who does the odd 50km XC "race" over weekends. I enjoy single track at speed, especially the "technical" stuff although at 40+ I stay off the big jumps. Do I get a trail bike or do I stick to XC? If I can get a decent price for the Anthem2, R20-25K budget might just be possible for a new bike... Suggestions? mountain_lion2009-07-14 02:10:25

I grew up in Somerset-West. "Cloud bursts" like this often occurred, but flooding as shown in the pics seldom happened. Bad maintenance of the storm water system if you ask me...

Took mrs mountain_lion, her friend (novice MTBer) and myself just under 3h at a very leisurely pace (including many stops to look at the view, take photo's, talk sh!t etc). Red route only. Black route single track was too wet to ride (2008-07-28).

Yes, more info required, but I am guessing you have dirty cables. Inners can be cleaned to some extent, but outers are not that easy. Easy to replace and not very expensive, so I suggest replace the inners and outers. While you are at it, you might consider going for continuous outers. Less places for the dirt to get in. https://www.bikehub.co.za/forum_posts.asp?TID=54503 mountain_lion2009-07-08 01:01:40

Cool pics. Looks like Knysna was dry this year...

To the dark side of course! That MTB looks nice. Welcome

No manual supplied with the Buckpuck. With DIY, you need to do your own research. Fortunately Google has made that very easy. Lots of info on the manufacturer's website, even a PDF with typical application circuits for the Buckpuck. The circuit design required here does not go beyond school physics. You can also have a look at one of my previous lights from last year. The pics won't help you much, but I think I described my dimming circuit in that tread; maybe even in this thread too. Use the search function...

You wire the pot / resistors in the control circuit of the Buckpuck . Not the power circuit. Read the manual (you need the E = External dimming version). You choose the resistor values to meet your requirements for brightness from the specific LEDs. That is why I used a pot initially to measure what I wanted. LEDs differ in efficiency and forward voltage. My resistor values might not work for you (although for the same LED manufacturer and bin you should be able to get comparable results using the same driver and resistor values). If you want you can have a separate on/off switch in the power circuit. Then you don't need an off position in the control circuit. I just unplug from the battery when storing the light (need to unplug the battery in any case to charge it).

Just get the 3021-D-E-1000, order your own pot (or resistors) and wire it yourself. Will probably be cheaper too. I soldered mine on veroboard but if you don't want to solder, the connectors often used to wire front panel indicator lights and switches to a PC motherboard fit the pins. I don't like a pot for a bike light anyway. Awkward to adjust on the bike, you never get the setting you want and vibration can change it for you too. I used a pot to determine the 2 brightness settings I wanted and then used fixed resistors with a switch for the final build. With a 3 position toggle I can select off / bright / dim. mountain_lion2009-06-02 05:46:16

Musashi is correct. The Buckpuck drivers are available in SA from Rabtron. http://shop.rabtron.co.za/catalog/index.php?cPath=41_409_340

And new to night riding... which is even more fun; Started going off road at night in 1997 and still love it! With the lights we had back then, you could ride a trail at walking pace and get the same adrenalin rush as full speed by day!

Bling for the gadget freaks: http://www.cerevellum.com/ Cool, but $$$$... mountain_lion2009-05-27 14:43:01

I am using 2200mAh Li-ions. 4400mAh will be plenty for LEDs, but the higher capacity will be useful with the halogen. You might need to drop the voltage a bit for use with the 12V halogen. I am not sure how much over voltage they can take. 14.8V might be a bit high. You can of cource make do with the halogen and lead acid battery. It is all I had for years. We just went slower at night but still had fun...

I am on my 3rd Camelback bladder and pipe. All replaced under guarantee; got a new bite valve each time too (and kept the old ones) 1st one the lining inside the pipe began to peel off blocking the pipe. 2nd one the ring around the cap chaffed through the bladder causing it to leak; definite design / manufacturing fault. No questions asked. Great service.

Friday was also great and very informative. Thanks JB. We are just waiting for Cassie to post the photo's...

Thanks for BUMPing this thread. Just remembered that I put a banana in the fridge when I first saw it. Just tried it and was pleasantly surprised... very tasty! Will do this again if a banana over stays its welcome.