mountain_lion

For XC riding, cleats are the best. mrs mountain_lion also did not want to go for cleats immediately, so I got her a pair of Shimano PD-M545 pedals. These have a cage around the clip, so you can use it with and withoiut cleats. You can even unclip and still have your foot on the pedal if you really want. Nice description of it here. Mrs mountain_lion fitted cleats soon after getting these and now she will not ride without cleats. Just upgraded the crank set and fitted new normal cleat pedals for her, so the old pedals are for sale. Used, but still in good working condition. See my post in the classifieds. mountain_lion2010-01-02 14:10:10

Short press switch on standard mode. For most night riding, 2 brightness settings are sufficient. High and low. Short press cycles between these two. Long press to switch off. If you want strobe, long press at switch on, then as for above. I.e. to switch between standard and strobe, you need to switch off, but you don't often do that while riding. mountain_lion2010-01-02 16:02:57

Firstly, I have not seen the Magicshine in the flesh, so my opinion is based only on info from the internet, reviews and comments by others. Yes, output lumen rating is not the only important parameter, but over rated marketing claims irritates me (unfortunately many light manufactures do this). High lumen output is not worth much if the beam is not controlled well to give a good beam pattern (i.e. reflector / lens design is also very important). Another con of the Magicshine which the manufactures could easily solve, is the mode selection. You have to cycle though all modes to select the one you want. Unfortunately off (and strobe) is included in the cycle. So when you are riding on low and need more light for a fast or technical section, you first have to go to strobe and then off before you get to high. Long press switches off in any case, so there is no point having off in the cycle. Strobe should have its own cycle with high and low modes (there are many cheap controllers available which offer this functionality). I have been playing with DIY bike lights for many years. At present the component costs of a comparable DIY light will not be much less than the shelf price of the Magicshine. So although the Magicshine is not perfect, I think it is very good value for money and I am sure it will be more than sufficient for many riders. The guys at mtbr have been doing a light shootout for the past few years. The Magicshine is on the list. They also have some of the new 2010 models up already. Have a look at the Niterider Pro 600 & 1200. Very nice, even inlcudes customisable control via USB connection to a PC but comes with a $$$$ price tag! My DIY lights will have to do for the next few years...

Yep, seal is needed, which is why I fitted an O-ring. Will have to see if that keeps the oil in. Did ask my LBS for a crush washer. They don't service shocks; send them all to the respective agents so they did not have any washers. Any other time of the year, they would be able to get but with the holidays and all the suppliers about to close, ordering is problematic. Will try again in the new year. However if the O-ring seals, is there any reason to replace with a crush washer?

Serviced mrs mountain_lion's Rock Shox Recon fork today. The crush washer on the shaft bolt on the air spring side was "crushed" and not suitable for reuse. I did not have a spare crush washer so fitted an O-ring as temporary fix in place of the washer. Is it essential that a crush washer be used? Where can I source these crush washers in the Western Cape? (don't feel like ordering a service kit from the agents just for this washer.

AFAIK only the 10 speed ones are "use once". I remove and re-fit my 9 speed one every time I clean the chain. mountain_lion2009-12-11 13:46:34

Your caps lock key stuck? Writing ALL CAPS is consider shouting on most forums...

I am just an ordinary AMA member, but that does not stop me from helping with trail maintenance etc.

My mistake. So that was a Giant MTB with drop bars and very skinny slicks which you always did the Argus on??

My first "MTB" (back in 1997) was a hybrid with rigid fork, but I don't think my tyres were as fat as 38! (Still using the hybrid as my commute bike; got 700x28 tyres on it now). I did all sorts of off-road riding on that bike, no reason he can't go MTB with you lot. Just beware of cat-i... we go back many years, when she was still a roadie and a Capie...

Have a look at Shimano ST-R700 STI levers. Just got a pair from CRC for mrs mountain_lion for the same reason. http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=27234 These are 10 speed. Shimano used to make a 9 speed short reach version ST-R600, but I don't see it on the Shimano website any more. However the only difference between the standard and short reach levers are wedges that are inserted in the top to move the lever closer to the bar. For the R600 they come in 5 & 10 degree and for the R700 in 4 & 8 degree. You fit the option you prefer and you can order the wedges separately. I asked my LBS and after a search they found some 4 degree wedges somewhere. The standard 105 levers are not designed to take the wedges (only has one hole at the top to clip the standard rubber strip and the wedges want 2; only Shimano will know why they don't make it universal). I still managed to fit the wedges and it did work, although the right hand side did not look so nice, wedge was a bit wide. However mrs ML wanted more adjustment, so we needed the 8 degree ones. I considered making my own wedges or ordering the 8 degree wedges, but in the end the CRC price was good and gave me an opertunity to make up a large enough order to get free shipping, so I just ordered the R700s. The original 105 STIs are now for sale (and need to go to help pay for the CRC spend ) https://www.bikehub.co.za/forum_posts.asp?TID=69531

Nothing wrong with SLX; actually I think it is better value for money than XT. There is a noticeable difference in performance between the Fox float R and Fox RP2 rear shock though. I have used both. Fox float R is not bad, but you have to compromise between having it stiff enough for the climbs and soft enough for the descents. The RP2 (and RP23) allows you to set the pressure you want for the climbs and when you get to the top, you just flick the lever to open it up. (mrs mountain lion was happy with the Float R on her 2007 Anthem 2, but recently a RP23 became available for her. She says it feels like a new bike!) With that said, if you are constrained by budget rather go for the X3 and use the extra cash to convert the tyres to tubeless. Else look at the 2009 Anthem X1 or X2, there should be good deals available now that the 2010 models are in the shops.

OK, Edman has convinced me. But as Gumpole said, the stored rotational energy will mostly come from the rider (except if there is a very steep downhill on the course). Ignoring Woofie's original example and looking at the more usual case of reducing the weight of a bike to increases performance, I am still not sure if there will be a noticeable difference in reducing weight on the wheels compared to reducing weight elsewhere given that we talking about real world components (not concrete wheels etc).

Shimano has a solution to that one too... http://www.ride-this.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/5e06319eda06f020e43594a9c230972d/S/H/SH19000_1.jpg Clips into one side of your SPD (and you still have the other side to clip if you want). But then I don't use my road bike to go shopping; My old hybrid is better suited for that job and much less likely to attract unwanted attention while parked outside the shop...

If you want more mass for more momentum, you can add it anywhere on the bike. (a rolling wheel is not a flywheel). Unfortunately, it will not make you faster over all. Although you decelerate slower, you will also accelerate slower...

Thanks Barend Can't argue with you about that. Just sold and posted the only pair of road pedal I owned to a Hubber, so can't check the difference. While I suspect that you are correct, there can't be much difference in cornering clearance though and as you say there is not much crit racing in SA. Most of us mere mortals don't pedal through tight corners in any case. Further, the clearance advantage of road pedals is offset against the convenience of double sided clipping on SPDs.

It does. How ? (I also have SPDs on my RC3000, which only gets used only every now and again; she must be very jealous of the MTB standing next to her... )