MTBRIDER1234

Not necessarily cycling-related related but still relevant. I lost a dear friend of mine in a motorcycle accident a few days ago when a driver failed to stop at a stop sign, causing my friend to have to swerve out of the way, and unfortunately an oncoming car hit him when he was swerving and took his life. Drivers are far too distracted and don't give a sh*t about anyone not in a metal box. Being seen on a motorcycle is already hard, on a bicycle we are as close to invisible as you can get. Whether road or MTB, what we all enjoy is dangerous. Just this year some people I ride with have broken both arms, broken both wrists, broken fingers and I believe a young man at the enduro also sustained a brain injury when he crashed. We must be more vigilant than ever. It seems like a piss-take to think that we do all these dangerous things on 2 wheels, yet we are arguably more likely to die from some idiot who is texting/distracted/drunk and behind the wheel.

Yeah. The rocker links are exactly the same. I know this because like I said, I have swapped shock, swingarms and rocker links between hyraxes and slaklines with no ill effects. Glad this has been cleared up

Maybe he was mistaken because you can easily swap from a longer stroke shock to a shorter stroke shock and vice versa. As a matter of fact, my frame was owned by a PYGA employee, and it started life as a hyrax, then was turned into a slakline before I purchased it. I have also done it to several other hyrax framesets. Just be sure to up the fork travel to 170mm.

Actually you can get 160mm of travel without any risks. You could probably push it a bit further, but it may be at the expense of suspension kinematics etc. Not many people know, but the only difference between the 160mm slakline frame and the 140mm hyrax frame is simply the shock stroke.

Not enough bike. Buy a cheap DH bike and use that for the trip then sell it. Unless you are a crazy skilled rider or are gonna take is super easy, you will have much more fun on a DH bike. You can go way faster, send way harder and make more mistakes without the risk of bombing through your travel. Don't get me wrong, I love my slakline and it copes with gnarly stuff well, but I would never take it to a real bike park abroad. IMO 180mm travel minimum.

On gnarly stuff this holds very true. Just remember that any chilled trail will become a chore on a big bike. They soak up a lot and are generally pigs at anything that isn't fairly high speed. When riding my enduro bike on flattish trails, you better believe that I have to work that thing HARD to keep speed. For example, when I rode Rhebokskloof I was pumping and using all I have to keep speed through the flat sections there. Big bikes also climb not so lekker and if you have no lockout and DH tires like me, it can become a bit irritating when you are slugging up the hill, using the same amount of power as you would on the xc bike, just to go 1/2 the speed.

The rating system can be abused sadly. I got a 1 star review from someone who didn't even do business with me. He offered me 1/3rd of asking price for a pair of brand new pedals (ridden twice) that were already less than 3/4 of what they cost new. I simply said to him why do you lowballers always think I will take such low offers. He took extreme offense and left me a 1 star review, which is very unethical IMO, especially considering I have done business with a few big hubbers and both parties had a successful transaction. I am still transacting/chatting to one of them a few years on.

Best bet is to see the parts in person. I bought a bunch of second hand parts for my bike, and every single one of them is still going strong. It's about knowing what to look for and actually 'feeling the parts' like spinning the bearings on the hubs, checking the shifter has all clicks engaging nicely etc. It certainly helps if you know what to look for, but if not, bring a long a mate who does, or alternatively, meet at your LBS and get them to check it out. Also don't get desperate. If it is too good to be true, it generally is.

I could care less if they are vegan, but I still far prefer how they look. But I guess that's why different looking shoes are made. I could personally never bring myself to spend over 250 dollars on shoes, but if you have the money, go for it.

Why not consider adidas velosamba? IMO waaaay more good looking, and only 100 dollars retail overseas. No idea how much shipping and import duties would cost, but they will still end up cheaper than the 250 the stomp lox go for (and you get way more style points).

I second this. I use a photo, and have had no issues. Quite a few guys I ride with just photoshop the date when it expires. They don't care. If this money was going towards the trails, I would tell them off, but instead, the money they would have spent on the card now can be used for a tokai MTB board.

If your E bike uses the same motor and battery system as a spez E bike, why not take it to west rand cycles? Also most shops know E bikes. They really are no different when it comes to non E bike specific jobs. For example, servicing suspension, setting gears, bleeding brakes etc. is exactly the same. Also servicing suspension is something you can do at home if you have some mechanical inclination (pretty much every other bike related service can be done at home if you have the tools and knowledge) It sounds like you are quite confused, so rather watch a video if you are comfortable to keep on trying, or better yet, take it to a bikeshop before you damage something.

Probably going to get blasted for saying this, but have you considered buying 2nd hand? If you don't feel comfortable telling what is/isn't a good deal, get a buddy who knows a lot about bikes, or even your LBS will be willing to help. You could get a much nicer spec carbon bike second hand, then you every could new. (Another benefit of second hand is you don't have to take the hit of the brutal depreciation on bikes as soon as they leave the shop)

Yeah for sure. A singlespeed wouldn't work to get to my house, as it is on the top of a pretty nasty hill. So I guess a 9spd would work, but then I also feel like I could put some of that money towards a cheapish first moto... tough choices for sure. It's also more convenient to ride a moto to friends houses and school than it is on a bicycle, because you don't arrive all sweaty - cause all I would probably wear is some short boots, gloves, a jacket and a helmet. (I already carry enough *** in my schoolbag, so a change of clothes isn't viable) Thanks again for the input, and whatever it comes down to, I will have to buy an alternate form of transport to commute, as my current MTB pedals quite badly (maxxgrip tires and 160/160 no lockouts) and even though it is insured, I want to minimize the risk of bike theft.

True, but I chose GX because it makes it that much easier to sell. I used to ride 1x11 and had no problems with it, but I got the gx cassette for free as well, so that was a huge reason why I went with it. I guess I am just interested to try motorbikes and see how they stack up. I like the adrenaline from riding mountain bikes, and it looks like riding sportbikes give you all that rush (and more).