Just Keep Pedaling

Missing: headset chain rotors rear derailleur - try and get a slx or xt seatpost clamp pedals - Shimano SPD's for reliability - Crank Brother for easy in and out and good mud shedding. tires - tubeless is the single best upgrade for a bike - UST tyres on the right rims work well. bottom bracket - normally comes with the crank. double chekc though.

Check my posts yesterday about building your own bike. https://community.bikehub.co.za/topic/102216-building-a-bike-piece-by-piece/

It that Fox fork compatable with your frame? Its a 1.5" (downhill spec) - most frames are 1 and 1/8". It also requires a fropnt wheel with an axle (downhill spec) and not a quick release. CRC have been unable to sell these for ages because they are a xc style fork to fit a downhill/AM bike. Stay away. Look at Rock Shox Reba RLT. That handlebars are waay over priced - expensive bars do little for a bike. Shimano wheels don't have a good name from those who own them. The seals let in mud and they are machine built - not hand built. Try for a set of Hope II hubs and Stans rims - it will cost you R3500 - R1000 more but they will last forever - the shimano's could last as little as a year or two.

"That chicken in a can pic makes me want to go ride."

Its gets confusing as they have different versions of each model. So multiple Darts and Multiples SIDs. There could be crossover in 'goodness' between the models.

"2.4 mill is nothing when you are securing the safety of south africas most popular tourist attraction. The damages and bad PR of 1 or 2 tourists going home after being attacked on the Mtn will costs SA a lot more than 2 mill in the long run. Unfortunatly the veld in JHB doesnt warrant the same interest." I can appreciate that. My wife used be in reservations for a company who sells Safari camps in excess of USD 6000 pppn - many bookings over R1 mil. I don't see what is unattractive about our veld? It some of the dustiest in the world with a great variety of old broken bottles.

100 rangers! R2000pm x 100 x 12 = R2.4 million per year. That is a substantial investment. Can we have just three for our trails in JHB?

Never heard of it. Also interested to know.

Never buy anything with 1" in its name. Your friends will laugh at you and you will develop an inferiority complex. Seriously.

Teaks is like one massive bike park with trails cris crossing all over the place - almost all single track. You can do about 23km in a small 3kmx3km sandbox. I rate it better than Groenkloof. Order the small Teak Burger at the restuarant afterwards (it massive!). Van Galens is an epic outride spread over more than 40 farms. It includes everything. Mountains, rivers, forests, downhills, farm roads. It really is the best ride in Gauteng. You might want to do it with someone who knows their way around there as it can be a little confusing at times. Van galens is like ten different rides rolled up into one.

"R500 for a cable and installation? That is shameful!" They originally quoted R100. Then they phoned me back - oops, its SRAM and not Shimano - we did not realise. I wanted to ride with a front brake on the weekend (race) so I had no time to shop around. To make matters worse - when I go to collect it they can't find it. This is why I hate bike shops.

"Sure you can do it on the cheap, with whatever you can get here and elsewhere. However if you like me (unlikely) once you start shopping around and looking at the options, I tend to go for unique high quality stuff, maxing out the cc in the process, which generally is far from the cheapest" +1 It is loads more interesting than just buying a bike and riding it. Its a whole seperate hobby. Don't do it if you think you won't enjoy it.

All sealants harden over time. 2 months mimumum 6 months max. Co2 bombs might contribute but are not the main cause.

Some hassles I encountered. -Tubeless tires too tight for the rim. After four hours of swearing and heating tyres with a hairdryer I finally realised that some tyres are just too tight for some rims. Ask around about rim tyre combo's before you buy a tyre. I can tell you that Swalbe's USTs are super tight tyres. -BB sizes - 73mm or 68mm - frame not matching my previous bb's. -Trying to cut gear cables without real cable cutter. I bought cable cutters from a hardware store for R100 and destroyed them on the first attempt - the cable just laughed. -Brake cable length - My front cable was too short - just slightly. Asked the bike shop to put on a longer one. Cost R500. -Trying to convert a through axle to a quick release on a DT swiss wheel. It took three months of endless frustration and cost more than I paid for the Wheel. Do not try this at home.

"Trying not to be overwhelmed here " You have six months until summer. One step at a time.

Tools: Toolset - allen keys, various bike spanners, crank extrators and other useful stuff. R500. Torque wrench - hardly used except installing the crank and maybe the lockrings. Essential for any carbon parts. Bike shops don't use them that is why things always come lose or are stripped. Get one. R800 for the cheapest clicker style one. Compressor (for tubeless): Just use the one at the garage.

2x Brake Rotors - either six bolt or lockring - either compatable with Sintered pads or not. 2x Hydraulic brakes with brake pads - some come with rotors some don't. Brake adaptors - to convert IS to post mount or vice versa or to adjust for different rotor size. Not always needed. Handle Bars and Stem- come in two thicknesses so compatablity with Stem important. Grips and Bar Ends - I like the ergonomic Specialised bar ends. Seatpost, Clamp and Saddle. Seatposts come in different diameters. Make sure you get a seatpost that can adjust tilt forward and back. Saddles break so consider them a semi consumable. Nuts and bolts - normally supplied with major parts but not always.

The rest of the stuff: There is a lot of parts going into a bike: I'll try and list them: -Frame -Rear shock -Wheels made up of hubs, spokes, nipples, rims. -2x quick release - rear and front are different width. -Cassette and lockring. -Bike Grease. -Rim strips and tubeless valves and Stans/Joes for tubeless. -2x Tyres - UST tyres with grippy front and rolling rear is the norm. -Fork -Headset including various parts. -Crankset including a bottom bracket bearing. Try and get the hollow versions as the old school ones are a b1tch to work with. -Clipless Pedals, cleats and cleat spacers if neccessary. -Rear derailer including 2x jockey wheels. -Front derailer -Chain and some quick links and chain lube. -2x gear cables. -2x shifters - cannot interchange SRAM and Shimano - ie must match rear derailer. To be continued.

Bespoke/Proprietary stuff: Avoid anything like this. I hate to pick on a brand but Specialize is a good example - they make excellant bikes but sometimes the replacement parts can only be obtained from Specialised - read they are gonna cost you double.

Shopping: CRC sells a lot of stuff. You can sort the options by best selling. The top three selling items are normally your benchmark. Read their reviews on CRC and MTBR.com. Be sure to check out the positive reviews and the negative reviews. CRC shipping is free on orders of R3000 or more. So try and take advantage of this. Other places to look at prices (although selection is normally less is Chris Willemse Cycles (Online), Buycycle.co.za and Solomins Cycles). Always factor in import duty +-14% plus a handling fee of x (can't remember).

Tools and know how: Some things require bicycle specific tools. You can get a tool kit for about R500 that can handle almost everything. Consider buying Park Tool Blue Book of Bicycle Maintenance. It is comprehensive. You can make do with internet info but it often non-specific.

Drivechain: This is a consumable item on MTB bikes. Escpecially your chain, cables, jockey wheels, cassette and chainring. Buy cheap and no second hand stuff. So aim for a DEORE/SLX mix of stuff or the SRAM equivalent.

Fork: The benchmark value for money good cross country fork is the Rock Shox Reba RLT off CRC. At +- R3500 is the BMW320i of forks. Be careful when matching Forks to wheels and frames. The steerer must be the same (stick to 1 and 1/8" steerer and quick releases) and the axle type the same.

Wheels: You get budget wheels, mid level wheels and proper wheels. Buy proper wheels - it is the best investment on the bike. They have proper sealing against mud, can take UST tyres, they are strong, roll fast and can be serviced easily. Expect them to last over 5 years. I had a set of budget wheels give up after three months of riding each weekend. The consensus best value for money it Hope II hubs with Stans rims and DT Swiss spokes. Ordered from CRC you are talking R3500 for a wheelset. Not to say there are not other options but this is the benchmark.

Frame: If there is any one component I would consider getting second hand it is the frame. This applies to aluminium frames and not carbon frames. Watch the frames that come on sale here on the hub. You have to make some more decisions here: 1. 29er or 26inch wheels? Frames can only take one type. There are a thousand threads on the internet debating this. 29ers are hot at the moment so there will be a shortage of second hand 29er frames so this will drive the cost up. 2. Do you want rear suspension? This drives up the cost considerably but if you do really long rides (or multiday rides) or are not fit enough to have your legs bear your weight the whole ride - then you want a dual suspension. 3. Geometry - agressive geometry is faster but less comfortable. You will find yourself sitting forward. Relaxed geometry is less power in pedaling but more comfortable and easier to negotiate technical sections. Relaxed geometry bikes are often called trail bikes as apposed to XC bikes.