amasendeinja

Think these guys makes some awesome stuff... never seen such a bling jump frame before! www.demonframeworks.com

I can't comment on the ZTR's as I've not used them, but the new Crest rims will likely be my next set of rims I get, and I'm comfortable they'll be fine for me. I'm sure they're fine - a lot to do with how wheel has been built too I'd think. Rest of your wheelset sounds find and I use Ralph's, but only on the back, Rocket Ron on the front. Take the UST ones, not worth the bother with the tubeless ready versions unless you never see a rock on your rides. Another note, it's not just about your weight but how aggressively you ride as well. There are big guys out there who really do just float over the trial and can thus get away with lighter kit. There are also 60kg guys who'll break anything just by how they ride. You're the only one who can answer this question though. If you just hit that rock garden and let the fork and tyre take care of it, vs. smoothly manualling over/through it, then stick to the stronger, heavier stuff. Quote by Tom Ritchey posted countless times on the Hub: Light, Strong, Cheap - pick any two.

@Bokseun Being in your fighting weight class I stay far away from all things carbon, especially seatposts and stems. Would consider a carbon frame though... Just imagine now if that fine Superlogic post of yours had ended up in your doet when it broke? Methinks you'd be asking this question from your hospital bed whilst they rebuilt your ass'ole with bits they cut off elsewhere on your body. And they might have sent you home with a parting gift of a colostomy bag too. Getting the picture? I love Ritchey components; well priced, look damn good and perform extremely well. I've got the aluminium WCS seatpost, stem and handlebar (new ones) and have used the same (older ones) for years with no ill-effects... to them or me. Problem with carbon fibre is that whilst it is very light (generally), very strong (generally), when it breaks it does so catastrophically and with no warning. In my books this normally translates to much pain and leaking a lot of red stuff all over the nice clean trail you were riding on moments prior. For big guys like me who are more "float like a stone, and sting like a wombat" than Mohammed Ali's version, I would suggest sticking to things that are beneficiated, melted, rolled, drawn, extruded, etc. into their final form. Things that will at least provide you with some warning when they intend shuffling from their mortal coils. Things like aluminium, steel and best of all (in my books) titanium. Don't be offended, but do some reading in the Clydedale forum on mtbr.com and you'll get some idea of what I mean. If you don't know what a Clydesdale is, google it - but short verion: its a really big, strong, heavy ****off horse with legs like the support posts on the Gautrain viaducts. These are my opinions based on personal preference and experience, so just in case someone is planning on spouting off on the physical properties of carbon fibre vs. all other materials... just forget it bud, I've read it all before and I'm not interested.

I also disputed the fact the CO2 bombs damage, dry up, or otherwise render sealants useless, but over time I've realised that this is indeed the case. Apparently (I'm no chemical engineer) its to do with the "boiling" of the CO2 as it changes from a liquid to solid state as its ejected from the cartridge, which causes a massive temperature drop and this affects the sealant. Could someone who actually is a chem eng either verify or dispute this? On another greener note: Some time ago I found, and kept a copy of, this letter addressed by someone to Leonard Zinn on his website: Dear Lennard, I’m amazed in the continuing discussion of CO2 canisters that I haven’t seen anybody bring up the environmental costs of canning air, transporting it and then tossing a hunk of metal that will never be recycled into the landfills, or the side of the road in the case of the particularly ignorant cyclist. Think about it: you take air, which is free and all around us, and use electricity to pump it into metal containers, which had to be mined, smelted, formed, etc. Then you take these canisters and place them in a cardboard box made from trees and you put it in a shipping container and transport it across the ocean where it is unloaded and placed onto diesel trucks to be driven across the country to your bike store. But it’s not even good air: it’s air that leaks out of your tires even faster. You are surrounded by air, free air, better air. All it takes is a pump and a few minutes of work to get it into your tire, where it holds longer than the CO2. Cycling, as we all know, holds such a great promise for the environment. CO2 is a dark blot on that green sheen. We all know what the C in CO2 is. Leave the CO2 to the mountain bike racer who can’t spare the seconds. The rest of you can carry a pump. I love my new Lezyne pressure drive — more reliable and probably lighter than CO2 canisters. It’s an endurance sport folks. Endure a few minutes of pumping. Nowadays, where being fashionably "green" can stretch the bounds of credulity, and sometimes even snap them clean in half, this guy has a point here... enduring a little pomping on the trail is generally not the end of the world! Races.... well now that's a different story entirely, especially when you're aiming to improve on your last year's position 321 at the Sabie Classic by "at least 20 places". All this being said, I'll always carry bombs for emergencies and when you've had to insert a tube anyway.

Er... inkirrekt... I bought a 26er - hardtail nogal!

Thanks for the responses - think I'll forego what seems to be a crap idea and put a rack on the trailer or roof of my car. Cheers

MTB in the UK is absolutely huge! Once you get over the fact that the weather is sh&te almost all the time - and I suggest you do - then you'll have a blast if you're keen to make an effort. Buy the right kit for the conditions and research the riding and you'll love it. There are numerous trail centres with some of the best riding in the world and then there are just the trails around the entire country. There are so many bridleways that are open to the public that you can ride basically the entire country. And it being a quite a small country, there's not much effort to driving (or taking the train) somewhere nice for the weekend. As someone said before, start buying the UK bike mags; I have a preference for WMB, but MBR is good too, and they always have tons of info on trails including providing OS maps that you can pull out for the all the routes they review/ride. Whilst you're there try to get to these places: Lake District, Snowdon, Afan and I think Jacob's Ladder would be a blast just to see if you can do it! So start buying those waterproof duds, get over the fact that you'll always get cold, muddy and wet on your rides and have fun...

I've been trawling the web to no avail trying to find any "standard" versions of installing a towball mounted bike rack on your vehicle (on a 2nd ball) and a trailer at the same time. I would assume that an extended metal plate (with holes drilled for a 2nd ball higher up) would have to be bolted onto the "face" of the towbar where the ball gets bolted on and then the "trailer ball" bolted on after. The 2nd ball would be somewhat higher up and the rack would be installed on this one. I have a Thule RideOn 9502 2-bike rack and would like to be able to use it when towing a trailer. I would assume there are constraints to this, vis-à-vis: - the "extention plate" could not be too long (high) otherwise the opening of the boot might be affected (with the rack off) - if the trailer has a nose cone, the rack may stick out too far that turning the vehicl with trailer on would either be impossible or severely restricted - the weight of the rack + bike(s) + the weight of the trailer (at the hitch) might now exceed the 70kg (I think) limit on the towbar Anyone done something like this? How well or badly did it work? Anyone got any views on potential damage that the vehicle, trailer and/or bike could sustain as a result? Thanks

...Cotic Soda titanium HT... yes I actually bought a 26" hardtail! Spent a couple of awesome hours @ Groenkloof and Fountains this morning. Nice & wet & slippery, I guess I could have stayed home and got the same, but this was far dirtier and dare I say it; just as much fun (ok, maybe!) This thing handles like a dream, Took a look at my FS frame hanging on my garage wall when I got home and thought: hmmm, would be nice to start building her up again, not jeez I miss that ride, or something similar - not missing rear suspension at all at the moment. I'm sure I will at some point, but right now the Psy-Cotic is inducing far too much idiotic grinning for me to lust for anything else. 180 degrees removed from grumpy today!!!

Yup you're right, I'm pretty sure Burry could do the Epic on a Hyperama special bike with the fork turned the wrong way around, and still whip most if not all comers. Not really the point though is it. If you can afford the best and/or most expensive kit, then buy it. If something exists out that there that will make your ride more comfortable, ergo better, then why the hell not buy it if you can or are willing to pay for it. So whilst you may not be able to buy a good game (I'd venture you can't in golf either), you sure as hell can buy a better game, ala disc vs. rim brakes, tubeless vs tubes, etc. Personally I think Assos are the dogs bollocks, I own 2 pairs of Mille's that I bought in 2002 and they're still more comfortable than my 2 year old Endura's. At the time they cost R1100 I think, so, that's about R220 per year on bibshorts for the 2 over say 10 years - cheap in my books.... Just that initial cash outlay that makes my eyes water. Nothing else I've ever owned in bidshorts come even close to that lifespan. Haven't bought since, but will be soon. Uno's will do fine for me thanks.

Recently started running a Rocket Ron/Racing Ralph front/rear combo to replace my Mountain King/Monorail combo. Both UST and saved just over 200g on actual weight, i.e. not what the box says. Tyres seem to vary vastly in weight, not just by brand or model, but 2 of the same model will differ up to 30g in my experience. E.g. spec weight for a 2.25 UST Ron is 665g, but mine weighed 696g. That Mountain King 2.4 is great but at 800g its pig. Changed to 2.25 Rocket Ron up front (I would not suggest anything narrower) and 2.1 Racong Ralph on the rear. Very happy with the Ron so far, but would not run it on the rear. Ralph has had some bad luck - put a 1 inch tear in the sidewall at the Voortrekker Monument race when it had less than 100km on it (well p*ssed I was!), but I think on that trail you risk cutting any tyre. All around very happy - Ralph's slide in the wet (what doesn't), but pretty predictable. Pricey though - buy online through CWC else you'll be coughing way worse than Conti from what I've seen.

Er... did Big H get suspended for his misdemeanors on Dangle's thread yesterday? I see his scary avatar is no longer there and his name comes up as Guest_Big H... or is that a new persona? What'd I miss, what'd I miss..... I knew I should not have gone to sleep!!! @ big baby - and there you go again! Shouldn't you be out cooking up some vile potion and busy chanting "Eye of newt and toe of frog, Wool of bat and tongue of dog, etc.", instead of irritating these nice Hubbers with your asinine comments?

Mate if this aint sexy then I'm from another planet! Would part with vital bits of my anatomy for one of these...

The bought ones are as sticky (tacky?) as all hell, so yes, there's something special about them. I guess you could cut strips from a tube, but at max R30 for 10 real McCoy's why would you bother? Personally when I'm out in the boonies I'd rather ensure maximum chances of a quick and effective fix rather than some homebrew "hope it works" plan - especially when Mr. Hi Jack might just notice me standing still for too long... a very real concern to anyone I'd think.

Hmmm true very sad... that said, c'mon CRC buy up all the stock and a have fire sale!!!!

I think the size of the plug you use makes quite a big difference. I initially used the very small ones made by Genuine Innovations (about as long and thin as a match) and they never worked, especially for small cuts made by glass as the edges of the cuts are so smooth. Anyway, I just gave up on them and settled for using a tyre boot if ever the hole/cut was too big for the sealant to seal. This weekend though I got a decent sized cut that managed to vent all my sealant, mostly into my face! My mate stops behind me whilst I'm frantically spinning the wheel in the futile hope it will seal - and getting even more sealant on my face in the process - and whips out hit little plug (erm.. bad choice of wording, but oh well) and screwdriver-thingy set. 1 bomb (I figured no harm in using one seeing as there was no sealant left) and 30seconds later and we were riding again. His plugs were much bigger - about 4mm diameter - and worked like a charm. You can get at any bike shop I'm sure - I bought some at Solomons in Woodmead and its R39 for a pack of 10 complete with the tool. Refill packs (i.e. sans tool) are between R20 and R30 (also for 10) depending where you go. You get longer ones, but you would then need to cut them in half before you use them else the "tails" would be a bit long on your tyre. Hope that helped....

Maybe just watch this clip http://www.notubes.com/Movies_Kit_Installation.aspx(maybe you have already as mentioned you had looked at some). I found it to be the best one I found and considering it's of Stan himself telling (and showing) you how to install HIS conversion I figure its a good bet. Followed his instructions to the letter and finally got my bastard tyre to seal properly! Good luck

I've used the 2.4 Mountain King up front and its a bit too big, and for your mentioned riding preferences you'll be fine with 2.2. You'll save yourself a bit of weight too - that 2.4 is a real pig at 800g (for the UST ones).

Now if there was there a guy who needed to convert to 29" - the extra 3 inches would do him the world of good

Very literally JRA - I have a witness! Same poor guy both times, once in Sabie (near the top of the mountain) and once in Nelspruit near Halls - both times, the poor fellow had to ride home and come and rescue me with a Forester (Subaru, not the woodchopping kind!) The first time a weld "parted" on the chainstay very near the main pivot, with the result that the stucture formed by the 4 "arms" of the assembly was compromised. In rapid succession, the 2 carbon seatstays collapsed and the also the opposite chainstay near the Horst link. I would guess from a manufacturing defect where the weld parted, it did not even look broken, just like it had been glued and then parted along the glue-line. Obviously it's not glued, just looked that way. 2nd time, hopped a foot wide rut in the road and when I landed the wheel was rubbing on the frame and then noticed the crack near the Horst link when I climbed off. No big jump, just a hop at about 20km/h. I always find it hard to believe other people's stories of "I was Just Riding Along", so I guess mine deserves the same scepticism. But after reading of a number of other people having the same failures on their Light Rail Systems, and the fact that each successive version of the rear triangle assembly that Titus made became more and more beefed up (sadly post my experiences, so I had 2 of the same version) I reckon there's some validity in my claims. Great bike, when its working.

Big H, here something for you if your budget allows (you're an expat, so it should!!) From the webiste: "Calfee Dragonfly tandem weighs only 21.5 pounds, as shown. Our tandem frames, as light as the very lightest aluminum, titanium and carbon frames from our competitors, set a new standard for durability, power transmission and lateral stiffness. Where their 6.5 pound frames are weight restricted owing to frailty and flexibility, ours have no such constraint. Our core competency as a pioneering carbon frame builder, coupled with the inherent qualities of the carbon composite tubing, create the industry’s best tandem frame." He'll even make you one with titanium couplers, so you can fit the whole thing in boot of and Atos!

Personally I have no need of any extra stiffness, but for those who do, apparently these work better than a thru-axle!

Jeez Big H how old are you!? 90mm mortar hey? Only okes ever to use one of those were the Japs in WW2

This might interest those of you (us) that spend a lot of our hard-earned cash in Leprechaunland http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/article/chain-reaction-cycles-behind-the-scenes-29496 [This topic was started today - I pulled a "mod" and merged it with the existing one! Happy Hubbing Hubbers....]

My Taatass... then (FTM_1) and then (FTM_2) and now (FTM_3) .... hanging on my garage wall waiting for Planet-X/On-One to get the Titus supply chains up and running again so I can get a new rear triangle assembly after breaking the "light" (read matchstick) rails on it twice in 11 months! If you look really carefully on the 3rd pic you can see where it's cracked through where the derailleur hanger bolts on. Edit - sorry too stupid to get pic sequence correct, but I guess its kinda self-explanatory!!