BergForce

The Ikon is a great tyre front or rear and similar to a Ralph but it will outlast a Ralph x3 especially if you do tar riding. For me I will choose an Ikon everytime for xc riding before any Conti or Geax.

Upgrade desperately required...

Null? No.

It is mostly your own balance/steering keeping you up, more so the lower the speed.. Gyro forces helps more with an increase in speed, but I think that if you travel at high speed and your headset is stuck in center position you will topple over even at high speed.

Because it will throw your weight too much in the opposite side of which you are turning. Agreed, but no need to tackle this one it is very easy to test on your bike.

But you can turn in quicker/better by 1st destabilizing the bike by slightly turning it in the opposite direction slightly 1st.

Counter steering is something different. Counter steering is used while going around a corner to prevent the vehicle from spinning out. This is not the same as turning a bit left to make you lean to the right better when entering a corner.

Also wanted to make this point, but that initial opposite turn to brake balance is such a small movement and almost instinctive that it is probably insignificant in this debate.

Sometimes when a motorbike rider falls it seems the bike can travel a very long distance without the rider on the bike. The higher the speed the longer the bike will stay upright with no rider (no steering balance).

Here is a question: If gyro has no effect, if you remove the rider from a bicycle going at 50km/h, it will travel much further without the rider than a bike with no rider travelling at 10km/h. Is this only down to speed or does the gyro effect help to keep the bike going faster upright for longer?

Check the tire when you spin it. It should be smooth - no whobbles. Also check the side of the tire at the rim/bead all the way round. This is to make sure that the tire is seated properly. If the tire is seated properly then I will give it more time it should be fine.

The Anthem is not a pure xc bike its very versatile. The only drawback of the Anthem and the Trance is the long chainstays but this is less a problem the bigger the frame.

The Camber and Epic will be better for road riding but the tires will make a much bigger difference. The Camber because it has full lockout, and the Epic because of its rear suspension superior power transfer. The Anthem is more comfortable than the Epic and will ride more like the Camber. All these bikes will do good for road riding if slick tires are used.

I heard the service interval on 2013 Fox products dropped to 3-4 months from 9-18 months from their previous range. If this is true Rockshox suspension is a must. I would also budget in new wheels as part of what you would like to spend. Rather spend 25k on the bike + 5k for wheels than paying 30k for a bike with mediocre wheels.

Yes do the upgrade, it will be lighter for sure, but get the American Classic standard tubeless wheelset which is better quality, a few grams lighter, looks much better, and is stronger and stiffer than a Stans Crest wheelset, at the same price.

If you want the best and willing to pay do Rock N Roll Extreme; else if you want better than Squirt and very cheap do Bearing-Man Go chain wax;

Try the Go wax lube from Bearing-Man. The chainsaw lubes are designed to work under high temperatures. Go chain wax is cheap (R160 or R100 for 500ml on special).

Just went out on my 1st ride with Go chain wax. It was a sloppy wet mtb ride. It seems better than Squirt, my gear changes were smoother and my chain looked cleaner for longer. Squirt seems too lightweight for me - it does not lube enough, it does not stay on enough.

If you do go ht I recommend this ass saving gadget: http://www.wigglestatic.com/images/use-sx-seatpost-med.jpg?w=350&h=350&a=7

The best fast xc 29er tyre is the Stans Raven 2.2 but its not available in SA

I ride both 29er ht and 100mm dually. If I had to sell 1 it would be the ht. The Felt dually looks like a great bike with good geometry. I would upgrade the wheels to American Classic Race.

I found Rock N Roll Extreme to be a great lube for mtb, much better than Squirt. Rock N Roll Gold will be great for road. But at R120 for a small bottle it is expensive. So I went to (as per end of other lube thread) Bearing-Man and got a big 500ml bottle of Go chain wax for R100. It is quality wax lube and will last me more than a year.

I like potato salad! YYYEEEEEEAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! http://www.foodiggity.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/mr_potato_head.jpg

As long as cyclists and motorists share the roads the danger will persist. It is not worth the risk. Ride offroad.