Captain Fastbastard Mayhem

Electively so, my dear Watson! I'm not THAT unaware...

Okay, so you ARE the purple dinosaur. Explains a lot. Remind me to carry a machete next time. Might just lop off your head and save millions of parents the world round from your hideous mancy pancy sing-alongs.

Azonic - from your link to Wiki. Totally different design to a URT. Totally independent BB, independent of both front and rear triangle. Unified rear triangle The "Unified rear triangle" or "URT" for short, keeps the bottom bracket and rear axle directly connected at all times. The pivot is placed between the rear triangle and the front triangle so that the rear axle and bottom bracket move as one piece, and the saddle and handlebars move as another piece. This simple design uses only one pivot, which keeps down the number of moving parts. It can be easily modified into a single-speed, and has the benefit of zero chain growth and consistent front shifting. On the other hand, when the URT rider shifts any weight from the seat to the pedals, he or she is essentially standing on one end of the swingarm, resulting in an increase in unsprung weight which varies according to the length of the swing-arm and distance between the bottom bracket and the pivot, and as a result the suspensions effectiveness is reduced to some extent. During braking, riders naturally brace themselves on the pedals,[citation needed] and combined with brake dive leads to more severe pitching, sometimes called "stinkbugging".[citation needed] Because of lockout and pitching, along with persistent suspension bob in low-pivot URTs, and a constantly changing saddle-to-pedal distance, the URT design has fallen out of favor in recent years.[7] Examples of bike with this kind of suspension include the Castellano Zorro, Catamount MFS, Ibis Szazbo, Klein Mantra, Schwinn S-10, Trek Y, and Voodoo Canzo. Independent Drivetrain The Independent Drivetrain (AKA IDrive) Pat # 6,099,010 / 6,073,950, was the 4th commercialized suspension design developed by pioneering MTB suspension designer Jim Busby Jr. The independent drivetrain system was a direct result of the limitations encountered with the GT LTS (links tuned suspension) 4 bar linkage design used by GT Bicycles from 1993 to 1998. The defining feature of Independent Drivetrain is the isolation of the bottom bracket (crank) from the front or rear triangle. This isolation allows the BB to move in such a manner as to neutralize the unwanted characteristics of chain growth at the pedal. Some may call this a "modified URT" but in reality it is a highly reconfigured 4 bar if examined theoretically. By using this isolated BB construction, pedal forces do not induce undesired suspension compression or extension nor does suspension activity produce pedal actuation through chain growth.

Not to mention that it has 7" travel front and rear... All GT's FS bikes use the iDrive system, so not technically true that the system isn't designed to take big hits and carry on riding... Have a look for figs on the GT DHI, and you'll see that they've been VERY highly though of in DH circles...

A big block of purple? So you're a Barney impersonator?

Oh - btw - that green bag on the RHS of the first pic holds the iDrive assembly, chainring, rear derailleur, linkages, bolts nuts and screws necessary to keep her together. Only thing missing is brakes, tyres, shifter & chain.

Hey guys, So as some of you might know, I recently bought a GT DHI from Pittstop, in an attempt to get closer to my goal of becoming a DH daemon. It needs a bit of TLC, as well as a few more parts before she is rideable. Most of all though, she needs a new coat of paint and made to feel shiny and brand new again. I've decided to give her a fresh lick of paint, in the form of Rustoleum's metallic "Black Midnight" which is really just gun metal grey. This is thread is going to mark the progress of her transformation, and will show you guys the end result of my hard work at getting her ship-shape again. So - here goes. She is now all disassembled, and ready for the strippers (as am I, but don't tell my wife that!) to take hold of her and get her down to all her glory... I will carry on updating as I progress... Timeline to completion of paint etc = 1 week. Timeline to total completion = inconclusive at this point in time. Relies heavily on sale of road bike, seen here.... BUY ME! Here she is though, ready for the 2nd step towards a brand new life! I thought a bed shot was better than a couch shot, for obvious reasons ;-)

ha! ha! ha! No advice needed, bra! I spank it whenever I get the chance! Wait. No. That didn't come out quite as I expected. Fk. Did it again. Dammit! AAARGH!

nah, bro. That ain't Capricorn. His skintone is faaaaaaar from pasty-4ss whiteboy. Saw those pics in a MTBR mag a few years back. Still gives me the willies...

Down 6kg in 4 weeks. Now down to 97 again, after a few months being at or over 100. Ideally need to be at approx 90kg. Long way to go. But I also love my beer.

under the last clear-coat. I want them to be protected as well...

oh - and sanding between clear coats was gonna be waaaaaaaay up there in the numbers, don't worry about that.

fair enuff. Will have to spec up on the sandpaper then. And spec down on the pressure applicators. I have a tendency to be ham-fisted at times...

did somebody say shpongle!? In all seriousness though, MH... Cap said the whip was sweet. I responded with chains and nipples. Soon, somebody might throw a pair of cuffs into the mix. All we need then is a water-bed and an Austin Powers-esque shagtastica shall ensue!

lolz... MH - I caught Cap already. The ref to paper was purely for woodworking projects (80 grit for stubborn as feck lumpy ****, 1000 grit for mirror-like finishes on hardwood surfaces before application of wax) The only time I'll be using paper for is a very light rubdown between coats of paint. And then it'll be with the 1000 grit. Still need to get the stripper though. Plus - being a metallic finish, the prep is even more important. So there can't be ANY gouges or blemishes. If I had access to an acid bath, I'd use that. Unfortunately, I don't. So the manual way it shall have to be!

Those nipples are pretty hot as well... all chained up... Must! Control! URGES!

Haha! Wondered when someone would ask that question... I needed the 80 for some woodwork projects I've got going. Got some reclaimed oregon pine that is SERIOUSLY bleached & pitted, and I need to smooth out a few sections with the coarse stuff before I take my sander to it. I've got one of those stanley-blade endowed paint scrapers & some paint remover as well. Will be using the blade to get some stubborn chips off after the majority has been taken off by the stripper (did I just say that? ) There are some chips in the finish of the rear triangle at the moment anyway, so I don't really want to expose bare ally to those sections. I've seen some nasty things happen with solvents and metal surfaces! (old man was head waterproofing & flooring engineer/tech for a.b.e for a good long time. Site visits to Illovo, Huletts etc were a common occurrence. Main problem - improper preparation. Amazing what raw molasses can do to a hardened epoxy floor, given the opportunity! ) Saying that, the frame itself looks pretty solid wrt paint coverage, so that shouldn't be a problem with the stripper. I like strippers for that very reason - they manage to get down to the substrate exceeeeeedingly efficiently.

awesome. great look, mate!

Fo SHO! Bought the paint and sandpaper today... (80 to get the stubborn bits of paint off, 320 to smooth off the ridges and 1000 grit to finish her off) Colour is Black Midnight Metallic. Not actually a black, but it was the closest to gunmetal grey in a metallic enamel paint. Also got one of those pseudo spray-gun grips that latches onto the top of the cans so that I can control the rate of spray more easily, and get a better spread of paint on the frame. I will post progress regularly. Tomorrow (or tonight) marks the beginning of the dismantling process. Can't wait to get her finished! Still in 2 minds about the colour of the fork though. Monoblock (same gun metal grey as the frame) or a deeeep metallic red, or even black. Hmmmmm.... Photoshop mock-ups to follow as well.

Oh - just found out that it's an '02 Boxxer, so 7" it is! Saw the tech guide on the web, downloaded it and it was the first year to refer to the "external rebound / compression adjusters" so I upended the bike, grabbed a 3mm hex and DANG! Them threads at the bottom of the fork are HOLLOW! I Got me some compression & rebound adjustment! I'll be sorting it all out and servicing the buggers while the lowers are being sprayed. Oh - and the shock works. Tested the rebound screw, and at full in she backs up slower than an 80-year-old on prozac.

NIGE!!! Getting the cans & sandpaper tomorrow. Going for a Rustoleum grey basecoat, with an Enamel Mettallic Gun Metal Grey topcoat (2 minimum) and then an enamel clearcoat to finish it off. Decals will be designed & printed later, with inspiration taken from the net. I'll get them done before the topcoat is put on so that it's super hard and inpenetrable. Fork will be sanded down, V Brake bosses ground down and then sprayed either the gun metal or a deeeeeeeep red. The jury is still out on the fork... I have a bar now - 780mm BooBar w/20mm rise (thanks Capricorn!) and am looking for stem, brakes, shifters and a chain. Then get her some High Roller super tackys, and she'll be ready to go. Ideas are welcome!

Damn, Deon. That's a shaxxy bike!

dude, 180mm is cool for anything. Suffice it shall for anything and everything you can throw at it. I'd say you hit up obike dot coza to see what stock they've got. Yes, they're older models that they're selling, but they're all brand new. And at a stonking price...

Damn. I don't normally like the look of road bikes, but I have to say that this machine is absolutely drop dead gorgeous. I laaaaaaik!