Skinnyone

Yes changing wheelsize makes a difference in more than one dimension, but I think OP is asking if you have a 29er with QR would it make a difference going to a 29er TA...apples for apples. I have ridden a TA and a QR on 29er, and can honestly say I didn't feel that the bike was out of control or squirrely with the QR.

Not likely that you feel the difference on the trail, If you buy a bike with a QR front then leave it as is, you would be wasting money changing the fork and hub to a TA and vice versa...

So is browsing the net on your phone whilst driving and hitting cyclists....I have been hit by idiots not paying attention.

And nothing from OP...typical hub style

one thing I have learnt from commuting is don't throw your water bottle at stupid people...it's a waste. I have gone thru too many bottles making motorists "aware" of my presence...

The Garmin products will work yes,But you will still need the Wahoo/ANT+ USB dongle. All the requirements for the various options are posted on the website as well.

Hi Guys I will be doing another course on the 2nd or 3rd weekend of August for those of you who are keen. Cheers

Yep pretty much! and a speed/cadence sensor, if you use iPad then you will need either a bluetooth speed/cadence sensor or a Wahoo key to plug into the iPad to pick up the ANT+ signal. You will need an active subscription to utilize the software to its fullest potential, if your subscription is not active then all you can do is the workouts. The workouts can be setup (customized) in the software to replicate The Sufferfest viedos as well...But yes as a whole the routes etc can be more entertaining. The CycleOps trainers are very smooth and in many cases better than spinning bikes. Have a look at their website http://virtualtraining.cycleops.com/ and see the possibilities.

If you worried about weight then buy the S-Works Stumpy but I have ridden the Expert carbon, Elite alu and the comp alu...yes weight is an issue BUT the Elite Alu "feels" a lot lighter than it is on the trail. and IMHO it is the best value for money.

STUMPY all the way!!!

I use my basic CycleOps Fluid2 (R3800) trainer for the online stuff and couldn't even finish Alpe du Huez on Saturday....its frikken tough! The Fluid2 has a steady resistance curve so at 30km/h its giving me +-300W worth of resistance so to ride uphill fast means you pedal harder and the resistance goes up!!! So yes you don't NEED the online stuff but it adds a bit of variety to the pot I have ALWAYS hated IDT cuz its skull numbingly boring but now it at least keeps my attention going.

The CycleOps Trainer software has a lot less bugs than the Tacx the local back up is quicker, read thru the thread, and even though you may not do the online racing in the evenings you can still challenge the course using a training partner... The software subscription will allow you to download and ride an infinite number of routes worldwide including SA for a nominal fee (R65-150pm). the nice thing is that you don't need to buy the top end PowerBeam to use the software (it has more features - like controlled resistance) you can use a basic CycleOps trainer with a speed/cadence sensor to operate the software... Like I say, read the thread and make up your own mind.

Before splashing on Tacx, have a look here. http://www.thehubsa....aining-cyclops/ Every Tuesday and Wednesday night there is a race - better than Sufferfest videos... The guys selling their Tacx machines are doing so because of various issues explained in the thread.

Well not really, the designers will stress test a frame far beyond a normal riders capabilities and circumstances (crashes etc) and factor in these to the construction. Changing the angles by 1.5deg shouldn't cause the frame to suddenly fail, even tho the manufacturer will warn against it - they are protecting themselves from lawsuits remember.

So what was the stock head angle? and do you know what it is now? I will never go for a bike for a head angle that is steeper than 69.5deg as then it just becomes too twitchy for my liking. I have found the best handling bikes to have a 68deg head angle. I used to have a Kona HT with this and it is still the best HT I have ridden. As for putting on a longer travel fork, you then now change the amount of trail on the front wheel and could induce what I term "wheel flopping" where you turn the wheel and nothing happens then all of a sudden it "flops" and turns "all at once" so you would go from basically understeer to oversteer in an instant. Gary Fisher came up with his G2 geometry to over come this, have a slack head angle and a short trail on the wheel, thus creating stability at speed but keeping the sharp handling thru the tight slow stuff.

Mr Min for wood should bring out the grain in the carbon nicely . As for spray and cook, I haven't used it consistently for 15 years, I've been riding that long and every now and again I would give it a go but haven't done so for at least 10 years now.

In the old days they were kept by the staff under the strict instruction that tey are not to be sold on...nowadays they are cut up and the BB shell with the serial no needs to be sent to the states as their policy.

I'll give the dogs one a try...

Been there tried that - IMHO it doesn't help...been trying it for the last 15 years I've been riding.

An air seal has gone, hopefully it hasn't damaged the inside of the stanchion or else its a new CSU, Crown Steerer Unit...An air seal gone doesn't mean that it will leak oil, typically when the dust wipers (normally refered to as the seals) have worn out and gotten too full of dust then oil might weep out...but then a recently serviced fork will do the same,

Be careful using Brasso as it is a rubbing compound i.e. abrasive and it will take the clear coat and eventually the paint off, it is great to remove the small scratches in the clear coat and thus it will look like it brings out the shine, but then use a car polish to protect it... Spray and cook does nothing...except makes the frame oily.... You can with pleasure use a power washer BUT then pay for new bearings - often. I have seen it all to often when a guy has done (lets use the Epic) Epic and washed the bike for 7-8 days with a power washer and then after the race the bike gets hung up and left, the pivot bearings (and I don't care what brand of bike it is) will seize up, after resting up the person jumps back on the bike and pedals off only to find after that the frame has cracked because of the bearings being unable to turn in their respective housings so try to turn the frame instead...

I rode a Specialized frame like that with similar cracks for 3 years after it had been replaced under warranty (back when I worked at Specialized)... They are definitely paint cracks, Perhaps Specialized will warranty it under their 2 year paint warranty but considering its a 2012 model they may not....Depends on date of actual purchase.

These are rubbish IMHO, they are using wind speed and accelerometers as a calculation so if you do a session indoors then it doesn't have anything to factor in...unless you get the indoor package upgrade...? Rather get a PowerTap POwerCal heart rate strap, still not 100% accurate but certainly a LOT more accurate than the ibike thing...I have had results within 3% compared to a direct measurement hub system on averages.

Guys have been doing this or similar for years! My one mate lost a bike like this, they paid via a rubbery cheque so the payment reflected in his online banking but then 7 days later the cheque bounced - after he handed over the bike...That was in 2008...so like I say if the money isn't reflecting don't hand over any goods! I do a lot of selling on behalf of clients and won't let anything go until I am happy with the payment... Well done for being one ahead of the crooks...

It has been said before on these forums that a good wheel builder does not need to advertise or explain the technicalities and metrics of a wheel build, his work will do the talking... Same as a good cyclist won't shout his mouth off about how he will win the race, he/she will let the legs do the talking...