LBKloppers

Been riding with 5 bolts for ages. The direction of the force through the bolt shafts is much less than the total shearing force possible from braking. ie. other things will go wrong long before you shear five bolts.

It doesn't matter. I rode with both and on a long ride there are no real-world measurable differences. The human body is immensely adaptable and your body overcomes those differences without you realising it. But even if you're right, then so much more reason to address the issues I have, because at the moment, my Fox sucks!

I do service the fork lower frequently. There is nothing wrong with the foam rings. Just dirty. I think you're right about the oil seal wiping off the light oil on the stanchions, but it does initially improve the fork movement while the oil is still fresh and present. I agree with your sentiment about the LBS, but that is part of a much bigger problem in the technical world. It's easter weekend and I am away, but I certainly am going to explore the Air shaft recommendations with too much grease. Finding the Fox tutorials about the Air shaft is not so easy though. Have a great Easter weekend everyone!

This is NOT a RS against FOX issue but it is a rant. I ride a Scott Spark 27,5 plus with a Fox 34 boost fork. It is a lovely ride suiting my kind of riding like a glove, but the Fox Fork the bike came out with has a quirk I absolutely hate. In my endeavours to resolve the matter I have replaced and serviced the forks using the lbs and other times I did it myself. It's a pretty simple task with the available service kits. BUT The fork has a severe sticktion problem. I need to bump the fork really hard on the first time out to overcome the sticktion. The fork will then be quite smooth but as the distance increases while riding the dirt, the dust carried by the tires collects on the stanchions. It appears this dust contributes to the sticktion and it will get worse until I give it a huge bump again. I have tried lubing the stanchions before every ride, but the same thing happens over and over. All the recommended lubes were used when the seals were replaced with new ones and I even short-serviced one set because I got the impression something was very wrong with the fork. It turns out there are several contributing factors and I would like to hear the Hubber's opinions on these. I noticed the stanchions become very clean and dry in a short time even after I started the ride with fresh lube on the stanchions. My bike has a Fox mudguard, but it is more of a show than anything else (South Africa is drier than muddy and these things are mostly designed for a wet, muddy Europe). Most of the dust collects on the front of the stanchions leading me to assume that the Fox mudguard deflects the dust up and the bike then rides into the suspended dust. I measured one of the seals and I found the ID to be 33mm (34mm fork). That is quite a tight fit. 1. Do you think the 1mm smaller diameter is contributing? 2. Do you think I over-service? I once had a bike with an RS Reba that was visibly more lively than the Fox and I hardly ever serviced it. 3. And why in the world can someone in the manufacturing line not design a proper catch-and-deflect dust guard for those who ride in the dry? Surely avoiding dust from collecting on the stanchions will be beneficial. 4. Am I the only one?

I have a KOM coming out of a mining pit in Tanzania. It will stand forever as the mine is now active and the road is not accessible anymore.

Getting older is a bummer. I am in the category where things start to hurt that never did before. My wrists also gave me problems with my stock Scott Spark grips. I found that the diameter was too small for my hands and I solved to issue by wrapping road bike tape over the existing Scott grips. That little increase in diameter made my life on the bike and on my wrists much more bearable.

Do not discount speed. Generally, people do not realise how close the relation between speed and momentum is and momentum converts into force. Just do a simple calculation of momentum at speed if you weigh 60kg and move at 60km/h. Your answer should be 1 metric ton. Now you refer to fatigue and you are right, that sideways whipping will hurt, but what is the likelihood of such an event? The more realistic scenario is when you come down with falling. Have a look at some YT videos of people falling. In most cases, the head goes down fast. Where is the impact going to be? Mostly on the road, pavement, rocks or something standing proud close to the road. Again you may argue that the extra weight will contribute to the velocity, but what about the sudden stopping bit? The thing is, one can argue the whole day but it boils down to the single thing that we want to protect our noggin. Your head contains what makes you who you are. Damage that and it can not be repaired. Damage it enough and it's bye-bye. I think about two things when I buy a helmet. Safety is the no1 priority, but comfort comes a close 2nd otherwise the burden of discomfort becomes an excuse NOT to wear the helmet even on a short trip to the cafe. For the record, I came down in the port of Cape Town with my head on the edge of a railway line. My helmet saved my life that day because without a helmet my noggin would have cracked open like an egg. The physical signs of the broken helmet indicated the rail hit my head diagonally right through the middle. I am not taking a chance with my head, finish en klaar! You go and get a helmet with MIPS as a minimum. As mentioned, this site is indeed a valuable gauge. https://www.helmet.beam.vt.edu/bicycle-helmet-ratings.html#!

He is based in Wildernis, but he arranges the couriers. His work is exceptional and his deliveries better than you would expect. Check him out on the internet https://wheelbuilder.co.za/

What do you mean bigger platform? There is the general sales pitch of a bigger platform using the simple SPD concept, but there are those massive pedals that actually look like no-cleat pedals but are. My comment refers to the SPD concept. It boggles the mind that every time one of the big OEMs mentions one or the other gimmick, most just simply believe it. Big platform, my @ss. Since you've been riding the XT platform, have a close look at the wear patterns on it. The platform size seldom contributes to the contact between the shoe and the pedal. The SPD design locks everything right around the cleat. The rest is cosmetic (excluding weight, bearings and seals).

Dude, just contact Nick.

I get your frustration, but my 2011 Edge500 is still running fine. I use it most for a speed indicator. the rest of the data is collected on my Forerunner 935. Working well thank you.

I am not a 4x4 owner but I've seen the time some of these guys take to re-inflate after they get out of the sandy 4x4 routes. Some of them had the best mini compressors money could buy and it still took forever to re-inflate. AND the noise! The speed and convenience of the onboard 2nd compressor were something to behold. I think most underestimate the volumes of air those aircon compressors can move. Additionally, it's mounted on the engine, activated with a switch and all the driver has to do is connect the hose to the wheel. For home, I've made an adapter to fit on a Sodastream bottle. It's a super duper CO2 bomb. Note, this thing will blow your wheel (if it is a bicycle wheel) to smithereens is it is not controlled. Those bottles are charged to 160Bar. Do not mess around.

I am just curious. What do you use for a 4x4 pump? Years ago I was a guest on a very remote Kalahari game farm and when the hunting was done, we helped with the regular farm work (We've got to pay for the free accommodation😉). Two things I learnt there. 1. A manual sun tracking device for borehole pumps, and 2 an additional air conditioner pump in the cruiser for QUICK inflates in the field. Both worked like a charm.

Dude! Hope you heal up quickly. Elaborate on the brake issue? What brand, model, pad, the wear before you started the downhill, and why the heck did you allow it to overheat?

I have noticed quite a number of cyclists around Babsfontein when I pass through. I would like to explore the area a bit. If I start in Babsfontein, where do I head out for a lekker exploring 30/40 km without transgressing onto private property and staying off the paved surfaces? a GPS file will be most welcome. Anyone?

You can disagree as much as you want. I've been there and I have done it.

If you need to go to 10 speed you can do so easily by just upgrading your shifters and the sprocket. There is a whole lot of wish-wash about shifting systems, but it is all hogwash and sales talk. The gear shifting system is just levers and ratios. The Shimano systems use a 2:1 pull ratio. This is the reason you can not mix SRAM (1:1 pull ratio) with Shimano shifting. The old 9 speed derailleur will work with the 10 speed shifter, because the freewheel is exactly the same for 8, 9 and 10 speed systems. That leaves the derailleur to move across the same path and distance. The shifters is in control of the indexing and it will compensate for the different steps in the indexing. You might have to re-index the derailleur, but it will work without hassles. I have gone from 8 speed through 9 speed to 10 speed, every time just making the shifter and sprocket mod. Even the 10 speed chain works flawlessly on both the 9 speed and the 10 speed systems.

It works for all kinds of threats. The two legged kind too. Just make sure you use the one spraying a stream. The stream is visible and you can aim for the nose. It leads to the dog's brakes to lock up. Be careful with the fog spraying nozzle though. The wind direction and your speed could lead to your own suffering. Oh, and pepper spray gets old and not so effective over time. Keep your spray fresh.

If I may add my two cents. To get the right angles, I believe the saddle position is determined by your knee position when your crank is in the horizontal. If you drop a line from your knee down to the pedal, the line must just touch or pull slightly forward on the axle of the pedal. Also combine this with the saddle height as moving the saddle forward or even backwards, will impact the reach.

If I followed the thread correctly, the driver had conditions to follow until the case is heard. I read he was not allowed to leave Gauteng. Is that correct? If so, who makes sure he doesn't? Some Hubbers has stated that the driver is possibly enjoying his freedom. Is that true? Is he, while waiting for the case to be heard, still having his parties? When his identity became known, it was said he is a bit of a low flyer with an old Porsche, BUT he has the money for an attorney. As a cycling community, we are very focused on the case, progress of the case, etc. but I feel somehow that the scumbag driver and his cronies like him needs to feel more pressure. The fact that he left the scene for me is an attempt to manipulate the events to his advantage! The scale of balance is tilting the wrong way here. For me, as cyclist we moan and groan with very little output. We're cyclists, but we are also drivers, family, members of a community, part of a much larger scale with potential resources. Do we use that correctly? I do not think so.

I laugh while I read these encounters, just because I have been there. I used to work and live on the Namaqualand west coast where a strong southerly wind is the prevailing force. When one goes out for a ride, it means getting as aero as possible and pace it out. The wind noise in your ears drowns out any other sound. So, one lovely windy day as I was grinding out against the wind I encounter this massive Cape Cobra. It was lying along the edge of the road - we guessed it was regulating it body temp being cold blooded and all - and when I was right next to this bugger, it raised its head and hooded, fast! I guess the wind was drowning out his senses too, because it waited until I was right on top of it. The road is a narrow road and when I was sticking to the yellow line, my left pedal was over the edge of the road. That was a CLOSE encounter. I did shat myself and I did not stop to inspect or check or anything. The adrenalin gave me speed and I used it all. Today I laugh at myself, but I also enjoy the similar close encounters simply because I can relate. Later I did discuss with someone who knew something about snakes. He explained that the white sands and the cold wind makes it hard for the snakes to heat up when there is a lot of fog, or late in the afternoon. The snakes use the black heat absorbing surface of the tar road and it regulates its body heat by laying partly on the tar and partly on the sand. Further as the snake's skin gets tighter before shedding, the ability to see decline. The snake is possibly irritable and afraid. It was speculated that maybe, its sight was already so bad that even if it felt the vibrations, it did not know where to flee to quickly. The result is this blindingly fast raising its hood in defense.

I once rode down a very long, dangerous and very steep downhill. I mistakenly held the brakes on for too long and the rear rotor cooked. It didn't turn orange. It turned into a deep purple and the rotor warped so bad that I had to take the caliper off to continue my ride. But never, ever did I, under all the gruesome terrains I rode on, experience a rotor fail like that. The brand shouldn't make such a difference. The main material is S/S, but S/S or not, neglect or lack of care will wear it down. Whatever the source of the neglect the damage in these photos are due to excessive wear. Don't blame the rotor.

Guys and gals I have a set of boost wheels I want to use with my wife's non-boost bike. Is that possible?

Sunset in the koppies around Cullinan