Fleming

Mine has teken a while to show but is finally starting to look like something. http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b69/stuartfleming/StuMo.jpg

Giant AC with a Reba and LX components. I was pleasantly surprised to find it weighs 13.5kg,s when I weighed it on the fancy scale at work the other day.

Me too, I think my heart stopped for a second or 2. I had to go back to ensure that I did actually see what I thought I saw.

A lot depends on where you ride. I started riding in Knysna when I was in High school there and we never used to use any sort of slime. We got a few punctures but the main problem was snake bites on tree roots so we used to just ride high pressures. I now live in PE and the area I ride has a lot of thorns and sharp rocks. I ride tubeless but mates of mine have tubes and slime is essential otherwise they puncture on every ride.

Out of interest, does anyone know off hand what the actual dimensions are for these washers? I assume the internal diameter is 8mm due to the schrader valve but don't know the rest. I may know of a company who can supply something compatible.

Excuse my ignorance but is the purpose of these washers? I just serviced my Reba and put the old one back in as it came out. I have had no problems with the fork.

2nd Breath Cycles. Their number is on their webpage: http://www.2ndbreathcycles.co.za/index.html

1995 steel framed, Kona Cinder Cone. I am so sad I sold it. If I could find one now I would buy it in a heartbeat. (Assuming the price was right)

Yeah, this bike is pretty old. Bought the frame in 2001 while overseas and the components are a mix from the late 90's and early 2000's. Fork is from 96 but still super plush. next step is a single speed conversion.

I was recently given a set of 2.5 inch Mitchelin Wildgrippers, in Red. What do you think? Too Much? http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b69/stuartfleming/Bike%202/p1-1.jpg http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b69/stuartfleming/Bike%202/p2-1.jpg http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b69/stuartfleming/Bike%202/p3-1.jpg

I have a pair of "Lake" mtb shoes that I have been using since 1999. The tread is starting to get a little thin and they sound like tap dancing shoes when I walk but other than that they are still going strong.

I see your point but I still wouldnt have this problem if peeling lenses wasnt a issue. Back to the original topic. Next pair of glasses I buy will probably be Rudy Project. I ride with 2 guys who have them and they both rave about them.

Replacement lenses are not very expensive from the factory shop. I have had them replaced before and it was a bit over R200, although that was a quite while ago. I wont knock them for "consistent innovation" if the newer glasses actually showed some innovation. All the innovation I see from Oakley is in the frames and different styles, most of which I dont like. Sure, Jawbones make changing lenses easier but I think they look terrible. Just my opinion though. A innovative company would have realized that they have a problem with the lenses and done something to fix that. Its been a problem for years and years now so I am sure they are aware of the problem.

My Oakley's started peeling after a few years and I don't even ride with them, just day to day use. I took them back to the factory shop here in PE wanting to buy new lenses and got told they have no stock and wont be ordering any as the model has been discontinued. This is the second pair of glasses this has happened to me with. They did offer to trade them in and give me R400 off the price of a new pair but that is still very expensive compared to new lenses that only cost a few hundred rands. I will never buy another Oakley product again.

Of the bikes you have listed I honestly cant pick one without looking at them in real life although I like the look of the Scott. I would pic which ever one I felt had the best frame and as dirt rider said, the fork and then wheels. These are the heart and soul of the bike and also the expensive items to upgrade. The rest of the bike can be upgraded as components wear out but frame, fork and wheels make the biggest difference to how the bike feels and cost the most to change if you dont like something. You may also be interested in a GT. In my opinion they are awesome bikes and very good value for money. Look for a GT Avalanche. I am not sure of prices but I am sure there is one in your price range. There are also some very good second hand bargains available. I bought my bike for R6800 when it was 6 months old with little mileage for less than half the price of a new one. You need to be pretty confident that you can tell the condition of a bike though.

I dont know about a sleeve on the fork but I understand that you get a adapter for the frame. It fits into the bottom of the headtube allowing you to use a std headset and fork in the tapered headtube of the frame.

Anyone else wonder why a SRAM employee talks about maintaining chains and then goes on to say its cheaper to replace the chain than a Ti cassette and "XTR" Chainrings?

I ride a Zaskar and love it. Got it a year ago but have been lusting after one since the 90's.

Nice looking bike man. I am tired of seeing white bikes or black ones with lots of white. Word of advice about the wrist. Take it easy, especially in the beginning. I broke my wrist just over a year ago and had one of those high definition TV aerials sticking out of my arm for 7 weeks. After it was removed it took me a very long time before I was able to ride comfortably and even now it gets a bit sore on long technical rides.

LOL you sound just like me - a has-been from the 90's making a comeback. I do enjoy reminiscing about the good ol' days. I remember the Panaracer tyres' date=' they were the first to come out with a white (or more like cream) tyre. I think the Fire XC was their lightweight 1,95 inch racing tyre. In those days your rear tyres had wide side-to-side knobs down the centre and the front tyres had large knobs pointing forward. [/quote'] Strange coincidence that you commented on my post. We actually met each other on Tuesday night. I was the guy riding the black GT Zaskar with all the gold bits.

You must be talking about the poisoned spider? Those were the good old days. Going to ride Harkerville tomorrow. Cant wait.

Many years ago Holdfast used to make a "Bar" with a adjustable clamp on each end. One end clamped on the seatpost and the other on the stem. You then put the bar into a normal bike carrier that holds the bike on the top tube. The bike hung a little lower than normal but worked. The idea was that you would use it for FS bikes that didnt fit the carrier due to funny tube shapes or the rear shock position. Not sure if it is still available though.

If all you want to do is change from 8 speed to 9 speed you can prbably get away with using the 8 speed cranks. I have done this on one of my bikes and worked fine. I assume you have integrated shifter/brake levers hence the purchase of the new levers. Coming back to the cranks, I cant be sure but it looks like the cranks you have selected have a splined BB interface and you have selected a square taper BB. These will not work together. You need a different BB for those cranks. Otherwise all looks good.

Has the bearings in your rear hub ever seized? Looks to me like the axle has been rotating in the frame.

I have never tried this but highly doubt it is is possible. As someone mentioned the spacing between the sprockets is different between 8 and 9 speed cassettes. I dont know exactly what the difference is but using the dimensions parabola gave above it works out to 0.46mm. You might think this is insignificant but it is. This is only the difference between 2 sprockets but it increases each time you move further up the cassette. If you use a 8 speed cassette with a 9 speed shifter and set it up so that the derailleur lines up with the smaller sprocket by the time you have shifted to the 8th sprocket you will be 0.46 x 8 = 3.68mm out of alignment. I think we can all agree that this is alot. Perhaps you can get it to work with a some very fine tuning but I don't think it will stay working for very long. Rather get a 9 speed cassette and chain to go with the 9 speed shifter of stay with 8 speeds.