MoreTrails

Karma is a slow tire, it is going to be a small pig on the back

I am sure if the carbon seat post provokes the grease enough it will loose its rag and give the post a snot klap

Seeing as today is friday, and the weekend is here I suppose we can wait till the new week. So long as we get the finished "before" nice and clean pictures and then the "after" filthy grubby happily ridden bike pictures....

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo THEY SO PURDY!!!!! Fkuc it i WANT a marathon bike NOW - raw aluminiminim looks the shizzle

As most kids know, when its Krismis you play with your toys...so it is now 15h30 and no pics of the completed bike???? Whats the delay dude

As does Formula. I wouldn't get the multitool option, I would rather go for a set with individual keys like an Allen/hex Key set. I have the Park Torx multitool and it gets in the way sometimes - especially when you need to use the small ones... my 3c

I started my babe on a HT that I built up for her - lots of emphasis on the "I will build you a bike - i.e. not one other like it, special, and all that stuff". Money was tight so we found a frame that fitted my pocket and she liked the look and size of (about the same size as yours - 16" Diamond back, turns out frame is lighter than mine ) and then use all collected parts I had gained. Started riding on some dirt roads round Jonkershoek in Stellies, beautiful riding, good views and not to steep. Now she tries to beat her time everytime we do the loop. Basically, you can't make her ride stuff you like, so be patient and just enjoy the view. Get her stoked on riding in general and see where it goes. So I say it don't matter, but I recon if someone whats a go and wants to learn then do a HT first. Cheaper to maintain, will teach you how to ride properly and not let the suspension mask your imperfections.

Cheers Werner - was wondering how it all worked

Yeah I am with XTC1 on that, Anthem is an XC bandit racing machine. Trance is a little more compliant over the rough stuff. Me personally, I would say get a trail bike and you won't look back...but thats me. The external bb thing. Sometimes one needs to have the face of the bb shell on the frame reamed so that it is perfectly square and flat. This is a normal thing so don't be scared. The crank set with and internal bb sits more "inboard" i.e. the granny ring looks like it is hovering over the bb cup. You may even find the chain line gets better - but that would be a question for Mr Bornman. The 1, 2, 3 or X behind the name is the model i think. 3 being baseline and X being top of the line....Is that right hubbers? As Borriz says, bling your bike with some new tech, maybe get it a nifty paint job and you would have itched the itched. And there is always a reason to buy a new bike.... Crow will agree with me - go local, buy a Morewood!

Come on guys, are you really entering for the goodie bag or the fact that you may or may not have cracked a sub3 hour something or other. Its all about the ride, the traffic on the trail, the fact that people push you off the trail into the mountain side on climbs cause they are to knackered (from not training) to hold a line..... yeah, I am taking the piss... Go to action photo, they seem to have the times. takes a while to sort through them and find your name but its there....even a mate of mine that was "disqualified" for starting in the wrong group is there. Oh, and you get to see your pics too

I always thought the 24' wheel was suppose to be a bit stronger - smaller and less likely to fold....

Yeah, tough choice... I'm with Droo on the new SLX. Lines look cleaner too, and you options like triple rings or double and bash. Shimano BB's do last, I have one thats almost 10years old and still silky smooth. Also have a FSA crankset that is still going strong after more than 5 years. On its second BB though, Race Face BB gave up quite quickly. They creak too....

Hehehe, power tools can fix ANYTHING!!!! Seriously though, buy a set of c-cutters. Because you worth it....

I found the best for me was a big mix of both: Sram Attack/Rocket shifter (You get the Sram solid defined shift feel) XT RD (You get the silky smooth shifting) XT Cassette (its lighter than Sram, cost less than XTR and works just as well) Shimano Chain And the front doesn't matter really, its not working so hard and shifting distances are so broad that anything could work. Gripshifts are guff, but thats just me. They get in the way

Yip, cable cutters are the way forward. Every cyclist should own a pair. They not cheap but it may be one of the best pieces of equipment you ever own. Side cutters are a pain as Droo says, they can also crush the outers first which ain't to helpful. The grinder is the most novel way I have ever heard of...sparks and ****!!!! FUN

Sure thing man, I am sure it will serve you well. And when you get really slick at it, tell your mates its easy and for a couple ales you will show them how....spread the mechanical love

Yo Speedy Also running aligators for the first time and they seem to be doing ok. Everyone has different ways of looking after their bikes but I am happy to share mine (hopefully not get told I'm doing it all wrong by some chump). I clean and relube cables after a heavy weather ride or every 5 to 6 rides in fair weather. Generally i find Finishline red (or White Lightning) squirted in the end of outer, then sliding the loose outer up and down the cable a couple times does the trick. If there is a fair amount of grit in the outer and I can't replace it then I will flush it with an aerosol lube like Wynnflon. Wipe off the excess before you put it all back together and slick shift you shuld have... To loosen the cables, shift to the gear causing the cable to be at its tightest (this depends if you run high or low normal system) and then while stationary shift back to derailers 'resting' position. Cable s will be loose and you can loosen the outers so they slide freely up and down the cables. Hope this works for you, has for me for years - to the point where i got about 3 years out of 1 set of sram cables, obviously with changing outers regulary...ish

SpeedDemon, seeing as though you replaced your cables 2 weeks ago it sounds like they just need a bit of love and attention. Give the cables and outers a good clean and some lube and you should be back up and running again. Ask any hubber how and why and they can tell you - clean cables make for smooth shifting! However if you came off during your race and bent the derailler hanger you may have to have that straightened by your LBS before you can get those slick shifts happening again. Again a simple procedure, but with a nifty looking tool.

my brother found a KMC half link chain in Cape Town, I think it may have been Cross Town Cycles. Either that or Olympic Cycles normally have a pretty good list of stock. They also come in funky colours to if that matters

Jaja, I know i am going to have my ass handed to me on a ss by you! Maybe I will get fit enough to do an Argus on one... Thats going to hurt

unfortunately they coming off Dave the Waves bike, so not much choice on what model they are. But hey, looking forward to getting my hands on them. And then you will be getting a set of brake levers finally...

Huh?

Fox Terralogicall the way...no seriously maybe you should take up the fight with Fox USA with regards to the new 09 fork they sent. Maybe it is a manufacturing defect?

Hey Tr I have sent it to you. As mentioned you need to have a worn bushing machined from rubber to the correct tolerance...after thst you are smiling. Check out: https://www.bikehub.co.za/forum_posts.asp?TID=34229

Oh, plastic screw on my shifters (silver) was black. Should stand out...