Racer X

While 1hills approach does have it's merits I do believe that if you were to remove the sliding dropouts, drill a small pilot hole and use a 'reverse,' drill bit you would be able to get the little sod out. Good luck

Magura MT8, exspenive yet unique.

Just use Probolt, they stock anything and everything. http://www.probolt-southafrica.com/

Thanks alot..

Hi Guys, Okay so I'm looking at bringing in a fairly special brand in the country. Does any one know where I can find info regarding the duties and customs on bike components or does anyone know it off hand? Run through the net and the SARS site but haven't found diddly squat. Thanks in advance.

Great thanks alot guys.

Any one know who sells them?? Thanks.

Okay, so my aging Ritchey Pro's are just about stuffed. What can I get for between 2 and 3 grand? I'm 21 and broke at present so have some saving up to do. Just call this prelimiary research.

Hmmm, the recovery on ITB surgery seems to be quite quick. I got an ACL reconstruction on the 17th. ROM brace for 6 weeks, then various forms of rehab for another 6 months..

Does shark taste like chicken? BTW Wicked pics

Can't for the life of me remeber, I have a FSA Gossamer crankset and the BB is poked. Been down to bearing man who tell me they don't stock the bearings needed. I have a feeling that there's no distributor for FSA in SA at the moment. Does anyone know if shimano BB's or the likes will fit? Thanks.

Well it looks like you have your priorities set. Structured training is the single most effective way, obviously, to improve your riding. Skills books are great hey but 9 times out of 10 the best way to improve your technical abilities is to just ride more. Again though its a case of each to his own. Wheels wise - okay given what you're budget then I'd say that you're on the right track. AC hubs are decent and well priced as are A2Zs, it comes down to colour more than anything else. AM units are only available in black while A2Z ones come in a full spectrum. Spoke choice, either Sapim CX rays or Wheelsmith XL 14's. Both are cheaper and lighter than DT equivilants. Make sure you have the spokes tightened up after the first couple of rides. They stretcg like hell and often need some initial looking after until everything is set and ridden in. Ceramic bearings - Well unless you go for full ceramics opposed to hybrid versions you won't be saving much weight, they are also prone to disintergrating in harsh conditions and they aint cheap to replace. KCNC skewers are about your best option when it comes to value/ weight for money. Tune's 33 gram set, ( name escapes me) is awesome but'll cost you a mint and save you 11 grams. Cassette's - Not sure what you're after here, obviously Shimano's XTR is the benchmark in superlight weight cassettes, you then have Sram's new XG XXX 990 or what ever it is. It'l last you a life time as its made outa steel, price is the major imiting factor. You can get extreme and go for the likes of Recon/ Soul Kozak/ KCNC, unfortunately they make the above look cheap and unless they are full Ti, they won't last more than a dozen rides. My 2 cents.

Sorry have a habbit of doing that, I'm very weight concious myself so. Evert gram matters. 1 thing you gotta to remember is that at the end of the day a light bike is useless with out a decent rider. Do you ride on the road? Does that bike need some attention, what do you eat and what training apparatus's do you use? Invest broadly otherwise its a case of all your eggs in one basket.

I'd go for A2Z hubs. Both A2Z and AMC come out of the same factory (Chin Haur). The A2Z, the new XCF/R i units, come in at at about a dozen grams lighter the AM units, ceramic bearings will knock you down another 10 to 15 grams. Rims are good, no question. Spoke wise. I'd go for either Wheelsmith XL 14, (DT Rev equivilant but slightly cheaper and lighter) or Sapim CX Ray (Again slightly cheaper/lighter than the equivilant DT Aerolite). This build is identical to the stock Podium MMX one so you'll end up with a 1200 gram build. If you are keen on something lighter/ unique the save up a few more pennys and buy some Tune hubs (Prince/ Princess) and some Pillar PST TB Areo 1422 or X-TRA-LITE spokes. Its up to you!

Nice idea there Luan, one day when I'm rich I'll build my sub 900 gram MTB disc wheelset. Good luck!

Not too shabby, one of my dream road machines, well the G5 but still its a BH. Are those forks in house BH creations or do they come from Edge?

Fair enough, the poached ones cured my knee probs.

Egg whisks do it for me hey but thats personal. In summary: Shimano > Reliable > Indestructable > Well priced > Proven and tested. > Heavy > A pain to serivce. > Not so great in mud Crankbrothers > 4 points of engagment. > Light, can be tuned down too under 120 grams a pair. > Easily servicable. > Great in gloop. > Pricey. > Not the strongest pedals out there. > Can be problematic with disengaging in rocky terrain, rocks hit pedal, parts spring, foot falls out. Am I missing anything??

Yeah thats the new one one thats just come off the sram shelves. AC hubs are pretty good hey, there have been bearing issues, as you said, in the past but as far as I know they have addressed those problems. Ie. Formula R1 brakes with carbon levers, alu bolts and other rotors. New Hope Race units have the same claimed weight. Magura Durin SL or DT swiss maybe ? You can get a Lefty down to to under 1100 grams. Ceramic bb/headset, cost per gram makes them fairly pointless given that a bog standard M 970 weighs 90 grams or less. There are units out there that are as little as 50 grams. How ever you gotta remember that BBs are high wear items. Going super light is cool but then you gotta replace them fairly regulary. kmc chain - Yaban are lighter 2x9 setup perhaps Middleburns RS8 duo is a double setup. We can go down this path all day and end up with a Kwela in the lower end of the 5 KGs . How ever you have to remember that the Kwela was not designed to be a super light weight rig, the frame has a bare mass of 1400 grams, claimed. Top end plastic HTs are now comming out at +- 950 grams. If I was hamster dog and wanted a no nonsense, cheap (relative), lightweight setup then I'd go for a full XTR groupset including wheels, Fox F100RLC FIT fork, KCNC Bar, stem, seatpost. Slap on a pair of Eggbeater SLs, a Gobi saddle and some Kenda Karmas and you have a solid 9.5 Kg bike.

> Full KCNC cockpit, use an Easton bar if you want a riser. > No Tubes Podium MMX wheelset. > Sram XX 990 Cassette or XTR. > Dura Ace chain, 10 spd. > XTR front derailleur. > Sid WC fork or Fox RLC FIT. > Saddle, well thats sorta your choice really as are tyres. > ESI Chunky grips. > Crankbros Eggbeater 4 Ti pedals. > KCNC Headset and Seatpost Collar. > Get in a KCNC BB from Clee Cycles in the UK then throw on a Middleburn RS8 crankset. > Brakes, I'd go for the new Hope X2 Races. Think thats about it. That'll give you a sub 9 Kg build depending on tyres. Not super light but light enough, use a 100 mm fork/ riser bar and it can double up as a light trial bike. Alloy/ Ti bolts are a cheapish upgrade and'll shed a few grams if you're that way inclined. CheersRacer X2010-02-02 02:11:33

No arguement the SL3 is an awesome rig. I have my sights set on a BH G5 though, no clue why. I like it though

Yeah as mentioned above, mine have been running for a while now. Good value hubs and pretty light weight as well. Not the fastest engaging units on the market but hell @ the price I'm not going to argue.

Just a thought but why not have a go at it yourself, RS forks are very simple. Its a very rewarding process. All manuals are available from the Sram site and you can pick up all the parts from your LBS.

Just ride a 1x9/10 drivetrain and have done with it.