Grease_Monkey

The 29x2.1 comes in under 600gr. https://www.specialized.com/za/en/renegade-2bliss-ready/p/131132?color=228110-131132 Hope she knows how to fix a flat!

Always been very happy with the Forekaster as a summer rear tyre (or all weather front on an XC bike), my one complaint has been the 2.35 width. so with the 2.4 options this is definitely going on the back of my bike with a DHR2 on the front when summer rolls around.

Stay away from the clear gorilla tape. It shows thumb prints, has a zig zag edge on the sides that shows on the bike. And although it sticks very well, it does mean potential damage to the frame when you remove it. Personally I think the kits with a pattern on are tacky - I have yet to see a bike with it applied that didn't look like a primary school kid's art project. I have had good luck with Armour Ride's full kits on 2 bikes now. Very expensive, but does keep your frame looking new. That would be the way to go if you use protection. I have also used AMS on 3 frames, and my experience is that AMS is just expensive decoration - I managed to damage all 3 of those frames in areas the AMS does not cover. Sure, where it covers it is going to protect your bike, but again, IMO it makes it look tacky and doesn't protect the whole frame. All that said, my latest bike has nothing on it. I've sort of come to the point where an mtb frame is an mtb frame, and it is going to be damaged. I am just going to have it resprayed in a years time by Jared at BMC if I still have the bike in a year's time.

Will show you a good example after I get to taking some pics...

Give it a good few rides to get used to, you have to correct alot of bad habits when you get on flats from clipless. Your foot should also be more centered on the pedal than with clipless so you are likely going to want to slide your saddle forward on the rails and drop it by 5mm (+/-). Once you get your heel down while pedaling you will be able to ride very efficiently, even over very rocky stuff. Alot of cyclist see flats as the beginner option, IMO, it takes alot more skill to ride well with flats than with clipless - flats don't let you hide any bad habits.

eBikes, especially a more trail oriented one is not going to be nice to commute on. It is going to cost you a fortune in tyres, drivetrain components, and maintenance, and still get you to work slower and sweatier than a motorbike. Get yourself a Honda CRF250L or something similar. Great for someone new to motorbikes, and a crap ton of fun on dirt roads with the right tyres. Also very fuel efficient and easy to get along with.

No more expensive to have both. Card machines take a percentage, yoco a percentage, zapper/ snapscan, etc etc. Just different payment gateways, and all of them take their cut. IMO, have as many options as you can - make it is easy as possible for your client to pay. Makes no difference to me which option my client uses at the end of the day.

We just split it equally, but then we usually all order about the same thing - burger and beer or two; breakfast and coffee or two. Sometimes lose out a bit, sometimes win a bit. But, if someone orders a steak and everyone else a burger then they are going to pay their fair share. Luckily I know the guys I ride with well enough that we can give each other ****, or tell someone to pay up without it becoming a thing.

You realise that by just not starting this thread you could have saved yourself enough keystrokes for quite a few logins?

You're kidding, right?

Anything that gets you off an NX cassette sounds like a pretty good decision to me.

No that is stupid tyre choice. An Aspen EXO would have been risky, but they went with an “Aspen Race” with a super thin casing which is essentially a slick. Name in “” because no actual name for the tyre they were using. OP, Crossmark is a lekker choice if you want a hard wearing tyre that’s gonna spend alot of time on tar.

They paid me out for an 80k cracked carbon frame a few weeks ago. Claim process took about 2 weeks, but I was kept up to date all the way and am obviously very happy with the outcome. Wouldn’t hesitate to use them.

One Up 70CC pump. Nothing better out there.

Just keep in mind, if you do ever want to bring it back to SA with you that you won't be able to fly with the battery. So if the bike is ever going to do trips back and forth I'd just buy a brand where you can get a 2nd battery easily in SA. Other than that I can't really contribute.

DM me which bolts you need with the year model of your bike and I’ll organise some for you on Monday.

Yes, I just went up Helderberg for a lunch time ride on my e-bike. On a normal bike up and down takes me just under an hour if I push hard with my heart jumping out my throat and sweating enough to solve Cape Town's water problems (about 12km, 500m climbing). I just did it in 40mins, my heart rate didn't go above 130, I stopped to take in the views, and even replied to a few Whatsapps while I was up there. Hell, I hardly broke a sweat. eBikes and normal bikes are not even remotely comparable.

Yes x1000. Won’t touch another saddle again. Just make sure you get the right width for your sit bones.

Yeah, gotta say it falls flat there. I did a half 361 in a long time, and my 520 just lasted. I haven’t stretched the 130 yet, but I know I am charging it way more often than the 520.

Sold my edge 520 for a 130 when the 130 was released. Makes sense to me to have the smallest possible computer on an mtb. Maybe on a roadie I’d appreciate a 520/530, but def not bigger.

Also kept a couple extra bolts when I had an Evil. Like you say.... made of cheese. Especially those trunion bolts.

Until you get accused of something you didn’t do and a mob comes after you.

I didn't read all the replies, but go to a bio and get muscle imbalances worked on. I'm 30, but I have had 2 slipped discs in my back, torn ligaments in my right shoulder, 2 surgeries on my left knee (badly torn meniscus), and most recently, surgery on my right knee - again really badly torn meniscus and issues with a popliteus tendon which ended up with me 4 months on crutches, another month on one crutch. I am now at 6 months post op and I am riding again, but I don't know if you can call what I am doing riding at all - more like crawling along painfully and then really slowly and carefully descending. Point I am trying to get to, is that I have been going to a bio for the last 3 months, and the improvements that has allowed me to make is just incomparable than what I I would have been able to make on my own. They see things you don't even know to look for, and know how to tackle those imbalances without buggering up other things. No reading up on the internet will ever match their expertise... Post this injury I will keep going at least once a month to address all my other issues. It's expensive, but if it allows me to cycle pain free I am gonna bite the bullet and just do it. Go for a few sessions, and you will quickly see it is worth it.