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Making a DH bike not so crap at peddling ?


Stavros94

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Is it at all possible to take a Middle Age DH bike and make it not so crap at going uphill ?... maybe uphill is too much .. small incline and flats? That better ? ????

 

so recently discovered some new logging contours and tracks near my place .. took the gravel bike ???? bit rough for it  to put it plainly.. had a think about a trail /enduro bike ???? way too much mandalas for  a weekend toy.

 

then I thought DH bikes are cheap... but they can’t climb but surely that can be changed ? 
 

different gearing ?

lock out on the rear shock ? 
 

weight isn’t really an issue for me as I’m no racer just looking for something to mess around on the logging tracks and trails. 
 

**** idea ? I do love a challenge .. plus DH bikes look sick.. so that’s at least 20 points Already ?????

 

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There's not too much you can do to a DH bike to get it to pedal better. The geometry is just not made for it.

However, in saying that, I rode Jonkers with a guy who was on a Giant Glory. He changed the groupset to 10 speed with a wide range cassette, added a dropper post, and then kept up with us to the top of Red Phoenix. He was HELLA fit though. I definitely wouldn't have made it up there on his bike.

So it is possible....depending on the rider and how much you are willing to suffer for it. 

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You can gear a DH bike to climb a vertical wall it still doesn't change the fact that of you put 100w on the pedals probably 10% of that makes it to the rear wheel.

 

"Downhill" is literally in the name , its the only thing they can do well

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Thought about just piecing a 26er 'trail' bike together? They are also cheap and you can put one together to suit your needs.

I have seen some decent (if old) 26er giant Trance and Spez Enduro/Stumpy options which would pedal infinitely better and still be a world of fun.

https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/dual-suspension-bikes/487036/specialised-enduro

https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/dual-suspension-bikes/483006/giant-trance-x4-upgraded-w-mavic-slr-26-tubeless

Even a 'hardcore hardtail' would be super fun. Probably more modern and very capable too.

https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/hardtail-mountain-bikes/486646/trek-roscoe-8

OR as you like to Tinker, this is a 17" so is more a medium (Not sure what size you are but it's a start) and will take a 120mm fork and you can run it SS to make it even cheaper.......

https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/item/hardtail-mountain-bike-frames/487753/cotic-simple

I honestly think these are all better options than trying to force a DH bike to do non DH bike things

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4 hours ago, BaGearA said:

You can gear a DH bike to climb a vertical wall it still doesn't change the fact that of you put 100w on the pedals probably 10% of that makes it to the rear wheel.

 

"Downhill" is literally in the name , its the only thing they can do well

Why ?

 

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11 minutes ago, dasilvarsa said:

Why ?

 

Because even seated 97% of your weight is over the back wheel , you're sitting miles behind the BB , the seat angle is even slacker than the head angle and the head angle is slack AF , the bike weighs more 16kg if its decent,  more than 20kg of its mediocre,  the majority of them have tyres that weigh a ton and have absurd rolling resistance 

 

 

I could go on...

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49 minutes ago, dasilvarsa said:

Why ?

 

It's all a conspiracy to get us to buy more bikes. There's no difference between dual-suspension bikes, and all this talk of head angles and suspension travel and weight is just marketing hype to make us believe that our bikes aren't good enough and we need the new fancy one.

 

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On 7/31/2021 at 12:27 PM, BaGearA said:

Because even seated 97% of your weight is over the back wheel , you're sitting miles behind the BB , the seat angle is even slacker than the head angle and the head angle is slack AF , the bike weighs more 16kg if its decent,  more than 20kg of its mediocre,  the majority of them have tyres that weigh a ton and have absurd rolling resistance 

 

 

I could go on...

 

280551_1699225_png_zoom_5.jpg

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it will wander going uphill...as in you'll be riding in zig zags with every pedal stroke,

you'll struggle to keep the front wheel on the ground due to all the weight being so far back 

It will bounce and bob with every pedal stroke like a pogo stick.

you'll basically want to put your junk all the way up to the handlebars when going uphill because it will feel like you'll want to fall off the rear when putting power down. 

there are literally bikes that would weigh half as much, and then even a crappy xc bike that weighs 20kg will climb better than this. 

 

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On 7/30/2021 at 10:46 PM, Styvie said:

Is it at all possible to take a Middle Age DH bike and make it not so crap at going uphill ?... maybe uphill is too much .. small incline and flats? That better ? ????

 

so recently discovered some new logging contours and tracks near my place .. took the gravel bike ???? bit rough for it  to put it plainly.. had a think about a trail /enduro bike ???? way too much mandalas for  a weekend toy.

 

then I thought DH bikes are cheap... but they can’t climb but surely that can be changed ? 
 

different gearing ?

lock out on the rear shock ? 
 

weight isn’t really an issue for me as I’m no racer just looking for something to mess around on the logging tracks and trails. 
 

**** idea ? I do love a challenge .. plus DH bikes look sick.. so that’s at least 20 points Already ?????

 

Not exactly a DH bike, but close. 170mm single crown fork, very heavy coil shock, 11-42T casette, 32T oval chainring, a loooong enough dropper post.... And a damn heavy frame! That's what I did to enjoy the bike as best I can. Also, Train your body to work with what you got, and it's possible to pedal from Hoogekraal parking lot up to the Gorge, then up Spykers hill all in one breath, short break at the top, down the Cobra and back up in one breath, then main line down. Hard work, but the memory of adrenalin lingers longer than suffering of getting to the top. 

IMG_20210725_151103.jpg

IMG_20210725_150811.jpg

IMG_20210725_150758.jpg

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Just now, Black Line said:

Not exactly a DH bike, but close. 170mm single crown fork, very heavy coil shock, 11-42T casette, 32T oval chainring, a loooong enough dropper post.... And a damn heavy frame! That's what I did to enjoy the bike as best I can. Also, Train your body to work with what you got, and it's possible to pedal from Hoogekraal parking lot up to the Gorge, then up Spykers hill all in one breath, short break at the top, down the Cobra and back up in one breath, then main line down. Hard work, but the memory of adrenalin lingers longer than suffering of getting to the top. 

IMG_20210725_151103.jpg

IMG_20210725_150811.jpg

IMG_20210725_150758.jpg

Edit: red rim decals only for show, not Easton Heist in anyway. Lol

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