banna Posted June 9, 2011 Posted June 9, 2011 Just loose the one on the back, put on a Ardent or something that rolls quickly. It will make a massive difference Agreed. You obviously don't need as much grip in the back as in front. The only problem is that you get used to lots of grip at the back as well, especially now in winter time when roots/rocks become very slippery. What's the Ardent like? What size?
MoreTrails Posted June 9, 2011 Posted June 9, 2011 2.25 is lekker, 2.4 is a bit big. 2.4 is designed with more DH in mind i think. Very good volume to the 2.25 & 2.4 tire and under braking it works really well. The only conditions it doesn't like is loose over hard pack, especially on the front. But in those conditions on the back it can work quite well if you like drifting out the back end a bit. In the winter conditions it seems to hook up quite well, although clogs if the mud is heavy or clay like. Even a 2.35 Cross mark works well I find, if you doing a bit of mileage and climbing on a AM rig. Not great under heavy braking, under cornering I found that if you take a sidecutter and trim all the round edge lugs (it has a pattern of 1x rectangular, 1x round with an X groove, 1x rectangular....etc) off it holds a corner FAR better. I have heard a Monorail is also nice on the back wheel
MoreTrails Posted June 9, 2011 Posted June 9, 2011 (edited) I'm busy converting my Morewood Makulu into an All Mountain Downhiller. From It's current state it's getting a Joplin Seatpost 12/36 gearing on the back and a 35 tooth chainring on the front. I can't lock anything out but I suppose I can wind up the compression on my boxxer all the way up and do the same on the rear. I just have to remember to turn the dials back when I get to the top or it will all go horribly wrong when I point the bike in a downward direction. I'm making these changes for 1 reason. I'm sick of pushing up at Tokai. We road Oak Valley Red & Black route once (around 30km's) with a guy on his Makulu with a similar setup. Apart from having a 36T - 11x23t cassette he said it was quite do-able...especially with the Joplin he had fitted. Anyway, one thing that came out of that was he said next time he was NOT going to wind up the compression to the boxxer, but rather have a webbing strap (like on a rucksack) around the arch brace and the top of the fork and just winch it down for the climbs....! Steeper geo for climbing and less bobbing around! Winch it down to like 120mm..... Edited June 9, 2011 by MoreTrails
Guest Omega Man Posted June 9, 2011 Posted June 9, 2011 (edited) What tyres are you running on? Your rubber is also a big culprit when you're trying to pedal a heavy bike up the hill. I went from 2.1 to 2.35 Nevegals on my AM bike , and they are fantastic going down, but jeesh, uphill it's like riding with an anchor.2.5 Minions DHF Front and Rear. A mate of mine reckons pump the tires real hard before heading up and then let a little air our at the top. Not for me tho. I run my tire pretty hard anyway. I've had an Ardent on the rear before. 2.4. They quite nice for about 2 months. The knoblies tear very quickly but yeah. Nice tire. Edited June 9, 2011 by Omega Man
grb285 Posted June 9, 2011 Posted June 9, 2011 Nice one. You got the 5.5 Can only imagine how stoked you're going to be on the trails this weekend. Enjoy
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted June 9, 2011 Posted June 9, 2011 I'm busy converting my Morewood Makulu into an All Mountain Downhiller. From It's current state it's getting a Joplin Seatpost 12/36 gearing on the back and a 35 tooth chainring on the front. I can't lock anything out but I suppose I can wind up the compression on my boxxer all the way up and do the same on the rear. I just have to remember to turn the dials back when I get to the top or it will all go horribly wrong when I point the bike in a downward direction. I'm making these changes for 1 reason. I'm sick of pushing up at Tokai. And here I thought that there was nothing better than your Mak uuu Luuu ;) Give it, mate. Haven't got anything to lose. At least with the Joplin you'll have a better time of it on the way up, and can hastily drop that mother...
LazyTrailRider Posted June 9, 2011 Posted June 9, 2011 Nice one Wes! You're going to love it, this even has me stoked to ride again (haven't been on the bike for 2 months at least). Hmmmm, maybe Tokai this weekend isn't such a bad idea. I'll ride slowly up *and* down
Brett Posted June 9, 2011 Posted June 9, 2011 When I started out in DH we all used hardtails with some beefy forks up front. Marz Z1's, RST Mozo's etc. I remember winning the entry class in DH at Pretoria nationals in (correct me if I'm wrong) 1997 with that setup. I think it was a Wheeler 5700 19.5" frame with some XT parts and a set of Magura brakes. The same bike was used for trials, xc, jumping etc etc because being at school meant cash was very tight and one bike had to do it all. These days I still take on a bit of DH here and there using a softail Fuji Diamond. I might not be as fast as when I had my proper DH bike with 6" White Brothers forks and an 8" travel frame, but it still puts a massive smile on my face! LOLsame here...just i had a wheeler 5900zx and year 1999...with rst cable discs O_O. (didnt win though) haha
intern Posted June 10, 2011 Posted June 10, 2011 Keen to get on to an all mountain as well. Redwoods in Rotorua is less than an hour's drive away, and believe me when I say that is trail-riding paradise. More berms than you can imagine.Considering this deal:http://www.chainreac...x?ModelID=66552Will arrive in NZ at a price of about R17k. Any opinions, esp on the Lyric fork? Rest of the spec seems pretty good for the price.
grb285 Posted June 10, 2011 Posted June 10, 2011 Keen to get on to an all mountain as well. Redwoods in Rotorua is less than an hour's drive away, and believe me when I say that is trail-riding paradise. More berms than you can imagine.Considering this deal:http://www.chainreac...x?ModelID=66552Will arrive in NZ at a price of about R17k. Any opinions, esp on the Lyric fork? Rest of the spec seems pretty good for the price.How's the scene down there? Lots of riders/trails etc?
banna Posted June 10, 2011 Posted June 10, 2011 Nice one Wes! You're going to love it, this even has me stoked to ride again (haven't been on the bike for 2 months at least). Hmmmm, maybe Tokai this weekend isn't such a bad idea. I'll ride slowly up *and* down Don't be rediculous. Surely you must know that Intense's only have a "full speed" button when the hill points downwards?
wesley_r Posted June 10, 2011 Posted June 10, 2011 back to tires - the Meta came with DT Swiss X430 rims which I swapped out for my tougher Alex SupraBH's. The DT Swiss's are tubless, with Maxxis High Roller USTs (2.5), my SupraBH's (now on the bike) are clad with 2.1 Nevegals... Shall I do a swop??
Brian Fantana Posted June 10, 2011 Posted June 10, 2011 Wes, please let me know how you find the RS Sektor coil U-turn after a few rides. Your Commencal looks great, it will give many hours of happy trail riding.
wesley_r Posted June 10, 2011 Posted June 10, 2011 Wes, please let me know how you find the RS Sektor coil U-turn after a few rides. Your Commencal looks great, it will give many hours of happy trail riding. Thanks. Regarding how I find the fork: usually when I grab the bike it's attached to the front of it. Sorry, bad Friday joke. Will keep y'all posted
MoreTrails Posted June 10, 2011 Posted June 10, 2011 Wes, slap a bigger tire up front and keep the 2.1 out back. See how it rolls? Are you sure they are 2.5's? High Rollers should roll better than the Nevegals
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