"Mullet" a V1 Bronson

[nickwm21]

Trying to breathe more life into a V1 Bronson before I ditch it in a few seasons... I am planning on getting a new fork and rear shock. All this "mullet" talk on the EWS has me thinking about buying a second hand 160mm 29" Pike and 29" wheel for the front. Am I stupid for following the hype?

[XXX-er]

used bikes aren't worth much $ so at what point are you just throwing a lot of good money around

when do you pull the plug might be the question ?

I know junior has been buying 6000-7000 bikes putting stuff on them which makes some of them 10000+

pull all the stupid expensive goodies off and selling after a season for 4000-4500

[nickwm21]

used bikes aren't worth much $ so at what point are you just throwing a lot of good money around

when do you pull the plug might be the question ?

I know junior has been buying 6000-7000 bikes putting stuff on them which makes some of them 10000+

pull all the stupid expensive goodies off and selling after a season for 4000-4500

Good Question. Nicely built V1s seem to be worth around $2500 now. I imagine in two seasons it might be down to $2000. I spent almost $8000 building the thing in 2014. My cost per season might be down in the $500 range if I include the bike I sold to buy it. Junior is spending $2000 a season plus whatever the fancy goodies cost. Myself spending $800-$1000 to revamp the bike will still keep me ahead well of Junior.

I still have a ton of fun every time I ride the bike. It climbs great, it descends great. I've ridden some of the newer long travel 29ers with modern geometry, they do climb better, the do descend better. I do indeed want one. It's just not an $5000-$7000 want right now.

I need a new fork. My 2013 XFusion Vengeance can't run a tire wider than 2.4, I'd like to run a more modern tire. Why not get a 29er fork? That's my thinking.

[adrenalated]

Correct me if I'm wrong but wouldn't doing that raise the front end dramatically, and therefore have a big impact on the geometry? Slacker head tube, slacker seat angle, higher BB... not a good combo.

[radam]

As long as you get a fork that will still be desirable after you've used it, and as long as you keep your current fork around for when you want to sell the bike, can''t hurt all that much to test it out.

You may also want to consider a works components angleset (in an EC44/ZS49 configuration) to kick the front wheel out a touch more and maybe balance out some of the increased stack height. Either that or go with a 150 or even 140mm 29er fork to avoid feeling like you're an extra 2 inches above the ground, or whatever it actually works out to.

[toast2266]

Mulletizing the bike will maybe improve DH performance in certain situations, and will definitely make climbing worse. And if you're concerned about resale, putting weird configurations on the bike never improves value.

Putting a 29er front wheel on it isn't going to make it ride like a modern 29er. It's going to make it ride like a 2014 Bronson with a goofy front end. I'm willing to bet that the pros that are mulleting their bikes aren't just slapping a 29er front end on. They're running offset bushing, different rear shocks, different linkages, etc. to balance out the geometry. And they're also not spending their own money - they can swap whatever front end they want on there and see if they like it.

You like how the bike rides. Just get a quality 27.5" fork and embrace what's good about the bike. Don't ruin it trying to make it something it's not. And don't get a Pike - those things give up a lot of ground on a Lyrik or 36 in the longer travel (160mm) configurations.

[XXX-er]

Actualy junior is in the bidness so every year, he gets it all discounted and sells it all off pretty quick , so it doesnt really cost him very much and it just one way

Unfortunately he was too well fed when growing up and none of his used stuff fits me

I had a 3200$ Cannondale prophet, it was discounted to 2400, I just sold it for 500$ 14 yrs later ... so my costs were 170$ a year

[Flounder]

Having both a v1 Bronson and lived through the mullet craze I wouldn't bother. Mullet was a bad compromise and a shitty hairstyle.

I've tried a couple of forks on mine, changed the shock, and just went to 1x. Love the bike and I don't see how a 29 front end would improve enough to offset the impact on the climb. My next bike will likely be a 29 but I'll stick it out another year or 2 and save cash.

Sent from my SM-G950U using TGR Forums mobile app

[adrenalated]

There's a 160mm Fox 36 for sale here:
https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...neUp-chainring
The Grip2 damper is sweet and this would be a hudge upgrade from the stock fork. Just saying.

[One (+) Sentence]

This is probably a bad idea, but if you are determined to try it, I’m pretty sure a 29” fork with 130 or 140mm of travel would be a much better choice than one with 160mm.

[TahoeJ]

FWIW, I put a 160mm (27.5) Pike on my v1 the summer before last and I've been extremely happy with the results. I figure I'll give this bike 2 more seasons, it's still damn fun, but definitely have a lot of miles on it. Upgrading to XT brakes went a long way as well.

[Sandbox]

I also have a Pike on my V1 Bronson and so far so good! i think its pretty decent fork for my needs. I've been really impressed with the bike all in all and i'm not sure if throwing all these parts on it will make it any better to ride.

[SchralphMacchio]

If you’re gonna go through the trouble of upgrading a v1, I’d suggest “new to you” parts.

Used Pike - $350?
Take-off Monarch Plus Debonair RC3 or used Float X EVOL - $100-175?
1x NX or XT drivetrain - $100-150?
RWC Needle bearing shock bushing (don’t do this if you’re gonna go Cane Creek shock, I screwed over another mag by telling him to get this and forgetting that CC uses proprietary bushing diameters) - $50
Used carbon wheelset - $400

So that’s just over a grand In upgrades (assuming you can put them all in yourself), about 1/5 the price of a comparable new bike, still less than half the cost of a comparable used bike, and gets you at least 3 more solid seasons of fun.

I’m more or less running those features on my v1 and it’s not as amazing as a v3 5010/Bronson or Transition Scout/Patrol ... but it’s still damn capable and pretty dang fun.

[nickwm21]

If you’re gonna go through the trouble of upgrading a v1, I’d suggest “new to you” parts.

Used Pike - $350?
Take-off Monarch Plus Debonair RC3 or used Float X EVOL - $100-175?
1x NX or XT drivetrain - $100-150?
RWC Needle bearing shock bushing (don’t do this if you’re gonna go Cane Creek shock, I screwed over another mag by telling him to get this and forgetting that CC uses proprietary bushing diameters) - $50
Used carbon wheelset - $400

So that’s just over a grand In upgrades (assuming you can put them all in yourself), about 1/5 the price of a comparable new bike, still less than half the cost of a comparable used bike, and gets you at least 3 more solid seasons of fun.

I’m more or less running those features on my v1 and it’s not as amazing as a v3 5010/Bronson or Transition Scout/Patrol ... but it’s still damn capable and pretty dang fun.

Thanks.
I’m running a monarch plus (nondeb), GX, and LB wheels already... for a rear shock swap I was thinking about going coil....


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[SchralphMacchio]

I think the shock dimensions are the same from v1 through v3 ... 11-6 with needle bearing kit ... do it!

Of course then the rear end will outgun most non boost forks you could get for cheap ...

[One (+) Sentence]

I think the shock dimensions are the same from v1 through v3 ... 11-6 with needle bearing kit ... do it!
.

No. V3 Bronson uses metric size 210x55, and I’m not certain, but my guess is an 11-6 may not physically fit in a V3 Bronson anyways (a Float X2 does not.)