Ask the experts

[Dantheman]

Need to mount my Mara Pro. My plan is to press out the DU bushings on the Mara and replace with the poly bushings and hardware on the Fox it's replacing. Any reason not to do that?

Yeah that's fine, but I generally lean towards not using old hardware on a new shock. DVO hardware is cheap and swaps right in as-is.

[climberevan]

Anyone have experience with the Hammerhead Karoo 2? Seems pretty neat for my purposes.

If it had good battery life I'd already own a Hammerhead. 8h (what it sounds like people get with some features turned off) isn't enough for me. I can get nearly that from a phone.

Wahoos are prob the best bet right now. I use a Lezyne Mega, which is cheap and has like 30h battery life, but is not as full featured. Garmins are a little overwhelming in the feature set, but if you can deal with their typical shitshow software the hardware is nice.

[bagtagley]

Yeah that's fine, but I generally lean towards not using old hardware on a new shock. DVO hardware is cheap and swaps right in as-is.

Interesting. Was planning to order Fox bushings and mounting hardware. DVO uses poly bushings and hardware that's spaced for the flange?

[skaredshtles]

New Fox 38 fork + Burnishing tool + clearing out all the grease in the negative chamber + reshimming the damper a little bit = best fork I have ever ridden.

I have never been on a fork that just floated over the trail like this one. Very happy with my decision to do all that work (and buying the burnishing tool).

This should go in the "Shit that annoys you" thread.

[Dantheman]

Interesting. Was planning to order Fox bushings and mounting hardware. DVO uses poly bushings and hardware that's spaced for the flange?

Yep, the DVO stuff works with the bushing in place. Rockshox hardware does as well, but the DVO is cheaper. This is all based on my experience with my GG frame, can't speak to other frames with certainty but should be true for most everything that doesn't have anything proprietary. Except for whether or not it does or does not use a DU bushing (most everything except Fox, and Fox, respectively) shock hardware is pretty universal as long as the pin width and mounting bolt size are correct

[MegaStoke]

If it had good battery life I'd already own a Hammerhead. 8h (what it sounds like people get with some features turned off) isn't enough for me. I can get nearly that from a phone.

Wahoos are prob the best bet right now. I use a Lezyne Mega, which is cheap and has like 30h battery life, but is not as full featured. Garmins are a little overwhelming in the feature set, but if you can deal with their typical shitshow software the hardware is nice.

Oof yeah that thing is a battery hog. 3200mah, twice a day, that’s a lot of power to be pulling out of my dynamo.

Thanks for the recommendations on the power meters btw. Still not sure what direction I want to go though…

[Andeh]

Yeah that's fine, but I generally lean towards not using old hardware on a new shock. DVO hardware is cheap and swaps right in as-is.

What's the reason why? Just curious. I actually prefer to use old hardware since the new stuff is usually kinda sticky. Older stuff is usually loosened up a bit, especially on whichever end rotates the most.

[Jtlange]

This should go in the "Shit that annoys you" thread.

You aren't wrong. It should be like that from the factory, but it isn't. Amazing how good suspension feels when its prepared correctly though.

[Dantheman]

What's the reason why? Just curious. I actually prefer to use old hardware since the new stuff is usually kinda sticky. Older stuff is usually loosened up a bit, especially on whichever end rotates the most.

It does wear out over time, though moreso the plastic Fox stuff than DVO.

[joetron]

If it had good battery life I'd already own a Hammerhead. 8h (what it sounds like people get with some features turned off) isn't enough for me. I can get nearly that from a phone.

Wahoos are prob the best bet right now. I use a Lezyne Mega, which is cheap and has like 30h battery life, but is not as full featured. Garmins are a little overwhelming in the feature set, but if you can deal with their typical shitshow software the hardware is nice.

Yep. I ordered a Karoo 2 from SRAM when I was ordering my build kit this winter. I’ve always had a little Garmin 510 or 520, but wanted to dabble in some route navigation for bigger road and gravel rides.
The battery thing has been a little disappointing. The interface and everything else is awesome but 8-10 hours battery is kinda wack.
I’m riding the Telluride Gravel long course tomorrow….will probably be around 7-8hr. No power meter on this bike just HR and navigation. We’ll see how it goes.


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[J. Barron DeJong]

Thank you for this

Found this fit document which is the best I’ve seen as far as providing actual number ranges to work within for fitting. Tailored to road race bikes.

https://www.slowtwitch.com/FIST/manu...tocol_8.01.pdf

I assume saddle setback is based on standard saddles, say ~270mm overall length, not snub nosed, since it doesn’t specify.

[Spencer123]

I bought a used V2 ripmo last year and havn't had much time to work on it. Its been creaking and not shifting great so I finally got around to taking it apart today.

The guy I bought it from took a new GX drivetrain off his new Trek and put it on the Ripmo, and kept whatever fancy stuff he had on the ripmo for himself. Running a BSA 73 mm dub bottom bracket.

The V2 has a 52 mm chainline unlike the new V2S which is 55. It turns out he put on DUB wide cranks. Looking at the Spacer chart it looks like for a Wide crankset and a 73 mm DUB BB i need a 7.5 external spacer on the drive side, and a 3 mm external on the NDS. Is this correct? And is this correct for a 52 mm chain line, or do I need to mess with the spacers since it is not 55 mm/ is it possible to set this crankset up correctly with this bike?

Thanks for your help! I am way lost.

-Spencer

[Jtlange]

I bought a used V2 ripmo last year and havn't had much time to work on it. Its been creaking and not shifting great so I finally got around to taking it apart today.

The guy I bought it from took a new GX drivetrain off his new Trek and put it on the Ripmo, and kept whatever fancy stuff he had on the ripmo for himself. Running a BSA 73 mm dub bottom bracket.

The V2 has a 52 mm chainline unlike the new V2S which is 55. It turns out he put on DUB wide cranks. Looking at the Spacer chart it looks like for a Wide crankset and a 73 mm DUB BB i need a 7.5 external spacer on the drive side, and a 3 mm external on the NDS. Is this correct? And is this correct for a 52 mm chain line, or do I need to mess with the spacers since it is not 55 mm/ is it possible to set this crankset up correctly with this bike?

Thanks for your help! I am way lost.

-Spencer

You will need a 6mm offset ring to get the chain in the correct position rather than the 3mm ring you have right now.

[Spencer123]

Thanks so much. So essentially I want to move my chainring in towards the frame correct?

In the mean-time, the person I bought it from had forgone the 3 mm external spacer on the NDS and used one of the skinny ones inside of the BB. Am I better off using the 3 mm external spacer, allowing the drive side crank to be closer to the BB until I get my new chain ring?

You will need a 6mm offset ring to get the chain in the correct position rather than the 3mm ring you have right now.

[Jtlange]

Thanks so much. So essentially I want to move my chainring in towards the frame correct?

In the mean-time, the person I bought it from had forgone the 3 mm external spacer on the NDS and used one of the skinny ones inside of the BB. Am I better off using the 3 mm external spacer, allowing the drive side crank to be closer to the BB until I get my new chain ring?

Exactly correct. Otherwise you could always find a cheap take off 52mm chainline set of cranks and use that as well. Whatever is easier/better for you.

[Falcon3]

I bought a used V2 ripmo last year and havn't had much time to work on it. Its been creaking and not shifting great so I finally got around to taking it apart today.

The guy I bought it from took a new GX drivetrain off his new Trek and put it on the Ripmo, and kept whatever fancy stuff he had on the ripmo for himself. Running a BSA 73 mm dub bottom bracket.

The V2 has a 52 mm chainline unlike the new V2S which is 55. It turns out he put on DUB wide cranks. Looking at the Spacer chart it looks like for a Wide crankset and a 73 mm DUB BB i need a 7.5 external spacer on the drive side, and a 3 mm external on the NDS. Is this correct? And is this correct for a 52 mm chain line, or do I need to mess with the spacers since it is not 55 mm/ is it possible to set this crankset up correctly with this bike?

Thanks for your help! I am way lost.

-Spencer

On my RipmoAF (which shares the same dimensions and chainline as the V2) I used a SLX Boost 55mm crankset for a thousand miles or so without issue. Not sure what your spacer setup will have to be but it can be done and it rides fine. I liked the slightly wider stance.

[Spencer123]

I really appreciate the help! Thats good to know. Actually understanding chainline and spacers is new to me, I usually just follow the instructions but don't fully understand whats going on.

So, this brings up two questions. What is the functional difference between putting spacers on the outside of the BB, or putting them between the BB and the frame? Is the downside of just adding an additional 3 mm spacer to the NDS above the reccommended 3 mm spacer it already calls to pull the chainring in closer that it will make the cranks off-center? Or will I create problems with no enough spindle sticking out the drive-side potentially?

thanks!

-Spencer

[Gunder]

I really appreciate the help! Thats good to know. Actually understanding chainline and spacers is new to me, I usually just follow the instructions but don't fully understand whats going on.

So, this brings up two questions. What is the functional difference between putting spacers on the outside of the BB, or putting them between the BB and the frame? Is the downside of just adding an additional 3 mm spacer to the NDS above the reccommended 3 mm spacer it already calls to pull the chainring in closer that it will make the cranks off-center? Or will I create problems with no enough spindle sticking out the drive-side potentially?

thanks!

-Spencer

First BB are designed for a range of frame shell sizes. So best to look yours up and see what it will accommodate.

The larger spacers Ie 3mm should go between the frame and the bearing cups. This reduces stick out of the BB shaft and thus reduces the cross loading stress on the bearings so they last longer, develop less play and results in a stiffer setup. All good things. Typically you just add very thin spacers the outside of the BB bearings to fine tune the fit for the cranks.

Make sure you put the large spacers on the correct side of the frame at you will screw up the chain line.

[Lvovsky]

Need a stem for the road bike. 100mm, 31.8mm, +/- 7 degrees - easy, right?

But what do I pick between $12 chinesiun and $200 dentistry versions? $40 seems like reasonable number but most stems have gaudy logos. Go to reputable online retailer - shipping is half the price.

Manufacturer (Vitus) doesn’t seem to sell parts but I’ll shoot them an email later.

All I want is to try a stem to see if it fits me better than 110mm stem on the bike.

This should also go into the rant thread too.

[joetron]

Need a stem for the road bike. 100mm, 31.8mm, +/- 7 degrees - easy, right?

But what do I pick between $12 chinesiun and $200 dentistry versions? $40 seems like reasonable number but most stems have gaudy logos. Go to reputable online retailer - shipping is half the price.

Manufacturer (Vitus) doesn’t seem to sell parts but I’ll shoot them an email later.

All I want is to try a stem to see if it fits me better than 110mm stem on the bike.

This should also go into the rant thread too.

Easton EA50 ($45) or Zipp Service Course ($50-60) are good, fairly low key stems.


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[climberevan]

I'm pretty happy with the "BW" branded one on my road bike. It was cheap and within 10g of the light ones for 4x the price.

I can send you a 100mm Cannondale branded one for the cost of shipping.

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Rode some gnar with the new Zeb today at Big Sky. It's like I have a different bike. So good. I wonder how many people are riding "brand new" Zebs that are utter garbage like my old one. Gonna send that in and see if I can warranty it.

[carlh]

Good to hear. The zeb on my new to me gnarvana feels really nice with a push damper and worlds better than the lyric rc on my old bike so the better damper is at least part of the improvement.

Rode some gnar with the new Zeb today at Big Sky. It's like I have a different bike. So good. I wonder how many people are riding "brand new" Zebs that are utter garbage like my old one. Gonna send that in and see if I can warranty it.

[MegaStoke]

My 2023 Zeb Ultimate felt like dog shit until I took it apart and properly lubricated everything. It’s shameful how poorly assembled >$1000 forks are these days.

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

My 2023 Zeb Ultimate felt like dog shit until I took it apart and properly lubricated everything. It’s shameful how poorly assembled >$1000 forks are these days.

Yeah I think I am ruined now. Don't want to buy another fork unless Diaz takes it apart directly out of the box. This Zeb feels GOOOD. No tokens and haven't had to touch the settings. I slowed down the rear shock a bit (which I had sped up to try to "match" the shittiness of the old fork) and I had really good traction yesterday and the bike seemed planted and calm in chunder. Hyped.

I dropped off the old Zeb today to attempt a warranty. We will see.