Off Season Projects - Tinkering & Overhauling

[jacob_dbu]

How do you know when a linkage bearing needs replacement? Just side to side play?

[Andeh]

How do you know when a linkage bearing needs replacement? Just side to side play?

If it feels gritty when you rotate it with your finger, after stripping your bike down. Creaking might just mean there's crud around the bearings/links.

[Robik]

I'm selling my Stumpjumper as a whole bike or a frame and going to build Pole Taival. Depending on how the sale goes, will build up from the frame or just move all components from FS.

Sent from my XT1650 using TGR Forums mobile app

[scrublover]

I'm tempted to put one of those in the wife's Pike RC along with a full V-Spec tune, but she probably wouldn't even notice.

Put in the new air spring gubbins from RockShox.

IMO it is a better/more noticeable change, and cheaper as well!

[toast2266]

I'll be selling my Slash, and buying / building... something. Not sure what yet. Contemplating selling the DH bike as well. Kinda want a quiver of a shorter travel 29er trail bike + a long travel 29er that can more or less serve as a DH bike. Leaning towards an SB 130 + Spartan 29. Or maybe Firebird 29.

[Dantheman]

If you're keeping it for 2-3 years and think you would appreciate a slacker headangle + ever so slightly steeper seat tube angle, then yes.. get a Works angleset for it. 1 degree is going to be a somewhat subtle change.. 1.5 or 2 degrees you will notice.

Custom suspension tuning would not be a terrible idea when the time comes for a service.. what do you have on there for fork and shock?

Mattoc Pro and Monarch+ Debonair. Probably not worth it on the suspension service. Anglesets look to be pretty cheap though. The A2C on the Mattoc is abut 25 mm longer than the stock fork was, so -1.5 would probably get the BB and STA back to stock.

Put in the new air spring gubbins from RockShox.

IMO it is a better/more noticeable change, and cheaper as well!

This one? https://www.backcountry.com/rockshox...ng-upgrade-kit

Still doubtful she would even notice, but that's definitely a cheap upgrade. I'm not sure if her's is a 2017 or 2018. Came stock on a DB Clutch bought new in May on sale, so last year's stock. Boost hub spacing.

[muted]

My brand new Enves cracked on 5th ride, and I don't think I can warranty them as I bought them with a used bike and not directly. Faaaaccckkkkkk!!! Going to reynolds rims is my project now.

I didn't even have a hard hit, and they cracked up high near a spoke, so poor design and not poor riding skillzs. Ride was South Rim on Gooseberry, you can't even get speed on that ride to have a hard hit. What a piece of shit product, I heard here on this board they suck but I didn't realize they suck THAT much. I kept riding them as I was on a road trip and then a spoke broke on the same rim on another XC ride with no speed or big hit and punctured the tape.....instant flat. /vent

[TahoeJ]

^^ That's brutal. No wonder Santa Cruz started making their own and ditched ENVE.

Trying to decide how to breathe new life into an OG 2013 Bronson. Maybe a new fork. Maybe a 1deg headset. Maybe a new shock, thinking CC IL Coil.

What fork do you have on there now? Last summer I put a 2017 160mm Pike on my v1 Bronson and it made a huge difference. I was kind of skeptical to be honest and then totally stoked by how noticeable the upgrade was. Going 160mm also makes it 1.3 degrees more slack, or something like that. Could be 1.2 or 1.4 - either way, it does it. The original bike specs actually list this as a recommended / possible option, which is where I saw the degree change specified.

[Andeh]

^^ That's brutal.



What fork do you have on there now? Last summer I put a 2017 160mm Pike on my v1 Bronson and it made a huge difference. I was kind of skeptical to be honest and then totally stoked by how noticeable the upgrade was. Going 160mm also makes it 1.3 degrees more slack, or something like that. Could be 1.2 or 1.4 - either way, it does it. The original bike specs actually list this as a recommended / possible option, which is where I saw the degree change specified.

Usually on bike specs, they indicate that 10mm more fork travel gets you a 0.4 degree slacker HTA.

[Dee Hubbs]

Usually on bike specs, they indicate that 10mm more fork travel gets you a 0.4 degree slacker HTA.

Agreed, a 10mm for increase on a bike with 67* head angle would be around 0.45 to o0.5 degrees.

[rideit]

Since I will be getting a more xc ish ride, the altitude will be getting bigger, with a coil over shock and a new air shaft for the 36, bringing it to 170mm.

[TahoeJ]

Usually on bike specs, they indicate that 10mm more fork travel gets you a 0.4 degree slacker HTA.

Hmm. Maybe it was in conjunction with a headset adjustment then (in the specs)... regardless, the upgrade was great.

[meter-man]

Dropping Vorsprung Luftkappe air pistons into my Yari fork....

https://vorsprungsuspension.com/prod...hox-pike-lyrik

I'm tempted to put one of those in the wife's Pike RC along with a full V-Spec tune, but she probably wouldn't even notice.

After thinking this through a bit further and doing some price comparison, think I'm going to swap in a Debonair spring (only $30ish!) and the RCT Charger Damper 2 ($240ish) into a Yari. That's pretty much makes it a Lyrik...or so the internet tells me. https://www.worldwidecyclery.com/blo...ustomer-review

[toast2266]

After thinking this through a bit further and doing some price comparison, think I'm going to swap in a Debonair spring (only $30ish!) and the RCT Charger Damper 2 ($240ish) into a Yari. That's pretty much makes it a Lyrik...or so the internet tells me. https://www.worldwidecyclery.com/blo...ustomer-review

Get the rc2 damper. Only a bit more cash, and definitely more better.

https://www.worldwidecyclery.com/pro...1-yari-a1-2016

[bagtagley]

There's no off-season here, but I gotta piece a working bike together from the leftover carnage of this past season.

Played hookie yesterday and knocked out two big ones.
- Full Monarch rebuild, and a harsh reminder that it's worth spending the money on the right tools, cause they save massive amounts of time.
- Replaced my cracked rim with a warranty replacement. Still gotta dish, true, and tape. I'm ignoring what I just said and am not going to spend the money on a tensiometer.

To-do:
- Service Pike
- Bleed brakes
- Replace pivot bearings (see above about right tools and ignoring that advice)
- New cables and housing

[joetron]

-I’ve got my backup Reverb to try and fix, but that may need to go to Suspension Syndicate.
-Otherwise I just need to tidy/tighten up my housing/hose situation. Maybe do some shrink wrap? I always get impatient when building a new bike and get things close, but I like to leave a bit of room for cockpit adjustments and have best intentions to finish it in another week or two. 4 months later and I still wince a little when I look down. Haha.
-sell my Patrol and Noratron’s SB5.
-get workbench lighting installed and fully organized again - realizing organization will last about 4 days.






Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[Dantheman]

-get workbench lighting installed and fully organized again - realizing organization will last about 4 days

Heh. Getting organized is easy, it's staying organized that's hard.

[GeezerSteve]

Getting organized is easy, it's staying organized that's hard.

So true. One of my buds religiously cleans up and organizes after each project, declaring "a clean shop is a safe shop."

[meter-man]

Dropping Vorsprung Luftkappe air pistons into my Yari fork....

https://vorsprungsuspension.com/prod...hox-pike-lyrik

I'm tempted to put one of those in the wife's Pike RC along with a full V-Spec tune, but she probably wouldn't even notice.

Get the rc2 damper. Only a bit more cash, and definitely more better.

https://www.worldwidecyclery.com/pro...1-yari-a1-2016

Thanks Toast. I did some research...while the RC2 is more blingy for sure, I don't want the added complication of setting the HSC/LSC to my preferences. I'm...too lazy? Set-it-and-forget-it kinda person. Went with RCT3 for the regular old Open/Pedal/Firm settings - maybe shortsighted, but that's a specialty of mine.

Next up for next year: probably replacing my stock/shittay WTB ST i29 hoops. Seems to be the best improvement to the bike I can make (other than possibly swapping in a better shock (currently have RockShox Deluxe RT). This wheelset thread has been $$$ https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...heelset-thread The DT Swiss 350 hubs with XM481 (or Stan's Flow MX) rims seems to be about the right price point.

Going on a 2017 Transition Patrol (aluminum)

[Dee Hubbs]

Heh. Getting organized is easy, it's staying organized that's hard.

I agree that staying organized is the hard part. It seem like I spent more time cleaning up tools than I do fixing the bikes. I’m not sure how that works out.

[nickwm21]

^^ That's brutal. No wonder Santa Cruz started making their own and ditched ENVE.



What fork do you have on there now? Last summer I put a 2017 160mm Pike on my v1 Bronson and it made a huge difference. I was kind of skeptical to be honest and then totally stoked by how noticeable the upgrade was. Going 160mm also makes it 1.3 degrees more slack, or something like that. Could be 1.2 or 1.4 - either way, it does it. The original bike specs actually list this as a recommended / possible option, which is where I saw the degree change specified.

I have a 2013 160mm xfusion vengeance. It is an OEM spec 26” fork that just happens to work with 27.5”. I actually love the fork, most set it and forget piece of suspension I’ve ever been on... but the tire clearance is tight, i can’t run more than a 2.4... Obviously it has a 26” offset. Wondering what a 27.5” offset would feel like.... it’s also a heavier than current offerings.

I would likely replace it with a 160mm Pike. I wish the XFusion stuff was sold aftermarket because I would get a 160mm Sweep....


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[rideit]

Ordering an MRP Ramp Control Cartridge...that should be fun to play with.

[scrublover]

Mattoc Pro and Monarch+ Debonair. Probably not worth it on the suspension service. Anglesets look to be pretty cheap though. The A2C on the Mattoc is abut 25 mm longer than the stock fork was, so -1.5 would probably get the BB and STA back to stock.



This one? https://www.backcountry.com/rockshox...ng-upgrade-kit

Still doubtful she would even notice, but that's definitely a cheap upgrade. I'm not sure if her's is a 2017 or 2018. Came stock on a DB Clutch bought new in May on sale, so last year's stock. Boost hub spacing.

Yep, that one. IMO, it was a far more noticeable and positive difference than the Luftkappe. Luftkappe went into a Pike, the new airs pring into a Lyrik.

[gravitylover]

My brand new Enves cracked on 5th ride, and I don't think I can warranty them as I bought them with a used bike and not directly. Faaaaccckkkkkk!!! Going to reynolds rims is my project now.

I didn't even have a hard hit, and they cracked up high near a spoke, so poor design and not poor riding skillzs. Ride was South Rim on Gooseberry, you can't even get speed on that ride to have a hard hit. What a piece of shit product, I heard here on this board they suck but I didn't realize they suck THAT much. I kept riding them as I was on a road trip and then a spoke broke on the same rim on another XC ride with no speed or big hit and punctured the tape.....instant flat. /vent

I've put these through some pretty rough rides including lift served DH and general EC rockiness and they've been bombproof. https://www.dirtcomponents.com/ Click wheels up top and take a look at what's what. If you like what you see and choose to go this way use the code Trailhead for 10% off on everything here.

[NuMexJoe]

I picked up an 27.5 OEM X-Fusion Metric a couple months ago. Saved about a pound over the Van36R 26" (running with 27.5") that I replaced. Only rebound adjust, but seems perfect for my needs. They're out there, and new take-off was about $300.

I would likely replace it with a 160mm Pike. I wish the XFusion stuff was sold aftermarket because I would get a 160mm Sweep....


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums