Big Bike Thread

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Did 15 miles around Tatton Park on saturday, however about 5 mins from home managed to catch a root through a tricky section and barrel rolled in Tatton Mere..... very wet and smelly, sadly no pictures but at least did manage to keep the bike out!
 
guys, another question, this about the brakes...right ive got Juicy 3's on the bike, and the Calipers are mounted with those stupid pivot washers found on V-Brake blocks, are these actually needed, as i cant get my calipers to actually sit straight no matter what method i use, and as such the pads are wearing down at an angle...could i remove these pivot washers and hard mount them to the forks and the frame with the adapter....the calipers have 0 shaped holes to allow them to be alligned with the discs..
 
Draeger said:
Anyone here use a Specialized BG Toupe saddle?. If so, how do you rate them?.

I'm looking to change my OEM Pinarello MOst Bengals saddle on my FP1 for something a wee bit more comfortable.
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I've had a toupe for a year or so on my road bike, no complaints. Thinking about getting the MTB version, Phenom to replace my rapidly wearing out endurance saddle.
 
KnightStalker said:
guys, another question, this about the brakes...right ive got Juicy 3's on the bike, and the Calipers are mounted with those stupid pivot washers found on V-Brake blocks, are these actually needed, as i cant get my calipers to actually sit straight no matter what method i use, and as such the pads are wearing down at an angle...could i remove these pivot washers and hard mount them to the forks and the frame with the adapter....the calipers have 0 shaped holes to allow them to be alligned with the discs..
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Pretty sure all Avids got the stupid washers between the caliper and mount. Problem is now your pads have worn at an angle when you set them up its always going to revert back to the angle. Get new pads, refit them and leave the caliper loose, spin the wheel apply the brake and hold it down, tighten bolts and it should be where it needs to be then
 
crankbro said:
Pretty sure all Avids got the stupid washers between the caliper and mount. Problem is now your pads have worn at an angle when you set them up its always going to revert back to the angle. Get new pads, refit them and leave the caliper loose, spin the wheel apply the brake and hold it down, tighten bolts and it should be where it needs to be then
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right if i buy new pads, could i then remove the washers and do it that way, as i cant see the need for them, all it does is allow them to be tilted and what not, it does my head in.
 
KnightStalker said:
right if i buy new pads, could i then remove the washers and do it that way, as i cant see the need for them, all it does is allow them to be tilted and what not, it does my head in.
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You can remove the spacers and use flat washers to the same height. The are supposed to help so you can just pull the lever and thats it alligned,especially on bike with the disk tabs not faced. I don't really like it myself.
 
I think this is my first post in this thread, i thought i'd share my recent near death experience with you!!! (Well, maybe not as far as near death but the closest i have been).

Went out with a couple of mates to Brechfa and decided on the black (raven?) route. 5 mins in and found a nice little jump and had some fun getting the bike (Spesh FCR XC Comp 09, with some upgrades) air bound. 2 mins later we hit a steep part with a lovely sweeping berm left to right. I had to tap the brakes but they locked and i skidded as it was wet so peddled through to get some control. Straight after the berm was a nice table top which i hit pretty fast and thats all i remember!

I had hit the table top at a slight left to right angle, the rear shock compressed and the rebound took me airbound like never before. ended up with a dislocated shoulder and i was sparked clean out. Cracked my helmet so must have hit the tree i wrapped myself around at ell of a speed.

i was out for about a min but it took me about 30 mins until i got on my feet and had any clue as to what happened! Spent about 3 hours in A&E.

Going back to hospital in 3 weeks to check out my shoulder to check if it needs an op.

That was Wednesday just gone. Since, I have been looking at new helmets, rear shocks and some body armour LOL!!!!

Apparently, (i'm not blaming the shock entirely but it didn't help) the rebound on the X Fusion 02RLA shock is harsh (adjustable, but always slips to the most 'open' of settings even when tightening the adjuster screw).

So, I have learnt that;
1. I should take my time a bit more
2. A good helmet is a must (god knows where i'd be without one)
3. There's a fine line between confident and too confident :D

And, although I need a new helmet and my shoulder is hurting, my bike doesn't have a scratch on it :)

Edit:
I'll get some pics of the bike up as it looks quite neat now and a pic of the cracked and dented helmet!
 
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Not another rider down! :(

I haven't used an Xfusion rear shock so can't comment but; I was trying to teach a pal how to ride jumps/drops the other night. I didn't matter what I suggested because he couldn't get that back wheel off the ground. I resorted to adjusting his rear shock (horrid Specialized air shock) as some air shocks (depending on bike) can ramp up badly when hitting a jump/ tabletop.

It turned out it wasn't the shock but the rider....but my point is that you should also check your suspension is set up correctly or you could end up having a nasty crash.

I have adjusted my shock quite a lot in the last 18months and have settled at a slight compromise but better that than playing Buckeroo.
 
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More Pics

Great day for riding on Friday, nice and cool, yet dry and sunny :cool:
 
GeZ said:
I think this is my first post in this thread, i thought i'd share my recent near death experience with you!!! (Well, maybe not as far as near death but the closest i have been).

Went out with a couple of mates to Brechfa and decided on the black (raven?) route. 5 mins in and found a nice little jump and had some fun getting the bike (Spesh FCR XC Comp 09, with some upgrades) air bound. 2 mins later we hit a steep part with a lovely sweeping berm left to right. I had to tap the brakes but they locked and i skidded as it was wet so peddled through to get some control. Straight after the berm was a nice table top which i hit pretty fast and thats all i remember!

I had hit the table top at a slight left to right angle, the rear shock compressed and the rebound took me airbound like never before. ended up with a dislocated shoulder and i was sparked clean out. Cracked my helmet so must have hit the tree i wrapped myself around at ell of a speed.

i was out for about a min but it took me about 30 mins until i got on my feet and had any clue as to what happened! Spent about 3 hours in A&E.

Going back to hospital in 3 weeks to check out my shoulder to check if it needs an op.

That was Wednesday just gone. Since, I have been looking at new helmets, rear shocks and some body armour LOL!!!!

Apparently, (i'm not blaming the shock entirely but it didn't help) the rebound on the X Fusion 02RLA shock is harsh (adjustable, but always slips to the most 'open' of settings even when tightening the adjuster screw).

So, I have learnt that;
1. I should take my time a bit more
2. A good helmet is a must (god knows where i'd be without one)
3. There's a fine line between confident and too confident :D

And, although I need a new helmet and my shoulder is hurting, my bike doesn't have a scratch on it :)

Edit:
I'll get some pics of the bike up as it looks quite neat now and a pic of the cracked and dented helmet!
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Not good man, hope you get better soon. I went to Brechfa Sunday and found it pretty good, done both Raven and Gorlech trails. Loved some of the jumps! Jumps on the red run were pretty sweet towards the end.
 
GeZ said:
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Hope you get better soon, and don't need a follow-up op mate!

A couple of things
* Things can easily go wrong when trying to jump an XC bike, the geometry isn't as forgiving (you might want to lower your seat too if you haven't done that before your run)
* If you shock is set-up too fast then it could most certainly buck you, so look to set it slower a tad
 
d
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Thanks for the tips everyone :) i'm taking it all onboard.

I generally lower the seat once I am at the top of the mountain or about to hit a good section.

I have played with the shock quite a lot and whatever the setting is the rebound is really harsh. I've had a couple of friends look at it too and we can't get it right, she still bucks like mad. I think i'm going to put a better one on, i was going to do it after xmas but i may as well do it now.

Technically i'm quite good, but hey oh, things go wrong sometimes and i was going a bit too fast (faster than i am used to) and hit it at the wrong angle.

I can't wait to get back out on the horse ... :D
 
Was a good day, great weather and nice riding, even on a fairly simple route.

I'm near Wigan, just off the East Lancs Road.
 
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