oh man i checked out he spesh site, think im in love haha
the endure evo is nice, doesn’t have a dropper seat post but thats something i could add later.
or even this one as you mentioned.
so is anyone here looking to upgrade their hardtail???
i have an Epic 26" i’m trying to sell - and it’s going very cheap. this seems to be the thread with all the fat tyre kids on it.
just don’t use it
Is this really an issue? Just use appicable king in-set parts to fit whatever steerer you throw in there? Or the inset doesn’t fit these frames? If its good enough for santa cruz syndicate, its probably good enough for punters like us
Totally agree getting replacement forks wouldn’t be much of an issue. However you’ll have to find someone with a 1.5 steerer or another post 2013 Giant if you try to flog the stock forks. Not a big issue but seems like a PITA of a standard nonetheless.
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Camo, Enduro EVOs a very gravity-orientated bike - big forks, slack HT, short cage RD and heavy - it’ll be no where near as versatile as the Stumpy Evo. Totally different bike. Would be a good bike to own if you lived near MT Buller or Queenstown.
So I picked up a brand new 2010 charge duster frame the other day for next to nothing and am looking to build it up into something to replace my knackered Jamis Durango.
I’m looking to spend around $1000 give or take. My question is what should I put on it? I don’t want to break the bank but at the same time I don’t want to replace everything on it every ride as it breaks. Any help would be much appreciated.
slx.
fox/xfusion?
Cheers Blakey, any thoughts on a wheelset and brakes?
Deore/SLX groupset and brakes. Shimano don’t make a bad mtb brake ATM, even the Deore level ones are decent.
Just depends on how much weight you want to save.
I’m no weight weenie just after something reliable and fun. I can always upgrade but at the moment I’m just looking to get it up and running on a relatively modest budget. I’ve been having a look at the mavic cross rides, thoughts?
Hey Hairy,
Did you buy it as a frameset or complete? IIRC the complete was really nicely spec’d with full 3x9 XT and XT UST wheels and Fox Float 32s. These are all nice parts already and you could just go ahead and ride it as is.
Two simple upgrades that are awesome are 1) Going Tubeless - just buy some Stans goo and some UST tyres (Maxxis Crossmarks and Ardents or Conti X-kings are good for Melbourne - go no smaller than 2.2). and 2) ESI ‘Chunky’ silicon grips. They are the dogs bollocks, honest to god, hands down the best grips I’ve ever had on a bike.
Another upgrade would be to get your fork custom tuned by a Fox Suspension specialist. This will make them feel exactly how you want them to.
… but if you want to make it more up to the moment, what I would do is this: Strip off the 9-speed drivetrain and sell it. Buy a clutched RD; get a SLX gs or ZEE wide range rear mech, an XT or Saint right hand shifter, an XT 11-36 cassette, an XT Dyna-sys or KMC X10.93 chain. Either keep the XT cranks and buy a 104 x 30T Wolftooth or Raceface NW ring, or even better, sell the XTs buy a SRAM X9 or S1400 GXP crankset, flip the spider and get a direct mount Wolftooth 30T ring.
The new SLX icetech brakes are awesome too BTW.
… And on an unrelated note, Hairy, I met Lynley Dodd the other day. A nice old bird she was :).
Crossrides are okay but not great, not that light and hubs are need constant maintenance (2 pawl design I think). Good (relatively) cheap wheels are Hope Hoops laced to Stans Crests or Archs (Archs if you’re a bit clumsy like me).
Hi there all,
I know from reading the previous pages on this thread that the Klunker isn’t really in the running as ‘a bike to consider’…
However, I bought one a little while back in green - (it was being cleared at wholesale price because no one liked it!), and I still have it. I have been racing road bikes for the past 3 years and can honestly say that I have never had as much fun on a bike as I do on my Klunker. The gear is challenging to stay on top of, but I am much stronger for it, and it can always be swapped out for an easier one, the Klunker is F***ing indestructable (TIG welded chromoly), from small 1-3ft drops to rooty singletrack, easily repaired with hardly any moving parts, the gear is awesome on the flat and tightly packed gravel, they’re inexpensive IMO…
and not to mention how my bike handling skills have improved - it is rigid, and 26", so picking the right line is very important, using your body and positioning it correctly to maintain the bikes momentum is heaps of fun…
The bike is (as the website says) ‘about as complicated as a ham sandwich’, however, riding this machine in the off-season through all kinds of shitty weather, touring and taking her over all kinds of terrain has honestly never been so much dam fun. If you’re riding cross country and singletrack type stuff, the klunker will effortlessly do the job. I know this probably won’t change anyone’s mind… but I can’t speak highly enough of them - just thought with all of her service and fun she’s provided me with, I owe to her to stick up for her!
Hey FOAers, I didn’t want to start a new thread but am in the market for a new mountain bike and have some questions.
I want something for single track fun times, big long rides in the sub alpine regions near canberra and some bike packing. Currently on NikCee’s old GT iDrive 4.0.
Pretty settled on a hard tail 29er and have a budget of around 2K. I want all the modern things (15mm TA, can fit tapered fork etc), steering away from carbon because I feel like it doesn’t suit bikepaking+framebags (is this silly?).
Here’s some bikes I like, I’m keen on second hand if the right bike comes up.
Trek Superfly 7/8 - aluminium, good components, 142x12 dropouts but could be harsh for long long rides (100k+)
Scott scale 940/950 - similar to above but slacker HT angle I think (yay)
Salsa El mariachi 2 - leaning towards this one (would love the Ti though) but heavy and not sure who stocks them.
Questions:
Any thoughts on the bikes I’ve listed or alternatives THAT FIT MY CRITERIA?
Who is the new distro for Salsa sans dirtjerks?
Will I really notice the difference between alu vs steel, I haven’t ridden a hard tail or 29er much.
Carbon is fine for bike packing just gotta tape the frame where the bags rub.
2014 kona honzo (steel $2500) or taro (Ali $1800) would fit your bill perfectly
Honzo is a little slack for bikepacking/big kms?
El Mariachi looks mean.
Don’t you have all the bits from you voodoo?
Dawson Sports is the new Aussie distro for Salsa.
I’ve been looking at getting something similar - but with the option to run SS. The El Mariachi is at the top of my list. It has the right geometry, a good tubeset and an excellent dropout design. Yes the frame is 500gms more than an Alum and 800gms more than Carbon, but I think with right components it should be light enough (under 12kg geared, 10.5kg SS) And personally I would appreciate the fatigue resistance of steel for a bike like this - I don’t know if it would be percievably smoother ride tho’.
The other bikes that I am considering are the yet to be released Surly Karate Monkey OPS (which has On-one style swapouts - so you can have vert dropouts, 12x142 thru or horizontal track ends). but the Surly is 300 gms heavier than the Salsa.
I’m looking at the Ritchey P-29 and the Niner SIR 9 if I can pic one up secondhand.
I’m also considering Niner AIR 9, Rocky Mountain Vertex and coughs Specialized Stumpjumper HT. Basically a Alu or carbon frame with a PFBB30 that is not the new BB92.
In my experience you’ll notice it later in the ride, when your fresh carpark testing not at all.
My dragon is vaguely similar geo to the honzo. Which with loading it properly is fine for bikepacking, bit of a slug on loooong gravel climbs. and the front gets a bit lofty on steep pinches. But motors along fine on the flats and loves it when it gets rougher.
I like Dans list above.
I had another look around the internets today and found the focus Black Forest/raven that seem to tick the boxes as well. There’s a local one with good spec within budget.
I like the rocky mtn vertex as well.
I also emailed pushys about ordering an el mariachi 2.
Thanks for all the great advice guys
After I got Nikcees GT I realised I wanted something with the modern bits and a better dropout design when I eventually upgraded. I can’t be bothered building a bike and fiddling around. A complete will make things a lot easier,
Is your reasoning behind the BB thing so you could run an EBB?