Anyone On Here Into Their Mountain XC Bikes? If So What Do You Ride??

[commikid]

So I've just built my new XC bike up but now I'm starting to think I should have got something that would be a bit more of a bigger hitter so I was woundering what people were rolling round on??? :P

[Wakesetter03]

I've got a Hardrock Pro sitting around for XC, it's used more as a bitumen bike though, because XC bores the hell out of me :)
I mainly ride my Santa Cruz, because I do all mountain/downhill. I recently had an opportunity to race a Specialized Stumpy Evo for a state champs, and I can honestly say the FSR rear end with autosag is one of the best set ups out there at the moment.
I'm considering getting one.
If you like a thrill, I guarantee you will get bored with an XC build.

[commikid]

I've got a Hardrock Pro sitting around for XC, it's used more as a bitumen bike though, because XC bores the hell out of me :)
I mainly ride my Santa Cruz, because I do all mountain/downhill. I recently had an opportunity to race a Specialized Stumpy Evo for a state champs, and I can honestly say the FSR rear end with autosag is one of the best set ups out there at the moment.
I'm considering getting one.
If you like a thrill, I guarantee you will get bored with an XC build.

Wow sounds good man and well i have an okay set up as I've got 4inch travel on the rear and 6inch on the front of my commencal. See me and my mates are more like all rounders, you cant beat a bit of DH but some of the quarry jumps etc that are out there are pretty cool too. Infact since I asked what people were riding my mate has fallen off and shattered his wrist :/ he rides a GT Force but I'm just woundering what people like to ride :)

[Wakesetter03]

That's a bit of an extreme XC set up then, I thought you were referring to a carbon 9lb hardtail haha.
Sorry to hear about your mate, it's the danger of the sport though :(

[commikid]

That's a bit of an extreme XC set up then, I thought you were referring to a carbon 9lb hardtail haha.
Sorry to hear about your mate, it's the danger of the sport though :(

Haha nooo mate whatever I do I cant get mine any less heavy haha I tend to buy because of looks rather than performance haha it currently weighs 35lbs :'(. And yehh its all part if the deal I suppose, how long have you been riding??

[jjsmitty]

I used to ride downhill mountain bikes professionally, in the junior scene usually on a mixture of Lapierre's over the years. I don't ride off road anymore since a big wipeout broke me at 15 (all injuries on left side, disclocated and fractured jaw, jawplate, cheekbone/s, eyesocket, nose, shoulder dislocated, collarbone knackered, couple of ribs broken, dislocated hip, now have a titanium jaw and hip and finally a bit deaf in left ear) I swear that tree jumped out right in front of me ;). You should see the look on their faces at airport scanners :D So now i'm a road racer, seeing as I can't deal with the bumps anymore Carrera's are my bike of choice now. Lycra all the way! :D

[commikid]

I used to ride downhill mountain bikes professionally, in the junior scene usually on a mixture of Lapierre's over the years. I don't ride off road anymore since a big wipeout broke me at 15 (all injuries on left side, disclocated and fractured jaw, jawplate, cheekbone/s, eyesocket, nose, shoulder dislocated, collarbone knackered, couple of ribs broken, dislocated hip, now have a titanium jaw and hip and finally a bit deaf in left ear) I swear that tree jumped out right in front of me ;). You should see the look on their faces at airport scanners :D So now i'm a road racer, seeing as I can't deal with the bumps anymore Carrera's are my bike of choice now. Lycra all the way! :D

Wow that sounds quite painful :/ and I thaught I was done bad when I broke my rib lol. I've had a bash on a road bike and there acctually quite quick :) I'm no pro at riding any bike but I have to say the bit I like the best is braking, I know that probably sounds wierd but you cant beat slamming on your hydraulic brakes and winding to a stop like a sports car haha ( I think thats probably me thats just a bit wierd haha ) but the brakes that are on them roady bikes are like sponge :O you have to acctually plan where you want to stop lol. Do you miss riding the mtb stuff?? I so wish I was better on the jumping/trick side of it. :'(

[Wakesetter03]

Haha nooo mate whatever I do I cant get mine any less heavy haha I tend to buy because of looks rather than performance haha it currently weighs 35lbs :'(. And yehh its all part if the deal I suppose, how long have you been riding??

I've been riding properly for about 6 years now, 4 of those were racing years in downhill and slalom. I am getting back into racing this year after a crash last year left me unable to ride.

That's a heavy set up man, my Bullit weighs 28lbs roughly converted. And that's a heavy build itself. If anything, at least your bike is solid.
What do you ride?

[jjsmitty]

Wow that sounds quite painful :/ and I thaught I was done bad when I broke my rib lol. I've had a bash on a road bike and there acctually quite quick :) I'm no pro at riding any bike but I have to say the bit I like the best is braking, I know that probably sounds wierd but you cant beat slamming on your hydraulic brakes and winding to a stop like a sports car haha ( I think thats probably me thats just a bit wierd haha ) but the brakes that are on them roady bikes are like sponge :O you have to acctually plan where you want to stop lol. Do you miss riding the mtb stuff?? I so wish I was better on the jumping/trick side of it. :'(


I'm just a speed demon, the faster I can go the better, I can get the road bike up to a steady 40mph on nice long straight flat bits. Yeah I really miss the off road, nothing better than chucking yourself down a hill, whizzing past trees and getting some air! The crash was just head on into a tree on a fast downhill sweeping right, probably doing about 30-35mph to a dead stop, not fun.

[commikid]

I've been riding properly for about 6 years now, 4 of those were racing years in downhill and slalom. I am getting back into racing this year after a crash last year left me unable to ride.

That's a heavy set up man, my Bullit weighs 28lbs roughly converted. And that's a heavy build itself. If anything, at least your bike is solid.
What do you ride?

Wow I wish my bike was as light as that haha, I ride a custom built commencal meta 4 with halo sas rims and fox sus, what about you??

And jjsmitty I know how them sort of things feel unfortunatly :/ I've never acctually had a smash as bad as what yours sounds to be but I bought my forks from the local bikeshop which were selling a load of bike bits from a mate of theirs that hit a house on his bike and unfortunatly died so they sold all the parts from his other bikes for charity :/ I love going fast the fastest I've ever been on mine is 44.2mph because I have a speedo that keeps track lol my 2.5 tyres wont allow me to go any quicker haha

[Wakesetter03]

Wow I wish my bike was as light as that haha, I ride a custom built commencal meta 4 with halo sas rims and fox sus, what about you??

And jjsmitty I know how them sort of things feel unfortunatly :/ I've never acctually had a smash as bad as what yours sounds to be but I bought my forks from the local bikeshop which were selling a load of bike bits from a mate of theirs that hit a house on his bike and unfortunatly died so they sold all the parts from his other bikes for charity :/ I love going fast the fastest I've ever been on mine is 44.2mph because I have a speedo that keeps track lol my 2.5 tyres wont allow me to go any quicker haha

Yeah, the weight makes a difference. I ride a Santa Cruz Bullit, built not bought :) XTR Drivetrain, ZTR Flow Stans rims, Fox shocks F&R, and Magura MT8's, which is where I think I've killed a lot of the weight.

44 is pretty impressive for a bike your weight and those tires. I run Nevegal 2.35's and I can only get probably another 10mph, but my drivetrain limits me :(

[commikid]

Yeah, the weight makes a difference. I ride a Santa Cruz Bullit, built not bought :) XTR Drivetrain, ZTR Flow Stans rims, Fox shocks F&R, and Magura MT8's, which is where I think I've killed a lot of the weight.

44 is pretty impressive for a bike your weight and those tires. I run Nevegal 2.35's and I can only get probably another 10mph, but my drivetrain limits me :(

Your drivetrain limits you? Are you only running double rings on the front?? my mate has his set up like that but I like the bigger one best :) and you sound to have a good set up there, those nevigals can pull back quite a bit though my mate had them on his at one point. I have always sworn by Continental I used to run Verticals but bought some Deisels because the Verticals are only 2.3 and didn't fit the rim very well :/. Love my fox sus though, not a big fan of rock shox and mazzochi tbh :/

[jjsmitty]

And jjsmitty I know how them sort of things feel unfortunatly :/ I've never acctually had a smash as bad as what yours sounds to be but I bought my forks from the local bikeshop which were selling a load of bike bits from a mate of theirs that hit a house on his bike and unfortunatly died so they sold all the parts from his other bikes for charity :/ I love going fast the fastest I've ever been on mine is 44.2mph because I have a speedo that keeps track lol my 2.5 tyres wont allow me to go any quicker haha

Its great fun, the closest I can get to a motorbike for now ;) 44 is one hell of a speed on those little thin wheels, I once got pulled over by a cop for trying to set off speed cameras :D
Theres a couple of nice downhill bits near me where I can hit ridiculous speeds if I really try (knocking on 50mph)
Its horrible to have deaths in the sport but the fact is its dangerous, in fact i'd say road racing/cycling is more dangerous than controlled off road as the roads are so unpredictable, you never know whats going to be around the corner.

[commikid]

Its great fun, the closest I can get to a motorbike for now ;) 44 is one hell of a speed on those little thin wheels, I once got pulled over by a cop for trying to set off speed cameras :D
Theres a couple of nice downhill bits near me where I can hit ridiculous speeds if I really try (knocking on 50mph)
Its horrible to have deaths in the sport but the fact is its dangerous, in fact i'd say road racing/cycling is more dangerous than controlled off road as the roads are so unpredictable, you never know whats going to be around the corner.

Thats so true the roads by me are redicilous lol and well I have quite fat tyres with it being an xc/mountan bike there like 2.5 Inch wide but there is this really steep hill thats good to let rip down when its nice and dry and there aint much traffic around. And yeh I know because atleast some of the controled off road stuff is mud and grass etc where as on the road its either hit a wall or a car haha. I've always wanted to go fast though ever since I was a kid and this is the cheapest and fastest way around haha,, its the kids in America that make me jelous because they can drive at like 15 and its acctually affordable lol :L

[Wakesetter03]

Your drivetrain limits you? Are you only running double rings on the front?? my mate has his set up like that but I like the bigger one best :) and you sound to have a good set up there, those nevigals can pull back quite a bit though my mate had them on his at one point. I have always sworn by Continental I used to run Verticals but bought some Deisels because the Verticals are only 2.3 and didn't fit the rim very well :/. Love my fox sus though, not a big fan of rock shox and mazzochi tbh :/

Nah, three cog set up, it's just got no more pedal velocity once I get to that speed, I'm pedaling it as fast as it will go. I use the bike on the road so I keep the third. The Nevegals are crap on road, but off road they shine. I've used them and Maxxis Ardents for a while now, and I'm fairly happy with both. The Ardents are better on road though.

I've used RockShox before, they make a good fork but you have to ride some of their higher end stuff. Being made by SRAM, it's good gear. I wouldn't trust a Marzzochi as far as I could throw it tbh :)

[commikid]

Nah, three cog set up, it's just got no more pedal velocity once I get to that speed, I'm pedaling it as fast as it will go. I use the bike on the road so I keep the third. The Nevegals are crap on road, but off road they shine. I've used them and Maxxis Ardents for a while now, and I'm fairly happy with both. The Ardents are better on road though.

I've used RockShox before, they make a good fork but you have to ride some of their higher end stuff. Being made by SRAM, it's good gear. I wouldn't trust a Marzzochi as far as I could throw it tbh :)

Ahh yehh I totally know what you mean there lol,, you just want that extra gear haha and well yehh I use mine on both too but I tend to keep it in third for most of the time :),, you dont get a great deal of tourque but I like to have a gradual uptake so I get into the feel of what ever I'm riding :). And yehh well they are both a popular tyre amungst people I know that ride although I would never move from Continentals personally, I've used them for years, at first I used Continental Verticals which were mint on both road and off road as they were super sticky and had a good rolling pattern and 2.3. and since I upgraded my rims to wider ones they dont fit that good so I now run Continental Deisels which are quite crap on road but will eat anything you throw at them off road as there a 2.5. How come you wouldn't trust Mazzochi mate?? I quite like the bombers. I poped the seal out of my Fox Vanillas the other day and slipped so they have a big scrape up the stantion now I well pissed off :/

[Wakesetter03]

Yeah, I would like a bit of extra but I like my low gears for climbing, even though I don't do it much.
I had a mate who has been on me for years to try continentals, I looked once but couldn't find tubeless compatible (this was a while back) so I went for an Ardent/S-Works Ground Control set up which was a unique, but great set up.
They're a good shock for dirt jumps, but I wouldn't ever buy one. For one, their customer service is absolutely horrible.
Couple that with I have never met someone who hasn't had a problem with them.
The problems have ranged from excessive oil level (from the factory) which caused hydrolock, to leaky seals and faulty cartridges.
What were you doing to pop seals on the Vanillas? Depending on their age if you contact Fox, they might do something for you.
I've been using Fox for around 4 years now (started racing with an RS Revelation), never had an issue and always have had excellent customer service from them.

[commikid]

Yeah, I would like a bit of extra but I like my low gears for climbing, even though I don't do it much.
I had a mate who has been on me for years to try continentals, I looked once but couldn't find tubeless compatible (this was a while back) so I went for an Ardent/S-Works Ground Control set up which was a unique, but great set up.
They're a good shock for dirt jumps, but I wouldn't ever buy one. For one, their customer service is absolutely horrible.
Couple that with I have never met someone who hasn't had a problem with them.
The problems have ranged from excessive oil level (from the factory) which caused hydrolock, to leaky seals and faulty cartridges.
What were you doing to pop seals on the Vanillas? Depending on their age if you contact Fox, they might do something for you.
I've been using Fox for around 4 years now (started racing with an RS Revelation), never had an issue and always have had excellent customer service from them.

Well I love um but I dunno bout tubless ones because I like tubes :) I've grown up with them so I can fix one in a few mins it doesn't bother me. My mates mad on tubless tyres and all that haha,, you dont need tubless tyress to go tubless though mate :) long as your rim aint dinted at all just cut a smaller size tube in half around it, stretch it over your rim so the valve goes through and then stick your tyre on with some gunge in it and stick a C02 cannister on it and it should work fine :) some of my mates work in bike shops thats all and they run all sorts of tyres without tubes. They say there not always as good but not far off. They keep asking me to try it but I cba with all the fussing around with gunge and bits of old innertubes haha. And well come to think of it my mate had some bombers a while back and they were nackerd lol they used to clunk all the time and out of like 140mm travel or what ever they were he got about 20mm that acctually worked lol :),, andd well my Vanillas are making a creaky noise when I use the front brake and no one can work out if it is acctually the fork or the brake or even the rim haha it sounds like a creaky floor board everytime I use the front brake lol. And well I woundered if the seals were starting to wear and maybe the internal bushes were on their way out so instead of dismantling them all I thaught I could pop the seals up a bit and see if any dirt had made its way under and then I would knkw they needed changing but I went and bloody slipped :/,, my forks also are a bit quick on the rebound so I was going to add some slightly thicker oil so I emailed mojo and told them about the rebound being a bit quick and they said I should just use some thicker oil like a 10wt although its acctually 10wt that I put in last time haha so that went out the window :/ and there 2007 I think but I touched them all up last time I serviced them and asked my mate to get me some new stickers and he went and ordered the 2010 ones by mistake so they look newer than they are haha

[Wakesetter03]

Well I love um but I dunno bout tubless ones because I like tubes :) I've grown up with them so I can fix one in a few mins it doesn't bother me. My mates mad on tubless tyres and all that haha,, you dont need tubless tyress to go tubless though mate :) long as your rim aint dinted at all just cut a smaller size tube in half around it, stretch it over your rim so the valve goes through and then stick your tyre on with some gunge in it and stick a C02 cannister on it and it should work fine :) some of my mates work in bike shops thats all and they run all sorts of tyres without tubes. They say there not always as good but not far off. They keep asking me to try it but I cba with all the fussing around with gunge and bits of old innertubes haha. And well come to think of it my mate had some bombers a while back and they were nackerd lol they used to clunk all the time and out of like 140mm travel or what ever they were he got about 20mm that acctually worked lol :),, andd well my Vanillas are making a creaky noise when I use the front brake and no one can work out if it is acctually the fork or the brake or even the rim haha it sounds like a creaky floor board everytime I use the front brake lol. And well I woundered if the seals were starting to wear and maybe the internal bushes were on their way out so instead of dismantling them all I thaught I could pop the seals up a bit and see if any dirt had made its way under and then I would knkw they needed changing but I went and bloody slipped :/,, my forks also are a bit quick on the rebound so I was going to add some slightly thicker oil so I emailed mojo and told them about the rebound being a bit quick and they said I should just use some thicker oil like a 10wt although its acctually 10wt that I put in last time haha so that went out the window :/ and there 2007 I think but I touched them all up last time I serviced them and asked my mate to get me some new stickers and he went and ordered the 2010 ones by mistake so they look newer than they are haha

Well I've been using tubeless for a while, on Stans ZTR Flow tubeless compatibles with either a Maxxis, Kenda or Schwalbes tubeless compatible thread. I don't like using the Stans wheel or tyre none-tubless into tubeless conversion kits, I prefer having the proper bead. Tubeless for me is great because here in Aus, it's a red dirt or gravel base in most of the tracks, tubeless lets me run between 20 and 30 psi without punctures so I can get the grip I need when I'm on a fast section (yet with my Bullit I find the 140 front does slip out a bit due to the geometry being made for a Totem or Revelation,), hence why I'm considering selling it and getting a new Specialized with the FSR rear set up. That or see whether I can for for a new fork, like something Rockshox with the U-Turn option (adjustable front travel).

That's really weird about your forks. Are they always quick on the rebound of have you tried adjusting the rebound? It sounds like they weren't set up from factory to me.
As for the creak, it sounds like brake to me. Have you taken off your rotor and given it a sand? When a noise like that is made, it is usually when the piston is pushing your pad into the disc, but its just slipping on the disc. A good way to check this is to put the lockout on (if you've got one) and hit the brakes. If the squeak is still there, it's not your suspension.

I hope you get it sorted out!

[commikid]

Well yehh I dont blame you tbh man,, there always leaking or something :/ Only thing is because the tubless tyres have the slime in them if you get a big puncture like a shard of glass there nackerd then aint they?,, and wow asif you run your tyres really soft haha i run mine like 30 - 40 but I think my rim qould be bumming the floor at 20psi haha :/ ,, well if you centre your weight more forward you shouldnt get the front end wanting to wash out? Its a tricky one that, I run 140s on the front but I cant say thats a common problem :/ my mate had the rock shoxs with the u turn on them. I thaught it was pretty impresive how it just pulled it in but I bottom my 140s occasionally so I wouldn't opt for less really.... I'm a more is better and bigger is better type of guy haha thats why my bike weighs the same as a WW2 tank lmao. And yehh messed around with the rebound loads, it used to be quite quick but nothing like it is now. on the slowest setting its the same as my mates fastest setting on his rock shox haha and on the quickest well its like doing rodeo haha :S ,, and yehh had all the calliper abd rotor off and its biting good its just a wierd creek its hard to explain. if we solve it I'll sure let you know what it was haha. :D

[Wakesetter03]

Yeah, that is an issue, but what I've found is if you do enough damage to ruin a tubeless tire, a tubed tire is going to be screwed as well. As long as you keep up the maintenance it's fine. I don't have to worry about glass though, I have a hard tail that I ride on road mostly and the Bullit is a track bike. About the front end, it is the shock choice. When you're in tight stuff with big drop outs and stuff, you can't beat it, but generally around the bottom of the DH tracks, it widens out into wide turns. At 40+kph, when you chuck it in and the front end slides, you're on your ass before you can react. I've attached a pic of the bike, you can see the front end of it looks overly high. I think this is the issue due to the frame being made for a Totem/Revelation.
In mountain biking, you'd be right that bigger is mostly better, but geometry is also a key factor in the performance of your bike. If I save 5 seconds at the bottom and lose 2 up the top due to a shorter fork, I'm still three seconds quicker all up, know what I mean?
That is weird rebound! That would be almost impossible to right if you have consecutive bumps. Have you had your LBS look ait it?

Keep me updated, I'm definitely interested in what went wrong.

[commikid]

Yeah, that is an issue, but what I've found is if you do enough damage to ruin a tubeless tire, a tubed tire is going to be screwed as well. As long as you keep up the maintenance it's fine. I don't have to worry about glass though, I have a hard tail that I ride on road mostly and the Bullit is a track bike. About the front end, it is the shock choice. When you're in tight stuff with big drop outs and stuff, you can't beat it, but generally around the bottom of the DH tracks, it widens out into wide turns. At 40+kph, when you chuck it in and the front end slides, you're on your ass before you can react. I've attached a pic of the bike, you can see the front end of it looks overly high. I think this is the issue due to the frame being made for a Totem/Revelation.
In mountain biking, you'd be right that bigger is mostly better, but geometry is also a key factor in the performance of your bike. If I save 5 seconds at the bottom and lose 2 up the top due to a shorter fork, I'm still three seconds quicker all up, know what I mean?
That is weird rebound! That would be almost impossible to right if you have consecutive bumps. Have you had your LBS look ait it?

Keep me updated, I'm definitely interested in what went wrong.

Wow aint she something! I totally know what you mean about the head angle though man. are they deffo only 140s?? I dont think I've ever seen one as steep as that haha,, I dont know how to upload a pic because I could show you mine :)? And well yehh I see what you say about the tyres but I'm a propper tight ass lol my old verticals you could see the innertube popping through where I had gone over bits of glass or what ever caused it to puncture haha but I would just ride it like that and it was fine really because the innertube wasnt hitting the floor because of the depth of the tyre and it was only a small hole luke 2 - 3mm but I dunno if slime would have filled it? Oh and when I first got sime Deisels a year or two back I ripped the side wall about 2 inch on something and because it was brand new tyre and I had only rode it the once I cut up some old innertube and superglued it to the inside of the tyre to fill the hole and my mate then used the tyre in his Carerra for about 2 years lol. I dont know how it held lol I think the expansion of the tube kept the peice of innertube stuck to the tyre.... I wouldn't use it haha.
And yehh I totally know what you mean when it commes to time ;) I'm normally slower at the begining of things because I'm not mad on pedaling lol I like to just gather the speed from the hill and then top it up :) you sound pretty cool man, its a shame we now live opposite ends of the plannet haha :/,, my bikes in the shop now because of the creeking from the front end, I'm just going to try a heavier weight of oil to slow the rebound down. so they said it was the spokes that cause the creek and so they tightend them and it musnt have worked because now they say that my "calliper" might be worn :S how on earth do you wear a calliper lol, I do mechanics at college and you never get cars with worn callipers haha.

[Wakesetter03]

Wow aint she something! I totally know what you mean about the head angle though man. are they deffo only 140s?? I dont think I've ever seen one as steep as that haha,, I dont know how to upload a pic because I could show you mine :)? And well yehh I see what you say about the tyres but I'm a propper tight ass lol my old verticals you could see the innertube popping through where I had gone over bits of glass or what ever caused it to puncture haha but I would just ride it like that and it was fine really because the innertube wasnt hitting the floor because of the depth of the tyre and it was only a small hole luke 2 - 3mm but I dunno if slime would have filled it? Oh and when I first got sime Deisels a year or two back I ripped the side wall about 2 inch on something and because it was brand new tyre and I had only rode it the once I cut up some old innertube and superglued it to the inside of the tyre to fill the hole and my mate then used the tyre in his Carerra for about 2 years lol. I dont know how it held lol I think the expansion of the tube kept the peice of innertube stuck to the tyre.... I wouldn't use it haha.
And yehh I totally know what you mean when it commes to time ;) I'm normally slower at the begining of things because I'm not mad on pedaling lol I like to just gather the speed from the hill and then top it up :) you sound pretty cool man, its a shame we now live opposite ends of the plannet haha :/,, my bikes in the shop now because of the creeking from the front end, I'm just going to try a heavier weight of oil to slow the rebound down. so they said it was the spokes that cause the creek and so they tightend them and it musnt have worked because now they say that my "calliper" might be worn :S how on earth do you wear a calliper lol, I do mechanics at college and you never get cars with worn callipers haha.

Thanks, yeah their 140's, I built her from ground up.
To upload pictures, hit "post reply" instead of the quick reply down the bottom. Then down under, Additional Options, hit manage attachments. From there it's simple.
Haha, yeah, I can see why people use Stan's kits instead of getting a wheel with a USD bead, but for racing that just won't cut it. Sounds like you've got some interesting fixes for tires :)
Yeah, time wise I am actually faster in quick technical stuff, once it gets wide and slippery I back off a bit.
Heavier oil sounds right, but I don't know what they were on about with your spokes. If they weren't tension-ed correctly, it would have buckled before it creaked. I also have never heard of a caliper being worn. Sounds to me like they have no idea?

[commikid]

Thanks, yeah their 140's, I built her from ground up.
To upload pictures, hit "post reply" instead of the quick reply down the bottom. Then down under, Additional Options, hit manage attachments. From there it's simple.
Haha, yeah, I can see why people use Stan's kits instead of getting a wheel with a USD bead, but for racing that just won't cut it. Sounds like you've got some interesting fixes for tires :)
Yeah, time wise I am actually faster in quick technical stuff, once it gets wide and slippery I back off a bit.
Heavier oil sounds right, but I don't know what they were on about with your spokes. If they weren't tension-ed correctly, it would have buckled before it creaked. I also have never heard of a caliper being worn. Sounds to me like they have no idea?

I think I've found it haha and yehh its probably best to get the right stuff because after all anything but the correct stuff is a bodge lol. And yehh haha I'm not one that likes spending money so I'm always looking for quick and cheap fixes haha I have to say that I'm no pro at riding I do it just for the buzz but I like the gravels and loose surfices, I think it looks good when you go bombing down them with a big trail of dust behind you :') ,, And as for the spokes I never really thaught of that but I think you could be right there because the rim wouldn't have enough support would it? Anyhow I got them both dished and trued because there was a few loose spokes and the back wheel needed dishing for my bike. As for the calliper being worn I think they were just talking crap haha,, I dont know of anyone that has ever said that lol. I bumped into a guy in the bikeshop whilst I was there though that managed to FIX THE CREEK :D haha all he did was take the front calliper iff and put some copper grease around the calliper bolts and then put it back on haha I couldn't beleave my eyes haha I mean the people that work there tell me its the spokes then the calliper, one was mentioning the hub and I thaught it was the forks lol and all it was was a corroded bolt that was creeking under the strain lol. They did however notice that all the gold coating has come off my forks on the inside of the left leg ao there not worth shit now :/ . And I built mine from the ground up too haha its nice to talk to someone that acctually has a nice bike and knows about bikes too lol I sometimes find myself talking to people that are all like "yehh I have a well good bike and I'm well good at jumps and stuff" and then they show you a picture of an apollow lol. :)

[Will Grigg's on Fire]

I don't have the best of bikes for XC but it gets the job done :D I ride a Silverback Alpine with a SR Suntour coil fork. I am keen on getting a new bike soon, although I don't really know what I want. I tried a friend's Trek and it is an amazing ride! Full carbon fibre, hard tail with a Fox fork... So much lighter and better than mine!

Your bikes sound amazing too :) maybe I should try something similar sometime :)

[commikid]

I don't have the best of bikes for XC but it gets the job done :D I ride a Silverback Alpine with a SR Suntour coil fork. I am keen on getting a new bike soon, although I don't really know what I want. I tried a friend's Trek and it is an amazing ride! Full carbon fibre, hard tail with a Fox fork... So much lighter and better than mine!

Your bikes sound amazing too :) maybe I should try something similar sometime :)

Heyy its not all that bad, like the bike man says in the shop by me "Its not about the bike you ride its about the fun on the bike you ride" I started off on a Saracen mantra 1 and tbh that was probably one of the best bikes I hve ever riden :D its all about the memories :P ,, and yehh I have herd that Treck are good bikes but I have never been on one haha,, depending on how into your bikes you are it can be more fun to build one as then its custom to you and you only :D... However I do swear by fox :) ,, yeh mine are worn but the ride quality is mint :D