Mtb thread

[Maker]

@stuvy @Ashley Burton How tall are you guys? Wonder if it's a height thing; I'm over 6'1" so it suits me. I was 26" until I got the Merida FS several years ago and that persuaded me that bigger wheels make sense if you're taller - more proportional.

I don't think there's much correlation between height and wheel size, frame size (Reach) is what's important. I'm 5'10" and perfectly comfortable on 19" through 29" wheels. I'm not keen on 26" because I'm not keen on the older frame styling they tend to have but to ride they're just fine. I used to have a 26" jump bike, as well as a 24", both single speed so basically big BMXs, very fun.

I'd love a go on one of these, 36" wheel. I heard somewhere the prototypes had steel rims which weighed 8kg the production ones use carbon fibre.

 

[stuvy]

I love the frame shape but the handlebars look daft

 

[Ashley Burton]

8kg Wheels!

 

[ballibeg]

Got sent to cover Islay for a few days. Got a few off road miles in between shifts.

 

[a111r]

What do you guys think about eBikes?

Never tried one. Might have to, as my body is failing.

From what I've seen on-line, I really like the really illegal ones.

I need to meet up with a friend to look at his bike.
He's built one with a 'significant output', after receiving a 12 month ban.
For double the limit, in his OM605 "STD" W202 sleeper.

 

[Tangledfeet]

I don't think there's much correlation between height and wheel size, frame size (Reach) is what's important

Yeah, kinda know where you're coming from - but then frame size and stack/reach aren't proportional either. We're all different!

 

[m_c]

This is my current main bike. I absolutely love it, as it has far exceeded all my expectations.
For 170mm travel, it pedals extremely well, and is absolutely brilliant on the descents, although it's not seen much use due to lockdown, as the local trails just don't justify it



And this it the short travel which had been demoted to winter hack bike, but it seeing a fair bit use just now.



@Tangledfeet is it really that long since we done Relentless?

 

[Tangledfeet]

@Tangledfeet is it really that long since we done Relentless?

Yup! It was my 35th on the day and I'll be the big 5-0 in less than six months...

 

[anto]

Bought a second hand Giant xtc back a few years but it was a little big for me. It was cheap so it done the job.
Eventually bought a smaller frame and swapped all components onto it. It's an NS Bikes Clash frame from Chain Reactions;

Cos of the lockdown I'm struggling to get near the trails and found myself out on the roads with it which wasn't ideal.
Decided to buy myself a road bike.
It's a Trek 1.1 and it is a joy to ride compared to the mtb;

 

[stuvy]

Bought a second hand Giant xtc back a few years but it was a little big for me. It was cheap so it done the job.
Eventually bought a smaller frame and swapped all components onto it. It's an NS Bikes Clash frame from Chain Reactions;

View attachment 233915
Cos of the lockdown I'm struggling to get near the trails and found myself out on the roads with it which wasn't ideal.
Decided to buy myself a road bike.
It's a Trek 1.1 and it is a joy to ride compared to the mtb;

have you still got the old frame?

 

[pondy]

Some lovely bikes on here! I've been a cyclist all my life and a mountain biker since moving (back) up to Scotand in 2002.

@pondy I had a Mk 2 Soul and suffered one of the very few breakages that Cy at Cotic encoutered; he replaced it with a BFe but it didn't have the same smooth, springy ride. Classed hardtails.

Proper mountain biking hurts too much these days so my riding is more genteel, from the door 'gravel' type rides. Bought a Specialized Sequoia four years ago and up until a few weeks ago was largely the only bike I've ridden. As in incentive to get myself out more this year I 'treated' myself to some 650b wheels for it and it has made it more capable on techie stuff and I can run even lower tyre pressures.

View attachment 233822


However, a month ago I fancied something different and 'treated' myself to a Trek Pro Caliber 6; think I bought the last one in my size for sale in the Milky Way. Never had a proper 'racey' hardtail before and I've been riding it loads...

View attachment 233823

I've a sweet spot for cotics, I spent alot of years on a Mk1 soul, even had v brake bosses on the back. Also a Mk1 hemlock which had a later rear end which, well didn't snap in half. Then moved onto my whytes, found this of my first t130, this one got warranty replacement after a month as frame was out of alignment and kept eating shocks, my 2019 is an absolute weapon but having owned it about 14 months, yeatersay was the first ride where I had managed to fettle it enough so it didn't have any annoying clicks or creaks!

There is a member on here who was helping cy to produce the original 26er rocket in the UK

 

[Ashley Burton]

@pondy Would quite like to try a Cotic, Have rode a few other steel bikes, Mainly full suspension & I wasn't that impressed

 

[Munkul]

I was out for the first time in ages, on Friday our local trail centre is open like normal and not overly busy, which is great!

Took the Marley, been a long time since I rode a trail on a hardtail, the clue is in the name, still a load of fun though.
Then went again yesterday with the Cube, much easier to stay on and a queer bit faster

My two bikes:
Cube Stereo 160 HPA Race 2016 full sus - last of the good spec ones before they went to cheaper suspension options (IMHO)
Ragley Marley hardtail, built up from a bare frame a couple of years ago with a Pike 150mm fork and old Hope 4 pot brakes

I would like to upgrade the Cube though, the frame design is a bit old hat and I demoed a 2019 Orbea Occam last year which felt amazing.

 

[Munkul]

What do you guys think about eBikes?

Great if you're ok about being fat.

Seriously. They are so easy to ride around a trail that you don't have to be fit at all to enjoy it.

I'm not ok about being fat, MTB is one of the few forms of strenuous excercise which I actually enjoy, and I find it way too easy to put on weight as it is, so they're not for me.
I find that as long as I do a bit of excercise biking over winter, even just 30 mins a week, then the first time I go to a trail in the summer it's not an absolute killer, lol

 

[Ashley Burton]

@Munkul Come rain or shine I'm out on mine regularly

Can't beat winter riding when its sloppy & I'm not a fan of dusty summer trails

 

[Tangledfeet]

I've a sweet spot for cotics, I spent alot of years on a Mk1 soul, even had v brake bosses on the back. Also a Mk1 hemlock which had a later rear end which, well didn't snap in half. Then moved onto my whytes, found this of my first t130, this one got warranty replacement after a month as frame was out of alignment and kept eating shocks, my 2019 is an absolute weapon but having owned it about 14 months, yeatersay was the first ride where I had managed to fettle it enough so it didn't have any annoying clicks or creaks!

There is a member on here who was helping cy to produce the original 26er rocket in the UK View attachment 233965 View attachment 233966 View attachment 233967

The Mk1 and Mk2 Souls were special, eh. IIRC The Mk3 had to pass the CEN testing and became burlier as a result so lost that zing the former two had.

I'ver never had a Whyte but I did have a Marin that was largely identical to the earlier Whyte bikes... now seems as good a time as any to try and recall all the MTB's I've had!

1993 Orange Clockwork; kept that in various guises, all rigid, incl. SS, until 2010 or so
2003 Kona Calderas, sold on for the Marin
2004 Marin Wolf Ridge... a bike so tall and gangly that it was like a giraffe... rode a friend's Mk1 Soul and was smitten, so couldn't wait to get shot if it for
2005 Cotic Soul Mk2 with Pace RC35 Carbon forks - loved that bike! Alas, it failed in spectacular fashion in January 2007 and I got one of the very first BFe's as a replacement
2007 Dialled Bikes Prince Albert as an interim measure as I was without a bike for a few months until the BFe's arrived in the UK
2008 Titus Motolite - you wouldn't believe how many of and how small the multitide of bearings were...
2009 Rock Lobster TIG Team SL - superlight alloy bike and had almost the same zing as the Mk2 Soul
2010 Circa 2010 anyway... another Cotic Soul for a while but didn't have that magic
2012 Gasventinove Stambek; an Italian 29er but when it arrived the disk mount had been welded on at an angle and I got a refund
2012 Giant Trance - very impressed with the Maestro suspension especially for climbing
2012 Salsa Mukluk fat bike - still have it
2013 Salsa Mariachi
2013 On-One Lurcher
2014 Haibike Noon RX - a carbon CX bike; I'd had a Giant TCX on order for months at the LBS but as it got delayed so much they sold me this at trade price. Carbon, Ultegra disc and ultralight but too small for me and had an odd 130mm rear hub width so stronger wheels (I was over the weight limit...) would've been hidiously expensive and niche so sold it on for what I paid for it
2015 Merida 120 FS 27.5" - still have it. Got it an open day at a bike shop for a bargain price, got a bonus Merida team softshell jacket too!
2016 Specialized Sequoia - still have it, bought on cyclescheme
2020 Trek Pro Caliber 6

Had a Giant road bike in 2005 but never got road riding at the time so soon sold it on. Did have a few road bikes in from 2015 until a few years ago; a carbon Scott then a Ritchey Pro Logic.

That took longer than I thought to compile! Have a feeling there's a bike I'm missing somewhere, somewhen...

 

[Munkul]

@Munkul Come rain or shine I'm out on mine regularly

Can't beat winter riding when its sloppy & I'm not a fan of dusty summer trails

I used to go out in winter but then got lazy... lol. I don't have time through the day, and night riding in the cold and dark gets old pretty quick for me. I'm definitely a fair weather biker.

Also our Lakes limestone trails are very slippy when wet! which is most of the time haha

 

[armalites]

I did watch a video with Sam pilgrim and he towed a lad up a hill on his DH ebike. For that reason it seemed good but I actually enjoy the hills

My youngest watches Sam Pilgrim, he is amazing. I don't think I've ever seen anyone who is so at one with any bike. At the begining of the lock down I saw a video where he was popping backflips on a pallet ramp on his driveway.

 

[Ashley Burton]

@armalites Has he been watching Brendan Fairclough also?

 

[Maker]

The Mk1 and Mk2 Souls were special, eh. IIRC The Mk3 had to pass the CEN testing and became burlier as a result so lost that zing the former two had.

I'ver never had a Whyte but I did have a Marin that was largely identical to the earlier Whyte bikes... now seems as good a time as any to try and recall all the MTB's I've had!

1993 Orange Clockwork; kept that in various guises, all rigid, incl. SS, until 2010 or so
2003 Kona Calderas, sold on for the Marin
2004 Marin Wolf Ridge... a bike so tall and gangly that it was like a giraffe... rode a friend's Mk1 Soul and was smitten, so couldn't wait to get shot if it for
2005 Cotic Soul Mk2 with Pace RC35 Carbon forks - loved that bike! Alas, it failed in spectacular fashion in January 2007 and I got one of the very first BFe's as a replacement
2007 Dialled Bikes Prince Albert as an interim measure as I was without a bike for a few months until the BFe's arrived in the UK
2008 Titus Motolite - you wouldn't believe how many of and how small the multitide of bearings were...
2009 Rock Lobster TIG Team SL - superlight alloy bike and had almost the same zing as the Mk2 Soul
2010 Circa 2010 anyway... another Cotic Soul for a while but didn't have that magic
2012 Gasventinove Stambek; an Italian 29er but when it arrived the disk mount had been welded on at an angle and I got a refund
2012 Giant Trance - very impressed with the Maestro suspension especially for climbing
2012 Salsa Mukluk fat bike - still have it
2013 Salsa Mariachi
2013 On-One Lurcher
2014 Haibike Noon RX - a carbon CX bike; I'd had a Giant TCX on order for months at the LBS but as it got delayed so much they sold me this at trade price. Carbon, Ultegra disc and ultralight but too small for me and had an odd 130mm rear hub width so stronger wheels (I was over the weight limit...) would've been hidiously expensive and niche so sold it on for what I paid for it
2015 Merida 120 FS 27.5" - still have it. Got it an open day at a bike shop for a bargain price, got a bonus Merida team softshell jacket too!
2016 Specialized Sequoia - still have it, bought on cyclescheme
2020 Trek Pro Caliber 6

Had a Giant road bike in 2005 but never got road riding at the time so soon sold it on. Did have a few road bikes in from 2015 until a few years ago; a carbon Scott then a Ritchey Pro Logic.

That took longer than I thought to compile! Have a feeling there's a bike I'm missing somewhere, somewhen...

Impressive, I don't think I've quite had that many yet, but I've also not been alive as long as that.

• Around 2012 ish I got an Apollo BMX, don't know much about it but it was heavy, got bored of that pretty quickly.
• Voodoo Shango, 26" jump bike, rode that all the time until it got nicked from a skatepark.
• DMR drone (I think, maybe a Reptoid), 24" jump bike, that was even more fun than the Voodoo but it kept snapping chains as the sprocket was very worn and I couldn't replace it because the crank has rusted solid. Somehow sold it for not far off what I paid and put that towards a
• 20" trials bike, I think the frame might be a Zoo or a Knox, all custom components. It weighs next to nothing, I've still got it actually but never ride it because the slow gearing and no seat make it slower than walking.
• I borrowed a Giant road bike and a Boardman hybrid for a few months, quite quickly decided I wanted a road bike.
• 2016 I think, I got a 29" Carrera MTB, honestly don't know why and instantly regretted it because it wasn't the road bike I'd been lusting after. The derailleur hanger snapped (How convenient) and I managed to return it as "faulty" and got...
• Carrera Virtuoso road bike, still have this one, it's done thousands of miles including many where I wished it was a cyclocross.
• I found a Felt BMX frame in the back of the shed, I think it was my cousin's, he clearly didn't want it. Quite a nice frame so I built that up, painted it and basically never ride it, because who wants a BMX.
• 2018 I got a Vitus Sentier, 27.5" hardtail because the Carrera wasn't really up to peak district riding. I loved that thing, best bike I've ever owned but some pond scum liked the look of it too so I don't have it any more.
• 2019 I got the Scott Genius
• 2020 The Dirty Disco. I said a hardtail would be next but I wouldn't mind a TT bike actually, probably end up with both.

I'm pretty sure I'm missing a couple too, at some point I acquired a Haro BMX and I'm really not sure where from (Or why ).