Mountain Biking general thread

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JonMad
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by JonMad »

Possible hijack and maybe more hybrid rather than MB-specific. Thoughts on e-bike conversion kits? This one gets some seemingly independent, decent reviews and has 50% off at launch but it's still getting on for £500 delivered. Anyone been tempted?
https://www.swytchbike.com

I'm considering it for my Specialised Sirrus Sport that I've owned since 2009. I ride it occasionally but think that having an e-bike would just get me out more on it, going further, faster etc. (yeah, ok, I'm a bit lazy). However, it has thin tyres so no good off road (though maybe those could be changed) and a few friends nearby do a fair bit of cycling on the tracks around Caesar's Camp (Rushmoor), and it'd be good to join them.

So, an an alternative to that plan and not wanting to spend a fortune, I spotted this Evans e-hybrid that would be about £700 after the Cycle to Work scheme discount, meaning all the tech is 12 years newer
https://www.evanscycles.com/pinnacle-me ... e-EV368774
Chunky tyres and 21kg but I assume the motor offsets all that?

It looks to be ok for some light off-roading - canal tow paths, fire tracks and the like. Would that be sufficient or do you need front suspension at least?
Maybe that's a better bet than getting a kit and fitting it to my existing bike.
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Jobbo
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Jobbo »

KiwiDave wrote: Thu Jul 30, 2020 10:26 am the Vados are overpriced; relatively speaking same components on both bikes and the Vado costs more
It's the Vado SL which I'm looking at, which has only just been launched - it's quite different to the normal city-style Vado, lighter and looks far more like a flat-bar road hybrid: https://www.specialized.com/gb/en/turbo-vado-sl - it's the one without racks and mudguards I'd be buying:
Image

Thanks very much for the input both of you. I am fairly keen to get a decently integrated motor, anyway, hence the particular interest in Specialized's range. I imagine it's far harder to remove the limiter than with others - Gwaredd, they will definitely come with a 16mph cut-off in the UK.

Dave, are you able to make any direct comparison between the FRS and the HT Levos? There's no reason for me to buy a FRS one; far more money for something I don't need for my use.

Jon, I have considered the conversion kits - there's a rabbit hole to fall down there! A lot of them, are hub motor which is generally cheaper but not as effective. I'm also not keen on having a twist-grip throttle like a motorbike; just giving a natural boost when you pedal is what I'm after.
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KiwiDave
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by KiwiDave »

Jobbo wrote: Thu Jul 30, 2020 12:06 pm It's the Vado SL which I'm looking at, which has only just been launched - it's quite different to the normal city-style Vado, lighter and looks far more like a flat-bar road hybrid: https://www.specialized.com/gb/en/turbo-vado-sl - it's the one without racks and mudguards I'd be buying:
Image

Thanks very much for the input both of you. I am fairly keen to get a decently integrated motor, anyway, hence the particular interest in Specialized's range. I imagine it's far harder to remove the limiter than with others - Gwaredd, they will definitely come with a 16mph cut-off in the UK.

Dave, are you able to make any direct comparison between the FRS and the HT Levos? There's no reason for me to buy a FRS one; far more money for something I don't need for my use.

Jon, I have considered the conversion kits - there's a rabbit hole to fall down there! A lot of them, are hub motor which is generally cheaper but not as effective. I'm also not keen on having a twist-grip throttle like a motorbike; just giving a natural boost when you pedal is what I'm after.
Ah my apologies Simon I missed that bit.

I honestly have zero experience of the Vado SL, however I have to say the Levo SL has really intrigued me purely because despite less assist I can see the weight loss would make it the same if not more bike on the trails - I genuinely think they're onto something there. So I wouldn't write an SL version of anything off without trying them extensively.

As for HT to FSR Levos - the Mrs' HT is a 2018 bike, bought right at the end of the model year. The '19 came along and it was obvious they'd realised most serious MTB riders weren't buying the HT and so had dumbed the bike down a lot. Rach's HT still has a much more ooomphy motor and assist and is actually a bit of an animal. She's unfortunately a lot shorter than me so the bike doesn't really fit me but when doing some compromised hooning it's a great piece of kit. Again the majority of it comes down to components fitted, but the thing I'd be researching on an HT Levo is the specs of the motor, battery and assist and how that's changed from MY18, 19, 20 and I guess 21? The FSR, frankly the chassis is on its third year now and it's still the best EMTB there is - it just fucking slays. My one is the cheapest MY19, the brakes are average and the headset chatters too much with my 6ft 4ins 110kg onboard so it's not perfect but it's pretty close. Every other EMTB I get on is just a let down - if you're after a proper, genuinely sorted ebike for off road, they just can't be beaten.

If you're after an occasional trail ride with a little jump every now and then, go HT and figure out which suits you more, the Vado SL or Levo HT.

Also, whilst not having heaps of experience, the idea of a retrofitted ebike conversion fills me with horrors. All ebikes are OK at best until the thing is designed as one with the battery. I can't see how that can be any different with a bolt on kit. But maybe OK or a bit 'meh' is enough when it doesn't cost much?
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Jobbo
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Jobbo »

Having fallen down the rabbit hole, I’m now thinking an HT like the Levo is more what I want than the VADO SL. Except that, as you say, the actual Levo HT is dumbed down and therefore not great value. The Cube Acid and Reaction are tempting but at the moment all the 2021 bikes are soon to come in, nobody has stock of anything and the MSRPs are all going up before they reach stores. So who knows what might be available and when. I’ll sit on it for a bit; the cut-out speed may even rise before I buy.
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JonMad
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by JonMad »

KiwiDave wrote: Fri Jul 31, 2020 7:50 am

Also, whilst not having heaps of experience, the idea of a retrofitted ebike conversion fills me with horrors. All ebikes are OK at best until the thing is designed as one with the battery. I can't see how that can be any different with a bolt on kit. But maybe OK or a bit 'meh' is enough when it doesn't cost much?
Thanks Dave. I'm thinking it might be a good excuse to replace my 12 year old bike with a new ready-integrated e hybrid. Certainly that gives lots of scope for investigating where to put my money.
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Carlos
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Carlos »

I've got a 2019 Giant E-Fathom Pro hardtail which has assistance levels of Power (360% default), Sport (300% default), Active (250% default), Basic (175% default), Eco (100% default) and i predominantly(95%+) leave it in Eco and occasionally use the other modes if climbing something very steep. Its a heavy bike with big 2.6" knobbly tyres so i suspect the Vado which is much lighter (25%+less) and on faster rolling tyres would be a pleasure to ride and help get you up anything even with only 180% assistance.

I'm no bike snob but the Levo HT is loaded with budget kit, a coil sprung fork and entry level groupset is a bit poor on a £2,500 bike.

When i bought last year the Orbea and Giant hardtails looked better value than the newer Specialized equivalents.
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Jobbo
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Jobbo »

I’m now thinking I’ll enjoy riding an e-MTB up the Malverns and Bredon Hill, which I used to do on a steel human-powered bike when I was younger and fitter, so I’ve definitely decided against the Vado SL.

Orbea bikes all look absolutely gorgeous. Currently no details of 2021 bikes and 2020 all sold out, so they’re a strong contender and another reason to wait.
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Carlos
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Carlos »

The Orbea would have been my first choice but the 2019 bikes were scarce come September last year and I'm an odd shape so really needed to sit on one at a minimum.
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Carlos »

The motor makes them so usable even on tarmac, I've never thought the weight and chunky tyres were a pain.
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Carlos
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Carlos »

The motor makes them so usable even on tarmac, I've never thought the weight and chunky tyres were a pain.
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KiwiDave
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by KiwiDave »

Adding info, I've no idea what they cost in the UK but any of the Trek EMTBs aren't bad as an alternative. I've ridden full sus and HT of those and they're not bad tbh, motor is noisier and but more 'lungy' but they're decent bikes. Here in NZ it's the default option if you're not stumping for a Specialized and they're waaaaaay better than the Giants.

I genuinely haven't seen an Orbea here so couldn't comment at all.
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Gavin
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Gavin »

Well my Cube is going in for a check of gear slippage. They measured the cassette when they changed the chain which I broke so worst case scenario it is new bike time! :D Assuming I can actually get one. The Trek 5 which my daughter uses is having it's first service too, must get round to swapping the stock pedals for the DMR resins I got her though.

I do like an Orbea, there is a local dealer a few miles away and they are quite popular but not cheap!
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

Rich B wrote: Thu Jul 23, 2020 7:59 pm
Carlos wrote: Thu Jul 23, 2020 2:03 pm
Rich B wrote: Thu Jul 23, 2020 1:05 pm I may have picked the wrong time to sell my spare bike after all...!

I’ve just sent my forks and rear shock from my Capra to be serviced and I got a call to quickly chat about what I want done with the rear shock.

I then asked about the forks, which the guys sounded puzzled on, turns out that my forks (which were sent in the same box as the shock) didn’t arrive with them! They are trying to get to the bottom of it (and assured me that I would not be left forkless!) but it would appear that someone at UPS has been a little naughty....!
Bummer.

Have you still got the old hardtail with the crazy long travel fork ?
yeah, It has Sam’s bike seat on it though! but I’ve not got any rides for the next week anyway. One of my mates got a new Pace hardtail last week and we had a go on it at Rogate. Taking it down a smaller jump run it just confirmed that I don’t know how to hardtail anymore!

Back to my forks, they organised the courier so it’s really on them and they were assuring me that regardless I would not be left without mine or equivalent replacements, which is pretty good as they are not cheap (a new pair is the best part of a grand).
Finally got my forks today, mine have gone for good so they came up with a few options, I ended up upgrading to a set of 2021 Lyrik Ultimates instead for a very reasonable price.

I put them on, and in standard "new mountain bike parts" style they didn't fit! Nothing too bad but i needed Boost adapters for my front wheel and a different brake adapter, only about a tenner of bits, but still a bit annoying - thankfully amazon and mates spare bits boxes should have it back together in 24hours or so. 🤞🏻
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Gavin
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Gavin »

Hopefully they will work for you. I suspect your forks are worth about the same as the 3 MTBs in my shed! :D

Got our for 15 miles yesterday, mostly trails rather than DH nutter stuff with some road as I chummed my wife running.

I managed to get over a few obstacles feet up for the first time along the Tweed path and tried Glentress for the first time last weekend. Had wife and kids so just bombed round and round the green loop which was fun but need to go back and try blue and red.
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

I took on another project this week, my missus has been talking about wanting to go out riding with me and Sam. She's not the most confident rider but had a massive confidence boost riding my mates old full sus years ago. I get what she means, I find hardtails to be a bit harsh.

So on Monday I bought a very unloved 2016 Stumpjumper FSR and started ordering bearings (and tools - yay!).

I've done the headset bearings, front and rear wheel hub bearings, stripped/cleaned the worlds oiliest drivetrain, changed the nasty gold bars and long stem for a shorter black set I had, saddle for a women's one she had and basically tweaked everything.

I need to touch up some bad paintwork next, but so far it's looking pretty good and is working beautifully. I'd not done hubs before either, so that was a useful skill for me to learn.

Image

Image
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mik
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by mik »

Nice 😎
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

I found a great new tool in the process too, i needed to get the wheel bearings out but couldn't get anything in behind them to knock them out.

Image

I bought this set which expands behind the bearing and enables you to knock them out, but just as usefully it has very nicely machined big threads and washers and actually worked really well as a press to get the new bearings back in. I tried using threaded rod, but it was way more fiddly - these made life way simpler.
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by dinny_g »

Not quite a mountain bike but mini-dinny asked for a BMX for going back to school. He just want's a bike and wasn't that interested in the specifics. I know he'll look after it and I wanted to get something that's going to last so a GT Air arrived yesterday - I'm going to build it at lunch. I'm more excited than I should be...

And it got me thinking, how much trouble would I be in if I order this... and would it be worth it?

Image

Fulfil a childhood dream...
JLv3.0 wrote: Thu Jun 21, 2018 4:26 pm I say this rarely Dave, but listen to Dinny because he's right.
Rich B wrote: Thu Jun 02, 2022 1:57 pm but Dinny was right…
drcarlos
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by drcarlos »

Rich B wrote: Thu Aug 27, 2020 10:49 pm I took on another project this week, my missus has been talking about wanting to go out riding with me and Sam. She's not the most confident rider but had a massive confidence boost riding my mates old full sus years ago. I get what she means, I find hardtails to be a bit harsh.

So on Monday I bought a very unloved 2016 Stumpjumper FSR and started ordering bearings (and tools - yay!).

I've done the headset bearings, front and rear wheel hub bearings, stripped/cleaned the worlds oiliest drivetrain, changed the nasty gold bars and long stem for a shorter black set I had, saddle for a women's one she had and basically tweaked everything.

I need to touch up some bad paintwork next, but so far it's looking pretty good and is working beautifully. I'd not done hubs before either, so that was a useful skill for me to learn.

Image

Image
Going to suggest you 1x convert that too. A cassette and goat link with a snail chainring will mean it’s lighter and also for a new bike significantly less complex for her to think about when selecting gears. Plus it won’t cost much either.
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Rich B
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Re: Mountain Biking general thread

Post by Rich B »

drcarlos wrote: Fri Aug 28, 2020 12:15 pm
Rich B wrote: Thu Aug 27, 2020 10:49 pm I took on another project this week, my missus has been talking about wanting to go out riding with me and Sam. She's not the most confident rider but had a massive confidence boost riding my mates old full sus years ago. I get what she means, I find hardtails to be a bit harsh.

So on Monday I bought a very unloved 2016 Stumpjumper FSR and started ordering bearings (and tools - yay!).

I've done the headset bearings, front and rear wheel hub bearings, stripped/cleaned the worlds oiliest drivetrain, changed the nasty gold bars and long stem for a shorter black set I had, saddle for a women's one she had and basically tweaked everything.

I need to touch up some bad paintwork next, but so far it's looking pretty good and is working beautifully. I'd not done hubs before either, so that was a useful skill for me to learn.

Image

Image
Going to suggest you 1x convert that too. A cassette and goat link with a snail chainring will mean it’s lighter and also for a new bike significantly less complex for her to think about when selecting gears. Plus it won’t cost much either.
it would definitely make sense - I'll stop spending on it for a while first to see if she actually rides it! 😂
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