Spec For New Bike - Any Comments?

[psycholist]

Since it's nearly christmas and I've been riding the same bike for 2 years, I've been putting a spec together for a dual disk stock bike off the very patient folks at Tartybikes . Firstly I'm going dual disk - If you think it's wet and nasty in the UK, the west coast of Ireland is at a whole other level, so rather than deal with Maguras (And not being able to roll through wet grass without seeing a noticeable drop in brake performance) I'm going to try an all disk bike. Before anyone says Maguras just need to be set up right, I've tried rock greens on a smooth rim (Lethal as soon as it gets damp), Various pads from Disco and Superstar (Which are good for the money) on grinds from harsh to barely rough, Heatsink yellows on CNC backings and a harsh grind as well as various duller grades as well as TNN pads on similar grinds. The Heatsinks are probably the best with the TNN's a very close second, but they still slip a lot when its damp out and the wear rate on them is high enough that I usually have to tweak the TPA once or twice on any given spin. Also the noise is annoying and when I head out to play on my bike in built up areas at 2am (It happens) I'd rather not be a nuisance to the people trying to sleep. I use a 4 bolt booster as well, and it really only improved the lever feel, not the stopping and holding power.

I've tried to keep everything black if at all possible for 'stealth' as for the first time since I first fitted trials specific brake pads that my bike won't be irritatingly loud when I use the back brake .

Frame: GU +35mm frame (Blue) - Current frame is an Echo Control, so this should ride similarly.

Headset: Hope headset (Black)

Fork: Onza Tuf Guy (Black)

Front Wheel:

Echo TR disk front hub (Black)

Trialtech single walled rim front (Black)

Double butted spokes laced 3X (Black)

Viz Rim tape (Black)

Standard tube - Maxxis Welterweight (Unboxed)

Single ply Maxxis Minion Supertacky 2.35" tyre (Rear Tread) - I may swap this with a Maxxis Advantage 2.1" I have already as I'm running one on the current bike and it works well and is lighter and keep the Minion for the back of my hardtail.

Rear Wheel:

Echo Fixed Disk '08 rear hub with built in tensioner and 15T sprocket (Blue)

Echo Sprung tensioner (Silver)

Echo urban double wall rim rear (Black)

Double butted spokes laced 3X (Black)

Viz Rim tape (Black)

Maxxis DH tube

Single ply Maxxis High Roller Supertacky 2.5" tyre

Drivetrain/Cranks:

KMC Kool chain 1/8"

Trialtech Sport Forged 175mm ISIS cranks (Black)

Neon Light Bashring (Black)

White Industries ENO 18T Freewheel

Try-All ISIS BB

Wellgo Magnesium pedals (Silver)

Controls:

Trialtech forged stem (Black)

Trialtech Sport Riser Bar (Black)

Trialtech foam grips (Black)

M:Part Grip Stops (Black) fitted between the brakes and the grips

Echo SL Bar End Plugs (Black)

Rear Brake: Hope 200mm Mono Trial Rear disk (LH lever)

Front Brake: Magura Louise 203mm Front (RH lever)

So - does anyone see where I could do better on weight (The front fork is an obvious candidate, the trialtech one is the only Aluminium fork I'd trust, but it's 3 times the money, so hard to justify) without compromising on strength (I weigh about 90kg) or performance? I'm hoping this bike is one where the main maintenance work is replacing tyres rather than faffing with brakes and grinding rims ...

Edited December 2, 2009 by psycholist

[Alex Dark]

erm....ditch the forks for sure, and id say get an Echo TR or Tensile FFW. Not a fan of the Try-all BB's so maybe an fsa? I'd go contiental rear tyre ( rain king / dk ) and a try-all front tyre

Apart from that...all good i reckon

[Duncy H]

Seems likea good build apart from the forks The trialtechs real are worth it and seen as you are buying a full build you may as well go for it.

Also would be interesting to hear your reasoning for different disc brakes?

[psycholist]

The Hope was chosen as it's the only back disk brake that seems to be consistently regarded as up to the job of stoppping a stock bike's back wheel. The front brake is because I run one already and it's perfect for the front where I don't want very aggressive locking all the time. If I thought a Louise was up to use on the back (Considering my weight) I'd have gone for that instead to be honest, partially because all my other brakes are mineral oil and partially because there are loads of threads on here about Hopes shitting their seals, but almost none about similar problems any other brand of disk.

I run a Tuf Guy on my current bike and it's lasted 3 times the length of the Echo fork it replaced (Snapped through both legs after 6 months) so far with no sign of problems yet. From my past experience with aluminium bike parts they have a nasty habit of failing very suddenly and very completely while with steel you see rust from cracks and pretty much always creak allowing a fault to be spotted much earlier. In final failure steel tends to bend rather than breaking too, giving a much safer failure mode too.

I've tried the Tri-all tyres (They shipped on Koxx Acidrops) and they skated off a few of the surfaces I was trying them on as soon as they got wet, so wouldn't get more of them. I have a Conti Rubber Queen on the back of the current bike and its excellent except for the side walls slitting a little too easily for my peace of mind (Current tyre has a few slits). Definitely can't fault the traction or bounciness though. The 2.4" size rubbed the last frame until I cut the side blocks off and the centre ones still rubbed the inside of the brake booster, and the new frame tyre clearance will be similar I'd guess, only difference being this one will be painted. I'm going back to Maxxis tyres because I'm hoping the single wall version will give similar bounce to the conti but with less roll on sideslopes. The Der Kaiser is tempting for the back as it's supposed to have a better sidewall.

I was thinking of changing the freewheel, but having seen Echo's last efforts at freehubs I'll wait for a while to see if they last before buying. The ENO is consistently highly rated and a very critical part of the drivetrain, though the price is a tad ridiculous at the moment.

For BB's I'm happy enough the axle won't snap. Beyond that I got the lightest that was reasonable money - these don't really get the mileage to test the bearings and half of Tarty is running them too, which is hopefully encouraging.

[Jan Tore]

I'm running the Maxxis DH tube with a Rain King myself. As for weight, you sure could save some hundreds there, going for a lighter tube/tyre.

Again, if you're like me, don't like to pinch, you're all good. It can't be pinch holed.