Readers’ Rides #8

Words Roy Symons

Date Jun 4, 2009

The resurgence of steel hardtails with big forks caught my interest last season and over the past year they have grown in popularity massively back home in the UK. Admittedly there is arguably less need for full suspension back in the UK than there is here but still the resurgence is happening here too with the likes of Chromag having a huge following.

I’ve been riding full suspension bikes since 2004 and for the last 2.5 years I rode a 2006 Specialized Enduro, which I loved. I thought I’d never sell it, especially not for a hardtail, but it just wasn’t doing it for me anymore and a change was needed. I figured it was time to see what all the fuss was about. A long travel steel hardtail frame was ordered from Dialled Bikes and parts swapped over from the Enduro.

Roy’s Dialled Bikes Alpine, 853 steel hardtail, ready for action.

A lot of you guys may not have heard of Dialled Bikes. They are a small brand designed in the UK and built in the Far East. As the cliché goes… designed by riders for riders! They’ve been receiving pretty much universal praise on the UK forums. The frame was tested by guides out in the Alps and Dirt Magazine used it for the Mega Avalanche, some pretty decent credentials right there.

The Alpine model frame is designed around a 130-160mm travel fork. It uses Reynolds 853 for the top and down tubes, Reynolds 520 for the seat tube and 4130 cro-moly for everything else. Head angle is relatively slack (68.5°) for stability whilst descending but seat angle is relatively steep (74°) to help keep the front end down when climbing. It has ISCG mounts for a chainguide and big tire clearance. Frame weight comes in at 5.65lbs for the 17″ seattube / 22″ effective toptube size I’m riding.

The non-drive side of the Alpine.

Most of the parts migrated across from the Enduro. A new seat post, collar and headset were all that was initially required but a chainguide and new wheels have also been added. As I was swapping everything over the urge to clean it all and weigh things took over and a spreadsheet started to take shape. It comes in just under 31lbs., a good weight which feels solid enough without feeling like a tank. There’s not really anywhere I’d like to go much lighter.

The wheels that came off the Enduro were past their best. My new wheelset is a slightly bling set of 2009 Mavic Deetraks purchased off the nsmb classifieds for an excellent price. The rims are wrapped in Maxxis 2.35″ ST High Rollers front and rear. I like these but thinking something bigger would be good.

The front end, Pike 426, DeeTraks, 2.35 ST High Rollers

The fork is my old faithful RockShox Pike 426, which has served me well since 2006. It’s perfectly adequate both in performance and for my type of riding but knowing the frame can take more, I’d really like to try it with a 160mm fork. I’m still looking for the perfect bargain but those 2008 Marzocchi 55s at Jenson are just too risky to contemplate.

Brakes are Avid Juicy 3s bought off eBay for a Cove Stiffee I used to have years ago, transferred to the Enduro and still holding up well. The rotors have been swapped for 203s front and rear. Too much some might say, but I’m a fan of having too much braking power. My hands rest on a pair of ODI Lock-on grips with Straitline bar end caps attached to a Sunline V-1 bar, and all attached to the fork with a Thomson X4 50mm stem.

I’ve dropped the drivetrain to 1×9. I figured if I can make it from Lougheed Highway up Sperling, Curtis and Burnaby Mountain in the middle ring on my commute home every day then I should be fine for most things, Mountain Highway was hard work though. Just have to power through anything tougher and my legs could use the strength training anyway.

There’s nothing to exciting with the drivetrain, though – a Shimano Hone crankset/BB with a Straitline bashgaurd, SRAM X7 shifter and X9 rear derailleur with full length cable outer and an XT cassette and a SRAM chain. A new addition is the Gamut chainguide, which is doing a reasonable job of keeping the chain on.

The rear end: Hone cranks, Gamut chainguide, SRAM X.9 derailleur and DMR V12 Mags

As far as other stuff goes, my arse rests on a Titanium SDG Bel-Air saddle attached to a 27.2 Chromag Minimalist post held in place with a Chromag brass seat collar. My feet rest on DMR V12 Mag pedals. Headset is an FSA Orbit MX.

SDG Bel Air Titanium, Chromag Minimalist post and clamp and that 853 sticker in the bottom right

Anyway, on to the important part: how does it ride? Well, firstly let me set out my credentials. I’m not a downhill/freeride god and much of the stuff here scares the shit out of me. I’m just a regular rider happiest when blasting down some sweet singletrack. I’m trying to adapt to this rocky, rooty gnarlfest you guys like to ride (not sure switching to a hardtail is the wisest way to do this). Anything, big enough where rider error would stop me being able to do my job and pay the rent is currently not in my repertoire.

My first ride was in the pissing rain, down Upper Mels, Poplar and Nicoles on Burnaby Mountain. I like these trails – pretty much all downhill, some little drops, corners, techy rooty bits and pretty much where my riding level is at. It was wet and slippy and my first ride in months so I wasn’t pushing much, but the bike was handling well, felt easier to sprint on the little uphill sections and I wasn’t noticing a huge disadvantage on the downhill stuff, on the small drops I noticed they felt less harsh than I was expecting. The legs took a bit of a beating that day though as you find yourself standing up a lot more without any suspension in the rear but it seems like my legs are getting used to this the more I ride it.

The author on Dead Moped on Burnaby Mountain.

Over the last month or so I’ve been riding a lot more, mostly on Burnaby Mountain but I have now ticked Pipeline on Fromme off the list, still having fun and trying to push myself to hit things faster. It obviously doesn’t let you hit things like you would on a full suspension bike but it still feels just as fast when you’re riding, even if it isn’t.

Much talk is made of the fabled ride of a steel hardtail and the springy ride. That was maybe true back in the day but these modern long travel hardtails are built to take a lot of punishment and therefore probably less springy. It’s never going to feel remotely like a full suspension bike so don’t expect it to and you won’t be disappointed. However, the faster you hit things the better it feels. I’m going to keep working on that.

The author finding a log to ride on Gear Jammer on Burnaby Mountain.