Gear Shots: January 2024

Esker The Approach Insole

By: Trevor Hansen

Andrew Major reviewed Esker The Approach insoles a couple of years ago. These natural plastic-free insoles are manufactured in Canada from Canadian wool, linen and natural rubber. I cut the insoles to fit my size 43 feet, installed them in my Specialized 2FO DH Flat shoes and rode them through snow, cold muddy puddles and all November and December Shore rides had to offer. After about 15 rides I can conclude that my feet are warmer with the Eskers, I do not notice the wet insoles as much as I do with the Specialized 2FO insoles and that my arch is happier on long rides than it is with the stock Spesh insoles.

Esker's design is based on the natural wool wicking moisture away; this then reduces odorous bacteria. In the name of science I slammed my nose up in them. So far after all the aforementioned rides my insole testers do not stink.

The question for riders is wouldja? Wouldja pay 70 bucks for an insole? High performance insoles are usually priced in 40 to 60 dollar range but they do not offer the wool benefits that the Eskers provide. Eskers give buyers free shipping and a 30 day satisfaction guarantee.Esker The Approach Insole 70 CAD / 54 USD

Race Face Chester Grips

By: Trevor Hansen

I am super picky about my grips. They need to have a narrow diameter of 30mm or 31mm, lock on is a must, and the rubber should be such that vibrations are damped so wrist and elbow pain is lessened. The Chester grip does all 3 of these musts (with a slight box cutter modification).

RaceFace claims that "a perforated core design allows more 20A Durometer rubber to sit between your hands and the bar. Concentrated thickness under the palm increases ride comfort and reduces fatigue." I am not sure about the perforated core design providing more rubber between my hands and bar (as RaceFace claims). What I do know is that the soft rubber, and the raised ridges give me a comfortable and confidence inspiring grip.

I measure the 31mm tester grips at ???mm including the recessed finger pad. I found the diameter worked well for the first few rides but I noticed that when my gloves and grips became wet I felt that the grips were just a bit too large for my paws...or more that I did not feel confident barrelling down rough DH trails; it felt like I might lose my grip. To alleviate this I sliced the raised ridges that were so meticulously designed and fabricated. The grips have worked perfectly since. Most grips I have used (OneUp, Specialized, Chromag,ODI) are 30 mm in diameter. If the Chesters were 30mm they would be great for my finger length.

My colleague, Matt Giuliani, is an early adopter of the N+1 bike quiver rule and a purveyor of all things bike. I gave him a set of 34mm Chesters to try on a couple of his bikes. He had this to say about them:

"They are squishy, soft, and I want them in my hands all the time; they make my face happy and my ride more flowy. I love the 34mm thickness for my big hands. They give a much more visceral sensation compared to my usual 30/31 mm grip size. The welcome levels of fatigue relief on my wrists and forearms were borderline sensual."

I did not try the grips without gloves other than rolling around the parking lot as it has been too cold for bare fingers since I got the grips. RF designed angled mushroom ribs on the grips which they say, "wick moisture away for glove-free grip goodness." I will have to check that out this summer.

The grips are priced well at 32 bucks. If you are comfortable with 31 mm diameter or the 34 mm I would recommend a pair of the Chesters.

Race Face Chester Grips 32 CAD / 27 USD

ODI SLX 160mm SOFT Push-On Grips

By - Andrew Major

I always like to get my bicycles a little something for Christmas to remind them that they're special. And, since the Banshee Enigma is living with me, and wearing all my Waltworks V2's parts, well I figured I'd treat it to something fresh. Most years I just go with generic consumables - a chain, chainring, tires, brake pads - but this year I came across the perfect gift.

At 160mm the ODI Soft X-Longneck (SLX) grips are exactly the right length to stretch from my bar end to brake levers. It's like they were molded for me. The soft compound, 31mm thickness, and collapsing-flagella-feel remind me of my long-time go-to the Swayze. For comparison's sake, gripped on the trail, the all-rubber-no-plastic push-on grips do tend to feel narrower than lock-on grips for the same outer measurement.

Unrelated to performance, ODI sells these grips in some very interesting colours. For example, the Mint Green would look fetching on quite a few bikes I've ridden. I 'settled' for Iridescent Purple since it was in stock.

ODI is currently out of stock on most colours, but these are available at bike shops and a plethora of online stores as well.

ODI Longneck SLX push-on grips - 20 CAD | 14 USD

Specialized 34.9-30.9 Seat Post Shim

By - Andrew Major

It's long, it's precise, it's really quite nice. Yes, it's a seat post shim. But so often it's the little details that make or break a bike build and that's especially true when you're trying mix-and-match standards.

In my case, I wanted to jump up just a bit from the stock 150mm travel post on the Devinci Chainsaw, but I didn't have any 34.9 O.D. droppers kicking around. On the other hand, this super smooth 175mm Manitou Jack (BikeYoke Revive) 30.9 O.D. dropper post was ready to go.

Specialized makes this lovely 34.9 O.D. / 30.9 I.D. shim that's precise and easy to manipulate with a solid upper flange that has a knurled shape to help get everything aligned during installation. It's a lot less frustrating when it comes to micro-adjusting saddle height than other shims I've used. I also appreciate that it's available at my local Specialized dealer for when I need to finish a project right now.

Specialized Seat Post Shim - 25 CAD | 19 USD

Bookman Volume 1500 Light

This light is actually aimed at urban and road riders it seems, but with its claimed 1500 lumens and sturdy aluminum case, I thought I would give it a try. The form is compact enough to mount on a helmet but at 221g it may be too heavy for many riders. I used it with the bar mount which has a simple pipe clamp mechanism mounted with a 3mm hex bolt. Once the mount is attached, the device twists onto a Garmin mount. I was a little worried first because it doesn't seem to require much force to remove the light from the mount but it didn't detach riding once and it even stayed straight. In the box you'll also find an attachment to fit a GoPro mount for helmets or mounts integrated into stems. The unit attaches to the GoPro mount using the Garmin interface but in this case it has a firmer fit.

The highlight of this device is the hi-fi inspired knob, which Bookman calls the Power Wheel. That's also a hint about the inspiration for the Volume name. It's easy to use, even with winter gloves on, and the detentes (or haptics if you prefer) are easily felt. You can leave the power to the unit on and simply turn the knob counter-clockwise all the way for those moments when you'd rather not blast your riding buddies in the eyeballs. Unfortunately it doesn't go completely off with the knob, which would be a useful feature for those moments. Instead you'll likely need to remove heavy gloves and hit the recessed on off switch on top of the unit for 3 seconds.

An anomaly I discovered is that you can switch the unit off with the knob in any position but it won't turn it back on in the highest setting. The four indicator lights, which also show you how much power is off, will blink at you when this happens. Simply turn the knob back one or more clicks and it'll fire right up.

Another nice feature is the replaceable 21700 Li-Ion flat top battery with 4000 mAh capacity. These are similar to the 18650 Li-Ion batteries found in a Tesla but the 21700s are a little bigger. * You can find them on Amazon for about 25 CAD for a pair so you could easily have a spare in your pocket rather than carrying a spare light.

*Bookman uses 18650s in their smaller Volume 800 light.

Volume 1500 Features - (from Bookman)

• Brightness - 1500 Lumen
• Day Time Flash mode - Yes
• Battery (included) - Custom 21700 Li-Ion
• Battery capacity - 4000 mAh
• Runtime Steady From - 3 to 34h
• Fastening - Garmin compatible mount
• Charging - USB-C
• Water Resistane - Yes, IPX5
• Size - 119x40x42 mm (incl. dial and mount)
• Warranty - 2 years
• Lock Mode - Yes
• Chassis - Aluminium
• Weight - 221g (as tested)

Out on the trail, I found the Bookman pretty darned good. The elliptical light pattern effectively illuminated a wide area and details were easy to see. The colour is cool enough to easily show contrast in dirt and organic material and the illumination overall was really good. Bookman says the light will go for three hours at full beam. I haven't run it dry yet but that seems accurate to me based on the four indicator lights during rides of around two hours. I didn't notice any degradation in beam intensity towards the end either.

The price isn't too bad compared to lights designed specifically for MTB use and the sturdy design, good beam, mounting options and glove friendly knob make this a good cross-over product.

Bookman Volume 1500 - 167 USD