NSMB - 2014 – Enduro / Trail Bike Thread

the last time I rode with a friend who had just bought an expensive and hi-end 650b bike he spent the whole climb raving on-and-on about how much faster it rolled, how much better it climbed and how the 26'er was obsolete and how I was still living in the dark ages on my 26" Dixon.

He was too busy blowing the 650b trumpet on the climb up to notice that I was ahead of him and any time he took the lead and couldn't make a technical climb he was the only one to get off and push. When the climb turned to a long flowing descent full of gnar I got tired of waiting for his "faster rolling" 650b bike and left him far, far in the dust.

Drinking a couple beers on the tailgate after the ride I didn't hear him mention the merits of the 650b bike any more, only thing he mentioned was that his BB got hung up on a few rock slabs and the longer wheelbase wasn't good in the tight corners on that trail..and that I must have gotten much faster since we last went for a spin a couple months before when we were both still on 26er's :lol:

Guess there's a pro/con to just about everything but IMO as long as you're having fun on two wheels it's all good..

lulz, there are a few people i ride with who sometimes make me want to get a custom jersey:

I have friends who can kick my ass on any wheel size. The point is that most riders can benefit to some degree with a specific wheel size. I got this moving to 650B. Individual results will vary.

And yes, sometimes shut up and ride is the best answer.

the last time I rode with a friend who had just bought an expensive and hi-end 650b bike he spent the whole climb raving on-and-on about how much faster it rolled, how much better it climbed and how the 26'er was obsolete and how I was still living in the dark ages on my 26" Dixon.

He was too busy blowing the 650b trumpet on the climb up to notice that I was ahead of him and any time he took the lead and couldn't make a technical climb he was the only one to get off and push. When the climb turned to a long flowing descent full of gnar I got tired of waiting for his "faster rolling" 650b bike and left him far, far in the dust.

Drinking a couple beers on the tailgate after the ride I didn't hear him mention the merits of the 650b bike any more, only thing he mentioned was that his BB got hung up on a few rock slabs and the longer wheelbase wasn't good in the tight corners on that trail..and that I must have gotten much faster since we last went for a spin a couple months before when we were both still on 26er's :lol:

Guess there's a pro/con to just about everything but IMO as long as you're having fun on two wheels it's all good..

Marketing.

Meh.

I normally just shut up and ride. But the clock don't lie.

Then again as long as you are having fun it really doesn't matter.

After (barely) buying a house in Vancouver last year, my bike upgrade budget fell from not much to precisely $0. So when I came across a for sale/for trade ad on that other site, I immediately jumped on the opportunity to keep up with at least one recent trend of mountain bikes: longer top tube lengths.
The new-to-me 20.5" Slayer frame was traded for my 19". The extra 1" of TT and wheelbase length feels great combined with the familiar and still-short-for-today 16.875" chain stay length.
So even though this bike is not new, not 27.5, and nothing fancy, I though I'd share it anyway, since I recon it at least qualifies as a 'build' now.

30tooth N/W 1x9 with DIY top guide and short cage der. One plastic and one Alu. freebie DX pedals. Slightly bent, original RaceFace cranks, new BB
Fox RP23 and 36R with some love from SuspensionWerx
800mm Gravity Light bar on 50mm Syncros Stem (not surprised they discontinued that flexy piece of shit)
Formula RX brakes, 8" rotors (surprisingly reliable, but only powerful enough with the big rotors)
125mm Reverb that juuuust fits, slammed all the way. I was prepared to hack the seat tube when swapping frames, but thankfully we didn't have to go there.
Stans Flow EX rims on Hope rear, Syncros Front hubs.
Highroller II, 3C front 60A rear
I wrapped the drive side chainstay, lower seatstays and inside of the top guide (after these pics) with a peel and stick membrane we builders use at the lower corners of window openings when waterproofing them. I'm pretty sure it's similar the the 3M mastic tape that has been talked about on these boards previously. Sticky as hell on one side, smooth, flexible plastic coating on the other, and only about 1 or 2mm thick, this stuff is awesome for quieting a noisy clutchless drivetrain. Got it at Dunbar Lumber, IIRC. Stuck it to the inside of Wifey's front derailleur too, and was pleasantly surprised at its quieting effect there as well.

Nice work hammy, way to make it happen with zero budget. Respect

ooooooooooolookit that welding….what model year is it?

Thanks Boom!

It's a 2011. I traded away a 2011 Slayer 50… I was tired of the grey/green scheme anyway.

It's a 2011.

Ouch! Props to Billy Chang………..

Here's my bike. An XL Banshee Prime.
It took 6 months from getting the frame to finishing the build.
I don't know the weight. But it is the lightest pedal bike I've ever owned. It's even lighter than my Honzo.

The build:

Frame - 2013 Banshee Prime XL raw
Shock - CCDBA CS
Fork - 2014 Fox 34 Float FIT CTD
Stem - Chromag BZA 35 50mm
Bars - Chromag BZA 35 780mm carbon
Brakes - Avid X0 Trail 200mm
Shifter - SRAM X9
Grips - Chromag Squarewave
BB - Truvativ GXP
Cranks - SRAM X0 175mm
Chainring - Chromag X-Sync direct mount 28T
Pedals - Chromag Scarab
Seat Clamp - Chromag QR
Seat Post - Banshee 380mm
Saddle - Chromag Trailmaster LTD
RD - SRAM X0
Cassette - 10spd SRAM with OneUp 42T and 16T cogs
Rims - Derby HD carbon
Hubs - Front CHUB, Rear 150mm eThirteen
Tires - Front Schwalbe Hans Dampf, Rear Maxxis HR2

edit: not sure how to get my pics to show in the post.

Here you go… nice bike!

My do it all bike. I got it new in December. A few changes since then. Ive gone many places on this bike and have never felt undergunned, overgunned occasionally.

2013 Slash 8 19.5"
Chromag 35mm BZA Bar and Stem, Lynx DT saddle
RS Lyrik RC2DH lowered to 150mm
Light Bikes 26" carbon hookless rims, XT rear, DT320 front
Grid Purgatory/Butcher combo
Race Face 30T narrow/wide

I made a few changes to the Adhoc over the past while. Some of the new stuff includes a Joystick Analog 35mm diameter x 780mm carbon bar, Joystick 50mm x 35mm clamp, Mudguardz fender, One Up 40t cassette cog, and I just bought an X Fusion Vector HLR air with RCS Ti coil. I haven't ridden it yet but the driveway test feels fucking fantastic. I'll keep the air shock for races and stuff like that, so then I can beat on this one for the rest of the year.

The weight of the Vector HLR air shock is 1lb (sorry, imperial) and the Vector coil shock is 1lb 8oz. So the weight of my bike is now a hair over 31lbs.