NSMB - 2021 - Hardtail Thread

Posted by: kavurider

Posted by: RAHrider

No picture showed up. Are we talking 26" wheels?

I am trying this again, not sure why it isn't working.  

Not new for sure, but new to me. Resurrected Rocky Mountain Hammer steel frame, old Zocchi EXR Pro, Mavic wheelset. Set up SS with 32-19 gearing and a Pauls Melvin Tensioner.

I love this bike! It is funny to switch from my Yeti 165 or my Intense Tazer to this. It is remarkably more capable than it appears. But then again, I dig old bikes.

Yes, 26" wheels, 1.95 tires!  

It's been a while since I've ogled a 26" bike. Nice one. I just love the old school rocky mtn. If they would make a hammer 29er hard core hard tail, I would think it would do better than the norco torrent. And a made in Canada blizzard - drool.

I've long fantasized about building up a Rocky Hammer race in to a sick ultra pimped commuter bike. I love it.

Thanks all! I love steel hardtails.

The Marzocch is a bit of a boat anchor, but it works like all old Zocchis do.

Also this is the first time I have used a Pauls Melvin Tensioner and it is definitely bike jewelry. Works well too!

I have a Race Face crankset I am going to install so I can throw a 32T NW 104bcd ring on (still sometimes lose the chain in really rocky stuff).

Posted by: kavurider

Thanks all! I love steel hardtails.

The Marzocch is a bit of a boat anchor, but it works like all old Zocchis do.

Also this is the first time I have used a Pauls Melvin Tensioner and it is definitely bike jewelry. Works well too!

I have a Race Face crankset I am going to install so I can throw a 32T NW 104bcd ring on (still sometimes lose the chain in really rocky stuff).

You could take a few links out of the chain, it's pretty long for SS.

Posted by: velocipedestrian

Posted by: kavurider

Thanks all! I love steel hardtails.

The Marzocch is a bit of a boat anchor, but it works like all old Zocchis do.

Also this is the first time I have used a Pauls Melvin Tensioner and it is definitely bike jewelry. Works well too!

I have a Race Face crankset I am going to install so I can throw a 32T NW 104bcd ring on (still sometimes lose the chain in really rocky stuff).

You could take a few links out of the chain, it's pretty long for SS.

Agreed and since that photo I have! I was leaving it a bit long initially to dial in my gear combo.

Nice Rocky! I just rebuilt my red and yellow Hammer Race and sold it to a friend this summer. I did ride it quite often in 2015-2016, on the same trails as my regular bike. Still had a lot of fun and never thought that the ride was boring at all. Enjoy!

I've got ~230kms of trailing riding on the Sirius setup SS. I've settled on a 28T [oval] x 21T cog for gearing. It's a nice general purpose ratio that I don't mind cranking on flat/rolling terrain, but that I can turn over on most climbs. It also allows me to run the sliders in the shortest position I can fit a 29 x 2.6" DHRII and I love me a short CS. No plans on changing the ratio for the rest of the winter unless/until it snows. I've got a 28T x 24T option that may be needed for slogging through the white stuff. We'll see.

I'm really glad I made the swap to the Pipedream. Going from a good bike to great bike you can't wait to throw your leg over is amazing. I kept trying to love the old bike and it just didn't happen. The Sirius is a keeper for sure.

The SS experience has been good for my riding skills. I'm reading the trail better than ever and braking the least I've ever done. It'll be really interesting to see what happens when I get back on my FS bike come the dry season. The only downside to SS I can really point to is that it's not great when I am tired. I've had some back to back days of long rides/trail runs and riding SS on techy terrain without that top 25% leg power is so hard. Lots of sections I can roll through at full power with enough momentum end up as slow chuggy/mashfests. I just keep telling myself it's making me stronger.

I'm glad I finally tried SS trail riding. Since my urban assault bike is SS that's all I have been riding for a while now and it just feels natural to me.

I should also add the Tannus Tubeless insert in the rear wheel is pure GOLD. I liked it a lot back in Victoria, but now that I am living in Comox the trails are so much faster that the impacts on the rear wheel are impressive. I'd have a flat tire/damaged rim every ride without the insert. As it is I can feel the rear wheel getting worked hard and I do try and ride smoother lines/get the bike into the air, but it's just not possible to ride fast and protect the rear wheel fully. I was checking the tire/rim after each ride at first expecting trouble despite the insert, but I don't bother anymore. I think I'd be having 50% as much fun riding the HT without an insert as I'd be spending a lot attention on not flatting.

Posted by: RAHrider

Posted by: kavurider

Posted by: RAHrider

No picture showed up. Are we talking 26" wheels?

I am trying this again, not sure why it isn't working.  

Not new for sure, but new to me. Resurrected Rocky Mountain Hammer steel frame, old Zocchi EXR Pro, Mavic wheelset. Set up SS with 32-19 gearing and a Pauls Melvin Tensioner.

I love this bike! It is funny to switch from my Yeti 165 or my Intense Tazer to this. It is remarkably more capable than it appears. But then again, I dig old bikes.

Yes, 26" wheels, 1.95 tires!  

It's been a while since I've ogled a 26" bike. Nice one. I just love the old school rocky mtn. If they would make a hammer 29er hard core hard tail, I would think it would do better than the norco torrent. And a made in Canada blizzard - drool.

My very first good bike was a 1992 Rocky Mountain Stratos, and I still have the brochure from when I bought it.  Polished it like it was a diamond.  As ungussetted head tubes were not the norm this is where it gave out....

Vikb: interesting thoughts about the Tannus inserts.  On my new Tyaughton Ti I gave Cushcore a go on the back wheel and took it out after only one ride.  I love chunk and gnar, so you would think I would be a prime candidate for inserts........found my back wheel slid laterally a lot with the insert, and this makes sense when you think the insert is a flat platform that once you bottom out the tire is now flat like a table.  I never experienced this before on non-insert setups.  I now run higher psi in the rear (trying to like it but rims...)  but might give Tannus a try in the future.   How was the install?

Posted by: blackfly

Vikb: interesting thoughts about the Tannus inserts. On my new Tyaughton Ti I gave Cushcore a go on the back wheel and took it out after only one ride. I love chunk and gnar, so you would think I would be a prime candidate for inserts........found my back wheel slid laterally a lot with the insert, and this makes sense when you think the insert is a flat platform that once you bottom out the tire is now flat like a table. I never experienced this before on non-insert setups. I now run higher psi in the rear (trying to like it but rims...) but might give Tannus a try in the future. How was the install?

I haven't noticed anything unusual about the tire/bike's handling with the Tannus insert. I haven't tried CC so I can't compare them. The Tannus insert install was trivial...maybe an extra 2-4 mins. There is no wrestling with the insert or the tire.

The low weight and easy install are what sold me on the Tannus. I was anti-insert before that based on watching people I rode with deal with CC inserts and not having any tire/rim issues on my FS bike. When I started riding HTs aggressively I got motivated to try an insert. I've had a Tannus in the rear wheel of my shreddy HT for over a year and love it.

Posted by: Vikb

Posted by: blackfly

Vikb: interesting thoughts about the Tannus inserts. On my new Tyaughton Ti I gave Cushcore a go on the back wheel and took it out after only one ride. I love chunk and gnar, so you would think I would be a prime candidate for inserts........found my back wheel slid laterally a lot with the insert, and this makes sense when you think the insert is a flat platform that once you bottom out the tire is now flat like a table. I never experienced this before on non-insert setups. I now run higher psi in the rear (trying to like it but rims...) but might give Tannus a try in the future. How was the install?

I haven't noticed anything unusual about the tire/bike's handling with the Tannus insert. I haven't tried CC so I can't compare them. The Tannus insert install was trivial...maybe an extra 2-4 mins. There is no wrestling with the insert or the tire.

The low weight and easy install are what sold me on the Tannus. I was anti-insert before that based on watching people I rode with deal with CC inserts and not having any tire/rim issues on my FS bike. When I started riding HTs aggressively I got motivated to try an insert. I've had a Tannus in the rear wheel of my shreddy HT for over a year and love it.

I've tried both Tannus Tubeless and CC Pro on my HT and FS. The Tannus isn't quite as supportive but it's much lighter and livelier feeling. The CC Pro is monstrous and very damped feeling - it was just too much on my FS (though on a park bike they would be amazing). I loved the CC Pro on my HT and Tannus on my FS - that seemed the best way to do it. But I wish I had tried CC Pro on both rears and Tannus on both fronts - that might be a good compromise. In any case I have Tannus on all 4 wheels now and it's a good compromise though I still do get the occasional rear rim strike if I'm not mindful of my tire pressure. Generally the Tannus seem to offer a really good balance of light weight and good performance.

I got onto CCpro fairly early (before tannus had any decently competitive product) and went all in for all my bikes. Now every time I read a good review for Tannus I try to convince myself that the extra 100g per tyre off ccpro is worth it. The ride flat is pretty awesome. I threw my XC inserts in some 42cc gravel tires and rode those 15k home without issue. It's pretty cool that no matter what happens I can always limp home. Maybe that alone is worth 100g? I also like being able to drop my pressures guilt free. I never choose a pressure based on rim protection but rather based on tire performance. I just use the pressure that feels best. That being said, I have never tried the tannus. I'm waiting until I wear out a set of ccpro - has anyone actually done this? They seem to last forever!

I did just pick up a new to me, old school trials bike. I'm going to convert it to tubless and put a tannus in the rear wheel for some extra side wall and burp protection. That should be a good test of the product. They actually make a 26 x 1.9-2.5, Perfect! When I ran tubeless back in the year 2000 on a similar trials bike I used to burp if I didn't run higher pressures and even still sometimes. It will be interesting to see if I can drop the pressure safely.

Run flat capability would be super sweet for a racer where stopping is not possible and destroying a rim isn't the worst thing. I have never had a flat I couldn't put a plug or 3 into [especially once I started carrying moto plugs]. So I'd always stop, plug and pump a tire back up then finish the ride normally. My rims/wheels are too expensive to not do that for the sake of saving 3-5mins.

Posted by: Vikb

Run flat capability would be super sweet for a racer where stopping is not possible and destroying a rim isn't the worst thing. I have never had a flat I couldn't put a plug or 3 into [especially once I started carrying moto plugs]. So I'd always stop, plug and pump a tire back up then finish the ride normally. My rims/wheels are too expensive to not do that for the sake of saving 3-5mins.

I'm thinking of more the unfixable situation. 2" slash in the sidewall.