DanLees1978 profile

I'm on a Z1 with Grip Sweep Damper and had it my head i would end up upgrading to a Grip2 down the line. 

I have come to the conclusion you really really don't need to, though the GOLD lever is truly nasty looking.

Well, this is timely!

I have ridden 3 times in the Recon knee pads in the last couple of weeks and concur that they are very very comfy. Like forget you have them on comfy.

I took a punt on them as they were £32 at wiggle/crc and I'm really glad i did!

Not crash tested them aside from the old tap spanner on kneecap test which showed they are a big step up from my previous "Trail" kneepads the Raceface Charge wafer thin things but they don't appear to be any less comfy.  Most of my riding is up-down-up-down rather than UUUUUUUUUUUUP and DOOOOOOOOOOWN.

I have other less comfy knee pads, Race Face Indy and some IXS hard cup things, for when things get burlier or lift assisted.  You would think the Race Face Indy (previous thigh strap version) would be very similar to the Recons but the D3O is much stiffer and thicker which makes them less comfy for me.

I don't do elbow pads as I have never found some that fit right but might see if i can track down some recon elbows at some point.

This is interesting...

The Calipers and, to a slightly lesser extent, Levers look unsurprisingly incredibly similar to the set of Tektro Orion 4 Pots I have in a box as emergency spare brakes that I bought for £25 per end (including adaptors and pads!) at the beginning of the great component shortage of 2020-202X.

I have never had to use them and reviews are a few and far between, though they get good reviews when spec'd on the Marin Alpine Trail.

Might give them a whirl at some point!

Beat me to it! But I would add “as opposed to PSIA which is PSI Absolute, which is reference to Atmospheric Pressure.”

I have worked as an Application Engineer for a Pressure Sensor/Calibrator manufacturer…

I’d probably ride anything if that’s all I could afford.

However I no have standards…

I have sort of been through this with building up my teenage kids bikes…you want to spend enough so you aren’t buying issues waiting to happen but not dropping a load of coin unnecessarily.

So, I think the bare minimum for me is a bike that is devoid of anything that makes me make give the “sigh of imminent frustration” when I see it. Things like multi ring front drive trains, crappy no name forks and brakes and the like.

I’d be perfectly happy riding a hardtail (alu is fine) with OK geometry, cheap 1x10 drivetrain,  either a rigid fork or a Yari level fork, cheap Brand-x dropper and some half decent brakes like Shimano Deore.

Wheels are problematic. Not many options that would last under £400 after market…Shimano make some cheap but OK wheel sets…

Cheap bar, stem, saddle and grips would be fine.

Handily (pun intended) my favourite grips cost £4/$6 and the Charge Spoon saddles and their clones are $40ish.

I could cope with a cheaper harder rear tyre and bit gripper (eg Maxterra) up front.

I’d probably ride anything if that’s all I could afford.

However I no have standards…

I have sort of been through this with building up my teenage kids bikes…you want to spend enough so you aren’t buying issues waiting to happen but not dropping a load of coin unnecessarily.

So, I think the bare minimum for me is a bike that is devoid of anything that makes me make give the “sigh of imminent frustration” when I see it. Things like multi ring front drive trains, crappy no name forks and brakes and the like.

I’d be perfectly happy riding a hardtail (alu is fine) with OK geometry, cheap 1x10 drivetrain,  either a rigid fork or a Yari level fork, cheap Brand-x dropper and some half decent brakes like Shimano Deore.

Wheels are problematic. Not many options that would last under £400 after market…Shimano make some cheap but OK wheel sets…

Cheap bar, stem, saddle and grips would be fine.

Handily (pun intended) my favourite grips cost £4/$6 and the Charge Spoon saddles and their clones are $40ish.

I could cope with a cheaper harder rear tyre and bit gripper (eg Maxterra) up front.

They were certainly wearing them from around that sort of age.

https://dexshell.co.uk/collections/socks/products/ultra-thin-childrens-sock

Not sure if you can get dexshell socks in Canada?

"Daaaaaaad, I'm hot/cold/hungry*/run out of water..."

Hence the need for the Dad/Mum Pack (TM). An over stuffed 15-20L pack with all your stuff, normal tools and spares, 2 packets of haribo, some healthy snacks, 4* different sizes of inner tube, 2 fleeces, 2 waterproof jackets, a wooly hat and a cuddly toy.

* - They ate 20 mins ago but they know you have Haribo.

** - Mom to you colonials.

*** - including a 20in one even though you sold the last 20in bike 3 months ago

I wish I had bought one of those big 24l EVOC packs for riding with my kids but hopefully they should be strong enough to carry their own s*** now that they are 11 and 13.  

Those gloves look good and warm. In my experience kids care less about control dexterity and more about just having warm hands. We have used Briskers, which can be found for about the same price as the Woom gloves in the UK if you shop around, and fairly generic windproof fleece gloves when the kids were smaller.

We have also used "other sport" gear for riding. "Not cotton" Tracksuit bottoms , Under Armour Cold Gear baselayers (you won't find warmer) and tech tees 

Other tips:

- Waterproof socks and buying cycling shoes a size too big in the Autumn so they can wear thick sealskinz over the winter.

- DHB (Chainreaction/Wiggle own brand) Inner shorts are great, freely available and well priced (in the UK) and actually have a decent pad.

6-9 months ish from memory...

Are you in a plastic "walking boot"?

I know of 3 people who have torn their Achilles in similar fashion, as an example, stepping back off a ladder.

All in the 30-50 age bracket and recreational athletes.  The joys of getting older!  

You're now your riding groups "Achilles guy", I'm my riding groups "Knee guy", we also have a hip (sweet Ti upgrade) and a toe guy...

Heel up fast and well!

My Chromag Rootdown was 35lbs by the time I stripped it down.

By contrast Jacob's Cotic BFeMax is a hair over 31lbs.

First ride for the eldest kid on the BFeMax this morning so as promised…

Unsurprisingly feels loads bigger than previous bike but overall he’s pretty stoked.

Firstly, nice collection!

Secondly, I think you need to keep 4...

I'm a Banshee Prime Owner so I'm biased but I don't think you need 2! Pick whichever Cache you use/like the most.

Worth putting a lighter 150mm fork and faster wheels on the Chromag to differentiate it from Prime/Druid?

I would keep:

Current bikes from least to most rear wheel travel:

1. Knolly Cache (60cm frame, short stem) with a gravel/monster bike build

3. Chromag Primer (hardtail) with 160mm fork

5. Banshee Prime (135mm travel) with 160mm fork

7. Knolly Chilcotin (167mm travel) with 170mm fork

Or

1. Knolly Cache (60cm frame, short stem) with a gravel/monster bike build

3. Chromag Primer (hardtail) with 160mm fork

4. Forbidden Druid (130mm travel) with 150mm fork

6. Banshee Titan (155mm travel) with 170mm fork

I'm actually quite interested in this!  Way more interested in this that Eagle/AXS/Di2/XTR etc etc.

Currently running 1x10 Deore/SLX/XT mix with 12 speed chainring, was wondering if we have an inkling whether I can just put a new 10 speed Link Glide Cassette (11-43 or 11-48 maybe with a goat link) and new link glide (just a normal shimano 11speed) chain and use my current shifter and mech... If the overall cassette width and cog spacing is the same, it should work*. 

Probably too soon to say but if you see anything elsewhere online, shout up.

Patiently awaits the arrival of Andrew Major...

* - probably not as well as a full link glide set up but useable.

Posted by: BC_Nuggets

"1-3hr dadlap"  <-- I love it.  That describes 99% of my rides and I've got 3 kids to prove it.

So, back protector packs.  What's comfortable and with a pack that holds somewhere between 15 and 20 L and is set up for bladders?

I think with my 12L pack what bugs me more is the size puts a lot of pressure in a small area.  Something that spreads the load out would be cool.

When I have to go full Dad-bag I use my big EVOC pack, it regularly gets all the jackets shoved in it and it holds it shape very well.

It's this on: https://www.evocsports.com/FR-ENDURO-BLACKLINE-16/100106100-S

I also looked at their Trail Pro 16 too which looks awesome (better hip pockets etc) but i decided I needed a full face carry which actually did come i very handy last summer.

My kids are getting bigger so they can soon carry their own stuff, Thank Dog!

Posted by: BC_Nuggets

"1-3hr dadlap"  <-- I love it.  That describes 99% of my rides and I've got 3 kids to prove it.

So, back protector packs.  What's comfortable and with a pack that holds somewhere between 15 and 20 L and is set up for bladders?

I think with my 12L pack what bugs me more is the size puts a lot of pressure in a small area.  Something that spreads the load out would be cool.

When I have to go full Dad-bag I use my big EVOC pack, it regularly gets all the jackets shoved in it and it holds it shape very well.

It's this on: https://www.evocsports.com/FR-ENDURO-BLACKLINE-16/100106100-S

I also looked at their Trail Pro 16 too which looks awesome (better hip pockets etc) but i decided I needed a full face carry which actually did come i very handy last summer.

My kids are getting bigger so they can soon carry their own stuff, Thank Dog!

Super local (i.e. the woods behind my house) - Bottle on bike, phone in pocket.  I can walk home in an hour or so worst case. Might get a OneUp EDC Lite so i can adjust things if need be.

Local (out for 2-3 hours) - Dakine Hotlaps 5 with tools/spares/snack, tube on bike, bottle on bike.

Winter Nightride - Evoc FR Enduro 16 back pack mainly to house the emotional support jacket, beanie hat, spare gloves and batteries.

Big Day out - Evoc with water along with bottle on bike.  

Most rides with the kids - Evoc filled with haribo.

I defo prefer to ride without a backpack but sometimes needs must.  The Evoc is a bit sweaty but it is a proper back protector too which is nice.

Hardtail leaning against the kitchen cupboards...yeah sorry...hopefully we will get it out and lean it against something more natural at the weekend...

The bigger kid's frame turned up yesterday and we spent the evening doing a frame swap.

Frame: Cotic BFeMax Medium

Fork: RS Pike RCT3 140mm

Headset: Cane Creek 40

Stem: Brand-X 35mm long

Bar: Chromag OSX @780mm (They are my old spare set for him to have a play with the width, he's like me long body high ape index)

Grips: Brand-X Half Waffle

Saddle: Chromag Trailmaster (my old one for him to see how he gets on with the shape)

Post: Brand-X Ascend 125mm External (will be upgraded to a 150/170mm drop internal at an opportune moment)

Wheels: Hope Pro-II hubs  (rear converted to boost), Stans Flow 25mm internal version.

Tyres: On-One Chunky Monkey 2.4 and Onza Ibex 2.25 (rear tyre will need to be changed to something bigger/tougher before the summer)

Brakes: Old Deore 2 Pot with 180mm rotors (I have some brand new Tektro Orion 4 Pots from the spares bin to fit at some point)

Cranks: Deore 170mm w/ 30T ring

Cassette: XT 11 Speed

Chain: XT 11 Speed

Shifter: SLX

Mech: SLX

Pedals: DMR Vault

It's weighing in at a very reasonable 14.3kg/31.5lbs inc pedals.

He's stoked!

Posted by: BC_Nuggets

So I want to get a new fork for my old Rootdown.  Don't want to spend too much.  Thinking Bomber Z1 150mm or maybe something from PinkBike classifieds (a new bike take-off) like a Lyrik Select or something.  Also thinking about the DVO Diamond D1 although reviews are such that people either love them or hate them.  I think with SuspensionWerx dealing/servicing them though it could be a good option.

I really like my Z1 (Air), I thought I would have to change the damper to the Grip2 but it has not been the case.

Posted by: fartymarty

Previous build.

Please organise your shelves they are giving me anxiety... ;-)