goose8 profile

This is a good point, but I have two ideas that could possibly work. 

The first is a manitou fork like the mezzer. My mastodon can be adjusted downward in travel just by controlling how compressed the fork is when one removes the shock pump. Pretty sure the mezzer is the same- I think Andrew Major mentioned that at one point on this site. So you could take it from 170 down to 150 in about two minutes. 

The second possibility would be using a DVO shock. I had one that could be downstroked by clipping on travel adjust spacers. I used it to take my process 153 down to 135ish in just a few minutes. Not sure if DVO makes a shock that would work with the WR1 frame, but figured I’d mention it.

I know this is an older article, but I finally tried out a thumb shifter mated to a short cage zee rear derailleur shifting across 5 cogs pulled from a sunrace cassette (16/18/21/24/28 cogs mated to a 30t oval ring). It's perfect for my needs right now, but the no-name friction shifter gradually moves on long descents. Best guess is that since it wasn't designed for a clutched derailleur, the increased tension is enough to get it to move. Planning to upgrade the shifter but otherwise the system feels far better than I imagined. Granted, I'm accustomed to riding a singlespeed, so take that with a grain of salt! Thanks for floating this idea and getting me thinking. Cheers

I read that the prime blues use a different and less grippy rubber than the rest of the five ten lineup. I’m running the current free rider pros, which have terrific grip but terrible longevity. These endura kicks look like they’d be worth a shot! Thanks for the thorough review.

I've had good luck with Manitou support here in the US. Mainly with forks, but they've gone above and beyond to help solve problems- including helping me fit together parts to upgrade a comp fork to pro level damping. 

On a side note, in my experience, MRP also consistently provides superb support for their forks.

That's an interesting point about the snow accumulating on the carbon rims Andrew. I haven't noticed it being too bad on my mulefats, but sometimes my tires pack up like massive donuts if I cross open water and then go back onto snow. Speaking of tires, I'm all for aggressive treads. I've tried the FBR and didn't care for it much. If you're looking for the best traction possible, check out the studded 27.5x4.5 gnarwhals. They've treated me really well.

I bumped the travel on my mastodon but haven't tried an angleset yet. Maybe that's my next experiment!

I'd certainly try out a rigid fork on my honzo if the a-c length was there. I'm currently mid-way through trying a rigid fork on my wozo. The longest I could find was 490, which climbed well, but felt weird descending. I ordered a spacer from reverse components to gain 10mm or so, but went back to the mastodon while I'm waiting on it to arrive. It's far more enjoyable going downhill and the pedaling position feels better (the unsagged a-c is more like 550mm). I have high hopes that the spacer will get the rigid fork into the right ballpark though. If not, then maybe a custom fork will be the ticket! (and yes I know that fatbikes aren't the same as hardtails, but the geometry changes are still relevant methinks). 

But seriously, I love tinkering and your posts have piqued my interests in lots of different ways, prompting me to experiment with things and rethink my riding. Thanks for all the hard work you do!

I have a couple of top pieces I love, still waiting to find the perfect shorts. I appreciate the suggestions here and will check some of those out. In chronological order:

-An old patagonia fleece vest with windblock fleece on the front and breathable fleece on the back. It's mint for riding.

-Chromag wool short sleeve riding t's. These check all the boxes for me in the summer and work well in the winter too as layering pieces.

-Stio Eddy shirt. This is fairly new to me, but so far I'm impressed by its versatility. I've been surprised with how warm it keeps me when I layer it over a base piece, even with light rain and wind. 

Runner-up: Raceface Agent pants. I really like these for winter riding layered over wool long johns, but they're the only pair of riding-specific pants I've used, so I don't have much to compare them to. Kudos to Andrew for turning me on to them. A belt with some stretch by Arcade pairs nicely with these.

I apologize for the belated reply, but I wanted to do some experimenting before I reported back. 

I changed up my process and started lubing one roller at a time rather than using the squidulous-esque method I’d relied on for years. That helped a bit, but I was still curious about the product itself.

I didn’t think that the green lube was messy, but I took a chance and tried out the WT-1. It’s way cleaner and seems to last longer, though I probably lube more frequently than I need to (going by chain noise). Thanks for the useful article!

Ah, I see now. Whoosh! Thanks

Ah, I see now. Whoosh! Thanks

No idea about stiffening your steerer tube, but I second the durolux suggestion. I'm 225lbs + gear. I had a 2018 Fox 36 that developed a creaky CSU within a few months of use. For warrantied it, but I still missed out on a fair bit of riding while it as off for repaits. Next bike came with a pike. Just upgraded it to a Durolux, and the change in stiffness is amazing. The wheel goes where I want it to, and I can feel the handlebar flex. I'd take the durolux over a 36 any day.

Posted by: LWK

I think its pretty clear that 5:10 soles are not particularly durable, esp for heavier riders, lots of bike park riding, etc.  

I mentioned above that I was going to try a pair of Shimano flat pedal shoes (GR9 model, but all their models have the same sole).  I have a couple of rides in now and initial impression is that they are very grippy.  Maybe not as soft and "sticky" as a 5:10 but the combo of the small interlocking tread pattern and rubber does seem to grip very well.  For reference, I have HT and Shimano Saint pedals on my various bikes and have been on flat pedals/shoes since forever.

Time will tell regarding durability but initial impressions on grip and performance are very positive.  So I'm thinking/hoping there is finally an option to 5:10 shoes

I started off with impacts and then switched to freeriders, which lasted a season (maybe 6 months around here). I'm about 100kg with gear, but even so, I wasn't impressed by that durability, so I gave the shimano Gr-7 a shot. I like the shoe a lot- comfortable and the grip was really good. Like LWK said, not quite 5.10 level, but sufficient. The problem that I ran into is the durability. The soles are toast- you can see through to the green sublayer in multiple spots after 2 months. Basically big chunks of rubber have torn off where the sole contacts my pedals (one up). Bought the shoes through my local shop and took them back, but shimano won't do anything in terms of warranty. Hoping that they hold up better for others, but I'm going to try the freerider pros.

Psyched to see this much-needed conversation happening. Thanks for the context @cooperquinn. Recently had a discussion about naming trails at a local area and it was much harder than expected to come up with witty trail names that even vaguely described the nature of the trail.

On a side note, there was a particularly challenging section of trail where I grew up that was called "Thumping Dick Hollow." Apparently it was a reference to some odd-sounding machinery run by a fellow named Dick, but it used to give us the giggles back when we were in middle school. Hopefully we've moved past that stage!