vincentaedwards profile

Yes. In the US companies like Specialized, Trek, and even some boutique brands like Transition are in a totally different price bracket compared to Santa Cruz, Pivot, and Yeti for their mid / upper-mid priced builds. 

You can still spend huge sums on the top end builds with all these brands (which is just good business) but you get a much better value for your money on the more practical and still excellent GX, XT, and XO1 builds with some brands. 

Even at the frame-only level, the difference is striking. A Stumpy EVO (non sworks) Frame is $3k. Transition Spire is $3,400. A Ripmo is $3,500… the Megatower is $4,250 and the SB-150 is $4,700

If I was building a new bike right now I’d buy the Stumpy Evo alloy frame (with in-frame storage) for $2k and call it a day. (Or a Ripmo AF)

Totally… I was just thinking this feels like a routine ‘of bad cop good cop’, but with pricing.

That reminds me of another tool I really love having access to- a $400 Prusa Mini 3D Printer (it helps to have a background with CAD) - I’ve made my own tools to press in fork seals, and could easily print adaptors for headsets and BBs. 

For other folks doing this- I suggest increasing the number of shells (walls) to 4- same goes for the top and bottom layers. PETG filament is a lot tougher than PLA (much less prone to cracking)

The Knipex are a life changer. Wera allens and drivers are brilliant as well.

For headsets and press in BBs, I’ve always just used these:

https://www.leevalley.com/en-us/shop/tools/hand-tools/clamps/69825-dubuque-wooden-handscrews

They require a bit more attention during install compared to a proper headset press, but if you keep things parallel as you go they work great. Plus they’re handy to have around the house. I’ll clamp them to a workbench with an ‘f’clamp (or 2) and use them like a soft jaw vice for other bike servicing tasks.

I’m with Andrew on the -2 headset… that will make a noticing difference. It’s too bad you can’t lower the fork. I don’t think 4mm of stem above the steer tube is a serious concern as long as the clamping bolts are below the top of the steer tube (but maybe get a 2nd opinion on this)

I’d also be on the lookout for a used 2016 or newer Kona honzo ST frame- they are longer and slacker with a low BB. If you could sell your frame for $150 and buy a honzo for $350 that might put you ahead of other parts changes with a bike that fits you a lot better. I believe  2017 and beyond honzo got a 450 reach for the medium. They use a tapered headtube so you would need a headset, but everything else could transfer. You could do a -1 headset on the honzo but for Texas 67-68 HA is probably just fine when paired with a longer reach. I’m in NW Arkansas and I still ride and love my Medium 2016 ti honzo SS with a 130m fork.

I once I read an nsmb article touting TRP quadiem brakes as fully rebuildable:

https://nsmb.com/articles/aaron-gwins-trp-quadiem-brakes-teardown/

Probably a lot harder to find a used set… and certainly not a beer trade.

But they deserve their spot on this list due to great build quality and serviceability.

Even today, brands like Maxxis, specialized, WTB, and vittoria offer a 2.6 … which feels like the course correction that happened after Plus lost it’s marketing appeal. Perhaps more interestingly is how differently brands approach these wider treads. For the most part Maxxis 2.6 tires are shunned by hard hitting riders because they are a bit less stiff compared to their 2.4 and 2.5 counterparts. WTB 2.6s on the other hand are just bigger and heavier. 

The normalizing of 30-35mm rims has a big part to play here too in the story of this ‘course correction’…

Quite and interesting project. In found one on PB here: https://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/list/?region=3&q=Process%20134&page=2

Although going through your list of changes, you’re not far from buying enough new parts to build up a frame from scratch. 

So then the question becomes- are you better off spending $500-1k more to get a brand new (w/ warranty) aluminum frame like a Stumpy Evo ($2k)… ?  

Keeping some of the key components of an older bike runnng- such as suspension, hubs, cranks, brakes- make the min-maxing proposition a lot more convincing. I’m all for keeping quality older bikes going… just wondering where the smart consumer should draw the line?

I hope you get some bites on your offer to help a reader with this ‘process’ … it would be really interesting do some back to back rides between the min-maxed older bike, and a new bike that hits a similar price point.

Yeah, I’d add dropper length and shock tune to that list too. 

Some bike makers (like ibis) will spec different shock tuning by size- but being able to choose based on your weight would be even better. I’m close enough to average, but would imagine riders at either end of the spectrum of height and weight might want better choices.

With absolutely no dis-respect intended towards other editors at this (or other) mtb publications… 

I cant imagine another person who could write an article this engaging (and funny) about tire pressure. So glad to have you at NSMB Mike, this was a delight. 

Bibendum… BiBrilliant if you ask me.

I have a Kona Process 29 AL/DL. It climbs well and has good trail manners for such a capable bike. I use it at the bike park, and for rocky technical trail riding. It’s a bit more work than my Tallboy3 when climbing, but still very manageable. 

I think the geo and suspension kinematics are really key to how well it performs. I find that steep SA paired with short chainstays and long-ish reach really work for me. It’s also very quiet and composed on rough dh sections. It’s a bike that loves to go fast.