Bushpilot profile

So less cornering support than Cushcore, marginally heavier than Cushcore, absorbs sealant unlike Tannus Tubeless and Cushcore, significantly heavier than Tannus Tubeless, requires gluing which can come apart and be felt at low pressures and pricing within the same general range as Tannus Tubeless and Cushcore. Got it. Definitely does not sound like a competitive product.

My Rev Grips experience might have been a fail because I like really thin grips and find I get hand pain from most grips with diameter over 30mm or 31mm. I think the smallest Rev Grips version is still a good 2mm bigger than the Renthal grips so that may explain my experience.

A big thank you to you though for those push on articles a ways back...that's how I got on to the Renthal push ons and I don't think I'll be going with anything else in the future. I have about 5 spare packages in my parts bin just in case I can't find them.

I bought Rev Grips pro and ran them on the softest setting. I didn't end up finding them any more comfortable than my trusty Renthal Ultra Tacky push on grips. End of day they may have been less comfortable (I was using the thinnest version of Rev Grips) than the Renthal push on grips so the Rev Grips have come off and the Renthal's have been spray painted and wired back on.

I wonder if many of the people for whom Rev Grips are a revelation tried them straight from regular lock on grips. I can see how they'd be a big improvement from a comfort / the claw perspective over most regular lock on grips but I'd definitely suggest that those who struggle with hand pain try push on grips before springing for Rev Grips. Might save a pile of money and find a product that, for me at least, is superior. Win / win.

WAO also offers a 50% off crash replacement for second hand owners, which is huge if and when it comes time to sell your wheels. New carbon wheelsets keep coming out and WAO keep staying ahead of the pack from a service / got your back perspective.

Those safety wire pliers are amazing!  Thank you! I ordered some from Gnarly after reading this and just wired my Renthal grips.  Took 1/100 the time it used to take me to do it by hand.  Worth every penny.

Mind sharing your weight and Storia settings? I see the part about the 475 spring and the rebound tweak. Curious to know what you're running for HSC and LSC on the shock.

The G1s are soooo hot right now.

Excellent article! I just got my G1 last week and have 5 rides on it now in stock 29er configuration. Can’t wait to start messing with the mutators and a 27.5 rear wheel. I’m sure I’ll be referring back to this article over and over in the coming months.

Weapon, sled

I wonder how it would feel with an “instant” engaging hub like Onyx. On the one hand that might negate some of the pedal response lag but on the other Onyx can feel a touch squishy on its own so maybe that would just amplify the sponge-factor.

Posted by: Vikb

Posted by: Bushpilot

FWIW rims are all 30mm internal. 

Is it just me?

I haven't had any issues with Tannus Tubeless of 2 bikes for a combined 3 years of use. I've installed a few other sets on customer bikes without any setup issues. On those I have not rec'd any longer term feedback.

My bikes are all 30mm IW rims and 29 x 2.6" tires.

I wonder if I got a wonky set of Tannus inserts? That might explain why I'm only having problems with the Tannus ones. I'll have to inspect them more carefully.

I've been using Cushcore Pro for 3 years. Have installed and removed them more times than you can shake a stick at and am on my 2nd or 3rd set. I also used Cushcore XC on one wheelset for a while. I'm very comfortable installing these things and the installs go according to plan and turn out well pretty much every single time. Occasionally I get a small wobble post-Cushcore install, which I can easily remedy by breaking the bead seal, wetting the bead area with soapy water and hitting it with my compressor. Problem solved pretty much every time. 

I've also been using Tannus Tubeless for about 1.5 years. I have 2 problems with the Tannus Tubeless that I pretty much never get with Cushcore.

Problem 1: I get a wobble after mounting Tannus Tubeless waaaaaay too often. What seems like at least 50% of the time I do get the wobble, my usual break the bead seal, lube it up and hit it with the compressor again doesn't fix the issue (nor does massaging / wrangling the insert back and forth by hand). When I can't get the wobble to go away, I'll typically re-mount the tire without the insert just to make sure it isn't the tire causing the problem. I'm having this issue now and am certain it isn't a wonky tire / stretched casing. Anyone else experience this problem with Tannus Tubeless? I can't figure out why I'm not having this problem with other inserts.

Problem 2: Another thing that only happens to me with Tannus Tubeless is that the insert blocks the valve (using regular valves, not the Cushcore style ones drilled on the sides). I go to let some air out of the tires and nothing happens because the insert has somehow moved and blocked the opening. It isn't a sealant issue and the quick fix is the remove the valve core and jam a 3mm allen key up the valve to push the insert out of the way to let the air out. Anyone else notice that this is a recurring issue with the Tannus Tubeless insert design? I'll try using Cuschcore valves to see if that improves things but Tannus is pretty clear in their manuals that special valves aren't necessary.

FWIW rims are all 30mm internal. 

Is it just me?

I sold my Kuat NV 2.0 after it got fairly rusty with only a few years of use. Other issue is that it wouldn't hold my kids' bikes with 16" wheels. I replaced the NV 2.0 with a 1Up heavy duty double and two add-ons. 

The good: The 1Up rack is all metal, seems super durable and I hear rust isn't as much of an issue (we'll see). It holds bikes down to 16" wheels and can be expanded with add-ons so you can carry 2, 3 or 4 bikes. Another bonus is that each additional tray further from your bumper is higher than the next one closer to your bumper. This makes it easier to load bikes without saddle / bar interference and also increases your ground clearance as compared to Kuat and Thule style racks (if that matters to you for clearing water bars, off-road use, etc). You can also get a license plate holder for the 1Up rack so you can avoid tickets for obscuring your plate. 

The bad: The raising and lowering mechanism is harder to use than the competition (Thule and Kuat). I don't find it "difficult" to raise and lower the rack but it is clearly not as clean / easy as with those other brands. My wife finds it difficult to raise and lower the trays when she wants to use the rack. So something to keep in mind. 1Up racks are also  more expensive than the competition (by probably hundreds of dollars, depending on what you're looking at).

I have Tannus Tubeless and Cushcore Pro. I may be in the minority on this but I actually find the Tannus harder to install. Cushcore tends to stay in place while Tannus always wants to pop over the lip of the rim during install. Neither is very difficult though.

I run Cushcore Pro on my hardtail because I find it irons out the trail more and has a more damped feel than Tannus. I run Tannus on my suspension bike because I think the unsprung weight matters more there.

Cushcore really isn't hard to install. Can depend though on rim and tire combo. But, IME, for most combos your first time installing cushcore will take a while and will be frustrating. But once you get the hang of it is really is quite simple. I figure swapping tires with cushcore adds 5 to 10 minutes per end. The key is the garbage can trick. Without something to brace the wheel against when tucking the bead under the insert it is admittedly difficult.

Cushcore is a true game changer on a hardtail that if you ride anywhere rooty, rocky, janky. I wouldn't bother if your area trails are all smooth. But for anything in the Sea to Sky it makes a HUGE difference in terms of comfort, compliance and traction.

SQ Lab 611.

I don’t have experience with 27.5 plus but I ran my last 3 steel hardtails with 29” wheels front and rear and found after lots of experiments that cushcore pro and 2.6 rubber on hardtails around these parts is the shizzz IMHO.

Posted by: BC_Nuggets

Any recommendations for decent wheelsets at less than $1,000?  I want to get a new fork for my OG Rootdown and will be going for 15x110 boost for the first time up front.  But would like to get a new rear wheel too as my current wheelset internal width is 21mm and I think it's time to drink the wider rim koolaid.  So my wheelset goals are 28-31mm internal width, front hub 15x110, rear hub 135qr (yes I have an original rootdown with this spacing.)  It seems that everywhere I look online it's 148 boost rear spacing.

I have a feeling I might as well just have wheels built up by some locals (GVRD.)

If you're not against ordering parts from overseas, there are really good deals to be had from Germany for DT stuff. You can get 240 or 350 hubs plus EX511 rims together for less than half of what you pay for them locally, then have a good local wheelbuilder build them up for you. I think you could easily build up a super high quality set of wheels for under $1K that way. Haters gonna hate re ordering parts from Germany though.

Posted by: Bull_Dozer

Was thinking of upgrading my full face helmet as my current one is getting old and the bike park is opening soon. What are people wearing these days? Taking a look at different models online and it looks like a lot of the current popular FF helmets are those lighter enduro style ones. Are any of you guys using those for bike park use? Most of them have the full DH certification but still not sure I'd want one in the bike park. I'm a pretty tame rider and only ride the bike park 5 or so days per year so I could probably get away with it but not sure if it's worth the risk.

I’m in the same boat as you. I decided on going with a full new proper DH helmet because in the unlikely event that something bad did happen and I was using one of the lighter enduro style ones I’d hate to be asking myself if the injury would have been less severe if I’d gone with the full blown DH version. That’s just me though and I tend to be a person who chooses very comprehensive insurance…

Posted by: martin

@bushpilot My dream bike and build! If you are in Canada, I'd be curious to know what was the landed cost of the frame itself since I'll probably go the Nicolai/Geometron route for my next build. (You can PM me, if you feel like it).

How are you getting along with the Magura brakes ? I just received a set of MT5s with the Storm HC rotors and performance pads, can't wait to bolt them up to my bike.

I can’t remember the all in cost but I’ll look it up and PM you. I ordered a frame only from Geometron, along with some mutators, extra springs, extra dropout and a bearing replacement tool around June 2021.

The MT7s are, by far, my favourite brakes to date. I’ve been using the “race” pads exclusively for the last year or so. I’m sure you’ll love the MT5s.