damientheo profile

skatey on hardpack but not in the rough? I'm a little lost on that. The knobs don't look tall enough to be squirmy but if so, it should be the same in both those conditions.

Can you explain what I'm not getting?

thanks,DT

I happen to have a set of Thumbies and a valid reason to try this out (9spd shifters and 11sp cassette) but damn if I can't find  good placement of the shifter. It either can't clear the brake clamp bolts or traps my finger between it and the brake lever which is a little scary. Getting an exacto knife to try and cut some of the rubber off

I've been running SMPs for a decade. the Hell is soft but so much that I hit the shell and feel it after a while. I didn't like it. I add a thin neoprene cover for triathletes to the regular saddles plus a good chamois and that makes them comfortable for long rides. The shape and cutout is the best, but it isolates your sit bones and they get hammered after a few hours. Also early season takes some time to get that area toughened up again

can be easily made with a dremel cutting wheel and file. have done so for years . I think companies could have done 1x8-10 with wide steps instead of smooshing 11 and 12  (13 soon?) onto a cassette, but more of anything sounds better to marketing

I've had the same experience with aluminum. It fatigues to failure and even publicized as having a finite lifespan. Once it goes, it is not easily repairable (or at all) so then you need to buy a new frame and then you're probably past the price of carbon. Carbon is much easier to repair and today's frames can take a lot of impact- probably just as much as aluminum (or even more - see SC video).

Seems that carbon is more often the winner in both financial and possibly environmental terms (provided it's not a warranty trasher) when/if the frame does break.