boomforeal profile

interesting. i got to try them both on the same day last summer so thought perhaps they'd been developed in tandem; but based on your review of the optic it seems like it had been out well before that

i did notice the increasing STA with sizes on the sight and thought that was really smart. but it may have contributed to the sight's "short" feel, which i definitely noticed too. 

as far as sitting taller: did you ever fiddle with the number of volume spacers in your review-optics' air cans? i was surprised to find that it was maxed out of the gate; just pulled a couple out and find the rear suspension character much more to my liking. i've been able to set it up a bit more firm, addressing the ride height issue a bit, and use full travel more regularly, but it still seems plenty progressive

as you have ridden and reviewed both the current optic and sight i would be interested to hear any comparisons of/contrasts between them you feel are worth noting. obviously they're different bikes -- but did they seem (once you account of differences in discipline) similar/consistent in terms of design, function, geometry, fit, handling, etc.

https://www.sim.works/collections/the-homage-tire/products/the-homage-green-skin?variant=23123090883

yeah. in corners, my impression is that plus tires generate grip through increased surface area contact, vs. traditional knobby tires which generate grip by digging into the trail. it's something (i think) i can feel when i switch between my fat-turned-plus bike with rekons vs my trail bike with minions, and it influences how i ride and react. hard to imagine how you can both generate a large contact area and focus pressure directly to/through a row of side knobs at the same time; i picked up the slaughters to explore this tension, though as i mentioned they're not all that chubby really, more like the width/volume of WT tire. interesting idea about leaning a semi-slick over a bit to increase grip in steep terrain -- if i find myself losing traction under such conditions and can keep my lizard brain from panicking, i will try that trick for sure!

i have been running a minion ss exo out back exclusively on my trail bike for the past 4 years, ever since steve sheldon pointed out that you can't spell slaughter without laughter. i don't find it a compromise at all on steep/gnarly trail -- you get used to the conditions in which traction is in short supply and learn to avoid them or adjust pretty quickly, ime -- but i only ride in bc during the summers. i have a pair of specialized slaughter grid 2.8s that i haven't installed yet. they're on the narrow side for plus tires, but i'm not sure how beneficial large side-knobs on plus or fat tires are, really, anyway

feels like i've been waiting 4 years for this article; it did not disappoint

thanks for the kind words marty. cass linked here from his recent review of the jones swb complete. i'm glad to see people are still finding it interesting and informative

sorry, i didn't weigh the bike

long term follow-up: i just bought a trace. based in no small part on your teardown insights and review. thanks again andrew

comment-section cherry on top of an already stellar review. compelling writing and voice coupled with thoughtful insights and a keen eye for detail. i really enjoyed this

Oh and mine's a wagon wheeler.

🔥

you're building an adhoc

i am sure if you want to get right into it, a bike with slightly longer chainstays and steeper head tube might be better at flatter and faster terrain then what is in the sea to sky. but i would not trade the reach of a BA for that if my surface.

thank you

seen single track from all over the sea to sky, that mysterious "interior" B.C., a huge swath of the northern USA, and a quick bump to NZ. yet to see a down side to the long low slack short thing.

i've been wondering about this. i've had the opportunity to ride my v1 surface back to back with bikes with more progressive geometry, mine and others, and the short reach and conservative geo are noticeable. i recently moved out east, where the trails are flatter and tighter - while i imagine the new crop of long/low/slack chromags are well suited for local and sea-to-sky riding, i've wondered whether they're less versatile than the last generation, and whether they'd suffer on less aggressive terrain

there were several guys racing flat barred cx at the Squamish provincials, but the purists were like…

https://www.flickr.com/photos/palleus/30912499940/in/album-72157677053382296/

that's how i imagine racing cx always feels

gtrguy nailed it

schwalbe rocket ron is a decent option: light-ish, cheap-ish, aggressive-ish

https://www.bike24.com/p2100867.html

http://nsmb.com/spawn-savage-2-0/

I haven't really looked into it that much, but how is the Surface different from the Primer (besides the Dekerf vs. Truelove welding?)

primer

surface

The builder matters too; Truelove vs. DeKerf.

only in terms of the beauty of the welds, afaict

http://bb.nsmb.com/showthread.php?t=160277

ah, that sucks. great bikes and very progessive designs. is anyone making production bikes in canada anymore?

i just sold my adhoc but i really grew to like that bike. i think i would have kept it for years if i'd stayed in vancouver

Bummer…we love our Xprezos…still hope I can find a couple of linkage rebuild kits.

i found a website that purports to sell them

http://cyclesxprezo.bigcartel.com/product/rebuild-kits

but you can't actually buy anything. anyone know a source?