hampstead_bandit's comments

great article from what seems a thorough test period from NSMB.com

I am only hearing great things about the new "K.S." Banshee frames from riders here in the UK, where admittedly we are not blessed with much of a summer, which means all-year round mud riding a true test for suspension frames

very glad to see, it seems Keith finally got to realize the true potential of his excellent designs with better engineering on the suspension pivots (the bushing design was a little "funky" as many previous owners can attest)

great work Keith! (p.s. when are we going to see a K.S. Link Rampant?)

cheers

Rob Cole
London, England

@IFO

I hear where you are coming from, but SBC is pretty good at supporting legacy products for a long time?

2 weeks back, needed a frame part for a customer here in the UK with a 2006 FSR frame, they had it, got it into my shop in 2 days and customer off riding all happy.

last week? Had another customer with the il-fated E150 Enduro dual crown fork, needed servicing it was looking really bad. Got the fork back within a week, fully rebuilt with new stanchions, damper and seals

I guess because this new TTX shock fits the existing Demo frame, if the worst came to it, you could buy a Cane Creek DB or RS shock for that bike and ditch the TTX?

I work at a Specialized Concept Store and therefore get to try lots of Specialized tires on a regular basis; I wish the testing crew for NSMB lots of happy miles with their testing!

I got turned onto Specialized tires some years back by a riding buddy, after years of being a Michelin and Maxxis tire fanatic, and have not looked back since..

I am currently running the new S-Works Turbo on my Tarmac Comp road bike, and the S-Works Purgatory front with Control Fast Trak LK rear with Stan's No Tubes on my Stumpjumper 29'er

also running Espoir Elite on my 700c Crosstrail commuting bike

have fun with the testing 🙂

@craw

I was a big fan of gearbox, hub gears and belt drives (in the 90's I rode for a DH team sponsored by Sachs i.e. now SRAM and we had a full choice of all their geared systems including hub gears and derailleur systems, we tested them all…)

the video shows both SRAM and Shimano derailleur systems being used, so it cannot be discounted as just a marketing video for SRAM to sell more derailleurs?

gearbox bikes are fantastic in principle, just like hub gears (Rohloff and Shimano Alfine which make sense for niche usage)

but ultimately the bushingless chain and derailleur system simply cannot be beaten for efficiency?

which is everything, when talking about a human powered vehicle where strength to weight ratio of the bicycle, and drivetrain power efficiency are very critical, bearing in mind the limited power output of the average cyclist…

good review, bike looks solid, I got play with the 2012 and found it very competent

really like whatever tech you used to make this happen:

"Click in to the first photo to enlarge and advance through using the arrow keys…"

@bryson

"I always believe bicycle maintenance should at least be tried by the bike owner. When you understand how things work it can help make your setup easier and your ride more enjoyable. Don’t be scared to attempt Suspension oil changes on your own."

^^ agreed

it always stuns me how many mountain bikers want to pay top dollar for their suspension (bike) and don't ever take the time to learn how to do basic suspension servicing to keep their bike running sweet

we are not talking rocket science, but fork "lowers" servicing and basic air can servicing, or to make it even more basic, post-bike washing external lubrication of fork, shock, seatpost seals using dry chain lube or silicon spray

I understand that for some riders they don't have the aptitude but its certainly not hard when shown how, takes only minutes with basic tools and consumables, and makes a massive difference to both the durability of suspension parts and more importantly the ride quality / performance..

loved my old Dixon…awesome bike

custom built mine with Fox 36 Float RC2 fork lowered to 150mm giving sweet spot of 66 degree HA, and suited the very capable SP rear as when I tested the stock bike with Fox 32 found the fork could not keep up with the rear suspension! Also ran 750mm bar, short stem and RS Reverb post, Stans ZTR Flow / Hope Pro II wheels with tubeless Specialized tires, bike just over 30lb

Dixon climbed extremely well and was also a blast on flat singletrack, cannot overstate how much better the SP suspension was than my previous 2 Devinci Hectiks (FSR style 4-bar) which always felt squatty and too soft under power

and when descending..wow! Dixon was a rowdy bike for sure

"When installing parts in a disc brake you have to make sure to use the proper lubricant, a lubricant that will not affect the seals. The fluid used in the system whether it is DOT or Mineral oil is a great lubricant."

great article, the only exception I have is the above information. DOT or Mineral Oil are not lubricants but brake fluids

the correct seal lubricant (whether a seal in the MC or Caliper) is high- temperature silicon grease

using DOT fluid to 'lubricate' the piston seals feels fine when rebuilding but does nothing in the long term to address piston drag, which was a notorious problem for older Hayes disc brakes with their ceramic pistons

the silicon grease is the correct lubricant and ensures great long term performance with minimal piston issues going forward; just make sure to degrease each caliper half (after pushing the pistons home) with ISO Alchohol after using silicon grease as you don't want any excess getting onto the brake pads or rotor..