D_C_ profile

I'm with you. Seat angles that make sense on a full suspension, where the rear sags and the seat travels backwards, do not make sense on a hardtail. Something that looks fashionably steep on paper ends up very steep on a hardtail once the fork sags.

I am riding a 2019 Rootdown with 150 fork (10 mm shorter than stock) and feel quite over the bars while seated. I am not sold.

I had a V1 170 post and it seized up after a couple months of use in sloppy conditions. I emailed OneUp and they quickly sent me a new upper bushing free of charge, which popped in without needing to disassemble the post. That solved the issue, and post was flawless after that over 8 months of use before I sold the bike.

I now have a 180 V2 on my new bike, and the action feels smoother than the V1. As said above, they now ship standard with the V2.1 actuator mechanism, where the cable moves instead of the housing. I have only had the new post for a week, so I can’t comment on durability.

It does in 27.5 but not in 29.

Maxx Grip in EXO+ would be awesome. The 1300 g DD I’ve been lugging around on my trail bike is exhausting, but I’m spoiled with the grip and don’t think I can go back to anything else.

Thanks for the great review and interesting perspective on the drawbacks of the harder rubber.

I have drilled a hole in the bb shell on steel and alloy hardtail frames that didn’t come with them. It solved my problem of having bottom brackets seize.

I’ve also had issues with water sitting in the head tube and seizing the lower headset bearing. The solution to this might be to tip the bike back so it drains into the downtube (assuming the headtube has an opening into the downtube).

I think your take-home message is that it’s important to be aware of water getting into the frame and to make sure that water is evacuated in some way.

What if your bike has a drain hole in the bb shell? Is pulling the seatpost still necessary?

Not sure I agree. I think most people get on fine with EXOs, especially if your riding area has fewer jagged rocks (including quite a few of my friends who ride hard on the Shore). Heavy tires are necessary for some usage or terrain, but really neuter the versatility of a bike and are probably overkill for lots of people.

I’m a fan of CushCore in back on the enduro bike. I took it out for a trip to the Kootenays, where the dirt is softer and loamier than what we typically ride on the Shore, and didn’t really miss it. 

But first lap back from the trip, I rode Executioner with 26 psi in back and thought I was going to rattle my teeth out. Being able to run 22 psi in the rear tire without folding tires over or destroying rims is a game changer on hard, bumpy terrain. It’s the small-bump sensitivity everyone thinks they are looking for from their suspension.

CushCore in front on the enduro bike felt like diminishing returns.

Thanks for sharing this perspective, and for your work on Pipeline.

“The DNV is NOT at fault”

Can you elaborate?

Other than rim protection, it would be interesting to know what, if anything, the CushCore XC inserts give up in ride quality compared to the heavier ones. Maybe some side-by-side testing would be good.

Posted by: Timer

Wouldn't you need to compensate for the lower air volume by increasing tire pressure? Smaller volume ramps up quicker but takes less force to compress in total, just like with narrow tires.

Except that, at a certain point, the insert starts to compress, and the tire pressure continues to ramp up as that happens.

Vital did a bunch of testing where they hung weights from various handlebars and measured deflection. There was quite a bit of variation between models of carbon bars, and the alloy Race Face bars tested flexed similarly. The OneUp bars had the largest deflection.

Starts around 6:50

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPHvBgm1Vvg&feature=emb_title

Aside from options mentioned, I have had good luck finding suspension parts at Fanatik in Bellingham, if you are ever down that way. 

Otherwise, local-ish places to check are Dunbar, Suspensionwerx and Fluid Function.

I also haven't had good luck with Race Face Cinch PF bottom brackets.

I don't know much about the Nukeproof inserts, but CushCore allows you to ride out on a flat.

If you're running inserts front and back (that are substantial enough to ride out on flat), you could decide not to bring a tube. But a bit of redundancy doesn't hurt. Having a tube leaves you with a couple options.

I have the Enduro Bearings bb discussed in this article and it has been flawless: https://nsmb.com/articles/searching-30mm-bb92-solution/

These people make some in many sizes: https://robertaxleproject.com/

Pretty easy to play around with headset spacers while out for a ride. I find 5 mm is noticeable.

My observations:

Lower:

- better for flat corners

- worse on steep and rough trails (hips drop back to compensate for being pulled forward)

Higher:

- front end feels a bit more vague on flat corners

- more intuitive handling on steep and rough terrain 

- a bit easier to shift weight around fore-aft since you’re not being pulled forward

So I think a lot of it depends on the trails you’re riding and how you want your bike to feel.

About a year ago, I was climbing Good Sir Martin. A hiker moved out of the way to let me by. I gave a smile and a friendly "hello" and kept going. She responded grumpily and said "you're welcome." I thought I was being friendly but neglected to say the words "thank you." She was likely having a bad day, or maybe I encountered her after a dozen other bikers had gone by her. But her reaction was a wake-up call. Saying "thank you" goes a long way.

I also think of the impact on geometry/ride height. Coil shocks probably need to be run with less sag than an air shock to avoid excessive bottom-out, whereas an air shock can be run at something like 35% sag if desired, and have progression adjusted by spacers.

In theory, a coil shock has less stiction so it will still feel sensitive with less sag, but you end up with a bike riding higher in its travel, which can be a good or bad thing depending on your bike setup goals.

This is purely theoretical, though. I haven’t tried an air and coil shock on the same frame.