geraldooka profile

Same, my fav brake in my fleet is the pre 000 series Deore, simple, dirt cheap (when it was around) and worked forever, ya its a light switch but I dig that tap tap go... I still have a set that I've not done one damn thing to except change pads for 6 bloody years, still works perfectly! I can't say the same for any other brake system I've used including latter versions of the Shimano products sadly...

Ya I'm not sure why manufacturers are so fixated on short chainstays. Steep seat angles help with climbing performance but they also seem to necessitate taller bars which exacerbates the short rear centre issues when climbing. I like em short on my everything else bike but it sees primarily road, dirt path and the pump track its the play bike but on the trail bike I'd prefer not to have to fight the front end end when I'm already struggling up a gnarly switchback. In all cases the days of hunching over my bike are long over I want a nice comfy cockpit which means higher bars with a touch more sweep please.

https://www.ergotec.de/en/safety-level-33.html

I have no concerns re safety this is much more complete data than the vast majority of manufacturers out there. I would caution the purchase source however Ergotec is not well distributed outside of the EU and Amazon has been know to ship me something I didn't actually purchase ;)

I’m encouraged that in my experiment when matched to a higher cockpit I was still able to do the wheelies and pump track type fun stuff despite adding 20mm to the rear end. It rides great and because I’m more upright I’m more comfortable. It’s convinced me that should I go for another custom hardtail or full suspension I would have no problems starting at 435 “the new playful” and have the ability to stretch it to 455 for even more upright comfortable goodness.

There are drawbacks to big stack or even higher bars. It’s not as much of an issue on descending but it can make climbing those particularly steep punch climbs more challenging. Andrew‘s bike is quite anomalous in the industry to a degree that his riding experience is going to be very unique. I’m not suggesting his opinion is invalid just the unique geometry of his frame needs to be considered as part of the discussion. I recently stretched the chain stays out on my hardtail to their longest setting 435mm vs the shortest 415 it made a massive difference in the way the bike climbed. I could stay seated and run a more upright cockpit with taller grip position and still climb steep terrain similarly. Imagine what 450mm or longer stays would be like I could probably sit bolt upright and still maintain the same front  wheel traction...

I tend to prefer my bars flat, I can't stand having the inside of my hand pointed towards the ground. I actually have not idea how anyone could ride like that it feels super awkward but hey whatever floats right?! In my case within extreme limits I would not experience a longer reach because I do generally keep the bar in line with the head angle, assuming the grips are flat at that angle which so far in dozens of bars tested seems to be the case.

The OR Helium or Helium II (the II has a nicer cut) is great if you could only bring just one jacket jacket. Its much more akin to a true rain-shell though and not a very breathable one. Its an order of magnitude less breathable than the 7mesh (or several orders). However its my go to for travel where I only want to carry the one shell. Though that was before the 7mesh and now I think I may just opt to take it for the small additional hit on weight, bulk etc.

PataGucci Houdini is a brilliant piece and my most used jacket its just so bloody versatile. Its heavy use in my jacket rotation has meant the DWR coating is long gone but it still keeps me warm if a little damp. I did splurge on one of those 7mesh units but I can't bring myself to take it beyond commuter status because it is literarily the nicest article of clothing I own.

Or a glutten for punishment :) I suspect your riding goals and mine are quite different outside of what we would each define as "fun". I have had a lot of fun riding my rigid Krampus on the rough stuff but I just have no interest in busting a gut pushing it single speed especially with what I consider to be mindbogglingly heavy tire/insert combinations you dig. Though I can appreciate the idea and I really love simple machines like your Walt V2. I'm just never going to be fit enough to enjoy that SS experience. Running as light a wheel and tire set I can get away with has been one of the best things I've ever done from a strictly gear acquisition point of view to my cycling life.

I'll also put my hand up as someone who can appreciate a so called unbalanced bike. I'm fortunate to have sliders that can let me have my cake and... But I just love riding my hardtail in full short rear mode I can pop that wheel up and hop off rocks like I was on a BMX!

CoilAir, it can be as complicated or simple as you like! The leverage ratio refers to the amount of force applied for a given travel distance. Bikes can have higher, lower or variable leverage (and as such force applied) differences through out the entire range of available travel. In the case of the Process 153 it appears that you're leverage ratio changes very little from zero travel to full travel and falls from a higher leverage ratio to a lower ratio approximately 2.84 to 2.62. So at the beginning of your travel you have a bigger lever i.e. more force than you have at the end of your travel a smaller lever i.e. less force. The force chart is simply indicating how much force that lever is applying at a given travel.

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Make sure your wire and spade are appropriately sized for the amperage. Good luck. Coffee machine down = bad.

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I have a Nimble 9 which is similar in Geo to the Honzo or Taro. I can say that its is a great bike with ridiculously short chain stays and a similarly very short wheelbase. Its a fun bike to ride for sure but not nearly as fun as my Heckler.

That was tough to stomach as first (my first modern bike I built) but riding back to back even on trails that really don't warrant the Heckler I'd prefer to be on it. I have relegated the Nimble 9 to my bike packing bike and occasionally will take it out for a ride around town but for fun on the trails its the Heckler all the way.

Despite its geo I just can't manipulate the 29er as easily, level wheel lifts, front wheel lifts manuals etc. are all more difficult to do on it. I suspect that despite the progressive geo one still has that BB drop to contend with and that changes leverage ratios significantly. The heckler with its much longer wheelbase (1138 vs 1080ish) much longer chain stay (439 vs 415ish) feels more nimble and fun, it does have the smaller 27.5 wheels and a correspondingly shorter BB drop… My 2 cents.

I'm also heading in the light as possible direction. Went from Flows to lighter wheels (still trail oriented) and from the 2.4 Ardents to the 2.2 Ikons. The difference in weight/feel has been awesome (I run both tubeless.) I'm now convinced that my bike budget needs to redirect as much funds as possible to even lighter wheels! I like those Beavers but the EXO version is 760grams which likely means closer to 800 about the weight of the Ardents…

The start of our local haunt here (Hartland) is one big climb. The rest is short ups and downs its just too much climbing for the big tires for too little pay offs on short downs.