jt profile

They are mostly under the radar for sure, especially with west coasters. The V1 Wildcat was on the slack side, but that's been tightened up on the V2 (76 deg), bringing it to the modern age. Just may be looking at one for next summer. I've been on their V3 Sergeant for a few months now, rolling it as a 29er for summer and recently set it up 27.5x4 for the oncoming winter. Pretty versatile bike in that regards. I didn't want a dedicated fatty since the wide BB's bug my knees over long rides, but with our winters here in the north central states, pedaling outdoors in the woods means a fatty is mighty handy.

In regards to the adjustable chainstays, 44 headtube, and ISCG mounts there is a small company doing just that. RSD out of Ontario with their Wildcat full sussers. I am mighty interested in the V2 version for much the same reasons, and the possibility of making a set of drops to run a dedicated 27.5 wheelset that's not plus sized and over-fork it. Tinkerer's daydream. Disclaimer, I own a RSD Sergeant, so if you wish to call me fanboi go ahead, I'll accept it.

Brutal. Mine is a toss between my Bontrager Race or DeKerf Implant MTBs. I learned suicide no handers on the Bonty, and had one of the best 4 days in Moab on the Implant.

This is excellent. This is a helluvan idea, these repair cafes. Never heard of em but now I'm afraid I may get a bit OCD about it. My wife laughs and enjoys how much of our 'disposable' devices I aim to fix rather than buy a new one for $20 (or more in the case of a freebie 46" TV that needed new capacitors). Thanks again for providing a helluva story and motivation beyond just riding the shit out of my bikes. I've said it before, and will again: This is why I frequent this site. Now to lay plans to organize a repair cafe in my 'burgh.

Kinda weird that the company that came up with the GMS system for measuring tire widths doesn't include that info on their website. i know they have it on the sidewalls, but...

Yeah, Automatix. I should clarify that it works great with the correct wheel size. It was designed with a 26" wheel in mind. I only rode one on a 700c wheel. To get the shift to happen at the right time, you had to pull the hub apart and re-tension the springs (i.e. stretch them out). As stock, the shift would happen in the 1st few pedal strokes, well before you're up to speed and def when you need it least. That process took more than a few times to get right, as you could imagine. And sorry for the stupid delay responding. Took you revisiting procore to make me revisit this one!

"...complete with unfettered access to a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week NSMB writer shortcoming database entry system (aka the comment section)."

Good Crom, that is absolutely the best descriptor of ANY comment section.

I see a few issues. First, routing the front brake line down the steerer and out and over the arch just looks like guillotine for the brake line between the arch and crown. Maybe not all at once, but that's some hard bends at bottom out.  Second, with some tire and travel combos I could see a bit of tire buzz on the brake line as well. Third, in the event that one stacks it hard, the bars will have no limit to their rotation or the # of times they can spin (if run with AXS), so the possibility of breaking a brake line and not knowing it seems pretty high. A slight tear in a brake may not show itself well initially, but get worse in use after the crash, causing a brake failure. 

I like the looks and concept, but i think a MTB is the wrong place to apply it.

Yes. As someone who has had to use opposing chain whips to remove a cassette, one cog at at a time, that's galled into an alloy freehub body, absolutely yes. The change in spline orientation distributes load over a broader face of the spline without having a 90deg angle, so it'll be far, far less likely to notch the freehub body as can happen to HG freehubs. Same goes for XD, with the added benefit of not having to hunt down as many creaks that come from those riveted GX cassettes. Wasn't stoked on Centerlock when they first came out, but after having wrenched on em for the better part of 10 years, it does cut down rotor swap times to comically short. As for pedals, I've seen SPD pedals where the cleat interfaces and springs have worn out but still spin like butter. Don't get me wrong, it ain't all wine and roses I'm sure, but everything you mention has sound engineering principals to back it up. I won't be the first person to open my wallet, but when the time comes to replace my drivetrain I won't necessarily be bummed.

I won't bemoan the expansion of microspline. From a design standpoint it is a much better interface for the hub and cassette and easier and (hence better) productability for manufacture. The sloping teeth should do a good job of preventing the galling that happens to XD and HG freehub bodies without having to resort to a steel insert. I am curious to see what the mech looks like in the new hubs though.