Let's offroad / mountain bike / mtb / ride dirt

@suffolk_boii I'd avoid Cwmcarn like the plague at the moment. After a wet period my brother and I both wrote off most of our drivetrains on a single day there. Nearly all moving parts were either replaced or never the same again. I'd go the extra distance to Afan.

Was thinking this might be the case. Afan is nice and hardpack. Afan it is!

Why are Hope E4s such a pain in the arse to get lined up without any rub?

Remove the pads and check if the pistons are leveled.

Why are fork tuning guides about 20psi higher for suggested sag?

Get a shockwiz. I'll be using mine for next two weeks, you can borrow it later.

Why are Hope E4s such a pain in the arse to get lined up without any rub?

Remove the pads and check if the pistons are leveled.

Such a bollocks task. Especially as Hope suggest prodding the pads with a screw driver, it's like they forgot they'd anodised them.

Why are fork tuning guides about 20psi higher for suggested sag?

Get a shockwiz. I'll be using mine for next two weeks, you can borrow it later

Whoop!

Any good deals on 100-120mm boost 29er forks about?

Get a shockwiz. I'll be using mine for next two weeks

Silly, you'd have to ride your bike to do that

Really?
I ride in and around that valley Risca/Machen/Cwmcarn most weeks year round. Mix of hardtail and full sus throughout the winter and never noticed it to be that hard wearing. But perhaps that’s as I lived next to Woburn for a couple of years which truly ate drive trains in wet weather

Honestly, one ride and both the bikes were trashed. We'd done a few days at Coed y Brenin earlier in the same week, also very wet. No such problems there.

I guess Afan & Coed are both far rockier with a fair bit of the trails where you’re riding on bedrock so less gritty grime sprays up.

I’ve certainly become fair better with cleaning, degreasing and lubing after each ride since being here

Yeah cleaning (quickly after the carnage of a particularly mucky ride) is the key. This was the autumn half term week, so it got dark early. We wanted more riding so did a lap in the dark. Meant the bikes went on the roof rack filthy, long drive home and then put straight in the garage as it was too late to do anything with by the time we got home. It was a few years ago so can't remember how long it was until they got the attention they deserved, but it was too late.

Are the E4s new? If so the pistons tend to be sticky and don't retract properly. I tend to avoid all the time consuming piston training Hope talk about and just ride them for a while. During use everything settles down and the pistons retract consistently

I don't what this magic contamination Cwmcarn has compared to Coed and Afan.

Many perplexed.

My Manitou Mattoc pro?

Not had much use beyond a trip to BPW. 100mm, boost and plenty of clearance for 29x3 tyres

I'm not using it much and thinking of a change in the bike shed

Interested. Can you drop me a pm with details?

I've taken it for a spin and all is fine on that caliper, but the other one is touching on one side now. They're not new, maybe they just need disassembling and cleaning.

Have you cleaned and lubed the pistons with Hunters lube?

Afan has a free bikewash

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I'm surprised Afan's still there after all the recent rain and floods.

Was mostly intact, few diversions. Wasn’t muddy but the grit ate a (well used) pair of brake pads to nothing. Looking forward to The Wall / Y Wal in summer

I've done them with silicone lubricant, seems to be fine now, its the other bloody one that's not.

I've got some BB7s you can have cheap ;-)

Did they come out of the bin?

I can customise them for you

Currently got a Recon RL on the Sentier - is there a midway fork worth upgrading to before you get to the big bucks Bomber, Yari territory? Would like something more ‘buttery’

There's nothing I'm aware of, there's always a jump in price associated with quality forks that have quality damping.
I'd just put eBay alerts out for a Pike, Lyrik, Manitou Mattoc, Bomber, X-Fusion Sweep, etc; and jump on it when a good price comes up.
With Rock Shox I'd avoid the more basic Motion Control dampers you find standard in the Yari, the better the damping the the smoother the feel of the fork. The Yari will still be an upgrade over your current fork (mostly due to the beefier chassis, less deflection so less stiction, better tracking also as a result, it's just the damping that I always found wanting) and if you got one you could upgrade to a Charger 2 damper later. Average costs, parts and labour, are around £250. If you have suspension service experience you could have it sorted for £150 if you shop around.
Still might be cheaper long term to just buy a Pike or Lyrik with that damper already fitted.