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

Anyone with a Santa Cruz Chameleon? I've bought a 2nd hand '19 with 27.5" wheels, 140mm fox 34 forks and xtr/xt gears and brakes etx. Can't wait for it to arrive. Wondering about eventually changing over to 29 however not sure about effect on geometry, especially seattube angle. Any thoughts? It's a medium and I'm 5.10 but I'm expecting that with a 60/70mm stem it will be fine. Not necessarily ideal but a great bike and hardly the time to be quibbling over what bikes are for sale! Any advice for getting the most out of it/kit that really works well on the Chameleon? Cheers!

If it's just creaking they might just need repacking. if you're washing your bike with hose or pressure washer or the likes, give the bearings a spray with something that's got s surfactant in like teflon to provide another barrier for the water to get through.

The angles will remain the same, it'll just make your BB height higher.

Yeah good point. I was on two trains of thought, the other being whether to try 27.5 on the back and 29 on the front and got mixed up re. the angle issue. Anyone tried that one out? Sounds like it could have some interesting benefits apart from the slacker seat tube.

In the upper rocker arm there are four fairly small sealed bearings, three of them are fine, one of them is screwed- and it’s the one that is above the chainset and likely bore the brunt of most hose action. Lesson learned there.

I have emailed Pace asking for a full bearing set, I’ll take it back apart when they arrive, clean it all again and press the new bearings in.

Recent thread on Singltrackworld about it. Think owner conclusions were bb slightly higher but wont notice difference wheel size

Thanks for the link. Gmbn have done a couple of videos on it, basically downhill good uphill not so good. Although that was on some pretty slack bikes to start with so that would have an impact. It's a case of ride it and see when the bike arrives really! Fortunate to have a family member who works in the LBS(kirroughtree) so could get out some 29ers to try.

Hmmm Kirroughtree. I am South of Stranraer in a couple of weeks taking a shift to look after an aged parent with a broken arm (legal reason to travel). Wonder if by then can bring the bouncy bike... not ridden it for 18 months. Would be good to have fun on some proper rocky shit but maybe still too soon.

Yeah we Pm'd last year, funny to run into you on the forum again I was wondering when you might be able to get back up! If you're passing and fancy heading out give me a shout. It is within the rules to exercise with one other!

Hope the parent and the arm are doing as well as can be expected.

Yeah, funny another mate (super nice bloke and good rider - will hook you up?) just moved south of NS. Mulling a move to NS or GoF or Kirkcudbright myself at the moment. Was up 3 weeks at xmas but stayed very local.
Daft parent ok. 87, but hopefully will mend ok.

Yeah do. Always looking to meet new people locally and riders especially.

Wow. Fair play! Nice they are getting that excited over something!

Let us know if you think more seriously about it.

Getting bearings out: pick a socket that's the same diameter, tap out with hammer.

Getting bearings in: use same socket with the thing you are pressing the bearings into sat in the vice? Or should I use a small bearing press, and if so does anyone have recommendations?

Run them in on the road now, before you forget.

Also, props to Skinny for his green scourer + dish soap disc cleaning.

Worked better than the £15 cans of fucking Mucoff disc brake cleaner.

There are a lot of bearings on a fully floating rear suspension system.

Hardtail FTW *

For The Winter

Run them in on the road now, before you forget.

Just done so, I have to say I do wish for more bite/power from the rear brake.

Is there an official Magura service centre anywhere in the UK that I could (when things are open again) use to check my brakes out?

I have a Magura bleed kit, after doing the Inbred brakes once, does that count? :P

Also, props to Skinny for his green scourer + dish soap disc cleaning.

Yeah , that's a good shout regarding the Scotchbrite pads, they do more coarse ones in Halfords in the car paint section.

8 new Enduro bearings ordered, a bearing press and the correct extractors and drifts. I just need that lot to arrive and I can fully service the rear end. I'm continuing my game of "challenge Londons finest bike shops with Magura", and taking the bike into LMNH for Sam to have a crack at it on Thursday.

Maguras are some of the easiest systems I’ve found to bleed. Any shop they’ll do the other brand should sort you out.

Maguras are some of the easiest systems I’ve found to bleed.

I mean, I've done it and I'm still riding them.

I bought this kit back in 2015 and used it once after buying the Inbred off ebay:
https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/magura-mini-service-kit/rp-prod208

On a related note, I've seen Royal Blood play in Ally Pally.

Maguras are some of the easiest systems I’ve found to bleed. Any shop they’ll do the other brand should sort you out.

In my (admittedly anecdotal) experience this is (when it comes to bike shop mechanics) not true, and Magura bleeding is "Very Hard" to "Impossible", to the extent that one "MTB Pro-Shop" in the Alps literally gave up and I had to buy some Shimano brakes from them (which they could bleed).

I mean, I've done it and I'm still riding them.

MT7's?