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

Cannock Chase, Malverns or even Wendover Woods potentially?

Can also recommend South Wales, but I'm biased.

11 speed chain, not very old (400km), kept clean and lubed, virtually new chainring and cassette not that worn. Showing 0.5% wear already which I think means I need to change it from a quick Google.
What am I doing wrong? If that's correct, getting a new chain every 400km isn't good for my wallet! Cheers

2 Attachments

Sorted! :)

I have no idea if I'll actually use them or keep my Fox 34s (which definitely need a service, gulp!). My frame is broken, so these are just an 'insurance policy' in case I need to switch up in terms of travel. Hoping for warranty - it's in warranty and then it'll be another Hei Hei.

If that doesn't work out I've got the following options:
Santa Cruz Blur CC 21 (Frameset)
Specialized Epic Evo (Bike and sell most of it as my current kit is better #boastpost)
Cannondale Scalpel - so. much. proprietary. parts.

Anything else I should be looking at for short travel - urgh, downcountry - bikes? 100-120mm ideally.

Anything else I should be looking at for short travel - urgh, downcountry - bikes? 100-120mm ideally.

Transition Spur?

These are nice

1 Attachment

Order of current preference:

1. Specialized Epic Evo - matches Sl7 for good shed vibes. Hit's function on head. In stock in XL. Matches current bike for reach, stack slightly greater
   
2. Santa Cruz Blur CC 21 (Frameset) - all current hei hei parts will fit on the bike. With only a BB required. 495mm reach. In stock in XL.
   
3. Transition Spur - Numbers stack up... 510mm reach! Availability looks to be a challenge.
   
   
   
   

Bike Bin:

1. BMC Fourstroke - reach on their bikes is tiny tiny. 476 on an XL. My 2017 Hei Hei is 485... Everything above is same or greater.
   
2. Cannondale Scalpel - so. much. proprietary. parts. such. little. reach.
   
   

Keep them massive bike suggestions coming :)

That seat tube looks very slack.

Effective 75.6 degrees. It's just offset a fair bit

Disappointed by the reach, not that I'd ever imagined it being big enough to ride one

Talboy 4 over the Blur? Blur very xc race geo. Tallboy a bit more fun over the Blur?

I actually really want a Talboy 4 and looking for someone to swap my 5010 with.

From experience I expect 800 kms from a 1 x 10 chain on wide range cassette, compared to 2500 kms from a 2 x 10 speed chain. Think its the wide chainline swings and increased tension in bigger rear cogs that kills the chain. I run my Sherpa 2 x 10 for this reason. I still like 1 x on my Turner Sultan though and accept the chain wear

My kind of fun is firmly on the ground. Though I did do some trails around Longleat the other day which was enjoyable and did leave the ground a number of times - less out of choice and more because my brother failed to call jumps or drops!

Can't find any of the XXL Tallboy in stock...

SCOTT SPARK 910 looks nice. But not available yet / not in stock.

1 Attachment

Bird Aether?

800kms is nothing!

Chains are cheap, get a new chain.

If you are riding in sandy conditions the wear will be accelerated. My XC bike usually goes about 1,500km between chains. Its usually running on dry earth / wet earth, no sand or chalk.

Do any of you lot strip and wax your chains so dirt doesn't stick to them and maybe prolong their life? I guess it depends where you're riding but during summer it might be more useful than winter. I do love dropping a filthy chain into wax though rather than cleaning and relubing with oil.

I cleaned mine with degreaser and then used the ceramic lube from Crankalicious - a long way off what you are talking about, but (apart from, oddly, my rides this week) it’s kept my chain very clean and well lubricated.

1x = constant cross-chaining (oh sorry, this isn't the gravel thread ;) )

Check your RD clutch? If the tension is too high maybe it's prematurely wearing the chain?

Chains are cheap

Are they? Maybe if you can find any in stock :S

I normally use the factory lube and when they're filthy do a wax job. But on MTB the chain is likely to be fucked by the time the factory lube is done so when I actually get to ride my MTB I might go straight for waxing. Maybe I'll experiment some more on the gravel bike now I have it back.

actually get to ride my MTB I might go straight for waxing

Back, sack and chain please

Strong recommend for epic Evo. My friend and my wife have one (each, to be clear), and they're amazing. I would buy one if I could afford, and I'm no spesh fanboy.

Back, sack and chain please

"leave a little on the top.. helps give a sense of direction when it all gets a bit Twister™"

Just go back in time to 2019 and buy ten of them. Duh!

I did. Problem is I've worn them out already ;)