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

I'm not local anymore unfortunately, QECP is my ends now.

Hardtail probably best, the marked trails are relatively tame. A couple of fun sections in the middle but mostly quite 'XC' I'd say.
Fun for an hour or two if you're passing (it's near my in-laws') but not worth traveling far to visit IMO.
It does have a newish 'freeride' area that may be worth investigating if that's your sort of thing.

Managed less than 30mins at Redlands today before stopping a bit more suddenly than I planned. This is my saddle before and then after my thigh slammed into the back of it

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Whereas I used to know what was what regarding components I've lost touch with all the recent changes to pretty much everything.

What is the difference between a SRAM X1 and a SRAM GX1 11 speed rear mech (aside from £100 price differential)?

Similarly, what the difference between a SRAM XG 1180 (which appear to be out of stock everywhere) and a SRAM XG 1175 (£180) and a SRAM XG 1150 (£123).

(can you guess that my drivetrain is worn and needs replacing?)

fun weekend with bikes, beers and talking bikes...

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I'd love a talking bike.

talking horses
talking cars
talking bikes
...
so what?

I've used a couple of versions of their 11s cassettes on SHimano and it seems just like Ultegra vs. Dura Ace, the more spendy ones use lighter bits.

ie. in the case of the first two, it's $50 for an aluminium big cog.

FULL PIN™ technology uses eleven lightweight, stamped steel cogs held together with 123 high-strength stainless steel pins. The result: a cassette that's light, durable and equipped with SRAM's super wide 10-42t gear range that's a perfect fit for any ride. The open design similar to our X-DOME™ cassette aids in mud clearance, giving you cleaner shifting performance and longer component life.

FULL PIN™ technology uses ten lightweight, stamped steel cogs and one 42t aluminum cog held together with 123 high-strength stainless steel pins. The result: a cassette that's light, durable and equipped with SRAM's super wide 10-42t gear range that's a perfect fit for any ride. The open design similar to our X-DOME™ cassette aids in mud clearance, giving you cleaner shifting performance and longer component life.

https://www.pinkbike.com/forum/listcomments/?threadid=178704

The 1180 is weird, it's a "1180 MINI CLUSTER" which appears to be half-pinned rather than full pinned.

I would use whatever fits my bike, provides the lowest gears and is the cheapest, in that order.

Does KITT have a little brother?

I'm really happy with how this is coming together. Still need to bleed the brakes before I can do a proper test ride but it feels good so far:)

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Are there any thoughts on the offerings of bicycleonline, namely Polygon Suskiu t8 and Marin Rift Zone 3? Or not-so-expensive aluminum trail bikes in general?

I am dithering ... contemplating what sort of full sus will be the one to go for. Do I ditch the Chisel and buy an expensive light carbon number or do I keep the HT and buy a burly one for just doing bike parks (although the local bike parks here don't have uplifts usually).

Those two look like a budget friendly option and I wonder how much the weight matters there, but also how upgrades down the line can mitigate the frame weight ...

I think it's been widely stated that unless you're XC racing (and actually, even then) weight is irrelevant. Listened to an interview with Chris Porter and he said "it's never the lightest bike that wins"

For reference, I can pedal my 16.6kg 180mm travel bike up hill no problem and it rides down a lot better than my old carbon one

Buy the one that fits best, has the best components for the money, and is in stock

I've heard good things about Polygons, so there's that

About 5 mates have the Rift Zone and love it.

The rift zone 3 right now is 25% off and this is less expensive than a Chisel or a fuse here, which just blows my mind.

The polygon T8 comes in a smidge more expensive but is probably more capable because it has more travel and the likes.

The reason why I do worry a bit about weight is that I really have to get up all trails under my own steam here, and most of my riding starts with 300-400m elevation gain before I go down anything.

I really have to get up all trails under my own steam here, and most of my riding starts with 300-400m elevation gain before I go down anything.

Enduro bikes are designed to be pedalled up 1000m+ actual mountains. Don't worry about weight, enjoy the descent!

Cheers for the detailed reply. So it appears they will all fit but the higher numbers models appear to be lighter....

I build up as light a full sus as i could because I will hike 1000m plus trails. I'd only worry about weight if it will be on your back for hours. Even then, only run what you can afford to replace.

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Ride them all the buy the one you like. Throw spare cash at suspension tune and training.

That's the problem with the Polygons and Marins ... you can't go to a shop and test ride them willy nilly, it's mailorder

Weight is far less important than pedalling position, kinematics and gearing- all of which will combine to make a bike go uphill well (or not).

The Pinkbike group tests have an efficiency test- which one crosses the line on a climb first at a steady 300 watts. It’s usually surprising which one it is (the RAAW Jibb won its group test IIRC and it is not optimised for weight).

How do you find your new suspension?

Look down.

Not sure. I'm super rusty and my hands are still half numb I can't ride much more than shit.
I do think I need to take the stock token out the fork as with 20% sag I'm a long way from bottoming out. Right now the front and back feel independent and not signing from the same sheet. But untill my hands work I can't really ride it well enough to feel it into right.

The shorter stem is nice though. Can get over the bars better.

I do really like the adjustment on the pike though. The buttercups does seem to work and the low speed works good as a lockout.