Thread Starter
TS
AKA The Keswick Dinner Jacket....But he's Canadian, the plaid will come naturally
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Whatcha Doing to the Bike This Year...
- Thread starter scott43
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- Dec 20, 2015
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Also also required- documented aero analysis of crystal-clear 'bent superiority over every upright bike ever invented. Ready for presentation at every beer stop
For debate: Is it 'bents that climb poorly, or 'bent riders that climb poorly?!
Well, not the bike but I just picked up a Kuat NV 2.0 platform rack. It's replacing a Yakima hang and bang carrier.
Along the same lines: have the rack, but need hitch on new car.
I'm on my 3rd year of gravel riding. I really enjoy it but find I'm blowing a tube every other ride or so. I'm certain it's a combination of terrain and technique. I do some single track riding that pushes my ability. When the terrain exceeds my ability the bike ends up paying for it. Better the bike than me.
So what am I doing to the bike? I'm thinking it's tubeless time. While I'm looking forward to pouring over pages of useful forum posts, if anyone wants to point me to some of the better threads on this topic, I'll appreciate it.
In terms of "on the bike", I have my sights set on the Little Bighorn gravel race put on by Gypsum in late June. ~50 miles and ~6000 feet of climbing. Anyone in the Eagle Valley looking for a training partner? https://www.bighorngravel.com/the-race
So what am I doing to the bike? I'm thinking it's tubeless time. While I'm looking forward to pouring over pages of useful forum posts, if anyone wants to point me to some of the better threads on this topic, I'll appreciate it.
In terms of "on the bike", I have my sights set on the Little Bighorn gravel race put on by Gypsum in late June. ~50 miles and ~6000 feet of climbing. Anyone in the Eagle Valley looking for a training partner? https://www.bighorngravel.com/the-race
Tubeless, inserts and tire pressure hacking.
One can get away with an amazing amount of over-terraining while still using tubes, it's just that your tire pressure range has to be within a pretty narrow window and tubes blow if you're either over or under. Tubeless doesn't do away with the tire pressure hacking, it just makes the window bigger.
With gas being $4/gallon + I will be RIDING the bike a LOT tis year.
Hope it's got an 8 speed drivetrain or you're in for replacement parts price and availability shock
Thread Starter
TS
Well the new bag is a dream, the beard is an absolute garbage fire...
www.arkel-od.com
Signature BB Handlebar Bag - 4 L
Arkel Ideal travel buddy / Waterproof / Shoulder strap to hit the streets / Grab snacks while riding / Install it effortlessly, no tool necessary / Ethically made in Canada.
www.arkel-od.com
To preface the next blob of words, I've had 6 months of winter to get all these upgrades and changes lined up for the summer bikes. Some of these things were ordered last summer and came in over the winter as well..
To my main road/gravel/cross bike a 2020 Trek Crockett. I upgraded (sidegrade?) the GRX 810 1x11 groupset to a Rival/Force AXS XPLR 1x12 mismash. Got Rival AXS levers & brakes, Force 10-44 cassette, Rival AXS derailleur, a FlatTop compatible 44t wolftooth chainring, and a Force chain but kept the GRX cranks as I have a Stages power meter on the left crank. Had my LBS run the internal brake lines this week and I was doing the final assembly and such tonight.. Turns out the 114 link Force chain I bought is 1 link (inner&outer set) shy of the required +2 links for proper chain length. Damnit. Bike is 98% done and the chain isn't long enough. Now I have to track down a longer chain or see if my LBS can add a link and not have it messed up or just ride it with a slightly too short chain and hope nothing bad happens. I also got a set of Bontrager Aeolus Pro 51's for the bike cause they looked awesome and the 23mm internal lets me run 30 or 32s for tires nicely.
The commuter/gravel/whatever bike (a 2017 Trek Crocket) got the take off 11-40 cassette & chain from the previous mentioned bike and a WolfTooth Roadlink added to the Ultegra RX derailleur so it would play well with the 40t cog. Previously it was just running a 11-34 and the Ultegra RX worked just fine with it. Replaced the cables and housing for the first time since I got the bike 5 years ago as well. The mechanical disc brakes feel much better than they used too and are more than sufficient for my commute. It got a pair 25mm internal rims laced up to the hubs last year and I can jam 40mm tubeless tires into the frame, so it's great for commuting now. I've got a secure basement at work to stash it in, as it's still way nicer of a bike than what most would consider a commuter bike.
The full sus Fuel EX 9.8 is getting a OneUp bash guard/chain guide. Nothing else needs changed on it, love that bike.
Wife's gravel bike got a set of Bontrager Aeolus 3V carbon wheels and a Ritchey WCS Ergomax bar. I have that bar on my commuter bike, the rise and sweep of the tops, and flare of the drops make these bars so comfy! Totally worth it.
Wife also got a "beater" bike that I bought for $100 off a coworker who was pissed off at his ex. It's a Specialized Pitch 27.5 hardtail that as far as I could tell, had never been ridden more than a handful of times. I tossed a bunch of the parts bin parts on it that came off her fatbike as that was upgraded over the last couple years to 12s and real winter brakes. If it turns out that she likes the bike for more than just random riding around campgrounds, then I'll spring for a Manitou Markour air fork for it. The frame will only take a straight steerer tube fork and the suntour spring fork it comes with is like 8lbs and feels terrible. The Manitou is half the weight, straight steerer tube, and is only $300 for a decent air fork. It'll be a great bike to not care a ton about when we toss it in the back of the car or on the rack to go camping.
I am planning on making a frame bag or two and some bar bags for our bikes this spring. Wife needs a place to put her phone when riding. May as well make some bags!
To my main road/gravel/cross bike a 2020 Trek Crockett. I upgraded (sidegrade?) the GRX 810 1x11 groupset to a Rival/Force AXS XPLR 1x12 mismash. Got Rival AXS levers & brakes, Force 10-44 cassette, Rival AXS derailleur, a FlatTop compatible 44t wolftooth chainring, and a Force chain but kept the GRX cranks as I have a Stages power meter on the left crank. Had my LBS run the internal brake lines this week and I was doing the final assembly and such tonight.. Turns out the 114 link Force chain I bought is 1 link (inner&outer set) shy of the required +2 links for proper chain length. Damnit. Bike is 98% done and the chain isn't long enough. Now I have to track down a longer chain or see if my LBS can add a link and not have it messed up or just ride it with a slightly too short chain and hope nothing bad happens. I also got a set of Bontrager Aeolus Pro 51's for the bike cause they looked awesome and the 23mm internal lets me run 30 or 32s for tires nicely.
The commuter/gravel/whatever bike (a 2017 Trek Crocket) got the take off 11-40 cassette & chain from the previous mentioned bike and a WolfTooth Roadlink added to the Ultegra RX derailleur so it would play well with the 40t cog. Previously it was just running a 11-34 and the Ultegra RX worked just fine with it. Replaced the cables and housing for the first time since I got the bike 5 years ago as well. The mechanical disc brakes feel much better than they used too and are more than sufficient for my commute. It got a pair 25mm internal rims laced up to the hubs last year and I can jam 40mm tubeless tires into the frame, so it's great for commuting now. I've got a secure basement at work to stash it in, as it's still way nicer of a bike than what most would consider a commuter bike.
The full sus Fuel EX 9.8 is getting a OneUp bash guard/chain guide. Nothing else needs changed on it, love that bike.
Wife's gravel bike got a set of Bontrager Aeolus 3V carbon wheels and a Ritchey WCS Ergomax bar. I have that bar on my commuter bike, the rise and sweep of the tops, and flare of the drops make these bars so comfy! Totally worth it.
Wife also got a "beater" bike that I bought for $100 off a coworker who was pissed off at his ex. It's a Specialized Pitch 27.5 hardtail that as far as I could tell, had never been ridden more than a handful of times. I tossed a bunch of the parts bin parts on it that came off her fatbike as that was upgraded over the last couple years to 12s and real winter brakes. If it turns out that she likes the bike for more than just random riding around campgrounds, then I'll spring for a Manitou Markour air fork for it. The frame will only take a straight steerer tube fork and the suntour spring fork it comes with is like 8lbs and feels terrible. The Manitou is half the weight, straight steerer tube, and is only $300 for a decent air fork. It'll be a great bike to not care a ton about when we toss it in the back of the car or on the rack to go camping.
I am planning on making a frame bag or two and some bar bags for our bikes this spring. Wife needs a place to put her phone when riding. May as well make some bags!
Ive been wanting to try my hand at that for several years, just never got to it. Maybe this year…
If you don't have a fabric source for material, look up "ripstop by the roll". They stock pretty much everything you could possibly need to make bags, tents, and things. I primarily use XPac VX07 and VX15 for the bag outer material and 1000D cordura for other parts. I've also picked up some Dyneema and Xpac LiteSkin but am somewthat scared to try anything with it as it is somewhat expensive comparedto the VX I usually use.
I'm not terribly skilled, my bags look pretty good on the outside but my sewing machine isn't strong enough for me to sew in nice linings or nice seam covering stuff. If you have Instagram, look up TDFdreams. He's a friend of mine but is wayyyyy better at making bags than I am. He also has a sewing machine that is absolutely insane. Also he tied for first in this years ITI 350 and second place was also using his bags.
I'm not terribly skilled, my bags look pretty good on the outside but my sewing machine isn't strong enough for me to sew in nice linings or nice seam covering stuff. If you have Instagram, look up TDFdreams. He's a friend of mine but is wayyyyy better at making bags than I am. He also has a sewing machine that is absolutely insane. Also he tied for first in this years ITI 350 and second place was also using his bags.
Last edited:
- Joined
- Dec 20, 2015
- Posts
- 8,478
As long as you have the appropriate tires and tubes, it isn't much of a challenge anymore. Seal the rim's spoke bed with tape of choice, mount the tire, air it up, make sure all is right, add 2 or 3 ounces of tubeless sealant, and off you go.
If fine the "lubing" the beads with soapy water and a toothbrush helps them glide up onto the rim, avoiding the big, somewhat scary POING!
Please report back. I've always been intrigued by these.
Nothing wrong with adding a few links and running two quick-links in one chain. A little inelegant, but perfectly functional.
Personally, I'd cut your chain a little shorter so that you have to add ~5 links, just to keep some distance between the quick links.
Most bike shops have a little tupperware container full of chain ends for just this purpose.
It seems that no one in Fairbanks Alaska runs flattop 12speed chain in any volume yet. I spent a lunch time digging through the bins and work benches at the LBS I'm good friends with and found plenty of everything but a couple links of what I needed. I didn't want to buy two chains just for a couple links.. Ended up ordering the 120 link chain and a couple other things that I hadn't found locally either.
Ive been running Enve 31.8 bars on nearly all my mtb’s since mtb’s moved to 31.8 20’ish years ago. Until today. I put a Raceface Next 35.0 clamp bar on with a Raceface Turbine stem. WOW! I always thought the Enves were pretty stiff, but these bars are crazy stiff(which I like). 760mm wide and I weighed them at 195grams. Only downside is lack of stems, especially in longer lengths. I think 80 is the longest I can find. If anyone finds a 90 or 100 35.0 clamp stem let me know.
It's been pretty bombproof for the past 2 years, about 3,000 miles.. Nothing but a new battery so far..Hope it's got an 8 speed drivetrain or you're in for replacement parts price and availability shock
I’ve been trying to find a brake lever since September
Shimano M8000 Left
DEORE XT BL-M8000 brake lever - Left
The SHIMANO DEORE XT hydraulic disc brake levers are the epitome of durability and performance in mountain biking. The BL-M8000 levers with SERVO WAVE ACTION, idle travel and grip width adjustment are compatible with I-SPEC II. They...
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Speaking of supply chain issues-actually I am selfishly glad for that.
I mean, yeah no SWorks is in sight, which is bad but also means no XXS Eagle AXS upgrade kit available which means I won't have to part with 1200 euros.
I mean, yeah no SWorks is in sight, which is bad but also means no XXS Eagle AXS upgrade kit available which means I won't have to part with 1200 euros.
Yes, like that. thanks!DEORE XT BL-M8000 brake lever - Left
The SHIMANO DEORE XT hydraulic disc brake levers are the epitome of durability and performance in mountain biking. The BL-M8000 levers with SERVO WAVE ACTION, idle travel and grip width adjustment are compatible with I-SPEC II. They...
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