Get back on those trails! I was riding my 20yr old hardtail when I first got back into it.…until I decided to see what new bikes have to offer. The geometry of modern MTB’s makes a big difference, even with hardtails. Now is a good time to by a new bike at pretty big discounts. Can find deals for 25-35% off…as they’re clearing out this year’s inventory.
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Mountain bikers
- Thread starter N54TT
- Start date
Yep, I'm gonna check out some local stores. 20% off will be hard to beat. Gonna go this weekend and see what's what.
My 2002 bike is still on the original chain. The problem is it was an entry trek (alpha 4300) and building it back to a usable state might be hard; brakes are screwed, it barely shifts, the chain rings are bent/worn, so it slips if I really get on it. With all that said I run road slicks on it and I still put in a 15 mile ride on it a month or so ago when I didn't have my road bike.
Mine wobbles a lot when viewing through the backup camera on Model Y. I didn't recall seeing the same when I had my ICE SUV.
I was fairly close to buying a new Trek but I decided to buy a grand canyon 5 instead. Should arrive later this week or early next. It was $500 with free shipping last week for the red one. It has the exact same drive train and brakes as Trek's $1200 marlin or $1650 Roscoe 7. It lacks a dropper post, so I'll have to get one of those--will probably end up drilling a hole so that I can run an internal.
I'm still smarting over the absolute bottom barrel components I got on my Domane AL 2 (claris and horrifically weak mechanical brakes) I bought from trek last year, and I remembered this is why I bought a bike from bikesdirect.com 15 years ago at around 50% the cost of a store bought. This canyon is basically half the price of a similarly equipped Trek, and massively outcompetes Trek's marlin 4 which is the same price but has entry level everything. Higher end bikes are discounting heavily right now but the cheaper bikes I didn't see much going on.
I'm still smarting over the absolute bottom barrel components I got on my Domane AL 2 (claris and horrifically weak mechanical brakes) I bought from trek last year, and I remembered this is why I bought a bike from bikesdirect.com 15 years ago at around 50% the cost of a store bought. This canyon is basically half the price of a similarly equipped Trek, and massively outcompetes Trek's marlin 4 which is the same price but has entry level everything. Higher end bikes are discounting heavily right now but the cheaper bikes I didn't see much going on.
MTB fiend/new MY owner checking in….
‘22 Levo
‘21 Chisel Hardtail
‘21 Ripmo AF
Anyone ride on Socal?
‘22 Levo
‘21 Chisel Hardtail
‘21 Ripmo AF
Anyone ride on Socal?
Figured out a partial solution to my 1UP rack wobble: I bolted on an "Xtreme duty wheel chock". Not intended for my rack but it works fine with a triangular aluminum spacer.
Steering rotation was causing more of the wobble than I expected. It's much better but still not as stable as I'd like so I'm going to try doubling up the "neutral bent arms" next to increase their stiffness.
Steering rotation was causing more of the wobble than I expected. It's much better but still not as stable as I'd like so I'm going to try doubling up the "neutral bent arms" next to increase their stiffness.
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I got this for Xmas. Only had out a few times because weather is awful in New York, but this weekend got the coast dropper seat put on. I had thought of drilling for internal but the coast wasn't available late last year internally. I do need to get these twist ties replaced with red ones, though. This bike was $499 around Thanksgiving.
Nice! The dropper will proabbly take a ride or two to get used to. I don’t know how anyone can really ride without one lol. The weather here has been tough. Not that it’s too cold. It’s actually the opposite. With nights below freezing and warmer daytime temps….the freeze thaw has been tough this winter…..and now snow.
Back in the day I always thought about getting behind the seat but was too scared I'd be unable to get in front, so when I learned about droppers I knew I needed one! It seems good so far. This coast seat post also has a separate chamber to serve as suspension over rough bumps, which I wanted and it seems to work pretty well.
My last three bikes have had droppers. Never used them once. Too accustomed to old school mtb biking where you just hang your ass back off the saddle. A couple of my friends that aren’t the greatest riders seem to like them. I’m not an expert either, just used to riding like I did in the early/mid nineties. To each their own.
Oh definitely! Everyone has their preferences. I rode a lot when I was in my teens and 20’s. Then took a 15-20yr break and started riding again 5yrs ago. Was riding my old Marin at first and then upgraded to a modern bike with a dropper. Depending on the trails you ride and riding style, a dropper makes a huge difference when you use it. Keeps you at optimal pedaling height/position when in the saddle. On the downs, technical sections and jumping…it gives you soo much space to move around. On a static saddle, I would keep it lower to give me some space….but then I’m not at best height for pedaling. I ride a combo of local single track, bike park 1-3 times a season, like both tech and flow jump trails. I don’t send it on huge table tops and gap jumps….but I like to think I’m a decent rider. I’m actually a better rider at 46 than I was in my 20’s lol.
Some pics of my old bike that I finally gave away to my brother in law lol. And some instances where the dropper helps me out. I wouldn’t feel comfortable at all with the transition from the up and over on the log pile and other rocks/boulders like that…with my saddle at full height.
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That was an issue for me too…so I kept my saddle lower. Only until I got back into riding and got a dropper did I realize I was never in the optimal position for pedaling all those years lol. It was a world of difference having my saddle at the right height for pedaling too. At full extension I can’t even really touch the ground without getting off the saddle or dropping the saddle/post. There will be variations in bottom bracket height, crank length and body/leg proportions …..but I’d imagine would be the same for most if not all riders.
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I'm surprised, because this is one of those items of gear that get near-unanimous rave based on every video/article/post online I've seen about them. There's just no way a seat that can't get out of the way is as good as one that can when you need to shift weight behind it.
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