Here it is

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mountain tamer
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Here it is

Postby mountain tamer » Wed Feb 11, 2009 5:06 pm

hi all,

after a long wait here is my xtc2. I know it doesnt exist until there are photos so here ya go:

Image

Image

Image



not sure how to resize, sorry if they are a bit big.

it rides really well, really nimble compared to my old bike, the eggbeaters are great( thanks for the persuasion Graeme).

MT
The secret to mountain biking is pretty simple:...
The slower you go the more likely it is you'll crash. ~Julie Furtado

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Lark2004
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Postby Lark2004 » Wed Feb 11, 2009 6:24 pm

very nice... good to see ya got it dirty already 8)
Andrew

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Kalgrm
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Postby Kalgrm » Wed Feb 11, 2009 6:35 pm

Lovely MT! Now that was worth the wait, wasn't it?

Cheers,
Graeme

(You know it will be even faster once the reflectors and pie-plate come off, don't you? ;))

PS - the tyres are on backwards - they have a preferred direction of rotation for reduced rolling resistance, which is why the knobs have ramps in one direction.
Think outside the double triangle.
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Lark2004
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Postby Lark2004 » Wed Feb 11, 2009 7:08 pm

whadayaknow........Graeme obviously doesn't need glasses.....

Have a look in the yellow circle, it's the "direction of rotation" arrow... :shock:

Image
Andrew

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mountain tamer
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Postby mountain tamer » Wed Feb 11, 2009 9:28 pm

thanks guys... you don't miss a thing do you :D,

I was just about to take off the reflectors and pie plate :)

the tyres were my fault i swapped my tubes over, they came with stupid valves, must have put them back on the wrong way. Im thinking, i don't care about rolling resistance would it give me more grip being the wrong way?

another question, how do you know when your eggbeater cleats are worn? dp they just start slipping out, (they look pretty worn already, ive got some premium ones on the way.

MT
The secret to mountain biking is pretty simple:...
The slower you go the more likely it is you'll crash. ~Julie Furtado

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Postby trailgumby » Wed Feb 11, 2009 10:43 pm

Kalgrm wrote:PS - the tyres are on backwards - they have a preferred direction of rotation for reduced rolling resistance, which is why the knobs have ramps in one direction.
Very noice bike, MT! :D

While in teh subject of tyres I'd also ditch the SB8 on the front unless you're riding clean hardpack all the time, and put either a Nevegal (if you want to stay with Kenda) or a Maxxis Ignitor on the front for general trail riding. Stay the same width as the rear.

What for? Well, the Small Block 8 is a great low-rolling-resistance tyre for the rear that is popular for a reason, but they're regarded as a bit prone to washing out on the front unless you're racing on hardpack and the track has been swept clean of loose dust by all the racers in front of you.

You can sacrifice a bit of rolling resistance on the front and not notice that much difference to pedal-ability, but you will notice very quickly if the front doesn't grip while you're leaned over in a corner. :twisted:

Hope this helps. Enjoy!

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Postby Mulger bill » Thu Feb 12, 2009 1:48 am

Nice MT, veeeery nice. :D

Of course being a Giant, that's a given.

Sorry to throw in a downer tho' but the paint's too clean. :wink:

Shaun
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Postby mountain tamer » Thu Feb 12, 2009 9:48 pm

trailgumby wrote:
Kalgrm wrote:PS - the tyres are on backwards - they have a preferred direction of rotation for reduced rolling resistance, which is why the knobs have ramps in one direction.
Very noice bike, MT! :D

While in teh subject of tyres I'd also ditch the SB8 on the front unless you're riding clean hardpack all the time, and put either a Nevegal (if you want to stay with Kenda) or a Maxxis Ignitor on the front for general trail riding. Stay the same width as the rear.

What for? Well, the Small Block 8 is a great low-rolling-resistance tyre for the rear that is popular for a reason, but they're regarded as a bit prone to washing out on the front unless you're racing on hardpack and the track has been swept clean of loose dust by all the racers in front of you.

You can sacrifice a bit of rolling resistance on the front and not notice that much difference to pedal-ability, but you will notice very quickly if the front doesn't grip while you're leaned over in a corner. :twisted:

Hope this helps. Enjoy!
yeah thanks trailgumby, i have actually noticed that a bit on a few of the rides i have been on a bit slippery on the front, yer ive used negevals before and they worked quite well, i might go for them again.

MB- i know, a big issue for me too but the sandstone around here doesnt leave a lot of muck after a ride. ive already got a few scratches from cleat familiraisation crashes if that counts :cry:
The secret to mountain biking is pretty simple:...
The slower you go the more likely it is you'll crash. ~Julie Furtado

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Postby Kalgrm » Thu Feb 12, 2009 10:01 pm

mountain tamer wrote:how do you know when your eggbeater cleats are worn?
They appear to wear quickly, but that's usually just superficial stuff on the base of the cleat. That part of the cleat doesn't interfere with the operation of the pedals. When they are actually worn, the one you normally pull out all the time will release too easily and you'll pull your foot off the pedal. That won't stop you enjoying your ride though - they will be usable like that for weeks.

When your premium cleats arrive, you can either put them straight on and keep the old ones as spares, or keep the premiums aside until these ones wear out. Either way, it is good policy to have spare cleats on order a couple of months after you've installed the last pair. (I buy them from Chain Reaction when we place a big forum order to get free postage.)

Cheers,
Graeme
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Postby glawrence2000 » Fri Feb 13, 2009 1:36 pm


While in teh subject of tyres I'd also ditch the SB8 on the front unless you're riding clean hardpack all the time, and put either a Nevegal (if you want to stay with Kenda) or a Maxxis Ignitor on the front for general trail riding. Stay the same width as the rear.
+1 on the Nevegals, you may want to check the pressure and rebound in your front shock too. This can cause things to go a bit pear shaped if not set up right.

How heavy are you? I have the same Recons and run them at between 120 and 130 PSI, found they would pack up and bottom out with uncool consiquences at inappropriate times. I weigh 89Kg.
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Postby mountain tamer » Fri Feb 13, 2009 7:10 pm

glawrence2000 wrote:

While in teh subject of tyres I'd also ditch the SB8 on the front unless you're riding clean hardpack all the time, and put either a Nevegal (if you want to stay with Kenda) or a Maxxis Ignitor on the front for general trail riding. Stay the same width as the rear.
+1 on the Nevegals, you may want to check the pressure and rebound in your front shock too. This can cause things to go a bit pear shaped if not set up right.

How heavy are you? I have the same Recons and run them at between 120 and 130 PSI, found they would pack up and bottom out with uncool consiquences at inappropriate times. I weigh 89Kg.
thanks gl, yer i hover around 100-105 kegs, I have the shocks at about 140 and the rebound set reasonably stiff. I put a cable tie loosely around the fork to see how much of the travel i use up i have about 2 cm left after going over some reasonable drainage humps.

is setting up shocks just trial and error? and seeing what 'feels' best? how much sag should there be?

I mainly ride rough sandstone firetrails,

cheers,

MT
The secret to mountain biking is pretty simple:...
The slower you go the more likely it is you'll crash. ~Julie Furtado

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Postby Deanj » Fri Feb 13, 2009 7:18 pm

The fork manual should give you recommended settingsbut its usually around 20% of fork travel.

See what works best for you though, I like my forks on the harder side and set them around 12-15% for racing and general trail riding. I don't have a remote lock out though, if I did, I'd probably have a bit more.

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Postby trailgumby » Sat Feb 14, 2009 7:07 pm

Great advise from glawrence and deanj.

To fill it out a bit more: set the pressure for 20-25% sag. With rebound, if you're going to err, it is better to err on the fast side on the front and slow on the back.

Too slow on the front and it will hang in the air over bumps and wash you out or - worse - pack down on successive hits and end up tossing you over the bars. Too fast on the rear will kick back and punt you over the bars, but that doesn't apply to a hardtail. :)

I ran the Judy 2.5s on my old hardtail on minimum rebound damping, and I've only got about 25% wound on on the front of both of my Cannondales. Hope this is helpful. I'm sure there will be a Youtube video guide on setting fork rebound somewhere.

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Postby mountain tamer » Sat Feb 21, 2009 10:31 am

A quick update on the bike: .... AWESOME!!!. I cant believe how quick it is and how much my riding has improved because of it. I think the combination of good shocks, good brakes, clip less pedals gives me heaps more confidence..i am flying around the trail. The geometry is really good and the bike is like a feather compared to my old one, Im really happy with it down to every last detail

However a new problem has arisen..the increased confidence and speed has resulted in me going faster and getting heaps more air, have had pinch flats on the last 2 rides i have been on, even though i have the pressure at 60-70 Psi (80 is max). Im pretty heavy so may have to consider tubeless, i will look around the forum cause i know it has been discussed in detail. Just one question, how do i know if my rims and tyres are compatible for tubeless?

and another thing, when I get a bit of air or go over pretty rough stuff my chain thwacks against my chain stay..does this mean that it is too long?

cheers,

MT
The secret to mountain biking is pretty simple:...
The slower you go the more likely it is you'll crash. ~Julie Furtado

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Postby trailgumby » Sat Feb 21, 2009 11:05 am

Glad you're enjoying your riding - it's addictive, isn't it? :D

60-70psi And you're still getting pinch flats! :shock:

I run mine around 30psi (AT) ~80kg, the most others in my riding group use is 40psi. I'd be suggesting you suck up the jumps/bumps instead of launching off them, and try to absorb the landings a bit more. It is a XC hardtail after all. My concern is that while tubeless will help with the pinchflats and enable you to run lower pressures for better traction, you risk burping them off the rims, rim damage and exceeding the designed usage limits of your XM117 wheelset...

There is no way you should be getting pinchflats at those pressures, and you shouldn't be needing to run pressures that high.

Your rims aren't tubeless but can be converted quite easily. Kalgrm did a thread on sometime late last year. Search is your friend. :D

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Postby mountain tamer » Sat Feb 21, 2009 11:55 am

addictive..yes indeed!

sorry, that was a typo... my pressure reader was wrong. i actually had them at 35-40psi..moved them to 45-50..see how that goes,

cheers,

MT
The secret to mountain biking is pretty simple:...
The slower you go the more likely it is you'll crash. ~Julie Furtado

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Postby trailgumby » Sat Feb 21, 2009 12:22 pm

45-50 is still a bit high. But see how you go. As your skills improve you should be able to reduce them. Try and run the front a bit softer if you can - the fork will reduce the likelihood of pinchflatting, and your front is the vital one for control.

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Postby Kalgrm » Sat Feb 21, 2009 12:30 pm

Here's the thread where cheap tubeless conversions are discussed. I'm never going back to tubes on my MTB.

40psi would be too much for me too. I'm 86kg fully loaded and never ran more than 32psi in my tyres (2.3" wide). Having too much pressure reduces traction, which then influences cornering, braking and climbing and too much pressure increases your rolling resistance off-road.

I'd agree with Trailgumby - you should ride less aggressively on that bike.

Chain slap can occur on any MTB with a rear derailleur. You can take steps to minimise it, but the easiest thing is to wrap an old tube around the chainstay.

Cheers,
Graeme
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Postby trailgumby » Sat Feb 21, 2009 1:54 pm

Kalgrm wrote:Chain slap can occur on any MTB with a rear derailleur. You can take steps to minimise it, but the easiest thing is to wrap an old tube around the chainstay.
+1 and precisely what I've done, including on the commuter. Sometimes I get questions on it from other riders.

That said, I've noticed that for some reason the chains are almost alwasy too long ex-factroy. This usually exhibits as a tendency for the chain to jump off, either missing granny ring as you downshift from middle, or over the rough stuff on fast techy downhill. Your chain shold be just long enough to fit around big front ring and big rear cog - plus 1/2 to 1 chainlink pair - without going through the derailleur.

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Postby herzog » Sun Feb 22, 2009 7:12 am

trailgumby wrote:Your chain shold be just long enough to fit around big front ring and big rear cog - plus 1/2 to 1 chainlink pair - without going through the derailleur.
Add another link or so if it's a full susser.

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Postby trailgumby » Sun Feb 22, 2009 1:23 pm

depends on whether the rear end lengthens or shortens the distance between the BB and rear axle as you compress rear end.

A good point, though. :D

For full sussers you should do the chainlength test at the point in the travel where the chain needs to be longest. For mine - a single-pivot design - that's at zero compression. Others may be different.

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Postby woodpecker » Sun Feb 22, 2009 9:09 pm

I love the colour.

Congrats.

How do the tyres ride?

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Postby mountain tamer » Fri Feb 27, 2009 7:07 pm

woodpecker wrote:I love the colour.

Congrats.

How do the tyres ride?
thanks,

yeah the small block 8s are great on the rear, the tread pattern is great for the sandstone trails which i mainly ride. It grips really well. as dicussed above i will prob change the front tyre to something with more knobs. it tends to slip and move around bit when cornering at speed. will prob swap to negevals or maxxis somethings.


A quick update on the pinch flat situation. Ive bought a pressure gauge that works and have subsequently tried to take the jumps a bit more smoothly and absorbing the impacts , no more pinch flats to date. The rear tyre is at 38-40 psi and the front is at 32.

thanks for the advice everyone,

MT
The secret to mountain biking is pretty simple:...
The slower you go the more likely it is you'll crash. ~Julie Furtado

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