Mountain Bikes

[ScottyB]

Jen surprised me with some armor for Christmas. i'd like to say i can't wait to try it out, but i don't think that would come out right :lol: knowing me i'll probably get alot of wear out of the elbow pads since i tore up my forearms nicely this past season banking off trees and what not.




Fox Titan Sport, looks nicely put together and is pretty darn lightweight. i tend to overheat easily but these look nicely breathable. straps are easy to adjust and Fox added some plasticy "grippies" (kinda like what they put on the bottom of those slipper-socks chicks wear) on the inside padding so the pads don't slip on your arm or leg - nice! best part was the price, found the reciept and it was under $50 for the whole suite, pretty good deal IMO.

i think they'll take a pretty decent beating. not much bulk for shock absorbtion, mostly just to prevent skin grafts.

[Steve85]

As part of my fitness efforts, I'm bringing biking back. Funny that the last post is Christmas related... I am putting a new rear shock for the mountain bike on my list for Mrs. Santa. I need help picking out a new shock to replace the Fox that always needs pumped up and loses pressure quickly. The bike is a Trek Fuel 100 bought off eBay 5-6 yrs ago.

I won't be riding real hard anytime soon but I am what they call in the biking world a clydesfatassdale. The bike seems pretty light for a mtn bike already (I don't have much to compare it too, but it's definitely not heavy) so strength is more important than saving a few ounces here. I doubt I need a ton of tuneability but some adjustment might be helpful. I think I'd like to be able to lock it out completely and ride it as a hardtail if I'm just cruising with the kiddos or something. Not sure what to budget, but if I could stay under $125 and not have it break when I land a small jump or something that would be nice.

Suggestions? Where should I look?

[.RJ]

Suggestions? Where should I look?

Get a gift certificate to a local bike shop and have them rebuild the Fox, no need to replace it. They can definitely get parts for a shock a few years old - a new fox shock is going to be $300, rebuild should be under $100.

[ScottyB]

Steve, what model Fox is it? second RJ's comment. they're generally worth fixing unless its total junk in the first place.

[Steve85]

I like that idea...

It's a Fox Float RL. It does look like a new one runs about ~300.

[Evan]

the shock air sleeve is really easy to rebuild yourself. the rebuild kit is $7 and good fox publishes good instructions.
i rebuilt mine a few months ago and it took 10 minutes.

[Steve85]

:thumbup:

[ScottyB]

what are you guys doing for eye protection? i'd wear my normal shades but the helmet straps pinch the ear stems and push them out from my face. plus, i'd prefer a clear lens. too much light/dark contrast in the woods to see well with dark lenses.

[Ginger]

First rule: sunglasses stems go *over* the helmet straps.

Second rule: Oakley.

I wear Radars as much as possible because they afford the best field of vision. However, you can't really beat the ease-of-use with the switchlock models (Jawbone and derivatives like the Fast Jacket). Easy and quick to swap in clear lenses with minimal risk (can't say the same for Radars or other push-in models).

If you're not riding in the genuine-honest-to-god-night, you could visit the Oakley Transistion/photocrhomic models. They work pretty well and I was usually happy with them in the woods.

I usually go for venting, especially mountain biking, because every little bit to reduce fogging helps. Even if you don't want to go with Oakley, stay with sport brands. Rudy Project, Tifosi or Optic Nerve if you're feeling frugal, Briko, Smith, etc.

[ScottyB]

awesome, thanks. i wonder how stupid i looked with the straps going over my glasses.

[JPolen01]

awesome, thanks. i wonder how stupid i looked with the straps going over my glasses.

Coming from someone who has worn glasses his whole life, I can't imagine how you didn't figure that out :lol:

[.RJ]

First rule: sunglasses stems go *over* the helmet straps.

Second rule: Oakley.

+1

[Goodspeed]

Lily the dog enjoys chasing mountain bikes :lol:

http://www.pinkbike.com/video/227689/

[Evan]

what are you guys doing for eye protection? i'd wear my normal shades but the helmet straps pinch the ear stems and push them out from my face. plus, i'd prefer a clear lens. too much light/dark contrast in the woods to see well with dark lenses.

#1: Ginger and RJ are wrong. (This is also a good rule of thumb).
The helmet straps keep your sunglasses snug to your face and the sunglasses dont go flying off if you take your helmet off first.

#2: Im a sunglasses whore, have 2 pairs of jawbones and 2 pairs of flak jackets, but I have to admit, the $17 sette pair with interchangable frames that i use for clear lenses is built very well and is functionally no worse than the oakleys.
Ive also been impressed with the performance bike house brand sunglasses.
if i wasnt a sunglass whore id probably pimp those or some tifosi.

[Evan]

Lily the dog enjoys chasing mountain bikes :lol:

http://www.pinkbike.com/video/227689/

great vid.

this little ball of trouble will be doing the same thing in about a year when she is grown up

[Mike]

great vid.

my favorite part is where the downhiller walks his bike up the hill.

[D_Eclipse9916]

what are you guys doing for eye protection? i'd wear my normal shades but the helmet straps pinch the ear stems and push them out from my face. plus, i'd prefer a clear lens. too much light/dark contrast in the woods to see well with dark lenses.

#1: Ginger and RJ are wrong. (This is also a good rule of thumb).
The helmet straps keep your sunglasses snug to your face and the sunglasses dont go flying off if you take your helmet off first.

#2: Im a sunglasses whore, have 2 pairs of jawbones and 2 pairs of flak jackets, but I have to admit, the $17 sette pair with interchangable frames that i use for clear lenses is built very well and is functionally no worse than the oakleys.
Ive also been impressed with the performance bike house brand sunglasses.
if i wasnt a sunglass whore id probably pimp those or some tifosi.

+1 on performance bike house brand sunglasses.

When they had their Radial IIs for 9.99 with three interchangeable lenses I bought 3 pairs. Too bad they are like 40 bucks now. I went with scattantes. A bit more expensive, but the radials were around the same price...regular price.

[ScottyB]

i'll have to drop in PB, we have a large one right down the road. not really interested in spending big bucks on something i'm putting in harm's way and isn't anything but clear. those house brands sound pretty good to me.

[Ginger]

Style Man says stems go over the straps. I'm not sure about Evan, but I usually have the presence of mind to remember the order in which I applied my apparel. To me, it looks better. But I'm a pretentious, brand-conscious, image-obsessed toolbag on the bike. Functionally, putting the straps over the stems has given me a headache. Never had a problem with my glasses not having enough tension to stay on my face, though.

If you want Oakleys but not at retail, keep an eye out on Oakleyvault.com. Sometimes Chainlove/Bonktown/SteepandCheap have Oakleys, too.

[ScottyB]

i've got some old Oaks. i think i'll dig them out of hibernation and just use a junky pair for the time being.

picked this up in October. its a leftover 2010 model, they marked it $1000 off and i really liked it and couldn't say no. my 9 year old XC hardtail was literally falling apart underneath me and was too obsolete to upgrade anyway so it was time. i'm still getting used to how big of an improvement it is. it just wants to GO, the faster the better it rides. not a great climber but everywhere else it just covers ground like crazy and shoots through techy stuff wonderfully. mostly i'll just enjoy being comfortable enough to stay out on the bike all day now since it doesn't beat the hell out of me anymore.

[/IMG]

only changed out the big ring for a bash and put different grips on there. the candy pedals are adequete for now but will eventually go away, and i may screw around with tire choices. otherwise i have no plans to mess with it. got in a couple weekends of riding now and have the cockpit adjusted and the shocks set to about the right valving. just in time for winter to kill all the fun :finger: