INCOMING !! New fra...
 

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[Closed] INCOMING !! New frame day... Bird Aether 7

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My new Fox DPX2 arrived today..."What, i thought you already had one".... No, that's ended up on the Sworks Enduro of the 12 year old, so i've been running the Rockshox Monarch Deluxe R.

The thing is, i'm really happy with the Monarch R and it feels lovely.... So if i'm going to keep the DPX2 it's going to have to be mind-blowing
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51236868035_0bb620cff6_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51236868035_0bb620cff6_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2m4CkNt ]2021-06-09_01-54-17[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url], on Flickr

At the end of the day, i bought it for a great price considering it's almost brand new, so i won't have any trouble selling it on if i need to.

But i'll certainly be taking it out on the next jump sessions with the small ones.

 
Posted : 09/06/2021 2:00 pm
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Well I'm not exactly sure what to do here, the dpx2 feels soft and nice without doubt, but I'm not sure if it's any 'better' though, well I'm not actually sure how to define better. But in terms of, what is the better shock, a Deluxe R or a DPX2 I'm sure internet wisdom tells us the DPX2 is the superior shock, but how/why/what I don't really know.
Maybe I'm just not good enough to know better.

I don't exactly 'need' the money back for it, but I'm not seeing a lot of point keeping both shocks.
My only real debate is whether changing the shock bushings sorted the creaky noise (just in case it was the shock itself) but as I can't get either shock to make a noise now, I'm guessing we've resolved the issue. I can't be bothered testing in this heat today so I'm taking a rest day from the pedalling and will ponder what I do next.

We can call this a stealth advertisement for a 210*55 dpx2 if you like lol.

 
Posted : 09/06/2021 3:54 pm
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Pity its not the 210 x 52.5 that you bought earlier or I would have been very tempted

 
Posted : 09/06/2021 4:18 pm
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Lol it easily can be, that's on the boys bike but arguably he should run 210*55 according to bikeyoke

 
Posted : 09/06/2021 4:21 pm
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Let me know either way

 
Posted : 09/06/2021 4:34 pm
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@weeksy - I know you like playing around with bike bits and I’m exactly the same. I’ve been thinking for ages about a Cane Creek db air Il or db coil il- thinking it might give me ’more’ of something. Been riding the A7 quite a bit more recently rather than the hardtail and appreciating the rear suspension more and more.

A few rides ago I stuck a new C1 RS airshaft in the Lyrik - 150mm travel vs the B1 140mm one I had in there before. Generally uphill it’s much the same - other than on the steepest climbs it’s lifting the front wheel a little earlier. But on downhills it’s a beast - keep getting pb’s at the moment on trails I’ve ridden a fair amount. The standard shock just with megneg airshaft is doing a fantastic job - feels quite plush but also still poppy on jumps. I think I’m just going to stick with it for now - I’m not sure what more I could get out of it.

Also changed the rear tyre a few times since winter - gone 2.4 dhr2 wt (for the thickest slop) to 2.3 Dhr2 (whilst still mucky but drying a bit) to a 2.4 wt dissector (really decent all round tyre) and now on a 2.6 Slaughter Grid. This latest tyre was in a sale for £12 and I couldn’t resist trying it. For me it’s very light on tread but in the current dry hero dirt conditions it’s awesome. Still got side grip for cornering but the centre tread rolls so fast. Lack of breaking grip on steep stuff the main issue when it gets wet I think.

 
Posted : 10/06/2021 7:59 am
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I decided to keep the Rockshox Deluxe R shock for mine, part of the reason was because i'm not unhappy with it, but also we have 4 shocks currently,
2 are 210*55 and 2 are 210*52.5. Now we CAN run 52.5's on either bike.... but arguably it should be 55... I had a buyer (the lady who sold us the Sworks actually) who wanted the 52.5 in particular, so my lad now has the 210*55 DPX2 that arrived from Bird yesterday and i have the Deluxe R in a 55 fitted on mine. Happy with that and think it's the right move. Didn't lose any money on the DPX2, arguably i could have sold for more, but she did me a favour on the bike so happy to sell for what i paid (arguably i did lost postage lol... no biggy)

We're off to Swinley Summit jumping at the weekend, i've got a few little targets in mind for me and the Bird, one of them being a drop i've not ridden off yet... i've ridden off it's smaller brother, but not this one which is about another 18" added.

@joebristol
Funny you mention tyre type things, i'm actually thinking "should i get some fast rolling rubber and a 2nd set of wheels for faster XC type days. There's not many days out where i would massively benefit from them, but some, I'm currently running the standard WTBs that came on the G-160 along with Specialized Butchers in 2.35s... So maybe something light and fast for things like Snowdon would be a plan.

 
Posted : 10/06/2021 8:06 am
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Won't you want strong and robust coming down Snowdon?

 
Posted : 10/06/2021 8:33 am
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Won’t you want strong and robust coming down Snowdon?

Never been to Snowdon 🙂

I assumed it was a gravel path up and down.

 
Posted : 10/06/2021 8:36 am
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Nor me but all the descriptions I looked at when planning a trip suggested rocky.

 
Posted : 10/06/2021 9:00 am
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I don’t think I’d go massively light on casings for Snowdon to be honest - it’s not gravel up and down. Llanberis is fine as you’re going slow up anyway, but Rangers down is loads of rocks as the main surface sticking up at all sorts of angles. I think I did it on my Aeris 145LT - it had a DHF 2.5wt exo 3c front tyre and a WTB Tough/Fast Trailboss on the back. I only got that wtb as I was doing Antur Stiniog the day before and wasn’t sure if an Exo would have survived. In hindsight I think an aggressor would probably have been ok but would have run a little more pressure in it.

I cba with 2 different wheel sets as then you either need to swap the cassette or run 2 cassettes and 2 chains etc really. Dhf on the front for 2-3 seasons of the year with a Magic Mary 2.6 / Hillbilly 2.6 in the slop. It’s back tyres I tend to mess about with more really.

 
Posted : 10/06/2021 9:11 am
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I have read recently that much of the Rangers path had been sanitised. I'm not entirely sure what this means or how much has been covered, but a few on here not so long ago expressed the view that it probably wasn't worth it anymore.

 
Posted : 10/06/2021 9:20 am
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@weeksy How do you get on with the large frame? I'm also dead on 6 foot and I'm about to order a frame, the size chart shows me plumb in the middle of M/ but my last full sus was a Large Giant Reign and the M/L seems a little shorter in ETT even if the reach is a little longer. I always found the Reign a bit short when seated so wonder if the large Aether might be a better fit. I doubt I'll get a demo ride anytime soon and I'm impatient to buy...

 
Posted : 16/06/2021 2:20 pm
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TBH matey, it's a toughie to answer. The L feels long to me coming from the G160 and arguably low too LOL... however that's how they are and how they come of course. Physical size i'm happy. I do find at times i run a little wide on a few turns because of the geomtry/handling, but nothing i can't work with.
I didn't try the M/L though i must admit.

 
Posted : 16/06/2021 2:44 pm
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Ah cool, I think of Whytes as being quite long so I think if you're finding an L to feel longer I'll probably go for the M/L.
Shall get the order in!

 
Posted : 16/06/2021 3:57 pm
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Just to add the reason the ett is shorter despite the longer reach is likely to be the steep seat tube angle. So w lot of bikes feel great stood up but a bit short sat down. Not sure what the answer is really - other than slide you saddle back. The steep seat angle is to help in winch and plummet style tech climbs more then anything else.

 
Posted : 16/06/2021 4:51 pm
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“ The L feels long to me coming from the G160 and arguably low too LOL… however that’s how they are and how they come of course”

If you mean that the bars feel too low and too far away, stick some more spacers under the stem or swap to a higher rise bar - that’ll neatly fix both issues.

 
Posted : 16/06/2021 6:46 pm
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Just chiming in, but I’m similarly between sizes at 5’8 and I opted to size down for my 9c (similar geo apart from the higher stack).

I demoed the ML and the M at Swinley. ML felt nice and stable going straight down, but I was wrestling it in the corners (up, down and flat) and wasn’t weighting it well. I gave it a good go but never felt confident on it. The M felt great, and now I own one I don’t ever miss the extra stability of the longer bike. If anything, perhaps because I can weight it easily, my M now feels more stable to me than the ML did on demo.

I have a long torso and shorter arms and legs, so ymmv.

Edit: I’m also very much not fast 😀

 
Posted : 16/06/2021 8:04 pm
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I bought and fitted the Brand X dropper, tested it in the road, then removed it and put on the classifieds.

I just prefer the Magura Vyron, so ordered a new one.

 
Posted : 16/06/2021 9:05 pm
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Seriously, you could have given it a bit more chance than a quick go in the road! It’s just a dropper rather than being something like a fork / shock where you need good damping etc. A dropper just goes up and down - needs to do nothing more than that......other than keep going with as little maintenance as possible.

 
Posted : 16/06/2021 10:39 pm
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I didn't like the lever actuation, the lever was the wrong angle, the wrong position and worst part was it felt very heavy to push, even for a bit strong boy like me. Although arguably that was only when it was weighted, if i wasn't sitting on it then the lever actuation was OK, but then i can't push it down if i'm not sitting on it. I'm quite a fussy person with bikes, i know what i like and what i don't and this didn't do it for me at all.

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 6:31 am
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I gathered - you seem to buy bits and sell them on within a few days....you might have found you got used to it. The Brand X isn’t a particularly hard dropper lever to push - and you can get different levers that are nicer then the standard brand x one. I’ve actually got 2x Oneup droppers at the moment and I’d say the brand x had a lighter lever action and needed less maintenance. Yet on the trail I just don’t notice as I’m concentrated on the trail 🤷‍♂️

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 7:41 am
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OK, i've just refitted it.. LOL... See, i can listen to people 🙂

I'm going to get a mate to sanity check it later before i finish cabling the lever end as i'm wondering if i'd routed it wrongly through the grommet/cam adjuster thing, so just to check, i'll get him to look as he's got a couple on his and his kids bikes too. It's just waiting for that and we'll test it at Swinley this evening.

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 7:46 am
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I've got two one ups. One is easier to push then the other. Both are using wolftooth light action levers and brand new cables. Both have done very few miles. 🙄

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 8:21 am
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There a craven Ztto copy of the wolftooth lever on ebay. I've had one of each and the Ztto lever is indistinguishable, but alot cheaper.

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 8:35 am
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cheers @teethgrinder

is that the right style in terms of end barrel being at the post end, so just cable at the lever end, or do people run it in reverse to the standard setup?

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 8:37 am
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There's a clamp for the cable on the lever. I run mine with a One Up with the nipple at the post end.

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 8:41 am
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cheers boss... Appreciated.

I'll see how it goes today and may order one of those up.

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 8:43 am
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I've also got a ztto. It's not indistinguishable but it's pretty damn close. Slight machining shape differences. The lever, clamp etc are interchangeable. The lever is the same length as the light action lever. Functionality yes they are identical.

I've only two Wolftooth's as the first I got before the ztto was available and the second for the purple lever. One is actually using the bar band from the ztto 😁.

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 8:45 am
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I've got a Wolftooth light action and a ZTTO and both work equally as well.

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 8:53 am
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The other interchangeable bit is the red pivot of the ztto. It's metal while the wolftooth is plastic and designed as a brake away part. That is one cheap bit of the wolftooth that you can use to get rid of the red if it clashes too much (yes I know 😂)

 
Posted : 17/06/2021 8:56 am
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Well none of this is going to sound positive and mostly like i'm whinging like a bit** , but that can't be helped.

I did a ride yesterday evening with the Brand X, it was a complete disaster and i wanted to throw the Bird in the hedge half way round.

I think a certain amount of it is down to me being used to the actuation on the Vyron as much as anything else.
First issue, bloody heck the lever is hard !!!! going down it's just a complete disaster and even when you unload the seat a fraction before hitting the button, it's STILL really hard pressing/pushing it.
You also have to leave your hand on it for what seems like forever while you wait for it to drop.
The seatpost has a wiggle/play in the top, which is at least as much play as the 6 year old Vyron had, i expect some with a dropper, but this felt excessive even after 1 ride.
Now as very little of the cable is in the frame, i thought cable rattle wouldn't exist on this, but it's either cable rattle or just seatpost rattle, but i had to actually get off twice and check my shock wasn't falling out it was making that much noise on the trails.

It completely spoiled my ride.

By the time we got to Babymaker, i checked to see I had 4g and ordered a Vyron and raised a return via CRC for the absolute piece of garbage Brand X.

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 6:45 am
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“ I think a certain amount of it is down to me being used to the actuation on the Vyron as much as anything else.”

I think that’s it because I can’t recall seeing any positive reviews of the Vyron, with every reviewer moaning that it doesn’t behave like cable/hydraulic dropper posts. Similar to how riders used to derailleurs struggle with gearbox shifting.

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 7:56 am
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I think that’s it because I can’t recall seeing any positive reviews of the Vyron, with every reviewer moaning that it doesn’t behave like cable/hydraulic dropper posts.

Yep. I had a demo bike with one, it was the most infuriating POS I have had on a bike for a long time. It doesn't take much to see that they are an acquired taste - great idea (at the time), appalling execution. There is a reason why Reverb AXS's are everywhere & these things arn't.

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 8:29 am
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I really really missed it yesterday, even when the Brand X was kinda working and i honestly tried hard to get used to it, but i dunno, i just couldn't at all.
I've not used many cable/reverb types of droppers i admit, so maybe it's not quite as bad as i'm making out, but the push actuation was ridiculous, i'm certainly my lad couldn't even activate it. This was the 2nd cable we've tried and fitted with a mate who's got 2 Brand X droppers just to make sure 100% i was fitting it correctly. Even compared to his, mine felt stiff. "maybe it'll get easier with a bit of use" was his thoughts, but i used it a fair bit last night and if anything it got worse at the end of the ride.

I'm hoping CRC give me a refund as i don't want to be stuck with a post i hate, but i can 100% say, irrespective of what they say, it won't be going back on a bike i own.

Just got to wait for Winstanleys to ship me the Vyron now, but TBH after the rain last night and today, there's no rush 😀

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 8:41 am
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Lol - sounds like something isn’t right + you’re used to an electric button (with a delay) that doesn’t have much, if any, resistance to it.

I’ve got the ZTTO lever on both bikes and they’re both fairly easy to push. I fitted a 170mm brand x to a SC 5010 I built up for a mate and it feels much the same. There is more play on the brand X than the Oneups though - rotationally. Never had one with play front to back.

I just don’t get how a dropper can ruin a ride / make it a disaster - drama queen much 🤣

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 9:08 am
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If you are a fan of the vyron, stick with it.
But the brand x should have a very light action. We have a couple and they work a treat with both the over bar lever and the under bar lever. One is an external one that needed the cord to the actuator tightened up...so i did that and then serviced it. Now that one has the lightest action and the fastest return speed.

Maybe something up with the actuator on yours?

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 9:44 am
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Maybe something up with the actuator on yours?

DUnno mate, i guess we'll see when CRC get it back and what they say.

I just don’t get how a dropper can ruin a ride

Rattle, wiggle and a lever that won't work properly, at somewhere like Swinley with it being tight and twisty etc you want it up/down/up/down a fair bit ideally and it just completely ruined the ride.... the fact it started raining after 40 mins and then rained solidly for the next 90 mins didn't help though 😀

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 9:56 am
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The main issue with the BX lever I found was the tolerances on the pivot - wobbly AF - which didn't help with the feel in any way. It's poor compared to the Fox Transfer one (and that isn't anywhere near the best lever in the world...not even a tribute), the original Bontrager one, or the Bontrager Elite one. All are better than the original Reverb button.

A mate had a Vyron and it was a PoS - always de-sync-ing, and once you pressed the button you needed to wait for the read reciept before sitting down to drop the post. He much prefers his BX, even with the original lever.

The Elite lever is quite long so has a decent throw on it, but that also gives it a nice, light action. It also has adaptors for bar mount, i-Spec and MMX mounting.

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 10:19 am
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Ah - the rain is probably a massive downer on it.

I’ve ridden Swinley a fair amount with a mate from London as it’s ish a half way point between where he lives and Bristol where I live. I don’t think I use the dropper there more than anywhere else particularly - mainly because there aren’t that many technical features / downhills etc.

The rattle is an interesting one - given you have an Aether the only bit of internal cable is as it goes into the seat tube. My cable outer is almost stiff to pull through there - I wonder if the end of the cable outer wasn’t seated properly into the slot at the bottom of the post which may then rattle / cause you actuation issues 🤔

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 10:21 am
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I wonder if the end of the cable outer wasn’t seated properly into the slot at the bottom of the post which may then rattle / cause you actuation issues

wasn't the case when i took it off this morning, all seemed fine and happy and still complete. I gave a little tug on the bend in the cable where it comes out which was enough to activate the post, so it was pretty good in terms of tension, so i don't think that's where the issue was.

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 10:31 am
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A mate had a Vyron and it was a PoS

Mine has done the de-bonding thing twice in 5+ years... i've had a few issues but they were resolved in 48 hours by Magura, even seding me a brand new post after mine was years out of warranty when i asked them to service it at my expense, no charge, no hassle. It's been an absolutely great post.

The wait time, for me simply isn't an issue, i'm not convinced it takes any longer overall to get it down than a standard cabled, it just does it slightly differently.

The main thing you can't do is up/down/up/down in quick succession of say 1-2s intervals, but that's not how I ride, if i need that sort of speed of change, i'll just pedal the 25m between the 2 with it down and stand up.... That may not be how others see it as being 'right' but it's not been an issue for many years for me.

 
Posted : 18/06/2021 10:38 am
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Been fiddling with the sworks enduro of my lad lately. Since we're both running the correct length and stroke shocks now it was time to try and dial them in.

We've spent a few days now trying to get his DPX2 dialled in and even with volume spacers we still can't get it how he wants it to feel. Weirdly the DPX2 we sold to Tracey was a 210*52.5 but he seemed happier with it than he was with the new one we got from Bird.

So this morning we dragged out the ramp and tried settings. In the end we put the monarch deluxe RT, thus is the shock we had in his bike previously into his bike and he prefers that over the DPX2.

So I've now got the 210*55 DPX2 in the Bird which is fine with me of course.

[img] [/img]
[url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/51236868035/ ]2021-06-09_01-54-17[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url] - [url= https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dariogf.flickr2BBcode_lite ]Flickr2BBcode LITE[/url]

 
Posted : 19/06/2021 11:41 am
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still watching with interest, mine is "Awaiting June Shocks"

the only component selection i wasnt entirely happy with was the brakes, where ive opted for SRAM G2 Rs - as someone who had the pleasure of Avids in the past, im totally allergic to the SRAMs and chose them only to keep to my price point planning to swap for the Zees i currently have.
Chosen the Bird dropper - coming from a RS Reverb

 
Posted : 19/06/2021 12:49 pm
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Vyron here and charging

[img] [/img]
[url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/51257548069/ ]2021-06-19_12-52-04[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url] - [url= https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dariogf.flickr2BBcode_lite ]Flickr2BBcode LITE[/url]

 
Posted : 19/06/2021 12:52 pm
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felt i was a little too long low and slack and not really getting my body position right on the Bird, so jumped on ebay and grabbed some Nukeproof higher rise bars.

[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51263399461_50f29bf01d_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51263399461_50f29bf01d_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2m6YjER ]2021-06-22_10-01-07[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url], on Flickr

Dropper post is installed and charged, ready to roll 😀

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 10:08 am
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I think the Aether is fairly low at the front - are you running 140 or 150mm fork travel? I’m on 150mm now, with some spacers under the stem and I think a 25mm rise bar. So poppy like that it’s untrue - occasionally pop the front too high off stuff!

Off to Rowberrow tonight I think for a play on the tracks there - the Aerher feels perfect for that sort of stuff.

[url= https://i.postimg.cc/dV2gzBRh/830AE667-7306-46A5-BFCB-64C12C441F62.jp g" target="_blank">https://i.postimg.cc/dV2gzBRh/830AE667-7306-46A5-BFCB-64C12C441F62.jp g"/> [/img][/url]

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 11:00 am
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Good luck! After the recent rain it's going to be mucky under the tree cover up there.

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 11:03 am
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Will it be that bad - I don’t think we’ve had that much rain and we’d had a consistently dry period that had baked the trails dry prior to that?

If it’s greasy the slaughter I have on the back will be amusing.....

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 11:12 am
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I'm at 150mm and about the same in terms of spacers/stem. I went for the 38mm rise bars... looking at them i'd guess my bars were about 15mm.

It's not like i'm complaining with how it was.... but for the money it was worth trying a few new things just to see. I'm not sure i want to brave the slop today though, it's been pretty damn wet here over the weekend/yesterday.

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 11:38 am
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Guess I’ll find out tonight when I get out. Maybe at lunchtime I’ll sort out my portable jet wash solution I’ve just bought. £15 eBay 12v jet wash + 25 litre water container. Need to somehow fix the pump to the container (can feel some gaffer tape coming on) and then tie down in the car so it does go wandering everywhere whilst driving.

I really don’t think it’s going to be that muddy.....but maybe I’m being naive 🤷‍♂️

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 11:51 am
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Going will be a bit greasy that side of a hill never dries as quickly. It's rideable but take a change of clothes!

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 1:18 pm
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I've got a local mate who's just been out and is dropping over shortly to trim the new bars by 10mm each end down to 780mm. I'll be asking him how wet/horrible it is out our way before making a decision on whether i head out or not.

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 1:20 pm
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Aren’t you Swinley sort of way weeksy? I thought that was pretty all weather other than the couple of sections that seem to turn into ponds when it’s really wet.... so

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 1:21 pm
 igm
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The ZTTO dropper lever that my wife has on her BrandX dropper makes for a much better feel. Nice light action.

(He said, replying to much earlier post)

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 1:26 pm
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I've got a local mate who's just been out and is dropping over shortly to trim the new bars by 10mm each end down to 780mm. I'll be asking him how wet/horrible it is out our way before making a decision on whether i head out or not.

Sorta Joe, but it's still 40 mins in car from me... so not exactly local local.

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 1:35 pm
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I am doing the same with my Aeris 120LT. Felt the front stack was a little low with the 20mm rise Raceface Atlas bars it came with and now got an order in for a 35mm Bird Big Baw Handlebar...just under £28 delivered from Bird. Bargain!

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 4:20 pm
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Bars feel loads better. They were a bit too far rotated forward but I didn't take tools out, so that's where they stayed until I got home.

Happy bunny

 
Posted : 22/06/2021 4:23 pm
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How was it joe?

 
Posted : 23/06/2021 2:52 pm
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Trails were running great in the end. No slipping about even with the lightly treaded rear tyre. Couple of puddles in dips between roots but that was about it. Got pb’s everywhere uphill and downhill as it was so grippy. The top of the blue is getting a bit overgrown on the entrance due to all the rain / sun we’re getting but aside from that it was ace.

 
Posted : 23/06/2021 3:31 pm
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Awesome news.

 
Posted : 23/06/2021 5:01 pm
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I've just had to do the lower bush, it was a TFtuned one and didn't seem to last long at all.

 
Posted : 23/06/2021 7:33 pm
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Looking forward to getting up Rowberrow on mine, my C2W voucher request is in, I’ve paid the “difference” (to cover the charge that the c2w provider takes from Bird) and I’m just waiting on the certificate to send to them now.
Need to shorten my Yari’s and we’re good to go.

 
Posted : 23/06/2021 7:41 pm
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@mugboo just the top hat bushes or the metal axle as well? How far had it gone?

 
Posted : 23/06/2021 8:00 pm
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Just those grey plastic top hats.

 
Posted : 23/06/2021 8:05 pm
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Nice one pimp, look forward to hearing back!

 
Posted : 23/06/2021 8:10 pm
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I rode twice yesterday, once at Hebden, tackling some of the steeper off piste tech that scares me when its wet (definitely a skill I struggle with), and then later with my 10 year old and his mate at some local jumps.

Unless I've just generally improved this year, this bike has really upped my steep game and it jumps beautifully.

So the only thing that I'm not entirely confident about, compared with my Airdrop Edit, is rattling flat out into rock garden type situations. Is this what Rimpact, ect are for?

 
Posted : 24/06/2021 6:44 am
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On the bush front I wore mine to the point I had a small knock within a year. I replaced them with a new bush kit from ‘offset bushes.com’. Just a normal set - I didn’t want to make the bike slacker as it’s already pretty slack with even a 140mm fork for a trail bike. So far so good.

I just go bombing into rock gardens the same speed as I did on my Aeris on my Aether. Maybe I’m not massively fast but I haven’t had an issue yet. I’ve been running exo tyres all year round on the Aether - either DHR2 2.3 or 2.3 / 2.4 dissector - but currently running Slaughter Grid 2.6”. I felt a bit nervous about these so I have stuck a Rimpact in the rear. Done the same with the Forekaster 2.6” I’m running on my hardtail as both tyres felt a little flimsier than the other Maxxis I’d run. Again - no dramas so far 🤷‍♂️

 
Posted : 24/06/2021 7:06 am
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For me to an extent i'm not sure the bike matters in terms of what i will or won't hit and how hard... I just kinda ride things to my ability. The G160 deffo helped my jumping which has crossed over onto the Bird too i think.

The biggest influence i'm hoping will be a day i've just booked with Katy Curd for skills training. My lad has done 5 sessions with her now and loves it, he has an absolute blast and always picks up lots of information/speed/skills/stuff. This time, his riding buddies didn't fancy it, so in for a penny, i thought i'd jump on the day with him instead. We've got a crazy busy 2 months coming up with BPW, Afan, Racing Enduro, Silverstone trackdays, Pembrey trackdays, DH racing, a family holiday in the Peaks and now adding this in will be chaos LOL

 
Posted : 24/06/2021 7:53 am
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I think its more in my head Joe rather than actual reality. EXO Minion on the rear and the only puncture was in a G out after steep drop where I hit a sharp edge of stone hidden under the leaves.

 
Posted : 24/06/2021 8:18 am
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Yeah i like the new riser bars... out with them today... nothing too techie though as i was on a time schedule for a meeting at 12.
I turned them back a bit the other day and maybe fractionally too much, so will go forward a degree or so. But they deffo feel nice 🙂

 
Posted : 24/06/2021 11:59 am
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Lightbulb 💡 moment on the jumps today at Swinley Summit. Listening to small child and his technique of pumping near top lip, difference is huge, more height and clearing the table and landing nicely on the downslope

Continued as it started really today, the difference when you actually manipulate how the bike jumps is just remarkable. I was hitting it slower but the pop and lift was greater so still landing it fully on the landing zone instead of just about sneaking it over the top.
It's then really a question of getting used to it so it becomes normal and second nature, I wouldn't say I'm 100% yet but I'm certainly moved on a little from when I turned up there earlier.
Awesome

 
Posted : 26/06/2021 3:21 pm
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Glad you had a break through 👍.

I was at Swinley earlier as well (nursing tired legs from yesterday's epic). Looked out for you as I went past the Summit just in case. Clearly your bikes not quite bright enough 😆.

 
Posted : 26/06/2021 7:48 pm
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See what you’re doing now is jumping your bike, as opposed to riding your bike over jumps. Top man!

 
Posted : 26/06/2021 7:57 pm
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That's essentially completely correct mate yes, they're very very different things.
Don't get me wrong, Ive not turned into a jump god. But well, I'm jumping stuff now and landing on the landing instead of a semi case

@nixie I'm not exactly inconspicuous!

 
Posted : 26/06/2021 9:06 pm
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Now you’ve got it in your head though you’ll not lose it, so well done.
The only thing I’ve ever been better at than my riding buddies is jump, but they’ve worked out how to do it now so I’m having to buy a short travel Aether to get me a bit closer to the on the climbs!

 
Posted : 26/06/2021 9:40 pm
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Now you’ve got it in your head though you’ll not lose it

I like your optimistic perception on my actual skill as a rider 😀

 
Posted : 27/06/2021 9:08 am
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Just fitted a 30T chainring for this weekend. It's a SRAM one so a different fitting than i'm used to, but was simple as.

Reason is, we've got a Snowdon adventure planned, most of the boys are on Ebikes, i'm on a manual though. I had a 32T fitted i've had for ages, but with the hilly bits i thought lobbing a 30T on there may be a wise move.

 
Posted : 02/07/2021 12:01 pm
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