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Yeah it’s a cheap way (assuming steel sram ring) to get some slightly lower gears for sure. Sram direct mount is nice and easy with the 3 bolts.
Snowdon isn’t that bad really - other than the really steep tarmac bit at the start up to the bridleway. Other then that it’s just a slow spin most of the way other then the Rocky step section and the steep slippery bit after you go under the railway. Those 2 bits were a carry / push. Ranger path is fun on the way down 👌
Tbf - you should get the lads on ebikes to tow you with a towee or something 🙈
Well i could take the Embloden E+ but hey where's the fun in that 🙂
BIt of a weekend epic coming up here, so grab a coffee 🙂
Started off on Sat with a trip to Afan, bunch of adults and a bunch of teenagers. By golly they're getting quick.. both up and down !
We spent the day on 'Y Wal' (The wall) which is a trail i really like. It went fine and happy up until one of the adults caught a rock and smashed his rear mech to bits... He had to go back down and get it replaced while we cracked on.
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51289777036_af85252cd9_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51289777036_af85252cd9_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2m9ivNC ]2021-07-04_08-17-29[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url], on Flickr
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51289951318_ebc5d4b5df_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51289951318_ebc5d4b5df_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2m9jpBu ]2021-07-04_08-17-25[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url], on Flickr
Pic was near the top of the climb.
On the way down i was honestly really struggling with the Aether7. I'm finding it a bit well, long on the turns, i can't get it to get round stuff and the front end wasn't exactly filling me with inspiration. I got down everything, but wasn't what i'd call 'on it'.
It was hard to compare Strava times as we kept stopping and waiting for different parents, youngsters and the odd mechanical/punctures.
In the hotel that night consuming beers and massive burgers me and Beancounter and Tall Dan set the world to rights and i had a bundle of doubts about the Bird.
The next morning brought Bike Park Wales, jumpy droppy, fast, crazy stuff. Same group mostly but Crust had gone home.
We started with me leading the small ones down and on Sixtapod, it's a fast flowy blue and we all had a blast, from there into Willy Waver, again, loads of fun. Of course i was holding them back, but i was enjoying it LOTS and keeping them sane as a few of them had never been to BPW, so trying to keep them in check.
After that we jump on Sixtapod again, but a left 3/4 of the way down into Locomotion, a red with some drops..... Well they seem to have grown !!!! They were more substantial than i recall. By this time we'd had 4 people hit the deck whoops. All youngsters who bounce so all was good 🙂 They were fine.
We then jumped on a few reds, like Vicious Valley, A470 and a few new trails like Merthyr Rocks.... again, lots of fun.
Any worries with the Bird had evaporated there, it was fantastic at BPW and on the flowy stuff i was going really well. Again, hard to check on Strava runs as we stopped for people, crashes and rests at times, but i think i did OK overall.
Coming toward the end of the day, my lad wanted to do A470 again.
This isn't my video but it's the same jump, same landing and same over the bars tumbling down the other side too.
The trail is 12-15 of these, some bigger, some slightly smaller. In terms of height they're about 15-18' tall and 25' in length. The last few, including this are sort of step ups, so the landing is higher than the take off, unless you make the full other side. Which at my level is bloody hard.
So as I land I semi plant my front which bucks the back and sends me over the bars, landing head and shoulder first, then tumbling over and over to a stop.
I'd had 3-4 warnings on it, almost doing it on other runs, bit was feeling good still at the time. Right up until it wasn't good of course.
Only real damage is a dead leg from where I landed on my car keys and an overall feeling of "ooooohhhh" that's all a bit stiff when I move. The body armour did it's job. My jersey is ripped in several places, but hey, it's far from terrible.
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51289027962_85ea37f214_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51289027962_85ea37f214_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2m9eF8y ]2021-07-04_08-17-14[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url], on Flickr
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51290787535_4bf9002c29_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51290787535_4bf9002c29_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2m9oGc2 ]2021-07-04_08-17-05[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url], on Flickr
Bike needs a new mech hanger which is £15 so no biggy.
But overall i went away happy... The day was fantastic, a few beers, some laughs and some crashes of course 😀
I am of course sitting here thinking, does the Aether7 go up for sale and what would i get for it... I think it's worth £2000 as it sits, but you don't get a lot for that and i end up with the same possibility of getting something not quite right.
I'm going to start of by fitting the mech hanger, getting it fully cleaned and then fitting a WTB Vigilante on the front. I've run Vigilantes for a while on the front now on the G-160 and love them.
I've been running Specialized Butchers at 26psi and i dropped 3-4 psi out today, so was it the pressures that helped me ? Or indeed was it just me yesterday ? But overall i'm still not fully in love with the LLS geometry of the Aether7. I also had more pedal strikes than i've had at BPW today, although not big ones, they were still enough to irritate me.
Bloody hell Steve, didn't you only just buy that Aether? 😃
Few thoughts:
When are you going to the Peak? Could give you a go on my Occam if you want to try a different bike...
Give it some more time. I really wasn't that pleased with my Occam fur the first few months. But then I gelled with it ( and rode it on some harder stuff) and now love it.
Regarding LLS.... Interesting you have that view. I too think ( thought?) the whole LLS thing was annoying bollocks. I hated not being able to pedal the damn thing up rocky climbs. I also found it sluggish on easy stuff. I solved the pedal strikes by swapping the utterly effing stupid 175mm cranks for 165s. It's sooooo much betterer. And, as above, taking it on some more techy stuff has made me see the virtues of LLS, so I'm happier to forgive the downsides. Not sure how applicable this is to you as you seem to be much more into your jumping than me, but perhaps it's relevant.
I bought as frame only buy have modified a few things on it. 4-5 weeks ago I think.
I've also just got my Shockwiz back today so that'll be going on to test and set up shock and forks.
It's a funny bike, sometimes and some aspects I love it, I jumps better and XCs better than the G160, but as I say, Afan it wasn't my friend much.
We're in Peaks from 22nd-30th aug.
Specialized tyres are shit.
We’re in Peaks from 22nd-30th aug
Where you staying? Is it a family trip or a biking trip?
Could perhaps meet one evening midweek ( we're at Coed y on the bank holiday weekend.)
PS, there's only one of them (Peak) 😉
Just outside Buxton in a village called Tideswell.
Interesting above on the Spec tyres, they were not holding my lad back today lol. Although I think he's running my Vigilante on his now if I'm not mistaken, I'll check tomorrow
With them being shit, I have always found they need to be bang on with pressures. 1psi too soft and the squirm, 1psi too hard they ping off everything. They grip, but there are too many other downsides.
YMMV
Interesting as it felt way better today than yesterday, I took some out this morning on the front. I'll put the gauge on in the morning.
Sounds like you had a great time despite the mishap.
I'd give it some more time to get used to it, at least till you have had the Peak holiday.
Not had a problem with Specialized tyres but tend to run them at lower pressures than you. Butcher, Hillbilly and Eliminators usually in Blck Dmnd casing but a couple of Grid and Grid Trails
2.8 15psi
2.6 22psi
2.3 24psi
We all use the same digital tyre pressure gauge
They were spot on for Antur Stiniog, Coed Y Brenin and Flyup 417 last week and most weekends in the Peak or Wharncliffe
Was the weekend a birthday treat
Yep, birthday fun with all his buddies
Lucky lad 😎
I think it’s too early to twist and move on yet. The aether is actually quite manoeuvrable on twisty trails via properly lls bikes as it has shorter chainstays then most other bikes.
You need to ride forward / more aggressively in general vs more conservative geometry but once you’ve got it, you’ll be faster pretty much everywhere.
My aether is much easier on tight trails than my Aeris 145 LT was - that had longer chainstays and I always struggled on the tightest trails with it. But on flow stuff it ripped.
On the way down i was honestly really struggling with the Aether7. I’m finding it a bit well, long on the turns, i can’t get it to get round stuff and the front end wasn’t exactly filling me with inspiration.
This smacks very much of insufficient commitment on the front for LLS to work.
LOL i felt committed 🙂
Looking at Strava times... i know they don't matter, but they do give a comparison to previous rides of course. Yesterday i got 26 various bests (1,2,3 for me). Which must mean something was working well. Especially as due to both the overnight rain and the monsoons during the day, the conditions were far from ideal !
Overall though, until the moment i went down, it was great 🙂
LEts just say, today, i've been hit by a bus !
I moved from an Airdrop Edit small with a 50mm stem to an Aether 7 medium with a 40mm stem and my riding has gone up another level, particularly on steep and tight trails. I did buy a complete bike so I've also got the short offset forks, if that makes any difference, and I run the bars nice and high.
If I'm feeling a lack of confidence then that means I have let my weight drift backwards, once I actively move it forwards again its back to feeling planted.
And as you have found it loves jumps and drops.
Specialized tyres are shit.
There's a lot of truth in this short sentence.
There’s a lot of truth in this short sentence.
Considering on say a 2 minute trail my lad was getting down it 15s quicker than me, i find that hard to grasp. We overtook plenty of riders yesterday and were not overtaken once, so we were not exactly terrible. Sure, we're not World Cup DH riders either, but we're not complete novices. He's deffo got a butcher on the back and there's plenty of racers/riders/people who use them, so they can't be that terrible can they ?
All of that said, the Vigilante will be going on after breakfast.. But you guys have got me slightly questioning the rear of the Butcher.
I'm not saying you can't ride on them. I've had loads of them myself but mostly because I had mates who work in Spesh dealers and they were almost free. I've ridden everywhere on Butchers, Slaughters and Hillbillies. I just think there's something about them. Either the compound or the casing that makes them fall short of a very good tyre.
Anyway, I don't think tyres are your problem at all. Judging by this thread I think you need a therapist not a bike shop.
Anyway, I don’t think tyres are your problem at all. Judging by this thread I think you need a therapist not a bike shop
LOL go on... I'll play... 🙂 Whys that ?
Bit more cleaning and sorting today, need to sort the rear mech hanger too, luckily a mate has one, but i've ordered 2 from Bird anyway.
Anyway, i was mistaken about the Vigilante/Butcher combo on my lads bike, i took the Vigilate off mine a month or so ago to give it better rolling and fitted to his as he wanted more rear grip, it's a high grip compound, so he's got a high grip Vigilante on the rear and a high grip Convict 2.3 on the front.
I've got 2 * 2.3 Butcher grid gripton on the Aether. Checking the pressures today i've got 21psi in both, i'd say i had closer to 25-26 in the front at Afan. I'm still going to fit the Vigilante i bought a couple of weeks ago on the front of the Aether though today when i get a bit of time after finishing cleaning and sorting everything 🙂
Stop blaming the bike/components/tyre pressure.
Just set stuff up once and ride the ****ing thing.
There's nothing wrong with the bike.
Stop blaming the bike/components/tyre pressure.
Just set stuff up once and ride the **** thing.
There’s nothing wrong with the bike.
LOL have a word with yourself. It's a sodding discussion forum, we're discussing bikes, you know, on Singletrack forum, chatting bikes about riding at proper biking locations, riding proper bikes and proper days out. I never said there was anything wrong with the bike but that doesn't mean it can't be better does it. Do you never question decisions ? Do you never change tyres ? Brakes ? Anything or do you just buy a bike and ride it as it comes out the crate ?
If you'd prefer we can just go back to gravel bikes, building sheds or talking about CV19... However, i'll take discussions about bikes, riding and components all day over any of that thank you.
Don't get me wrong - I'd love to love the Spesh tyres. They have decent treads patterns and they can be had cheap (I paid £12 for a 2.6 Slaughter direct from Spesh), but there's just something about them that makes other tyres a better bet even at 3-4x the price.
It may well be your lad can get away with the GRID casing as I assume he will be a bit lighter than me or he's using BLK DMND casing, but I can't get away with them. Had a 2.6 Butcher fail at the bead and a 2.6 Slaughter snakebite on the tread and the bead. 2.6 Hill Billy doesn't really like any hard ground and feels like it just wants to fall over. What may be a plus or a minus is that the rubber never seems to wear out, and the 2.6 always come up small - a bit narrower than a 2.4 Wild enduro, and a lot smaller than a 2.6 DHF.
I appreciate that this all could be user error and a Black Diamond casing or T9 compound could be totally different. However, with a Force AM2 and Magic Mary combo I don't have the doubts like what I used to
Do you never change tyres ? Brakes ? Anything
Yes but I don't feel the need to constantly post about it every time I change a tyre...
If you can't get round corners at Afan it's not the bike that's the problem.
If you can’t get round corners at Afan it’s not the bike that’s the problem.
LOL OK fella.... why don't you take yourself off to somewhere else then 🙂
Will that help you get round corners?
Scienceofficer and sharky hit the nail on the head up there^^.
I can get round corners fine thanks. I'm a fairly competent rider. But why that means i can't look to improve either myself or my bike is absolutely beyond me. I've raced XC, enduro, i've raced motorbikes, i hold KOMs.... Trust me, i'm not exactly a novice at this. But for some reason that means i can't analyse or change anything on my bike to improve things and give me a better feel, maybe i should just run whatever shock pressure is in there too, or is it OK to change that to improve things ?
I'm not going to sit here and say i'm perfect and it isn't something i need to get used to, or something i need to improve on. But to imply i can't get round corners at all is quite frankly ridiculous.
Anyway... Moving on
Mech hanger swapped and the bike shifts lovely, so no damage to the rear mech. Awesome 🙂
Swapped the front tyre for the WTB Vigilante as well, so ready to roll again.
Yep.
Defo the tyre will sort all your problems...
Yep.
Defo the tyre will sort all your problems…
Jeez fella, give it up... Go ride a bike or something. You're arguing with a bloke you've never met, never seen ride and have no idea how good, bad or average that bloke is. You're arguing on the internet with a random about something you can't fix, change or resolve... Move on. You're quite frankly being ridiculous.
Sure, i get you don't agree, it's not the tyre, fair enough, you've told me, and again and again.... How about i ride the bike and decide 🙂
Or you can simply tell me i'm rubbish again and can't get round corners.
Despite doing 1000 of them this weekend 🙂
Due to go out over the Golfie later thanks.
i can’t get it to get round stuff
Your words
Or you can simply tell me i’m rubbish again.
Didn't happen.
You’re arguing on the internet with a random about something you can’t fix, change or resolve
Silly. Thats what t'internet is for!
I’ve raced XC, enduro, i’ve raced motorbikes, i hold KOMs….
Surfmatt is that you?
Surfmatt is that you?
Hey i never said i was brilliant at any of them, but i have ridden bikes and can ride bikes. If i say something is a bit off in the bike, it may well be me, but may well be something in the bike, like a tyre, pressures, shock, fork etc... So i'm still struggling with why trying things like pressures, or tyres, is somehow wrong.
Whilst i may have said "can't get it round" that doesn't mean i couldn't make a single corner, i made the corners, i just didn't like how it felt and it never inspired confidence for me. But i still made it 😀
Sure, i'm happy to accept that there's potential fault in my technique... However, this is open to debate too, but i'm impressed how people can tell me that without ever seeing me ride 🙂 If that's a by-product of the LLS and i need to change my riding style, sure i can get my head around that. But by dropping the pressures by 3-4psi and the bike feeling 100% better the day after, well, maybe that says it's not necessarily all my fault.
However, this is open to debate too,
I believe thats what's occurring. 😉
If that’s a by-product of the LLS and i need to change my riding style,
My original comment was made on the basis of own, much more gradual journey into LLS over the last 4 years. I had 16 years of hiding at the back of the bike to unlearn and I still lapse every so often now. I can only imagine the sudden precipice you've inflicted on yourself in terms of riding style, from such a sudden shift.
well, maybe that says it’s not necessarily all my fault.
Almost certainly, but your immediate response seems to be to change kit and shift the bike on which looks like solely blaming your equipment. If you don't reflect upon this adequately, you're going to cost yourself alot of cash and dissatisfaction.
i’m impressed how people can tell me that without ever seeing me ride
It's pretty easy to spot.
Normal giveaway signs are constantly talking about "testing" stuff.
Your a middle aged bloke pissing about on a pushbike not Rossi/ Toni Cairoli/ Greg Minnaar.
Stop taking stuff so seriously.
Get used of the new bike first before making constant changes.
I bet a pound to a pinch of shit you're still trying to ride it off the back and that's whats causing your problems.
With respect- that’s what Weeksy does. He buys, cleans, mods, rides, mods, cleans and sells bikes and motorbikes 😀
You’d be better off telling him not to do back to back Zwift races all week or have a recovery day than to tell him to take the time to get used to a bike 🤣🤣
And 15 years on- that’s what makes Weeksy the forum legend that he is. You know what you’re getting with one of his threads.
So if you can’t say anything nice then maybe post elsewhere 😉
Ah, so he's another Hora.
Fair enough.
Am amazed at how offended @Scienceofficer @singlespeedstu @sharkattack are about Weeksy's approach to riding (and really, just plain mean as far as I can tell).
I've not met any of you, or @weeksy so I'm just another random internet guy. I've ridden the same steel 26" hardtail for years, I've never serviced my fork let alone checked my pressures but I find the approach in this thread to understanding how to set up and ride a modern LLS really interesting.
Just go and read another thread maybe?
Am amazed at how offended @Scienceofficer @singlespeedstu @sharkattack are about Weeksy’s approach to riding
Hmmm. AFAICT, none of us have been anything more than factual. I'm certainly not offended. I find it odd that you even think that.
It just seems to me that he's trying to buy his way out of a problem he doesn't yet fully understand and I've said as such. Best of luck to him.
Is that what happens now when someone has a different/opposing viewpoint? One has to be offended? It all seems a bit teenage angsty to me.
Offended?
what a strange thing to say.
As weeksy himself said.
It’s a sodding discussion forum
With discussions often come opinions that you don't agree with.
Some people seem to not respond well to suggestions that keep changing your bike setup is not the answer.
If it helps (probably not but 🤷♂️) I find the newer lls bikes a bit tricky in tighter and twisty single-track and I still can't get used to riding them.
Fair play to you Weeksy for analysing stuff rather than just selling it like I do 😄
Fair play to you Weeksy for analysing stuff rather than just selling it like I do 😄
The analysis is just an additional step before the sale (slowly backs out of thread so as not to offend 😉 )
I've owned 3 MTB in 5 years, t130, g160 and the Bird. I'm not exactly a serial swapper. I only swapped to the Bird because the G160 was killing shocks and 216*63 was getting ridiculous to find now.
I'll keep analysing both myself and the bike until I'm happy, whether that's tyres, bars, angles, shocks, etc. Why not, it's what I do. I've that kind of mindset.
I've also got a session in 2 weeks with Katy Curd training to improve me so will also be interested in what she says, mostly because she'll actually be watching me rather than making assumptions. But hey that's what happens here.
The bike isn't going, I've fixed the mech hanger and straitened the bars which were knocked out of alignment in the crash.
I'm not riding today though as I'm a bit delicate along with having had Covid injection earlier today
I’m glad you’re not selling it because this thread is one of the reasons I’ve ordered one, and mine hasn’t arrived yet. That said the Aether is shorter, taller and steeper than my last frame so I reckon I’ll get on with it just fine.
LOL then i apologise if you hate it 😀
In all seriousness, i do really like the bike. I just didn't quite gel with it on Sat at Afan. But that may have been it's fault, my fault, a combination of issues or... well, maybe neither.
My times were not that far off my best, Zig Zag mid for example was a 2:00 segment and i was 2s off my PR, Graveyard i was 15s off, a couple of others it's 2-3s off the pace, but conditions were not exactly superb, so i think as much of it is in my head as anything else. ALong with potentially me being old ! Lots of other segments we were stopping for small boys or even adults, so lots of segments are massively longer than you'd expect in time.
One main thing i do need is a chainring plan. I bought a 30T sram steel from Tredz for £16... lets just say, well, it's not very good... it's noisy as heck ! Not sure at this stage if that's because it's cheapo steel, because it's a cheap N/W or because it's a new ring on an old chain... Something i need to look into. I only need it on for 1 ride though which is Snowdon, so likely i'll just use it for that and then throw straight in the spares box..
But would be nice to have a 30T that's quiet... (My 32T isn't exactly silent.. but not as noisy at the new 30T)
Get a 28, that's where it's at these days.
Though I must admit that the consequent lack of a twelfth gear is rather vexatious:-)
“ Not sure at this stage if that’s because it’s cheapo steel, because it’s a cheap N/W or because it’s a new ring on an old chainring…”
I suspect it’s the chain - I’ve got a SRAM steel on my Levo and it’s very quiet.
Regarding the Aether, it’s really not that different to your G160 - front centre is about an inch longer, some from the reach, some from the head angle. And the BB is a fair bit lower. Based on my experience with my modified Bird hardtail which is rather similar in geometry when both are at sag, I’d try raising your bars again - it doesn’t take much but I find it easier to weight the front when I’m not having to reach out and down so much.
It's not the size (oooer missus) but the noise that's the issue. When it rotates it's like it grabs onto the chain on a couple of teeth. I know all narrow wide rings are noisy, but this does seem more so than I'd expect
I've got a spare 11s new chain, well a couple actually
Will try one in the morning
Might be because it's steel, I forget which bike it was but a recent review of a high pivot/chain idler pulley bike mentioned the steel idler pulley was more noisy than an aluminium one.
Instant silence with new chain.... Which has kinda made me rethink my chain lube situation, but that's a whole other discussion for another place.
X-sync 2 chainrings are awesome - probably the best nw type rings out there tbh. Steel for cheap and last almost forever / alloy got lightness (but a bit too pricey).
Sounds like a new chain was the way forward!
You keep playing with stuff - it sounds like you enjoy tinkering. I’m often messing about with tyres and little bits and bobs - although nowhere near as much as you. I get some good natured piss taking on the tyres which is fair.
Katy is great - maybe get her to work as much as possible on tight / steep tech with you. I had a session booked with her that was postponed and need to re-book. I’ll be splitting it between steep tech / slow speed drops / jumps.
You keep playing with stuff – it sounds like you enjoy tinkering. I’m often messing about with tyres and little bits and bobs – although nowhere near as much as you. I get some good natured piss taking on the tyres which is fair.
Katy is great – maybe get her to work as much as possible on tight / steep tech with you. I had a session booked with her that was postponed and need to re-book. I’ll be splitting it between steep tech / slow speed drops / jumps.
Yes i do and without doubt i will keep tinkering. I'm looking forward to seeing the Shockwiz reports. Yesterday i was in and out of the garage 5 times doing this and that, swapping, tweaking and sorting. I used to be the same with motorbikes, but my motorbikes are mostly left alone in terms of spannering now and just get cleaned and thrashed around racetracks.
Sadly for me, Katy is coming up a week too late, we're at a Welsh Enduro the weekend before in Wales (17th). WE're not with KAty until the 22nd. My lad has been with her for 5 sessions now and is massively improved. If you follow her on Facebook etc you'll have seen him as she's made him a little bit of a poster boy with upcoming stuff, he often makes her FB/Insta... But as i say, sadly it's 5 days after the race, would have been ace to be able to take some extra knowledge into the race.
MAy not be too interesting to you lot, but was to me. Stuck the Shockwiz on as i collected it on the weekend
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51300956130_e8d1aa4384_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51300956130_e8d1aa4384_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2mahNXC ]2021-07-09_10-46-14[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url], on Flickr
Now that's interesting to me because i stuck an extra 20psi in it as well before this ride as i thought it was a bit too soft, so from 182>198. However the Shockwiz still wants more, so i've just gone to 216psi now. Will test it tomorrow.
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51300956345_d893b576a8_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51300956345_d893b576a8_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2mahP2k ]2021-07-09_10-46-22[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url], on Flickr
[url= https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51299939321_9faf0c60cf_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51299939321_9faf0c60cf_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/2macAGr ]2021-07-09_10-46-30[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/152318156@N08/ ]Steve Weeks[/url], on Flickr
Had an ace ride and with the new chain on it's quiet as a sleeping mouse 🙂 . The handling wasn't tested much, but round here it's more XC than gnarly reds, so you can only ride what you have available to you 🙂
I've lost the detail amongst the stream of consciousness stuff, but whats the shock and what do you weigh?
Although I have the A9, AFAIK, the frame rate is pretty similar and at 92kg I'm running an x2 with 245psi and three tokens - may or may not be useful.
Shock is a 2021 DPX2 from Bird in a tune correct for this frame. I generally go my weight in lb to psi.
However when bouncing on it i liked 180 (ish) psi, weighing 92kg...
I then went to 200psi and now 216psi. I've got 1 token in there, which depending on how it goes tomorrow, may come out. I don't think i'm particularly fussy on shocks though, i'll run whatever Shockwiz says and just get on with it.
Obviously there's a minor plus side of more psi should give me less pedal strikes.
I don’t think i’m particularly fussy on shocks though, i’ll run whatever Shockwiz says and just get on with it.
You kinda are, though. In reality, ignore the pressure and set it to the correct sag, then look at whether tokens are needed or not.
and set it to the correct sag
Correct is open to interpretation though. In the previous years i've kinda moved from say 25% to closer to 40% as my preference and difference shocks i prefer with different sag. In the last 12 months i've generally now gone to 35% as being where i like things.
The thing is, different shocks feel completely different, the Fox DPX2 seems to have LOTS of initial travel and very soft initially, but then smooth after the initial drop. The Rockshox seem far more linear and progressive. I prefer 'soft' myself, but that doesn't necessarily mean i'm correct 😀
I don’t think i’m particularly fussy on shocks though,
Plenty of evidence to the contrary on this thread😉
I guess you'll find out from the shockwiz, but based on my previous experience of a similar sized DPX on a previous 130mm bike, I think you're going to go up in pressure some more.
Bearing in mind as well that the frame rate on these Aether s is high at the start and reduces as it moves into the travel. If you're undersprung to start with, this will make it sit even lower.
* For the avoidance of doubt for all SJWs reading, I am in no way offended that Weeksy has differing views and is likely to continue to do so going forwards.*
I don’t think i’m particularly fussy on shocks though, i’ll ...... just get on with it.
Comedy gold 🙂
Well in my defence, a lot of this has been through necessity and circumstance rather than me disliking a particular shock.
We started all this because the G-160 broke 3 shocks (Well one of them was arguably faulty when i bought it, but it deffo 'broke' 2 of them), so went to the Bird Aether7. However i was running 210*52.5 which whilst it worked wasn't the correct length shock for the frame. So i then went to a DPX2 which i later fitted into my lads Sworks, but he preferred the Deluxe, so i put it back in mine. In the process we went from incorrect length shocks so now having 2 bikes running 210*55s which are correct for both frames. He's got a shock he likes, i've got a shock I like.... So all good... The rest is just me fiddling round with it to get the best settings for me and for the Shockwiz.
Rockshox seem far more linear and progressive.
That's a new one on me...
If your magic app is telling you you need more air on a ride that is represented by your photos you must be way under pressured for any kind of decent riding.
Does linear AND progressive make the trails come alive as much as 27.5?
Lol let's pick on the terms then if it make y'all feel superior 🙂
For me the Rockshox feels the same all the way through the stroke, from sag to full travel. To me it feels quite stiff at the initial part of travel.
The DPX2 starts off squidgy and soft but actually uses less of its travel overall.
I'm no expert in terminology, but I know how I prefer things to feel
Each increment on the Shockwiz is about 10-15 psi. So I'm pretty sure tomorrow the pressure will be within its green range now.
Straight to the heart of the matter Stu!
😆
Edit: ignore me..
The Rockshox seem far more linear and progressive.
i can cope with you having a genie in a bottle that tells you how much pressure to put an an air shock (would love to play with one) but ^ has me really puzzled. are you talking about more than one RS shock and comparing to the fox?
I've always preferred the direct approach. 😉
but ^ has me really puzzled. are you talking about more than one RS shock and comparing to the fox?
I've got and tried multiple Rockshox shocks in this frame, first is a 210*55 deluxe r, the other is a 210*52.5 deluxe RT , they feel quite similar, bordering on 'firm' when you're sitting/riding.
So I’m pretty sure tomorrow the pressure will be within its green range now.
For that flat non technical ride?
Maybe, but as soon as you push it into steeper, faster more lumpy stuff you'll be undersprung again.
Shockwiz only gives you data for the ride you do.
FWIW I think the Aether has a pretty narrow margin of tolerance for setting a shock outside Birds design expectations. BB is so low to start with.
Shockwiz only gives you data for the ride you [s]do[/s] did.
This is the main reason i don't really see the point in them.*
A magic app to tell me my bike was almost perfect on the last ride seem kind of pointless unless you only ever ride the same trail.
Still it seems to appeal to some.
*That and almost all of my bikes being coil front and rear.
If you like 35% sag on a shortish travel frame then I'm pretty sure that's why the shockwiz is telling you to add air, add a low BB anyway and it's going to be pedal strikes ahoy.
Of course it's only for certain terrain, a jumpy day is never going to be perfect settings for an XC day, i'm not completely sodding stupid.
However, you want a 'baseline' don't you ?
Your "baseline" will be way off the mark for any proper riding if its set up for the trails pictured.
35% sag?
Its not a DH bike you know. 😉
i give up...
enjoy
Depends.
Shockwiz is iterative. In theory you could have optimal settings for each individual section of trail on a ride. Thats plainly unfeasible until real time on-board microprocessor controlled damping and spring adjustment synced to your position with GPS is a thing.
Is a flat non technical ride a baseline for you? Is that your normal riding? If it isn't, I'd argue its not even a 'baseline', or indeed, useful.
i give up…
I think you gave up trying to understand how to set a bike up when you started bolting your magic app to it.
to get the best settings for me and for the Shockwiz.
You set it up to please an app?
Don't go, I'm developing a weird fascination with your 'received wisdoms' thinking - I want to see when the light bulb comes on.
You might find it useful.
When I borrowed a shockwiz, I found a little loop (in swinley, a pair of the resevoir trails into red25) that included slow tech, quick chunder, jumps and an uphill. A loop of it took me about 5mins, then I walked up the climb checking out the app, made the top recommended change only, and repeated the loop.
Including riding into the forest, I was done, fork and shock, in about 1.5 hours.
I wouldn't bung it on for a whole ride.
I'm very much in the "find the perfect setting then leave it alone" camp, rather than "set up for the conditions" though.
If you like 35% sag on a shortish travel frame then I’m pretty sure that’s why the shockwiz is telling you to add air, add a low BB anyway and it’s going to be pedal strikes ahoy.
I think the Aether is designed around 30% sag and the shock curve is regressive up to that point and progressive beyond, so worth having running around there.