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Just looking at the orange 5's on the orange site. Are there any no brainer upgrades for the price? Looks like the RP23 shock is a good one over the standard RL, but any others?
Edit: its the 5 pro i'm looking at
Maxle swingarm would be/ was my first thing to get upgraded. My 2011 frame had the rp23 fitted. Is it not this year as the rp23 is kashima coated?
whats a maxle 😳 is it just a fatter stronger quick release? Not sure i ride that gnarly to justify that, i've never broken a normal hub or anything.
according to the website, the current ones just have RL shock, not RP23 as standard
I think my options would be:
Hope headset
Maxle
Persuade your LBS to put on some wider bars
I did,
Maxle, hope BB & performance pack.
Mine came with the RP23.
I should have got the hope headset since the cane creek one lasted no time at all.
I didnt think there was any point in the hope stuff and performance pack and all that. As they charge you full whack for it and dont take any money off for the shimano bb etc. that you arent getting.
Therefore you may aswell use the standard bb, headset etc. till they wear out and then upgrade to a hope one?
maxle is a good option, stiffens an already stiff rear end, as easy to use as a Q/R but cant slip out the dropouts.
i'd forget the shock upgrade and stick a coil on it when one comes up, really brought my five to life.
A maxle is a bolt through quick release that screws into the frame itself.
It helps to stiffen the whole rear end of the bike.
I wouldn't take any of the other upgrades they offer regarding hope headset, bb, performance pack etc. You are looking at the whole bike rather than just the frame right? If so just buy it and then if headset/bb etc were upgrades you are after, sell the 'new' ones off of the bike and put that money towards the parts you want from somewhere else. Orange don't deduct the cost of the standard parts on the bike away from any upgrades, they just add the full cost onto the original
price.
*BEATEN TO IT
Maxle on mine seems to be super stiff and I like the ease of use over a QR.
5s can creak at the rear end if the QR isn't super tight, suppose Maxle would sort that.
I got mine over 3 years ago stuck a Hope Ceramic straight bb in it and it's still going well, as is the Hope headset. Mine's an SE which came with all the upgrades, but back then was actually cheaper than adding them individually.
Now I reckon you could build the SE up for about £500 less by buying a frame and all the components yourself!
With regards to the shock, I never use the Pro-pedal on mine, but I do have TALAS forks. It climbs best with the rear fully open and the forks dropped down.
Wish I'd gone maxle, but I am a heavy rider....
Cane Creek tapered headset is a waste of time, I wrecked mine within 7 months! If I ordered again I'd go for a double and bash from new.
I like the ease of use over a QR.
You struggle with QRs? I don't think you should be allowed to ride a bike.
njee20 no I don't struggle I just find the maxle is nicer to use, I like the design of it and they don't tend to come loose.