Tripster ATR finally built up - lush!

And consider Salsa Cowbell bars instead of normal road bars - only a slight flare but it feels much better offroad.

If you get a medium cage rear mech then you can use a 32 cassette if you need to.

I've now held my soon to be added to the stable frame. 8) May be built up next week, just waiting on the rims. 😀

Somafunk

I was thinking of a Jones set up on my long termer tester just to see how it would work. I suspect pretty well! Just do it and post up pics!

I'm thinking dropper post as I have one that fits........Need to get my Woodchippers ordered first though as the stock bars are just too narrow and oddly shaped for my liking. Most riders will get on fine with them but I love flared drops. Currently running a 30 42 set up with an 11 36 on the back. First ride out was the 5 Ferries loop which was great fun but neither tyre was seated properly making for interesting handling at 30mph plus. 😯

First impressions? Nice. Very nice indeed.

Looks like Freeborn are sold out of the V3 wheel set for now ? 🙁

Anyone know anywhere doing a similar deal ?

I was about to buy the 2nd set of wheels.....

Winstanleys? Fatbirds?

Sanny : I bought those Jones bars so they should be here t'morn, even if i decide they don't suit the Tripster it's no great loss as they'll either go on my Cove Hummer or the Soulcraft when i finally get it built up, or i may just leave them sitting around as an ornament to occasionaly fondle 😀

I'm tempted to go for the XTR 38/28 double on the front (rather than my original idea of a single ring) with a 11-40 cassette on the rear, this'll give me a good spread of gears for the hills but I'll have to see how the bars fit to the Tripster and how the position feels before i make any decisions, i'll have to cobble together a SS drivetrain to have a ride about on it - dodgy without any brakes but what's the worst that can happen?…...

Hi guys

Just got my tripster atr frame set and I'm starting to buy bits for my build, so far have bought :
Thomson elite seatpost
Thomson x4 stem
Thomson seatpost clamp
Thomson carbon road handle bars
Chris king headset spacers......

Thinking if opting for the new sram CX1 group anyone got one or have an opinion please....

Frameset looks awesome itching to get on and ride but must be patient

That sounds like some build there, bluesmartie! Can't believe your patience, C_G 🙂

My Bridge Street bag turned up today - brilliant service by them and really helpful. It looks very good - it wasn't cheap, but is made in the UK and seems good quality. I like the simplicity of it and the clean lines. I'll be using a medium one (see TLR's pics back up the thread a few pages, where I got the idea from!) along with a Deuter frame bag for a three day, hotel (well, Premier Inn £29 bargains) tour that's got a good third of the miles on tracks and trails from this Sunday around the Peak. I went for the high mount option which just fits, but puts the bag well out of the way. Might get some pics tomorrow loaded up. I'll report back, but I'm just a little excited about it...

bluesmartie - wow, you'll be competing with Somafunk for the most pimpiest steed! 😀

gonetothehills - well, I did struggle with deciding on wheels and was keen to go for Hope hubs. Can guarantee that contact points will be changed a good few times and already changed my mind about the brakes but fortunately lbs were cool.

Good luck with your adventure and hope to see some pics. 🙂

GTTH - i use my bridgestreet every day.

only criticism is some of the reflective stitching hasgiven away but it hasbeen very much abused over the lastcouple of months and has seen some weather and not let water in yet.

How do the Tripster Massive describe their bikes?

I tend to get a bit tongue tied when I'm asked "is that CX bike?" I've never ridden CX and don't want to appear a fraud, so I usually respond that it's an "adventure bike" which leaves people a bit confused. In addition I suspect very few Tripsters have ever been used for CX purposes.

Its a CX-XC Road mountain bike.

First ride out was the 5 Ferries loop which was great fun

[img] ?oh=e1313ce2bbe806125f643bf9a9a972b0&oe=5465F5F5&__gda__=1417249065_7f6339f2735732a4a2c7c38794767846[/img]

excuse my moobs, must be the camera angle 🙂

[img] ?oh=e76b54139aa8e1400655b003214d84c7&oe=5461E245[/img]

stripped my road bike this afternoon, ready for a transplant of parts.
shimano ultegra 6700 groupset, with compact chainset, and 11-28 rear.
deda carbon post, selle magnesium saddle, kcnc stem, with Chinese ergo carbon bars.
these have all been added to my box of bits. I've started pooling the money together for a pair of trp spyre slc, and the kinesis cx disc wheels look firm favourite. Just need to sell off my EA90 RT roadie wheels, pro carbon rolling chassis, and sanderson soloist frame, and I'm done.
this bike is going to be awesome. thank you to everyone who has helped me make an informed decision, and grow a pair.

C_G - it's all in the details 🙂 Looking forward to seeing it built up.
Equally, evilsovereign; that's sounding very nice, and not a million miles from my build. 6700, Spyres, compact/11-28, carbon post and bars, latest CX Disc wheels - works a treat!

So here it is, ready for the off in the morning. Did a short shakedown ride first thing today and all seems good. Ought to be really - it's over a year old, but there's some new bits on there that needed a test.

[img] [/img]

The Bridge Street bag is a medium and just big enough for what I need to put in it. It's quiet, very well put together and weighs nothing at all. The other bag is a Deuter one from Wiggle that's quite neat and holds a fair bit. I always found that the top tube tri bags caught my knees when climbing out of the saddle, but this sitting inside the front triangle seems a lot more stable.

The new bits are the SKS Bluemels P45 mudguards with reflective strips that'll be handy come the winter commutes, the bags and the Conti Travel Contact 37mm tyres that I'm very impressed with so far.

So - tomorrow it's up to Marple then onto Hadfield, get onto the Trans Pennine Trail and head over the Woodhead Pass, turn south and drop into Sheffield. It's not a very long ride but there's a bit of route finding and tracks to negotiate. Monday I'm heading south - bit circuitous out of Sheffield, then various Sustrans routes, canals, tracks and so on via Chesterfield and Derby to Burton Upon Trent. Tuesday should be great - head north to Ashbourne and get onto the Tissington Trail, then the High Peak trail and around Longnor way, cut up to the Cat & Fiddle and home from there.

I'll report back 🙂

@ iainc - where is the pic taken cos it looks lovely?

@ gonetothehills - how on earth have you managed to pack 4 days worth of clothing/supplies into such small luggage? Definitely an adventure you're setting off on and it's really inspiring me to plan something. Would be interested to hear how those tyres work out too. Have a great trip! 😀

cg - the 5 ferries is a 72 mile ride around the Clyde, starting and finishing at Wemyss Bay, and incorporating riding on Arran, Kintyre Peninsula, Argyll and Bute.....plus 5 ferries to link it up. It's a hugely popular loop - on the first ferry to Arran there were over 80 bikes, of which probably 30 were doing the full route. As bikes go free it only cost £20 for the whole lot 🙂

That pic was just above Tighnabruaich looking SE down the Kyles of Bute. Here are some better pics :

[img] ?oh=a99a06b55ce1eb38365a8b78459f6522&oe=545B21FD[/img]
[img] [/img]
[img] ?oh=923a2851a3da3324e65d77bde2a677f1&oe=54681E04&__gda__=1415877592_e823723fdfeec9041e75a50dac2d4564[/img]

the guy in the Molteni top is pistola off here, was just the 3 of us last Sun.

OK guys, given that I only want to (hopefully) build mine up once and save on any expensive mistakes/bad choices can I have your considered opinions/experiences of the following kit that I am considering for my build please:

SRAM CX1 - crank arms/rear derailier/chainring/cassette/brake levers
with chris king or Phil wood BB

or

Rotor 3D24 crank arms/sram CX1 chainring or rotor CX Q chainring/sram CX1 rear derailier/cassette/brake levers with Rotor ceramic BB

I may be wrong but the sram gxp BB gets rubbish reviews and are the others CK/PW just a work around with spacers etc.at least the rotor BB is designed to work with their cranks.

TRP spyre brakes (are the SLC's worth the extra cash??)

Brooks Cambium C15 or C17 saddle - have a B17 on my other bike.

Brooks Cambium bar tape to match (I believe its coming) or Lizard skin DSP bar tape

Kinesis cxdisc wheelset OR custom wheelbuild - I currently have H PLUS SON rims on track hubs on my current fixed gear bike which are great and would consider using again with a different hubs - suggestions please.

Pedals - ????? never ridden clipped in so open to your thoughts on that one please.

brake/gear cable - anything do or something a little more exotic?

King cage titanium bottle cages.

Challenge grifo (33mm) CX tyres.

The rest of the parts I already have are as detailed in previous post:

Tripster ATR frameset
Thomson X4 stem
Thomson elite seatpost
Thomson seatpost clamp
Thomson carbon road handlebar
Chris king headset spacers

Your valued opinions are much appreciated.

I'm seriously thinking of trading in my Tarmac SL4 and my Pro6 for a Tripster. I haven't used the Tarmac as much as I'd hoped this year, and am wondering whether with a couple of sets of wheels I could use the one bike year round for fast(ish) road, commuting and lightish off road? I know it won't be as fast handling as the Tarmac, but would it be close enough to feel really special on the road?

The Tarmac would be the main donor, so it would be a pretty light build. What do people recommend as a light strong disk road wheel? I've got Ksyrium SLSs at the moment and would want something similarly light and stiff ideally. I've got some King/729s for off road duties.

Bluesmartie that looks a really nice spec - you might want to consider a carbon post like an EC70/90 for a bit less weight and more comfort.

Bol my Tripser has replaced a Defy and a Croix de Fer

Andy, how would you say it compares to the Defy in terms of handling and exceleration?

@cinnamon_girl. It's only 3 days 🙂 No shoes - that's the secret. My Northwave touring shoes kind of double up off the bike. However, I seem to be adding to stuff at the moment - malt loaf, buff, sunscreen (ever hopeful) it's all getting a bit tight...

@ianc - spectacular! Cracking ride in an amazing part of the world.

@bol and bluesmartie. Go with the latest Kinesis CX Discs. They're very light but seem more than up to the task of offroad duties. Bol - really good quality outer brake cable makes a big difference with mechanical discs. The SLCs save about 9g but you do get a nice bit of carbon on them. I'd have bought them if I hadn't had my sensible head on, but the SLs work more than fine.

My pedals are Time carbon/Ti ones - their fancy dan MTB pedal that was on big discount at Planet X a while back. They're about Crank Bros Candy Ti weight, but seem easier to live with. Combined with the shoes I've got, it's a really good solution for touring and road use. I commute in some Northwave Celsius in the winter though - and of course that works a treat too.

Bol - mine replaced a carbon road bike and a commuter / trainer. It's a total no-brainer. I can also justify having nice running gear on it because I'm using it all the time. I couldn't see the point in having a bike I used twice a month having the best kit on it, so my commuter / trainer / explorer / muck about bike has the best kit on it - cos other than the hardtail (that's now relatively inexpensive to reflect the amount of use it (doesn't) gets) it's all that I ride.

EDIT: The acceleration is one of the most surprising things about the Tripster. I don't know how it does it, but it's fast and sprightly but comfy and easy going. Alchemy I say, alchemy! 😈

Swapped from a M/L Defy2 2012 105 to a 57cm Tripster. Am running with slightly higher bars than the defy but feels very slightly less nimble probably due to the slacker HA and comes out about the same weight though. Running 2 pairs of wheels (road & "gravel"). Its probably a bit less than the defy as an endurance road bike but so much as to make too much of a difference - especially for my skill/level of fitness. Planning to do a few Audaxes and I can see the Tripster as perfect for that.

EDIT: Gonetothehills yes I was surprised how easily it responds whenout stamping on the pedals out of the saddle!

Use my tripster Monday to Friday on Tarmac, gravel and forest trail....... But... I still reckon my carbon road bike has it whipped on road duty only.

However,for mixed terrain, it's stunning..... Just never expect one bike to do it all folks....

So cool to see the love in for the Tripster continuing, 😀

I've got the Jones Ti loop bars sitting here, in fact they are in front of me so i admit to occasionally picking them up and fondling the Ti loveliness of them, so watch this space as i'll be fitting them tomorrow to see if they'll turn my Tripster into an ultimate long distance Tourer/off road machine, if i feel the position is perfect i'll be fitting the new XTR 11 speed double drivetrain so i have extra low gears for climbing with a laden bike, it'd be nice to have a 22" bail out gear for massive hills.

Perhaps we should collectively design a Tripster riding jersey and get one the online jersey companies to produce it for us?….or is that a bit twee?…………..

Bol/Bluesmartie : The Kinesis CX wheel set is easily strong enough, I've rode all of Dalbeattie 7 stanes with mine and hit 49 mph descending on fire roads from the Transmission tower on Bennan hill next to the Merrick in SW Scotland, the wheels are still perfect, albeit with a few scratches from rock strikes etc..

somafunk - those bars look the business. Would you run a hydraulic system then...? Can't wait to see them on the bike. What you waiting for?! 😉

Wasn't there talk of some #ATR tshirts a dozen or more pages ago?

However,for mixed terrain, it's stunning..... Just never expect one bike to do it all folks....

This is the problem. I'd like to just replace the pro6 with one, but couldn't reasonably justify it. I need to get over the matching road and mtb thing and accept that I really don't need to change anything.

[url= https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3892/15083333261_6921f7c346_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3892/15083333261_6921f7c346_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url]

[url= https://flic.kr/p/oYS2u2 ]DSC03273[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/52769476@N00/ ]South Downs MTB Skills[/url], on Flickr

The mud has returned to Sussex this week

gonetothehills : I'll be using my newly fitted TRP Spyre SLC brakes which are pretty damn perfect, there's a post a few pages back showing them and i plan to pair them with a [url= http://www.paulcomp.com/lovelevercompact.html ]Pauls love lever of some type[/url], I've got the Pauls skewers so it's a no brainer to choose the Brake levers.

I hope the Jones bars are suitable, i'll need a slightly longer stem to position my hands where i want but that's a fit issue i can hopefully dial in. I love my Salsa Woodchippers but as i use the hoods 95% of the time it seems daft to have a drop that i rarely use.

Somafunk....dibs on the woodchippers/choppers when you change em..:)

Red

theredsnapper : I'll prob be donating them to my bro's new Tripster (alloy) that i managed to source (collecting it sunday) through the wanted forum on here, that's if i decide to stick with the Jones bars, It's a very capable bike off road with the woodchippers so i think the Jones bars might just show another side to the geometry, if i'm wrong then the XTR stuff can go towards my Soulcraft that needs rebuilt.

That's cool, I'm juggling my CdF upgrades and rebuilding an aging Bianchi right now too, I've got bits all over the place!

One job at a time should be my motto, though it never will be! Think I'll have to get onto Charlie the Bike, any other tips on where to get hold of the Salsa stuff?

Red

To be honest for what Charlie is selling them for and knowing what they trade for then it's a no brainer, you'll be supporting a biking community and Charlie is alright, (****!…….. did that sound like a Portlandia sketch?), he exemplifies an outstanding if not exemplary record of maintaining full control of his faculties and sensibilities at all times, as observed below at sswc2007

[img] [/img]

He is, however…. quite adept at the [i]Black Art[/i] of successful/aspirational marketing opportunities.

[img] [/img]

😉 G'd evening charlie.

I have king hubs on h plus son rims and they are daft good. And sound ace!

Charlie is on a bike packing adventure in Iceland

Bluesmartie

That sounds like a fancy build. Personally, I would avoid the SRAM kit. I've been underwhelmed by the quality of their gear lately. The mechs wear out quickly while I've also torn teeth off a cassette. Given you are spending big money, how about an XTR race chainset with Ultegra or even Dura Ace drivetrain?

The SLCs look fantastic and go really well with the frame. They work too...which is nice!

Early days but I would struggle to see past the Kinesis wheels.

Cheers

I don't see the point of even thinking about road bars on a bike that might go offroad - Salsa cowbells or some other bars with a flare of some degree - it is just so much easier in the drops, and on the hoods, offroad.

carbon or titanium seatpost. I would go titanium based on the one on my CDF and the spring it gives, but I did see a comment once from someone on here about preferring carbon with a titanium frame as it was too springy!

I am about to order some slcs, but you need some decent, non-compression cabling or you might want for hydros, with decent cabling and decent levers they are about as smooth as hydros.

Got my Tripster frame this week,& having it built up with mainly the Kinesis build kit & Shimano 105 5800 with a 32 cassette. Can't wait to get out on it - it's worse than a kid waiting for Christmas! One question - does anyone have a chaincatcher fitted & if so what sort?
Cheers

Bimbo q - I need to understand drop bars, the effect of different depths and what all the different types actually do. Is there anywhere on the web that has a 'drop bars for dummies' thingy ?

Thanks in anticipation. 🙂

c_g [url= http://www.bicycling.com/beginners/bike-fit/your-road-bike-handlebar-guide ]This is a usefull guide[/url]

Ginger - which SRAM groupsets have you had issues with please I believe the cx1 is force level, not sure if the quality is any better the higher up the range?

Any one got experience of Gevenalle products? Thinking shifter inc the trp hylex hydraulic braking in one....

cg - just buy some salsa cowbells and be done with it.

The slightly flared bars put your elbows out slightly, increasing control off road. Road bars are designed for aero and so your elbows will be tucked into your body a lot more, which isn't so good for control offroad.

http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/salsa-cowbell-2-cyclocross-road-bars-318mm-os-1711-p.asp

there are more flared bars, but the cowbells are great.

You just need to decide the width...

+1 on the cowbells

Blue smartie

X9 type 2 has been fairly mediocre compared to my experiences with XT. X0 not much better. I find their stuff becomes a bit rattly after not a lot of use and they definitely wear out faster than their Shimano counterparts. The older pre type 2 mechs lasted longer but still weren't as good as Shimano.

I'd echo what Turnerguy says re bars.

Cheers

Sanny

Any opinions on Avid BB7's as a brake? Spyres seem to the default choice but I remember the 7's having a road version (maybe matches the lever pull better?) and being generally well rated as a cable disk?

Plus how do I size the cowbells, just go for wide as **** to display my mtb credentials?

I have some BB7 roads on my Croix de Fer (mentioned again on this thread 🙂 ) and they are good but not as good as their mtb counterparts because the pad/rotor gap isn't as big, so you do get more rubbing issues.

With the mtb ones and speed dial levers you can have a bigger gap and increase the leverage on the levers, but you can't do that with road brifters.

From what I have seen the Spyres might have a better gap.

I have 44cm Cowbells and am 5ft 10 with a 38-40 inch chest and they feel good to me.

I am in Horsell, Surrey if you want to try my cowbells for size. Where are you, maybe someone else on the thread with cowbells is close?

Hummerlicious - copy that, will avoid that same stretch tomorrow! Nice pic.
Went into Charlie BM shop briefly on my way out of Swanage yesterday. Excellent set-up and good vibes.

Cheers TurnerGuy, will probably take a punt on the same then, and stick with Spyres.

It was so mucky birdage, the bike is it's usual uniform shade of brown at the moment, needs some love!

Just got my order in via Shiny Bikes! I'm kitting it out with SRAM Force from my road race bike and Stans Crest from my Scandal 29er, thereby doing a 'bikes ~ combine'. And a 50/34 or 36/46 or 28/42 I've got knocking about. Not sure about the brakes either a Hope V thingy and the Hope T2's from 29er or some new Spyres or whatever they're called.

easyrider - when did you place your order ?

I have Stans iron Cross and use them tubeless with 33c Maxxis Raze tyres, which are nice because they have a central ridge on the tyre which runs nicely on the road.

They aren't supertight on the iron crosses so I am guessing that they will be OK on the crests, whereas some tubeless ready cross tyres are very tight on the crests.

Just bought some Spyre SLCs from Merlin.

Well - that went well... 186 miles in three days and I reckon (I'll count it up at some point) that a good 60% or more was traffic free / off road.

The Trans Pennine Trail from Hadfield to Penistone was superb - spectacular scenery and well worth doing again. I didn't realise but the southern spur of the TPT actually made up a chunk of the next day's run south to Burton upon Trent; the first 20 or more miles of that being offroad including some lovely loamy singletrack through some woods to the south of Sheffield. Now [b]that's [/b]the way to make a national cycle route!

Today's glorious sunshine made up for yesterday morning's relentless drizzle and the views as I returned to the White Peak were wonderful. The Tissington Trail from Ashbourne, that sits at the southern end of R68 that joins onto the Pennine Bridleway - is fairly typical of a 'recreational' route but discounting it (and others like it) because of this, means you miss out on the ability to cover a decent distance in traffic free serenity. With the holidays over, I encountered a couple of dozen people in the space of 15 miles. Sorely tempted with the whole thing next summer...

The Bridge Street bag worked a treat, though I was glad of the small frame bag for quick access stuff like phone, money and route backup notes. The hours spent putting the route into the Garmin paid off, the Conti Travel Contact 37mm tyres were perfect - only struggling on really steep out of the saddle climbs on wet surfaces and stayed puncture free.

Naturally, the Tripster handled everything with consomethinge ease, made the road sections fast and the gravel bits highly entertaining. Bizarrely - of the people who approached me to chat about bike stuff, the TRP Spyres, the Knog Blinder R and the Zefal mirror attracted attention. Not a word about the frame 🙂

Here's some pics for those of you who've been at work the last couple of days. Sorry.

[img] [/img]
Above Hadfield, just starting on the TPT

[img] [/img]
Top of the Woodhead Pass on the TPT

[img] [/img]
R67, outskirts of Sheffield. Quality!

[img] [/img]
It's not just the USA that has miles of gravel. Rother Valley on the way into Chesterfield

[img] [/img]
Sunny gravel on the Tissington Trail. A big ring grinder: 15 miles of steady ascent on a variety of surfaces.

Wow looks great! You have pushed me on a bit to do something similar myself!

On my Tripster side of things, ive changed to Spyres! Vast improvement with modulation and adjustment ease. Not to mention ive been able to remove all the spacers between the rack and frame.

anyone running simi slick/fast rolling knobles TUBELESS if so what tyre/rim combo are you running?

i'm wanting to convert my kinesis cx v3's - going to try some gorilla tape and sealant and tubeless valves this weekend methinks......

TurnerGuy : I place it on Sunday. What size rotors did you go for? I think 140 sounds a nit small for the front. I've got maxxis Raze on the CX bike they are great all rounders but a 28c road tyre is capable off-road as long as it's not too slick with mud or very rocky. But for most things such as the stony track down into Penrith on the C2C they're fine, and much faster than the Raze on road.

160 rotors, 140 does sound a little small.

I have a 54 on order from Shinybikes - placed a couple of weeks ago so waiting for stock to come in 🙁

What a bloomin excellent thread this is 😀

Some great reports and love in's and inspiring travelling too..

Yay1

@ easyrider - I placed an order with Shiny Bikes on 15th August (not for a frame) and despite sending two e-mails I'm still waiting for either communication or the order to arrive. Also their phone line is constantly engaged. Fingers crossed that your order goes through.

@ Andy - thanks, that's really helpful. 🙂 Hope you're still enjoying your Tripster.

@ gonetothehills - excellent report and pics, thanks. 8) Glad it worked out well for you.

http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/shiny-bikes-warning

re shinybikes.

the web site said 54 in stock but it apparently wasn't.

spoke to the guy on the phone who said that they had stock arriving in 2 to 3 weeks, and my order had been allocated against that. He then reckoned there was no more framesets coming until the new year. He sounded like a decent bloke !!!

I have heard it from another source that supplies of tripster atr framesets are dried up until the new year, so here's hoping.

Although I probably shouldn't have bought it as I don't really have the terrain to go for massive rides on it without skipping lots of the interesting stuff around surrey hills, and my croix de fer is really more appropriate for the short 'fitness' dashes around the common I built it up for - but in the end I gave in to the temptation this thread was providing.

So if I don't get it I will put it down to fate and not be too disappointed. The only things specific I have bought it it are a shim to use my 27.2 seatpost whilst I determine whether I want carbon or titanium, and a 34.9 cx70 front derailleur.

what carbon posts are you folks using ? my thomson is continuously slipping 🙁

#cinnamon girl (is that a Neil Young tribute?)
Yeah... just managed to speak with Shiny bikes then I read these updates! He must have had a few phone calls this morning. So it's another 2 weeks wait.
# TLR use some carbon paste if the post is slipping. The paste has little granules in it to help bind. I've never had a problem with carbon slippage though. I reckon a 27.2 post is the way to go on these bikes, lighter & more flexible. And can be swopped to other bikes.

So it's another 2 weeks wait.

whilst the Indian summer we are having goes past 🙁

easyrider - finish line carbon "grease" already tried.

will perhaps buy a thomson seat collar.

#TLR : You could try some 1200grit wet and dry or something on the shim and or bottom of post? Obvious though.

t_l_r - I got a seat post grip as recommended on here from xcracer. It works really well and weighs nothing, although I'm using an old Enigma carbon seat post now that doesn't seem to slip that much anyway.

http://www.xcracer.com/shop/viewproduct.php?productid=351

Got a Funn Ti seatpost from Chain Reaction but sending it back as it weighs more than the Thomson and I'm not sure about Ti in Ti anyway!

#cinnamon girl (is that a Neil Young tribute?)

Sure is easyrider!

Got a Funn Ti seatpost from Chain Reaction but sending it back as it weighs more than the Thomson and I'm not sure about Ti in Ti anyway!

birdage- I've been using a Ti seatpost in a Ti hardtail frame for the last 5 years and it's my most used steed. Not once have I had a problem.

Dissimilar metals are the ones that will bind, not the same metals.

Sorted out the slip with ah longer bolt and a 4mm hex head. More torque and no rounding of the hex.

As I said 'I'm not sure' so good to hear real life experience.I have heard different things though including from someone who was at Enigma about titanium sticking to titanium but didn't know if this would apply to seat posts. I'm not a massive fan of carbon but finding a carbon seat post in a titanium frame very comfy indeed on single track.

My Ritchey WCS carbon post - with a Hope seatclamp and some carbon paste - sticks fine. I chewed the bolt on the lovely lightweight Kinesis clamp that came with the frame, probably because I was winding it on as I couldn't get a Deda alloy post to stay put, so it's not just Thomson that drop...

I did stick a low cost alloy post in for rack bearing duties but that's been fine too (with paste and same Hope clamp). Just creaks a bit.

The original bolt in the seat clamp is made of cheese, swap it out at the earliest opportunity.

Got the jones bars fitted to my Tripster earlier……..

[img] [/img]

[img] [/img]

They have quite a few options for hand positions and i've almost convinced myself to give them a try, that obviously means buying XTR shifters, XTR rear mech and front mech, XTR Cassette and i may treat the Tripster to a Middleburn Chainset and BB.

So now i'm mired in what ratios to choose?, I was going to wait for the new XTR 1x11 speed but why limit my spread of gears, I'm thinking a 28/42 for the chain set and 11-34 for the cassette, that'll give a 102" max and a 22" low which should be enough to climb anything after a long day in the saddle and when laden up, the 102" max should be plenty enough to nip along at a decent pace on the road - it's not about outright speed anyway. (just as well coz i'm slow)

Now to sort out suitable brake levers to work best with the TRP Spyres, short or long pull levers? - I am considering either the [url= http://www.paulcomp.com/cantilever.html ]Paul Canti Lever in short pull[/url] or the [url= http://www.paulcomp.com/lovelevercompact.html ]Paul Love Lever in long pull[/url]. Or perhaps the Avid Speed Dial Ultimate lever, with these brakes you can adjust the leverage ratio which may aid the brake set up.

The RS8 cranks are designed for a 47.5mm chain line, the Ultegra cranks i removed are designed for a 43.5mm chain line - I'll have to see if the RS8's would be compatible for the frame/chainline,

There was rumour that Middleburn are bringing out a new crank design, anyone got info?.

gonetothehills : cracking pics and nice mini-tour…jealous!

Somafunk loving your eye for detail there on the Pauls Components. Next time I'm visiting my mum near Stranraer I'll give you a shout for a spin 🙂

Sounds good Andy, bring your tripster and i'll show you round my trails with cafe n' beer stops, need to be at a leisurely pace though as I'm very slow.

[i]Pauls[/i] stuff is very nice, their new skewers are worth it - very secure cam operation which gives me piece of mind when pinballing down sketchy hills. I'll phone matthew @ middleburn t'morn to get the chain set sorted out and then i can start to order other stuff, should be interesting to see how it turns out.

A 42 * 11 is similar to a 50 * 12 with a 34 at the back you'd have a giant range of gears considering it's a double. That's the beauty of 11 speed.

Sounds like most people are using cable Spyres for braking, what about other options such as :
Rival22 (then stuck with SRAM so bring some spares)
TRP HY/RD
Shimano
Wait for Ultegra hydraulics

I've read reviews on the Spyres and they're not super powerful : not a problem so long as they are good enough. Can anybody comment who has used them?

easyrider - Spyres are very good. I can lock up anything from a 25c upwards, but the nice thing is you don't have to as the control and modulation is spot on. They are night and day compared to the Avid BB5 that I had before - in lots of ways: set up, performance, quietness, ease of adjustment (and the rare need to). I don't actually think that differently in terms of braking distance to how I do on the mountain bike with its XT hydraulics and 180 rotor on the front.

C_G and somafunk - cheers! Glad you liked the pics. It was only a few days but great fun and proved what great riding we've got on our doorsteps. Those bars are looking mighty fine, somafunk. Can't wait to see them with whatever you decide to run as the controls.

#gonetothehills : what levers are you using : looks like 10speed 105 to me? Do they have 25% more cable pull (think I read that somewhere..) I should think my 2007 SRAM Force would be OK ... Poor road bike, getting it's bits robbed like this it deserves better 😕

Has anyone figured out the value in the Kinesis Crosslight Disc Build kit?
It seems like the wheels make it value, but I'm thinking I would have to discard:

Seatpost
seat clamp
front mech

and would probably move on

Bars (for Salsa cowbells)
Crankset (for a full compact)
Cassette (for 11-28)

.. which assuming not much return on selling the unused kit might add up a bit. But maybe those wheels are worth it vs:

Merlin 105 Group (grr not in stock)
Rebuild of some DT240s hubs into something gnarlyish - sort out light road specific wheels later
Cowbells
Probably a post as I don't think I have 31.6 anywhere in the spares.

.. but with the kit I'd have something to ride I suppose almost stright away..

<ponders>/......

I've been reading this thread for such a long time and I have to say its really been good to see guys and gals helping each other out and generally being so informative. Surely, this is what forums should be like!
Anywho. Having nearly pressed the button on a build kit several times I think I'm going to go for a frame because, as brassneck says above, I think I would want to change so much of the build kit. My original plan was to replace as it wears out but I've got a feeling that maybe sometime.
My thoughts at the moment is to go for a similar gear set up as my mtb's ie. 32 thick thin on the front and an 11-36 on the back without chain guide. My intended use is 20% road and 40% tracks and off road each. Do you think this will work? I'm assuming the main downside is not a high enough gear on the road if I'm lucky enough to give it some whelly.

I'm currently building one up but it will be standard 34/50 11-25, however I've just built a planet X Pickenflick up similar to what you intend to do.
I don't think the gearing you describe would work very well on the road, mine is a shimano 6800 11 speed with a 11-32 rear cassette and a race face thick/thin 42t on the front. This works well on everything road/bridleway etc in flat cheshire, however if you have any 'proper' hills a 38 or 40 would work better.
I also built it up with a bar end shifter (and v brake levers) as I don't think the short throw of the sti brake levers work very well with cable pull disc brakes (spyres). There is a lot of lever movement before the brakes bite properly. I'll be trying hy/rd on the tripster