Lightening up my Patriot66

baccaman21

Hi

I'm considering modifying my 04' Patriot 66 by lightening it up so it's more XC and less DH as I'm wanting to some long distance coast to coasts on it at some point in the future...

I changed the forks from the Manitou Stance Kingpins that came with it ages ago to Marzocchi Drop off 2's a while back...

I also swapped the wheels from the Sun rim Single Tracks - to Mavic 717's
I'm still running the continental 2.3's that came with it (which I now think are a bit overkill)
The shock is still the manitou SPV coiled air assist job that came with the bike - but I'm thinking I should change this to just an air shock (no coil) to reduce weight.
The brakes are standard Hayes FX 9's with 7" (maybe 8") rotors...
The Cranks are Truvativ with bash ring
The Front and Rear Mech are standard Deore

Most of these parts are worn and could do with being serviced or replaced... I've not ridden (properly) for coming up to a year now due to injury and the fact I've been travelling for six months.

I've come to the conclusion that I'm getting older and should really start toning down my riding, and besides, I'm actually starting to enjoy the distance off road riding as opposed to 'just' riding to find descents to thrash down as fast as possible...

I really want to keep the 66 frame and swap out the components (as opposed to buying an off the shelf solution) So I've been mulling over a few options...

1. Swap forks (again) and front end generally - I'm not 100% happy with the drop offs, they're not that plush and the travel is limited, they're heavy and no lock out...
2. Wheels? could I get lighter? is it really neccessary or will just a change of tyre set up be more beneficial.
3. Rear Shock... I know this needs to be switched but I'm clueless about what's right and what's not right.
4. The group set... should I stick with Deores? move to XTR? or even SRAM...? I'm quite interested in the Short cage options for the rear derailuers... are these proven yet in MTB circles or is that still roady territory. As for the Cranks and what have you, I expect I'll need to dump the bash ring and review the cranks too... (maybe even start running SPDs?!)
5. Brakes. Any suggestions... I kind of want to go to Hope mini's... I've never had any probs with the Hayes though. Just wondering whta difference it would make.

I guess I'm looking at a total overhaul.

I'm moving to brighton soon, so I'm guessing I'll be seeing a lot of the south downs.
I'm medium build and fluctuate between 11.5 and 13 stone...

Any advice gratefully received.

ddoogie

Biggest difference you can make will be to swap out the Drop Off forks and put on something lighter and with a decent low speed compression adjustment. Depending on budget but you seem to have a fair bit of cash to splash. Something with about 5-6" of travel would be ideal. I'd suggest a Pace RC40 fighter. With a thru axle if you have the appropriate hub. Very light and adjustable for climbing.

A change of rear shock will also reduce weight. You could either fit a titanium spring to your coil shock or just swap it out for an air can. You should be able to get an RP23 to fit. Either option is expensive though.

Tyres are going to be dragging you down at the moment. Swap em out for something a bit lighter; Panaracer Fire XC Pro 2.1" would be perfect.

I wouldn't worry too much about the brakes. They are decent anchors and you wont really notice a huge weight saving by changing to minis.

If you can change your drive train you will certainly notice a performance benefit. Deore does not compare to an XT groupset. Cranks, rear mech and shifters are what I would change to XT. Don't worry about the front mech.

SPDs are a must. Loads of weight saving over flat pedals and the performance upgrade is amazing.

Lots of things to think about there. Spend wisely!

-C-

Ref the short cage point. If your cassette is of reasonable spread 11 to 27+ you will struggle with a short cage.

Leave them for DH when running with a roadie cassette.

Brakes, wouldn't bother with the Hope's. If you want to change stick with Shimano, or look at Formula or Avid

schmako

My 06 Patriot 66 is pretty light, seems to manage 20 mile rides okay. I'm sure my fox 36's + my frame weigh the same as the 03/04 frame! I'm sure the older 66's have the option of running an air shock too (i'm not too familiar tbh though). Have a look at this patriot: http://www.orangebikes.co.uk/2007bikes/patriot-xcel.php it seems pretty light!

ROCHA

You could change the shock. Fox dhx5 air is lighter than coil and seems to perform well.
Forks: pikes or lyrics air version or magura wotan would be lighter(all under 2.5kg). You could go even lighter with pace EXC 150 Air 20 but it wouldn't be as sturdy, probably.
Wheels: 717 is light enough, you could try lighter tyres or no tubes system.
Brakes are ok, formula, grimeca or hope mini would be lighter but not much difference.
Thompson Elite X4 stem, FSA K-Force Carbon DH Riser Bar, Thompson seatpost or similars would also reduce weight without compromising reliability in more extreme use.
XT crankset is also lighter. You could keep the chainrings that come with it or fit the bash and ring you have on your current truvativ, but in that case it would be better to have 11-34 cassette to keep ratios ok.Medium cage mechs should work with 1 ring and 11-34 cassette.
X7/ x9 rear mech and shifter when current deores need a retirement.
Can't seem to think of anything else at the moment...

baccaman21

Thats great feedback chaps thanks... mostly reinforcing what I was thinking.

I've been considering the Pace RC's since my riding buddy managed to get an ex-display, reconditioned (2006) pair from another buddy who worked at Leisure lakes... (pipped me to the post the bugger cos I'd had my eye on em for months) Having ridden them on his setup I have to say I was mightly impressed... nice plush feel... and light...

And the XT groupset business too... I must admit I've ben tempted for a while but have been waiting for my existing parts to wear more before taking the plunge.

Obviously, I'd want to make these changes in stages (money IS an issue now my wife is expecting) so what would be the order of changes...?

I'm thinking I'd notice more of a difference in the frontend intially hence I'd go;

- Forks & Tyres (incidentally - what are good chalk tyres for the south downs?)
- Bars & Stem
- Rear Shock
- Group set

RE: Schmako... yeah I've had a look at the latest models but they do change over time and I'm not sure how much the angles and sizes have differed between the 04 models and current with respect to the positioning of the rear shocks... I remember the Xcel when I was considering buying mine was a super top spec, (and price to boot) but I had a 'limited' :P budget of 2k so opted for the cheaper £1,750 model instead and have been modding it to suit my changing riding style ever since... I've got progressively less 'hardcore' as the years have gone by... hence the changes to the less robust lighter options.

Anyway... thanks again for the advice, mucho appreciated... plenty food for thought.

ta

ddoogie

I would, as you say, change your forks as a priority. The best way to do it in stages is to remove weight from unsprung mass first. So any weight on the wheels, forks, cassette, rear mech, skewers, tyres etc, is going to make the biggest difference.

Spend a bit of time working out what will be the biggest saving, component for component and swap them out in stages accordingly.