Newish bike... and my obsession with parts? Giant XTC 1

Bleedproof

SPEC:

SIZES 16, 18, 20, 22in
FRAME ALUXX aluminium, Fluid Formed
FORK RockShox Recon SL air 100mm travel, remote TurnKey lock out
SHOCK N/A
HANDLEBAR GIANT A5 aluminium
STEM GIANT A3 aluminium ahead
SEAT POST GIANT A5 aluminium
SADDLE WTB Silverado Race
PEDALS Shimano SPD M505
SHIFTERS Shimano LX 27 speed RapidFire Plus
FRONT MECH Shimano Deore
REAR MECH Shimano XT Shadow
BRAKES Avid Juicy 3 hydraulic disc, 160mm rotors
BRAKE LEVER Avid
CASSETTE SRAM PG950 11-34
CHAIN Shimano HG73
CRANKS RaceFace Ride XC X-Type 22/32/44
BOTTOM BRACKET RaceFace X-Type
RIMS Mavic XM117
HUBS Shimano Deore
SPOKES Stainless steel
TYRES Kenda Small Block Eight 26x2.1'' DTC



I've owned an 08' Giant XTC1 since January and I love it to bits. While it's not the most expensive HT out there, at £950 it's a decent wedge of cash, has a great frame and came well spec'd.

I now find myself loving the bike but I feel that certain parts are slightly under spec'd for the quality of the ride I'm getting from the bike overall.

I soon replaced the bars as they were flats and too narrow. They were replaced by a set of Easton CNT Monkeylite Carbon Riser, and well worth the money they were. In the last 2 weeks I've replaced the Shimano chain that came with the bike for a 9spd SRAM as I tore the shimano apart and was not too pleased to say the least. Last week I got a good deal on a Thomson Stem and now I fancy a Thomson seat post to match.

I see these as the obvious changes. Overall I thought that the Giant finishing kit was good, but no where near as good as the parts I've replaced them with. I have made the changes in order to help my riding position. I'm 6'7" and a lean 16 stone (100kg).

I'm now looking at other parts that I could do with changing. The rear derailleur is an XT shadow and it's great. However, the front is a basic deore and doesn't compete in terms of shifting.

I'm not looking to replace the bike.. theres nothing else I want and the obvious upgrade to a XTC Zero or the carbon model is out as they don't do the 22" frame.

So while I'm not going to change the bike - is it worth replacing the front derailleur and or the levers to it's bigger XT brother?

Sorry about the long post... but I'd appreciate any advice as my GF doesn't understand lol.

Stu

P.S

I ride everywhere on this thing... I don't drive so it's my do all bike.. and needs looking after.

Anonymous

to be honest, you wouldnt even notice the difference if you had a gold plated xtr front mech, i find it hard to notice any difference between any of the sram mechs and my old deore setup on my newest addition is no better/worse than a previous xt set up i had.

if you want a new mech for bling reasons, thats fair enough, there is nowt wrong with liking to "upgrade" for the fun of it, and you are in good company, but be honest about it, there are lots of folk on here who will tell you about supposed improved performance by the addition of a 100 pound seat post just to justify it's purchase even though in a blind taste test, you wouldnt know the difference.

The Spiderman

I have a 2006 XTC that I have been graduallly upgrading over the 2 years I`ve had it.Stuff like a front mech makes little difference,unless you like bling or want to save grams.Shifters make more of a difference,and having tried my mate`s On One Scandal witht he newXT M770 shifters,I have to say I might be tempted to sell my older XT DCLs and buy some myself.

The best areas to spend money in my experience are tyres,forks and wheels.You have reasonably fast rolling tyres anyway,your brakes are quite reasonable,and a Recon fork is pretty decent,so I`d look towards a wheel upgrade first if you want to make a real difference to performance.I have XT hubs with Mavic 717 rims,with db spokes built by Merlin,on mine,which would save a bit of weight,and would cost around £140.Spend more and you could get a really nice light set,but I wouldn`t go too far with light weight, if you weigh 16 stone.

Bars,saddle and stem help shave a few grams but are as much to do with improving comfort,as weight saving.

supersonic

I agree with the comments on the front mech - you will not notice any difference at all!

As Spider sys, upgrade the wheels first - the Deore and 117 rims are budget items really.

Chaka Ping

But if you do want a front mech, XT ones can be had quite cheap.

That's not a badly specced bike though, I'd just replace other bits with better stuff as they wear out.

Interesting that they spec it with those small block tyres as standard - I thought they were for dirt jumping. How do you find them?

Bleedproof

Interesting that they spec it with those small block tyres as standard - I thought they were for dirt jumping. How do you find them?

Thanks for the input guys.

I find the tyres to be good. I fill them to around 45 and they hold their shape well. They grip well at that level and are fast (even under my weight). I had one heart stopping moment on my commute, when I was pushed wider than normal on a bend by a lorry and rode through a large patch of broken, small tar mac. The back end started to move from under me, but redistributing my weight saved my bacon.

I'm aware that the wheel set is on the budget end and I'm looking at replacing them eventually.

I'd also be interested in looking at the new XT XT 770's



I should really get some pics of my bike up... it's HUGE!

Stu

The Spiderman

I tried the Small Block 8s recently.Very fast rolling,wouldn`t like them in deep mud,but great for summer use.

XT M770 shifters,are less than £45 if you shop around.Merlin is cheapest.

supersonic

Oh, if thinking about new post and stem, maybe the SMICA range? Much cheaper than Thomson, and just as light. Money saved would be better spent on the wheels say.

Getting them shifters myself!

The Spiderman

Unless you can get lucky and find a Thomson for £35 like I did.........

supersonic

Lol, thats a hell of a reduction!

Anonymous

i just bought a new ibeam post with an i fly saddle for 40 quid on wiggle and it is an ace setup

i rarely get excited about finishing kit but it is such a simple system and is super light, the post is 100mm longer but about 100grams lighter than my thompson on my stumpy. the clamp is well fidly on the thompson too.

supersonic

I've been casting an eye over this I Beam stuff - not tried it, but looks like a great solution.

I've been banging on ages about getting a new post, the one on the Zaskar is cream crackered - but I love my Gobi saddle. Just seen the Ibeam adaptors though.

Or maybe a Easton EC70 ;-)

Anonymous

i have 2 posts as i tried one out on my old stumpy for a while with a flex sdg saddle which was super comfy but too chunky and a bit ugly.

the new post has the same finish as a thompson (feels like it has been turned, the older one is completely smooth) and the clamp is slightly nicer and requires a 5 mm allen key instead of a 6 on the older one.

the new saddle is lovely and sleek and comfy as you like even tho very stiff but i am using it on a full sus, prob wouldnt run he i fly on a hardtail unless you like a hard saddle.

the new post and sadle weighs less than 400g and was well cheap.

http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/2090568/

Bleedproof

I got my Thomson Elite X4 stem for £24 off the bay. It was used but is spotless So really I need the seat post now and I'm after a 410.

I spotted the shifter's price on wiggle..... hmmm

I'm also deep in thought about a wheel set build from merlin

supersonic

Merlin build great wheels - depends on your budget.

XT hubs on 719 rims (or maybe 717) are the classic choice, XTR for a superb light package.

Bleedproof

All this has me thinking now.

My brother is after a new bike. He is a could of inches shorter and was looking to spend around the £500 - 600 mark on a bike. If I'm looking to change the wheels and potentially the shifters I'll have a set of wheels (with disc hubs) a set of giant bars, stem and seat post and the LX rapid fire shifters. I'll already be on the way to building a second bike. So why not another Giant based on a XTC frame.....

Off to ebay I go.. woo hoo ha ha

supersonic

I got a nice 19 inch frame for sale ;-). Not a Giant, but a bit lighter/

The Spiderman

supersonic wrote:

Lol, thats a hell of a reduction!

Guillano on uk-mtb mentioned that his shop had over ordered and were looking to move them.Managed to get the last 30.9mm one they had left,too.

Had a problem with my old Easton post slipping,which has never happened with the Thomson.The finish is much more durable too.Not sure I would pay full rrp,though.Nice as it is ,its only a post!

The Spiderman

supersonic wrote:

I got a nice 19 inch frame for sale ;-). Not a Giant, but a bit lighter/

Is that the Beone? How much does it weigh?

supersonic

Yep, still got the BeOne! A site has it at 1430g, but I clocked it, with headset cups and seat collar (and all bolts) at 3.55lbs.

Bleedproof

The Spiderman wrote:

supersonic wrote:

Lol, thats a hell of a reduction!

Guillano on uk-mtb mentioned that his shop had over ordered and were looking to move them.Managed to get the last 30.9mm one they had left,too.

You might might be able to help me with something then Spidy...

Is the XTC seat post diameter 30.9 or 30.8?

I had my digital calipers on it the other day and it's coming in at around 30.86 / .85. I come from a strong engineering background, but I don't want to make the mistake of getting the wrong one, as I appreciate the difference 0.1 caqn make.

I've contacted Giant UK, but I'm still awaiting the reply.

As for the frame. While he' s a little shorter than me (6'5") he's still a pretty big chap. So 19 may be slightly small... I could be wrong.

In the cold light of day I can see that for now I may be happy with a few small changes. The wheels should probably wait. After all they're doing very well and have stayed true.

Bleedproof

Just got the reply..... 30.9