Introduction and a Few Questions

ManniX

Evenin all

Been lurking for about the past month or so and I figure it's about time to make a post and join in with the commmunity spirit. Been enjoying the site so far, forums are packed full of useful info and the workshops on the main site have already come in handy and I know they will continue to, so thanks for that!

I'm currently in and around the Yorkshire area and hopin to get some trips in to the moors and surrounding areas with my recently bought bike with the main goals of getting fit, muddy and of course having fun.

First of all I'd like to share my recent bike buying experience in which I intially bought a 19 inch full suss and swapped it out for a 17 inch same model and see if my noted differences in feel are expected tendancies...
Basically the 19 inch felt big and dopey especially compared to the 17 inch which feels more agile but definately less comfortable in terms of cockpit and ride smoothness. The coil shock was physically longer on the 19 inch which could explain this difference I suspect...? I can definately feel more bumps now with the 17.

I guess if the 17 inch had been the first bike I wouldn't of noticed anything and I would be totally happy, the lost comfort still seems like a small price to pay for the added control I know I'll have when I get it off road.

I'm Also having trouble getting any power from the front brake (BB5) - It seems less powerful than the Avid V's I had on my old hardtail. Maybe they just need some use..

I Will also will have some crank bros smartys up for sale at some point, possibly on ebay or on the trade forum or both so look out for that if anyones interested.

Thanks in advance for any help given

2tired2ride

Welcome

What bike is it that you ride?

BB5's aren't normally that bad, not great but they do have some power. Maybe the pads are glazed? or not enough cable tension?

enjoy the forum

ManniX

Thanks for the welcome

It's a Iron Horse Warrior. A little heavy for only 5" of travel but for the price I paid I couldn't find a better spec'd full suss anywhere and tbh I was having trouble even finding hardtails with decent spec below £600.

I had a play with the front brake today, in particular increasing cable tension seemed to help, I took it out for a ride and tried doing some high speed stops in succession to see if I could get the pad worn in a bit. It definately seems better but it still doesn't feel quite right. It's hard to explain, it's almost as if the stopping power doesn't increase from high speed to slow speed, it just remains constant. I'd expect an increase in power at low speeds.

Also raised the saddle which seems to make the ride smoother

I've also noticed a sort of creaking/ticking sound coming from the front hub when it's rotating which gets louder/worse the quicker I go. And I have some rear cassette wobble which seems odd but apparently this is normal for *some* bikes? *shrugs*

Damn only 2 posts and I've already asked about 10 questions lol. Any help really is appreciated.!

xtreem

I have BB5's so do this. There is a red dial on the right side of the caliper.
Turn that in direction in which you see the inner pad moving closer to the rotor.
You want the static(right, inner) pad to be as close to the rotor without touching it.
In that case you'll get the most of the brakes.

Btw, I've tried a mate's Avid V's and they werent as good as my BB5's.
But I find the BB5's powerfull as most of the V's at slow speeds, but at high speeds,
steep slopes, longer downhills, V's just fade, it's just they are melting from the heat,
while the BB5's offer constant braking power.

Also, as the pads wear, you have to tighten the cable and turn the red dial to
keep the braking power at max. Try the above, and tell us if it's it better.

[b]ManniX[/b] wrote:

I've also noticed a sort of creaking/ticking sound coming from the front hub when it's rotating which gets louder/worse the quicker I go.

Check if the QR it's tight enough.

ManniX

Xtreem wrote:

Check if the QR it's tight enough.

Wow. It was too tight. I loosened it off fully to check and sure enough the ticking stopped. Tightened it back up with a little less force and the ticking is gone and the brake alignement seems much better all just because of the QR skewer.

I've been trying everything to try and get the brake sexy, I could get it powerful but rubbing, or free spinning but weak but not the best of both up until now. Thanks dude, major kudos to you!