Upgrades to my meta 5, advice needed

BurtonM

I want to make my meta 5 into more of a downhill type of bike. This is purely because i wanna be sure i dont put too much stress on it when im runnin 140mm suspension.
What possible upgrades can you put on, im more of a Buy Bike, Ride Bike, Break Bike, Dad Fix Bike type of guy.

supersonic

But DH will stress it more! What DH do you plan to do?

M1llh0use

if the rumours are true you need to buy a different bike if you want to do DH. The meta will shatter as soon as you point it at a small pebble if some are to be believed...

:roll:

BurtonM

I dont know. Ill be passing my driving test within the next month so regular trips up to fort bill and glentress will be in order. I just havent got the money to buy a dh rig so i thought maybe a few upgrades would do the trick

supersonic

It will handle small stuff, but not full on DH. Sorry.

BurtonM

ive done the world champs course already at fort bill, but i wasnt fully confident. i just felt asif it could shatter at any moment

supersonic

Well it might, it is not an DH bike! It is a long travel XC bike/ trail bike.

BurtonM

yeah i suppose. oh well looks like im saving up for a while

paul.skibum

If you do want to upgrade anything go for a bolt through fork and more DH oriented rims and brakes and maybe a coil shock instead of air but ultimately the weak link is the frame which is not designed to take the forces involved.

Swap out the frame for a Meta 6 or a Supreme would be the better option and sell off the old Meta frame to fund it.

marinman1

definately some DH rims and freeride forks, possibly some domains or 36s. big rotors. that should last you for a bit, but if you get into it its a good idea to upgrade the frame, +1 for the supreme

BurtonM

Ive decided im just going to save up for a good downhill rig. then a ff and some body armor. might take a while but you never know i might win the lottery.

neil_sheehan2000

M1llh0use wrote:

The meta will shatter as soon as you point it at a small pebble if some are to be believed...

:roll:

Cheeky!

I have heard that the tales of frames snapping are more to do with a poor finish on the white paint- it cracks and looks like the frame's broken. Although some really have snapped in half.

BurtonM

that was the old frames. ive done the world champs course at fort bill, ive watched my bike slide down spooky wood descent and its got a few scratches.

Anonymous

Still, it's not designed for that much abuse.

RealMan

Just ride it. If you break something, obviously that's the thing that needs replacing for something more beefy.

The meta will take quite a bit of abuse, it is a commencal after all - they're made for fat people

BurtonM

shut it hitler 8)
nerr am going to save up for an iron horse sunday. may aswell, im 17, theres no bills to pay no houses to buy, i might aswell make the most of it

jay12

BurtonM wrote:

shut it hitler 8)
nerr am going to save up for an iron horse sunday. may aswell, im 17, theres no bills to pay no houses to buy, i might aswell make the most of it

sweet. check the ones i posted on the "new DH frame" thread im MTB buing advice

RealMan

lol.

You know you wont get to the standard required to break the bike for a while. Just because you're "doing dh" doesn't mean you're doing it fast enough to actually put enough strain on the bike to break it. When it starts breaking, that's when you know you're good/bad enough to buy a dh bike/learn how to ride properly. Delete as appropriate.

BurtonM

Thats actually a very valid point. Thing is though, im a very materialistic person so i have to have the best, no matter what the standard. I think im going to take advice for once, so thats what im going to do.

RealMan

I'd rather have the £2000 or whatever an Iron Horse Sunday costs.

And a lot of people don't realise this, but you have to buy a bike to match your skills. No point having the best if you're not the best. Just a waste of money, because you wont get the full potential out of it. You cant buy your way up the mountain, and I'm pretty sure you cant buy your way back down.

Just imagine it.. You're on your brand new Sunday, shooting down a descent, when some guy comes streaming past you, as if you're standing still, on an old knackered hardtail..

BurtonM

LMAO.
But thats just exactly like saying i'm going to buy an expensive fast car if your going to drive it at 70mph everyday. Most cars do 70mph anyways and just because you have a ferrari it doesnt mean your going to beat a reliant robin when your both going 70 ?

supersonic

It is still not a DH bike. One iffy off and could be goodbye frame. If you want to hit the big DH courses, get a DH bike. Even a budget one! A 7lb XC/trail frame will not handle 6ft drops. This is exactly why we hear of Commencals breaking!

BurtonM

yeah i know. totally agree. im just toying with the idea of getting into downhill biking.

RealMan

Yes but unless he's really stupid he wont just go and try a 6 foot drop without doing a 5 foot drop before then, and a 4 foot drop before that, and so on.

He will break a wheel or something first, then its time to upgrade. Yes, he will have to a buy a new wheel, but it means he doesn't have to face the depreciation of owning a dh bike while he doesn't need it.

It also means that while he starts riding dh, he will be on a bike that isn't designed for it, so that when he does get a dh bike, he will be brilliant on it, and find everything a lot easier.


This is all assuming he finds out that he does indeed like dh.


And yes, the Reliant Robin/Ferrari on the motorway is a good example. I also like Range Rovers to pick up the kids from school, and lightweight xc wheelsets for riding to the shops.

BurtonM

it might just be me, but i can eat pickled onion crisps all day long

supersonic

The bike doesn't have the angles either. It will be too steep and switchy on the stuff. I'd save up for a budget DH frame.

RealMan

supersonic wrote:

The bike doesn't have the angles either. It will be too steep and switchy on the stuff. I'd save up for a budget DH frame.

What are you talking about? Its not a road bike.

BurtonM

I dont understand. People used to race downhill on rigids. surely back then the dhill courses were more poorly planned and maintained making it more of a dangerous environment. I think this bike (being 4 rides old) would be fine. but thats just my opinion, ive only been biking for a a year or so therfore my knowledge is lacking

Anonymous

Realman, have you ever ridden a full on DH bike?

Anonymous

BurtonM wrote:

I dont understand. People used to race downhill on rigids. surely back then the dhill courses were more poorly planned and maintained making it more of a dangerous environment. I think this bike (being 4 rides old) would be fine. but thats just my opinion, ive only been biking for a a year or so therfore my knowledge is lacking

Ah, but DH courses back then weren't anywhere near as rough as some are these days.
Also, bikes were extremely overbuilt back in them days.
Even my 1999 Wolf ridge, a massively heavy beast compared to similar bikes these days, has been abused everywhere from Snowdon to Chatel.
A modern frame designed for the kind of riding as that bike, would be much much lighter, but ultimately not as strong.
Basically, what I'm trying to say is that things have become far more specialised.

supersonic

RealMan wrote:

supersonic wrote:

The bike doesn't have the angles either. It will be too steep and switchy on the stuff. I'd save up for a budget DH frame.

What are you talking about? Its not a road bike.

No. And it aint a DH bike either.