WOW........ i cant believe the differance
mkf
Posts: 242
posted about swapping a 90mm stem to a 60mm a couple of threads back.
well kids its transformed my bike.
i can push into turns more control and confidence over jumps hold lines better.
but i had to swallow that big old humble pie cause my mate been going on swapping for years and i would not give in due to always being in the racer position gang.
so if theres anyone out there thinking should i shouldn't i
DO IT you won't go back.
so it got me thinking...
what did you change on your bike that made you ride better?
well kids its transformed my bike.
i can push into turns more control and confidence over jumps hold lines better.
but i had to swallow that big old humble pie cause my mate been going on swapping for years and i would not give in due to always being in the racer position gang.
so if theres anyone out there thinking should i shouldn't i
DO IT you won't go back.
so it got me thinking...
what did you change on your bike that made you ride better?
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Comments
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I'm going from a 110 to a 90 on Friday.
Test at Swinley forest on Sat.Salsa Spearfish 29er
http://superdukeforum.forumatic.com/index.php0 -
Be warned it can go the other way...swapped my stem for 65mm for 60mm..but didn't take into account the new stem didn't have any rise and had a low stack height...dropped the front end by about 15mm...not much I thought....I was wrong...still waiting for a high riser bar to correct it and bring back the confidence on the downhills.Santa Cruz Chameleon
Orange Alpine 1600 -
I went from a 100mm to a 60mm stem and I was also delighted with the improvement in feedback and response
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It's amazing the difference 30-40mm can make on the stem. It doesn't look a lot when you look at it.
I had a 75mm stem with a 10 degree rise on the Isis & it felt great. The rebuild has an 80mm stem with a 5 degree rise. I wonder how much different that will feel? Not to much I hope. I'm hoping 80mm will be spot on for the Isis. We'll see.0 -
M.Cole wrote:
The rider - started road riding :shock:mkf wrote:what did you change on your bike that made you ride better?
ha ha I had the same thing
. Started commuting nearly 2 years ago. My cardio plus my ability to pace myself has never been better than it is today and it continues to improve!
Somewhat conversely, (part time) singlespeeding has helped improve my leg strength no end
These 2 combined I rekon I'm a more capble rider at 40 than I was at 20, which leaves me regretting a little not having tried harder back then. Ah well, enjoy the present!
as for bike bits, I guess tyres have made the single biggest impact on my bike, especially the 2.4 Nobby Nic Snakeskin on the front of my HT.Everything in moderation ... except beer
Beer in moderation ... is a waste of beer
If riding an XC race bike is like touching the trail,
then riding a rigid singlespeed is like licking it
... or being punched by it, depending on the day0 -
M.Cole wrote:
The rider - started road riding :shock: and it is a little easier on the mountain bike.mkf wrote:what did you change on your bike that made you ride better?
ta!
Me to...best thing I've ever done regarding my MTBing.Whyte 905 (2009)
Trek 1.5 (2009)
Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp (2007)0 -
swapped my RS tora's for revs. bloody hell the difference is out of this world, the revs are apound an a half lighter and have an air spring, so silky smooth, have an extra 10mm travel too, this has slackened the geometry abit and the bike rides even better than it did before. changed tyres from intense system 4s, weighed about 850g each, swapped them to 2.25 nobby nics which weigh just under 600g. that 200g makes a helluva lot of difference, its so much easier to get up to speed, and they still grip like turd to a carpet
might change my stem from a 100 to an 80mm just to see if it makes it even better 0 -
Shortening the stem does not always make things 'better'. Lots of other factors to consider. You will be a little more upright, weight a little further back. If you are already upright and far back, you might find the front end washes out more.
Sure, try it. But it isn't always th magical solution to better bike handling.0 -
mkf wrote:what did you change on your bike that made you ride better?
In no specific order:
Brakes.. Avid Juicy 3 185/160 to Avid Code 203/185, night and day
Heavier spring in my RS Pike forks
Tyres, off with the Maxxis Ignitors and on with PanaRacer Rampage.. night and day again
Joplin seatpost, pull the lever and I can instantly hang my ass over the back wheel when descending0 -
Swapping to good tyres! No change has been as big as going from terrible Tioga Factory XCs to lovely Nevegals.Uncompromising extremist0
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Did a swap swap a few months back from a 110mm to a 90mm. BIG difference, which is totally gob-smacking, when you think it's ONLY 20mm of difference.
Also noticed a huge difference swapping Toras for Revs. Wheels are next on the list!Winter: Moda Nocturne
Road: Cervelo R3
'Cross: Ridley X-Night
Commuter: Genesis Day One0 -
Broonster my sentiments exactly0
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Everyone has a stem sweet spot that seems to work for them. I used a 60mm, and believe me, I did change back!0
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in order of how good the change was:
crappy broken raliegh to rockrider 5 xc
suntour xcr to rockshox recon race
narrow bars (600mm) to 680mms
rubish rubena czech tyres to spesh the captain 2.2
100 to 60mm stem0 -
supersonic wrote:Everyone has a stem sweet spot that seems to work for them. I used a 60mm, and believe me, I did change back!
There definitely is an interaction with the frame size though.
I know that I bought a too big a frame really and if I had my chance again I would go from a 22 inch to a 20 inch, but it suited me at the time as I was just getting back into cycling again. The switch to a shorter stem made me sit more upright and also I was able to take advantage of the increase in steering response because my confidence had increased. I reckon that a twitchy front end and me being a re-born MTBer may well have caused problems 0 -
Stem length an rise are related to bar length an rise ... and vice versa.
thinking about one but not the other when changing steering parts could lead to worse handling.
there are some combos that just dont work.0 -
Just put a big ole hi-Roller out back, replaced a smaller Ignitor. I now have grip.
Wider bars were done a few weeks ago, I feel more relaxed.
1st ride today after swapping my Spoon from the Kula to the AMS, comfy.
May swap the Kulas stem over to the AMS, I love tinkering like that.
I have to say that I went out today with Allen keys handy. To make the quick changes to saddle position and i also turned the bars forward after the last ride. Didn't need to stop and felt fine. Lucky I guess.fly like a mouse, run like a cushion be the small bookcase!0 -
I changed my glasses. Now I can see where I'm going!0
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These changes have made a great difference to the way my bike rides: In the following order:
1..Had my E150 forks tf tuned - awesome
2. Swapped the 80mm stem for a 60 mm
3. Swapped the 685mm bars for 710mm
but without doubt, the best "upgrade" on the bike as I got from the lbs was free - l Iet 5lbs of air out of my tyres!!!0 -
My new tora forks are due to arrive in an hour or two, 100mm tora's from the 80mm suntour XCM's. I cant wait.0
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forks and tyres biggest upgrade to bike handling IMO.
the change from suntour xct to RS recons , improved ride overnite.
the change from factory trail tyres to panaracer xc pro's close second.0 -
Contact points will always have the most noticeable difference.
Biggest differences for me have been the good ol' Charge Spoon (believe the hype!) and single speeding. SS has made me stronger and given me better trail awareness.0 -
adjustable seatpost and tyres
i was trying out some narrower tyres in the summer, which seemed ok, maybe a bit faster, but then i started riding some new trails and i was really suffering for grip, especially in the back, so i popped my old eskars 2.3 on there and the difference was amazing so much more grip and so much more confidence
cause the eskars (sworks) wouldn't go tubeless very well, i then put a ignitor on the front and this thing is fantastic, which brings me to a question, i have read that a few of you swapped your ignitors for something else, and preferred the change.
i am running a 2.35 lust and like it for the grip, what were you running and what what did you prefer with your new tyreswhat are brakes for again0 -
[quote="mkf
so it got me thinking...
what did you change on your bike that made you ride better?[/quote]
This is going to sound cheesy but having ridden a 15 year old Raleigh Voyager for all these years and having an ache to try out mountain biking, Some months ago I booked a life changing afternoon at Llandegla, N Wales and hired an Orange MTB for the afternoon. Needless to say I was hooked and now have a Boardman MTB Team.
My change was therefore simply just experiencing a proper mountain bike and this has made both my ride (and life) that much better.Life's good
Boardman MTB Team0 -
RichMTB wrote:Its amazing how good brakes mean you can go faster.
I know what you mean.
I put on a hope M4 on the fron of my stumpy and immediatly noticed a big speed increase just because I knew I would be able to stop really quickly if it was required 0
