Help me upgrade my Specialized fsr xc!

daisbuys

Hi guys

Right, I bought a 2009 specialized FSR XC Comp and would like to upgrade it to an aggressive XC/Trail bike!

I would like 140mm of travel for front and back and need help with chosing them..... along with the brakes, chain set, shifters etc etc.

The components I have a budget for will all be sourced through the classifieds and eBay.

I would like them to be middle of the road and better where funding is possible.

First port of call is the front forks and rear shock which I wish to be an all fox set up.

I'm deciding between the RP2 and RP23.

My eye to eye measurement is 200mm, what size travel would I need to get the 140mm of rear travel I'm after, as I believe it's either 55mm or 57mm available for the size shock I can fit?

And what's your opinions on the 2?

Now the forks.

I'm not sure which ones to go for? My requirements would be that they are air shocks, not coil and that I can lock them out, and drop the suspension down to 100mm 120mm and 140mm. What model fox forks should I be looking at for these? They also need to be of the 15mm quick release fittment, not the bolt through, and non tapered.

These are my first two priorities, others to follow will be my brakes, gear set up and so on....basically everything over time!

Would like to make it as lightweight as funding allows, so any advice or recommendation on components and stuff is greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks in advance guys!

Dave

tofu21

Hi Dave,

I didn't think that you could increase the travel by putting a longer shock on the rear. Even if this would work I'm not sure how it would effect the handling of the bike. Companies like BETD can you replacement parts to increase travel but they look cost prohibative to me.

If it was me, I'd stick with the 120 on the rear and bung a 140mm set of forks on the front. That's what I have been running on my 08 Stumpy and it works well.

I only fun Rockshox forks as I've not been impressed with Fox in the past so can't comment your fork choice. I suggest hitting the Fox website.

If you are buying second hand make sure the stearer is long enough to allow for spacers, stem, headset etc...

1mancity2

As tofu21 says you can't increase rear travel, go with a Rockshox rev on the front you don't need to adjust travel, it will still climb etc, chainset etc go for shimano slx.

daisbuys

Hey thanks for the quick reply!

My fault, I thought it was a 140mm rear suss lol.

The shock in there now is 200mm and the travel shaft is 55mm.....if I purchased one the 200mm but with a 57mm travel shaft, would I get any extra out of it then?

I owned some 140mm fox 32 talas on my 2007 Scott genius MC40, and I loved them. So I'm hoping that the fox range has been nicely improved since then!?

I need a stem length of around 180mm but I need to remeasure that, and it need to be a 1 1/8th non tapered, with a 15mm QR....just need to suss out what models do the adjustable travel of 109,120 and 140?

Any ideas with a good gear and chainset set up?

I'm thinking of some avid juicy 5 or 7's as a brake set up....any new kids on the block I should be looking at!?!?

Been out of the saddle for 4 years and am barely catching up with all the latest kit on the market!

1mancity2

shock will only travel the same so pointless, Slx chainset and gears, brakes slx again, or the new deore get really good reviews, juicys are pants imo

I still say Revs are your best bet and no need to have adjustable travel imo, why do you need it? huh? huh?

tofu21

I've ridden both SLX and XT and think that both lines pretty impressive. I've just gone for XT/ Hope X2 brakes on my new build but would consider XT.

I personally wouldn't touch Juicys.

If you get a set of Revelations with a lock-out you don't need a travel adjust on a 140 fork.

oodboo

My missus has the 2010 elite model and I've been wanting to upgrade it for me to thrash.
The toras are a bit flexy and rubbish on the comp so swap then for some 140 revs with thru axle and get some new tougher wheels. Juicy's aren't bad IME but there are much better out there now so maybe some SLX brakes and bigger rotors, especially on the front. Get a chain guide and go 1x9 by removing the outer and inner rings. Finally a new wider bar and shorter stem for more aggresive handling. Stick with the rear shock that you've got. Might just be me but if you feel the need to replace that then you might as well be looking for a new frame.

This is based on what I would do to the wifes bike slightly changed to reflect the spec of the 2009 comp that my mate has. Also assuming the groupset isn't in need of complete replacement just yet.

daisbuys

Wow, big thumbs up for the revs by the looks of it!

I only wanted different settings on the forks as I came from that setup on the Scott and found that they were great on the long climbs on the 100mm setting, and then cranking them up to 140mm when coming down over rock gardens and such!

Only wanted to replace the rear shock not because the Shock is pants, cos its not, it's just that the fox offers pro ride on it which got good reviews, and IMO I think it will help me on technical climbs over rocky/roots switchbacks and such.

But I have got an SLX rear deraileur on it already and have wider bars with a nice short stem in the shed

Hmmm mixed opinions on the brakes then, well apart from stay away from the juicy's lol, so looks like the SLX or XT brakes seem the boys for me, with bigger rotors but......which ever ones I get I will probably get the rest of the components the same, as I'm a little bit anal like that with matching kit......hence the reasoning behind the fox suspension.

supersonic

This can't be done - the fork max travel is 130mm, and the rear must stay the same.

cooldad

One alternative is sell it and buy the bike you want. By the time you've 'upgraded' everything on it....

daisbuys

supersonic wrote:

This can't be done - the fork max travel is 130mm, and the rear must stay the same.

Right.....so could I get away with a 130mm fork, and keep the rear as 120mm then, or would it just feel weird?

Also, I measured the eye to eye on the rear shock and it's 200mm which is 8 inches......but on the spec it states the rear shock is 7.5 inches, is this not taking into account the eyes? :roll:

Briggo

daisbuys wrote:

supersonic wrote:

This can't be done - the fork max travel is 130mm, and the rear must stay the same.

Right.....so could I get away with a 130mm fork, and keep the rear as 120mm then, or would it just feel weird?

Also, I measured the eye to eye on the rear shock and it's 200mm which is 8 inches......but on the spec it states the rear shock is 7.5 inches, is this not taking into account the eyes? :roll:

No it wouldn't neccesarily feel weird, hell my Stumpy has 130 on front and 140 rear, feels great.

supersonic

daisbuys wrote:

supersonic wrote:

This can't be done - the fork max travel is 130mm, and the rear must stay the same.

Right.....so could I get away with a 130mm fork, and keep the rear as 120mm then, or would it just feel weird?

Also, I measured the eye to eye on the rear shock and it's 200mm which is 8 inches......but on the spec it states the rear shock is 7.5 inches, is this not taking into account the eyes? :roll:

Longer travel doesn't necessarily mean 'better' - it is an xc bike after all, I think if you want a longer, harder hitting bike then it is new bike time really.

pvtpile

Ive just measured mine and its 190mm on an XL dont know if the frame size matters

daisbuys

pvtpile wrote:

Ive just measured mine and its 190mm on an XL dont know if the frame size matters

Thanks, is that the center of the eye to eye or the whole of the unit?

Edit: lucky you mentioned that, I just measured it again and it is indeed 190mm!

That's what you get for measuring in the dark with your phone as a torch :oops:

Another small question if I may.....where exactly do I measure the steerer length too?

pvtpile

Thats eye to eye length i think the stroke is 45mm

cooldad

daisbuys wrote:

pvtpile wrote:

Ive just measured mine and its 190mm on an XL dont know if the frame size matters

Thanks, is that the center of the eye to eye or the whole of the unit?

Edit: lucky you mentioned that, I just measured it again and it is indeed 190mm!

That's what you get for measuring in the dark with your phone as a torch :oops:

Another small question if I may.....where exactly do I measure the steerer length too?

Crown to end of steerer tube.
I repeat what I said earlier, decide what sort of riding you want to do and buy the right bike.

pvtpile

The main things i upgraded on my fsr xc were the wheels and brakes i might look into getting new forks this year.

daisbuys

cooldad wrote:

daisbuys wrote:

pvtpile wrote:

Ive just measured mine and its 190mm on an XL dont know if the frame size matters

Thanks, is that the center of the eye to eye or the whole of the unit?

Edit: lucky you mentioned that, I just measured it again and it is indeed 190mm!

That's what you get for measuring in the dark with your phone as a torch :oops:

Another small question if I may.....where exactly do I measure the steerer length too?

Crown to end of steerer tube.
I repeat what I said earlier, decide what sort of riding you want to do and buy the right bike.

Well I came from my Scott which was 140mm of travel, and know that's where I would like to be at with regards to travel.

I have my bike up for sale at the moment on here and eBay but getting nothing at the mo, so thought I would keep it and try upgrading it.

Maybe I should just let it go for a little bit less than I wanted and spend another £300 - £400 Which should give me £1000 for a second hand AM XC bike??? Hmmmmmm