BFe

phz

The Mr Hyde was starting to feel a bit too steep, too harsh and lacking in fork travel - as good an excuse as any for a new frame and forks.

Wanted something similar in character to the Mr Hyde (rufty-tufty AM hardtail) in steel and closer to my old beloved Trailstar but with slacker angles and a bigger fork (and preferably designed in the UK for our riding and conditions even if built in Taiwan). After much deliberation and looking at the options (Ragley, Dialled, Stanton, On One, etc.) I plumped for a Cotic BFe - great reputation, competitive pricing and Cy seems like a decent guy and enthusiastic rider. Just swapped over most of the gear from the Mr Hyde to (a) keep costs down and (b) keep things like contact points etc. familliar.



Cotic BFe (XS, Gritstone)
Marzocchi 44LR (150/130mm, 9mm QR)
Azonic Outlaw wheelset
Michelin Wildgrip'r 2.35 front
Michelin Wildrace'r 2.1 rear
Raceface Ride AM cranks
Hope stainless BB
Blackspire 34T chainring & Raceface bash
Superstar Plasma chain device
Superstar Nano Tech pedals
SRAM PG950 11-34 cassette
SRAM X9 rear mech (short cage)
SRAM X9 twist shifter
Avid BB7 discs (185mm back and front) with Shimano XT cables
Avid speed dial 7 levers
FSA Orbit sealed headset
Pro FSR 70mm stem (flipped)
Ragley Wiser 710mm bars
ODI Ruffian lock on grips
Gusset clench seat clamp
Forca Vario dropper seatpost
Nukeproof Plasma Core saddle

Has come up around the 29-30lb mark. A tad heavier than ideal, but about the same as the bike it replaces. Starting to realise that wheelset weighs as much a small planet.

The new kid got its first ride round Scartree yesterday - a bit muddy so tough to judge the new frame and forks accurately. Certainly feels lively and even with a slacker head angle corners more sure-footedly than the old bike (better riding position for weight distribution?). Only question mark is the fork - travel is good and its pretty smooth out of the box, but think I may have made a mistake in going for a QR rather then the 20mm axle I'm used to (EDIT - just noticed WMB have reviewed these this month and seem to agree - http://www.bikeradar.com/mtb/gear/categ ... r-12-46028 ) - will persevere for a few rides but might have too cut my losses and flog the Bombers then look at something like 150mm Sektors or the cheap 140mm Pikes that Rose bikes have on their site.

slainte rob

The Northern Monkey

nice, any better pics of the frame colour?

looks more dark blue? nice change from the light blue!

phz

It's actually a very very dark grey - the blue is down to my usual post-processing of photos (I like a saturated, contrasty photo).

Unprocessed photo taken during the build -



slainte rob

specialeyes

I approve!!!

phz

specialeyes wrote:

I approve!!!

Can't imagine why...

slainte rob

Giraffoto

pHz startlingly wrote:

. . . the blue is down to my usual post-processing of photos (I like a saturated, contrasty photo).

You might want to look at the settings on your monitor if that looks OK to you - it reminds me of old slide film underexposed by about two stops. If it's a matter of taste on the other hand, go with it!

phz

Giraffoto wrote:

pHz startlingly wrote:

. . . the blue is down to my usual post-processing of photos (I like a saturated, contrasty photo).

You might want to look at the settings on your monitor if that looks OK to you - it reminds me of old slide film underexposed by about two stops. If it's a matter of taste on the other hand, go with it!

Purely a matter of taste, and you're not far off with the slide comparison.

Totally aware it looks 'wrong' to most people , but figure I have enough background in this stuff (teacher of Art, Media, Graphics and occasionally Photography) to get away with it!

slainte rob

phz

First tweak.

Switched from the 710mm Ragley Wisers to some 760mm flat Nukeproof Warheads.





slainte :arrow: rob

ilovedirt

how are you finding that seatpost?

phz

ilovedirt wrote:

how are you finding that seatpost?

For the money (IIRC I paid around 80 quid) I can't fault it.

Was a bit (as I've seen others comment) sticky and rough out of the box, but stripping it down, cleaning, regreasing and fitting (and properly setting up) a better quality cable - 20 minute job - improved things hugely and it's now smooth and easy both up and down. Only short travel (80/85mm) but I'm finding that more than enough to get the saddle out of the way.

There's a knack of weighting/unweighting when triggering the post but that soon becomes second nature.

Some play (up/down and rotational) in the post if you wiggle the saddle while off the bike but I honestly don't notice it when riding.

Bought it as a cheapish way to see if I got on with a dropper post. Thought that if I liked it then I could spend more on a 'better' post. As it stands I'm happy enough with the Forca that It'll get ridden into the ground before I 'upgrade'.



PROS - simple mechanical design, cheap, just works, red bits.
CONS - needs some fettling out of the box, small amount of play.

slainte 8) rob

specialeyes

How about the seat? My mate has one on his meta and his seems really flexy in the middle, so much so that it hits the bolts underneath. He also weighs about as much as a paper bag . I was considering getting one for my bfe but I weigh considerably more than him. Have you noticed such problems?

ilovedirt

Cheers for the mini review Spent a little time reading up on them last night, tempted to give one a go when I can afford it. I measured the mark where I usually drop my post to and it's about 85mm down anyway, so it should be alright for everything apart from full on downhill I would imagine.

phz

specialeyes wrote:

How about the seat? My mate has one on his meta and his seems really flexy in the middle, so much so that it hits the bolts underneath. He also weighs about as much as a paper bag . I was considering getting one for my bfe but I weigh considerably more than him. Have you noticed such problems?

Personally haven't had a problem with it (and I weigh a BIT more than a paper bag!). Previously had a Ragley Cheeky saddle which WAS a bit flexy so might not be noticing any movement.

Thinking about trying a Charge Spoon/Madison Flux/Gusset R (saqme saddle, different branding) at some point though as they get pretty good reviews.

slainte rob

phz

New wheels, new tyres (no tubes), new saddle (back to a Ragley) and new colour scheme.



slainte rob

mrlee

8) very nice

sanchez89

looking very nice buddy. let me know what you think of those tyres, considering getting that exact same combo. 2.2 front and rear yeah? or you gone 2.4 RQ on front?

phz

Both are 2.2s yeah. The Black Chilli RQ grips like buggery on most surfaces. The X King is faster rolling and good as long as things aren't damp - I've found it has a tendency to slip sideways on wet soil but it does it predictably so not a real problem.

slainte rob

phz

Wasn't completely happy with the feel of the flat bars, so time to trim the steerer, find a nice low stack height stem and slap some risers back on.



Cotic BFe (XS, Gritstone)
Marzocchi 44LR (150mm, 10mm QR axle)
Stan's Flows on Superstar Switch hubs
Continental Rubber Queen 2.2 UST front (running tubeless)
Continental X King 2.2 Protection rear (running tubeless)
Raceface Ride AM cranks
Hope stainless BB
Blackspire 34T chainring & Raceface bash
Superstar Plasma chain device
Superstar Nano Tech pedals
SRAM PG950 11-34 cassette
SRAM X9 rear mech (short cage)
SRAM X9 twist shifter
Avid BB7 discs (180mm rear, 200mm front) with Shimano XT cables
Avid speed dial 7 levers
FSA Orbit sealed headset
Ragley Stubbing 55mm stem
Ragley Wiser 710mm bars
ODI Ruffian lock on grips
Superstar seat clamp
Forca Vario dropper seatpost
Ragley Cheeky saddle

slainte rob

ilovedirt

Cockpit looks much better now! Do those brakes still cut it though?

phz

After a 48km ride this morning I can say the cockpit is much better - only went with flat bars to keep the front end as low as I could running the forks at 150mm. Realised with still having two spacers under the stem I could chop the steerer 20mm and fit some better feeling risers (the sweep on wide flat bars never feels 100% right to me).

Jury is still out on the brakes - on a few rides recently (plus on a couple of Jedi coaching sessions) I've felt distinctly underbraked and it wasn't a nice feeling, especially on a Welsh hillside. Had a bit of a fettle yesterday and today the BB7s were pin sharp (admittedly though the ride didn't involve much tech stuff).

Have had a browser tab open for a couple of days now with Merlin's brakes page loaded just waiting for me to pull the trigger on a set of XT hydraulics. Only things stopping me are a stupid habit of not buying Shimano stuff, my love of the Avid Speed Dial lever shape, and a nagging thought that I should buy some Hope brakes instead.

slainte :?: rob

ilovedirt

Don't buy Hope brakes! They're overpriced and crap, from what I've experienced. Seems like Shimano or Avid Elixirs are the way to go.

danair

nice bike matey how heavy are the drop posts towards a standard one

phz

Never weighed it, but looking online suggests it weighs about 500-550g. My previous seatpost (Identiti T-4) was around 350g I think, so the dropper isn't THAT much heavier.

It's worth at least double that 200g difference for the benefit it gives though.

slainte rob

Jomox

Liking it, love the all black.

danair

pHz wrote:

Never weighed it, but looking online suggests it weighs about 500-550g. My previous seatpost (Identiti T-4) was around 350g I think, so the dropper isn't THAT much heavier.

It's worth at least double that 200g difference for the benefit it gives though.

slainte rob

thanks for that info

phz

Few more changes. Back to a flat bar as the front end felt a bit wandery on the Whinlatter climbs. Fed up with the Continental rear tyre (X King) not sealing and going a bit wonky, so a switch of brands there.


(New tyres not shown)

Cotic BFe (XS, Gritstone)
Marzocchi 44LR (150mm, 10mm DT Swiss RWS axle)
Stan's Flows on Superstar Switch hubs
Specialized Purgatory 2.3 front (running tubeless)
Specialized The Captain 2.2 rear (running tubeless)
Raceface Ride AM cranks
Hope stainless BB
Blackspire 34T chainring & Raceface bash
Superstar Plasma chain device
Superstar Nano Tech pedals
SRAM PG950 11-34 cassette
SRAM X9 rear mech (short cage)
SRAM X9 twist shifter
Shimano XT disks (180mm rear, 200mm front
FSA Orbit sealed headset
Ragley Stubbing 55mm stem
Nukeproof Warhead 760mm flat bars
ODI Ruffian lock on grips
Superstar seat clamp
Rock Shox Reverb 125mm drop
Charge Spoon saddle
Various Mucky Nutz fenders

Tom4

nice!

I'm in the process of building up a BFe myself, will have a thread up soon

dusk

How is it on the trails? I've got one but have only really used it for 4x riding so far as I always plump for my full susser at the trail centres.

phz

@dusk. It's a great HT trail bike. Has handled anything I've been able to throw at it. Not the lightest (my build comes in at about 29lb) but climbs well enough (especially tech stuff) and easily rideable all day. With 150mm forks mine's a bit wandery on really steep uphill stuff, but that's it's only real issue. Handles great on the twisty stuff as long as your weight distribution is right, and descends like a demon. Hugely stiff and totally unbreakable as far as I can tell, which can lead to a bit of a sore back on longer rides. As a 'do it all' bike I don't think there's much better out there unless you do a lot of 'pure' DH riding.

EDIT. See you also had a Trailstar. Me too (still got mine - set up on the turbo now though). That was my benchmark for 'hardcore' trail hardtails when I bought the BFe, and I think it's a pretty close call between the two. My Trailstar felt more lively, but I reckon the BFe is way more capable.

dusk

My trailstar was great but I just wanted something that could be a bit more of an all rounder (I'm tall and the dmr was a little small to be pedalling seated), so far I've only ridden my BFe at Chicksands but I'm well impressed. It's a bit like a Trailstar but with all the modern standards/tech included to make it future proof.

Mine's probably a similar weight to yours but is 19" and has 140mm forks.