Carrera Kraken - XC build update 15 aug

mrmonkfinger

Quick update now it's been commuterised - I've changed the bars (the flat XC bars hurt my wrists), added some dorky mudguards & a rack.

The rack was a real pain to fit - the position of the rear calliper mount means the rack passes over the calliper mount bolt, and needed spacing out a bit. Its a shame I can't used my old rack (doesn't fit the kiddie seat) which had several different mounting "feet" - one of which was angle and would have cleared the calliper.



Carrera Kraken frame in XL
Pipedream infinity fork
Ritchey comp seatpost
Ritchey comp stem
Ritchey WCS headset
Selle Italia saddle
Bikehut lock on grips
Gravity maximus bars
Elixir 3 & 5 calipers, code 5 levers, G3 rotors @ 160mm
SRAM PG970 block
Deore shadow rear mech, XT front mech
Stylo cranks, Truvativ BB, FSA chainrings
KMC Z9 chain
XT shifters, XT cables
XT hubs, DT plain gauge, Bonty Explorer rims
Conti City tyres, set up tubeless
Full length guards, no idea of manuf
Blackburn EX rack, to attach mrmonkfinger junior's seat

Technically, spend is up by about £30 as I stole the bars from my other bike and thus had to replace them, so total is about £300 now.

Also the wheels need to be returned to their rightful owner... so some new ones will be needed. Ho hum.

mrmonkfinger

Quick update. The bike has shed a pound or so.

The lardy 2kg+ Bontrager Ranger wheelset has been swapped for a pair of Laserdisc XCs that come in around 1.7kg.

I got shot of the old seat, which was damn uncomfortable after about 30 mins, and replaced with a flyweight Felt road bike saddle.

Also, swapped the PG970 block for a PG990 - I wasn't using my spare MTB wheels very often so they get the 970.

I'm also keeping my eye out for a second hand XT rear mech, the Deore shadow mech will then go to OH's trail bike which currently has a slightly tired old regular Deore mech.


The WTB hoops cost around £80 to put together (from parts), which was pretty good, seeing as WTB still want around £300 for a pre-built set.

The Rookie

Shame it's not an MTB any more, nice wheel choice though!

Looks more like a Subway now!

mrmonkfinger

Not an MTB? A few minutes to remove the mudguards & rack and stick on some knobblies and it'd be right there

mrmonkfinger

Borrowed my better half's trail wheels for a quick ride in the snow. Might do this a bit more permanently when summer arrives (wheels not snow)...

Need more height on the bars though - I think it'll need me to swap the forks for something with a longer steerer.

mrmonkfinger

Bit of an update as per the Carrera hardtail thread...

Hello Carrera folks!

The rigid fork & commuting clobber has gone - it's back to its roots as an XC machine

Specs and so forth:

Frame, Kraken 'XC spec' (2009?)
Fork, Suntour Epicon X1 lite RL-R 100mm
Wheelset, WTB Laserdisc XC rims built with ACI DB spokes on Laserdisc Lite hubs
Tyres, ITS System 5 in narrow 2.0
Drivetrain, SRAM Stylo cranks, FSA chainrings, KMC Z9 chain, SRAM PG990 block
Shifting, NOS 2005 XT shifters, XT front mech, deore shadow rear mech
Stopping, Avid - Code (old, juicy style) levers, Elixir 3 & 5 callipers, 160mm discs
Finishing kit; some mahoosive FSA DH riser bars which I will swap for some slightly smaller flatter XC bars, a 70mm stem from a Taiwanese Ebay shop, Ritchey Comp seatpost (which has a utterly useless clamp which never stays put - its for the chop), flyweight Felt road saddle (surprisingly comfy), Bikehut lock on grips, Ritchey WCS headset

The Suntour Epicon is pretty damn impressive for £150 - 1.6kg, good damper, remote lockout. Only been out on it a couple of times so far, but it compares very well to my '08 RS Recon Race (air sprung, motion control damper, lockout).