Just bought a used Full Suss

Donie75

Hi,
I'm a regular road biker but I'm just getting into mtb. I bought a Cube Acid hardtail last year but the fork was very basic and I decided to flog it on. It was also too small for me.
I was offered a Kona Hei Hei Scandium framed full suspension bike at a great price so I jumped at it. It is a 2009 model and was built up by a guy who raced it. Pits fitted with Fox Vanilla R125 forks and a Fox Float RP2 rear shock. The kit is a mixture of Deore, SLX and XT. The brakes are fairly basic Shimano ones. The bike was well maintained and shock and fork were serviced around 12 months ago. The bearings and bushings on the frame were all done recently too.
Is there anything I need to do before it hit the trails? I got the seller to pump up the rear shock to 200psi because I'm a big lad. Is there any issue with a 120kg lad riding this rig?
Any advice appreciated... Thanks.

CitizenLee

Sounds decent

I'd take a shock pump out on the maiden voyage as you may need to play around with the pressure a little.

This might be a helpful read/watch:

http://www.pinkbike.com/news/technical- ... -2010.html

cooldad

Get a shock pump as CL said and set it up properly.

rockmonkeysc

Take it a bit easy, Scandium frames are a bit fragile for a big lad. Very light though.

dusk

however well maintained it looks or the previous owner said it was, i'd still check everything is tight

DCR00

dusk wrote:

however well maintained it looks or the previous owner said it was, i'd still check everything is tight

This. Never trust that a bike is ride worthy until you've either checked it yourself or had a shop do the same.

ste_t

Vanillas are coil forks so doubtful that the spring will be firm enough. You'll need to look at replacing that sooner rather than later.

Donie75

I read the manual on the Fox fork and I saw that i need the red spring. Is this a DIY replacement or should I get the shop to to it? Where can I buy this spring online?

rockmonkeysc

You can buy a spring online and it takes 2 minutes to fit if you need one.
If it feels ok to ride then stick with what's in there.

ste_t

Have a search on ebay or get a wanted ad up in here/stw. Loco and tftuned are worth a try as well.

If the previous owner raced it and you are 125kg, I doubt they'll have the correct spring for you already in there!

rockmonkeysc

Some people like a firmer spring and some people who racer are tubby. It's always worth taking 2 minutes to check it before ordering a new one.

reformedfatty

Can we replace 'big lad' with fat? unless you're like 7ft tall 120kg is a serious case of pie munching. If you want to have a better time riding your new bike id suggest losing some of that weight - it's free too!

rockmonkeysc

reformedfatty wrote:

Can we replace 'big lad' with fat? unless you're like 7ft tall 120kg is a serious case of pie munching. If you want to have a better time riding your new bike id suggest losing some of that weight - it's free too!

Thats rather harsh. As someone who used to be "curvaceous" I know it's not easy to shift weight, it took a huge effort and a lot of will power to shift three and a half stone.
He's got a bike so obviously wants to ride and will loose weight. For me mountain biking was the motivation and the solution to sorting my weight problem.

The Rookie

I'm guessing a fair number of international rugby centres are that sort of weight, wouldn't call them fat (and most definitely not to their face!)

Donie75

I suppose you could say I'm fat. I was over 22stone and I'm down to 19 and a bit now. I played prop for years and I do lots of road biking. Working on dropping a few more stone in the next few months.
Anyway, I set up the bike last Saturday and the sag wasn't perfect. It should have been around 25% but it was more like 35%. I took the bike out on a trail on Sunday and it was fine. I'm not an expert on setting up mtb's but it handled fine. I didn't feel any bottoming out. The conditions were very wet so my main problem was slipping on tree roots and wet rocks. I ran my tyres a bit too hard at first so that may have contributed.
I'm going to check the spring at the weekend and order a stiffer one if necessary.
My brakes are bSic Shimano ones. Can anyone recommend a decent set of brakes

rockmonkeysc

Shimano Deore brakes are excellent and cheap.

kajjal

reformedfatty wrote:

Can we replace 'big lad' with fat? unless you're like 7ft tall 120kg is a serious case of pie munching. If you want to have a better time riding your new bike id suggest losing some of that weight - it's free too!

Your going to meet a painful end when he finds you

kajjal

Donie75 wrote:

I suppose you could say I'm fat. I was over 22stone and I'm down to 19 and a bit now. I played prop for years and I do lots of road biking. Working on dropping a few more stone in the next few months.
Anyway, I set up the bike last Saturday and the sag wasn't perfect. It should have been around 25% but it was more like 35%. I took the bike out on a trail on Sunday and it was fine. I'm not an expert on setting up mtb's but it handled fine. I didn't feel any bottoming out. The conditions were very wet so my main problem was slipping on tree roots and wet rocks. I ran my tyres a bit too hard at first so that may have contributed.
I'm going to check the spring at the weekend and order a stiffer one if necessary.
My brakes are bSic Shimano ones. Can anyone recommend a decent set of brakes

Most mountain bikes are capable of handling about 20 stone in weight as long as you are not dirt jumping etc. the Kona website is very unhelpful on weight limits. I weight 16 stone and just check my mountain bike over regularly as more weight often means more strength as well which wears moving parts out faster. If your suspension is not bottoming out then you are heading towards the right setup.

My wife's MTB has STX disc brakes which give a good balance between cost and function. If you check the web they are often for sale brand new at reduced prices.

As you go further and faster the weight soon drops off , especially once the trails dry out and you can really go for it. From the reviews it looks like you have a great handling, fast XC bike there

fielonator

It's important to check all the suspension linkages are well greased and bearings move freely. My brother snapped the chainstay on his hei hei. He was climbing at the time so no big hits, it just went with a loud bang.

It's not a difficult job to do, just a bit fiddly getting all the washers and bushes back in. I'd recommend laying a dust sheet or similar under the bike so you can find the bits that you drop. Great bikes. I've got the 2010 version, handles like a terrier.