Banshee Spitfire

Twelly

My project for the next couple of months.

Dawesy92

Looks nice that mate.. love the colour.. any idea in a spec yet or just see what takes your fancy?:

Twelly

Most of it will be coming from my Meta 55 so I will be keeping the 26" wheels for now, I have the 650b dropouts though so will make the change when its time to renew the wheels.

At the moment its looking like this:

Fork: 27.5 160mm Pike RCT3 or 27.5 160mm Fox 36 (depending on funds and whether i can justify spening over £800 on a fork next month)
XT cassette with 42t expander
XT shadow+ mech
XT brakes 180/200
XTR shifter
34t n/w ring
Superstar Switch hubs
Flow rear, Crest front
Hope headset
XTR bottom bracket
Smorgasbord/Chunky Monkey tyres, Trail Extreme compound, both tubeless

I need a new Reverb, my old one is too big, good chance to get a stealth one, unfortunately I don't think a 30.9 150mm drop Reverb stealth is available so I will either settle for 125mm drop or look at other posts, maybe a KS Lev.

Need a new stem, as this is a longer bike so I can go shorter on the stem without losing reach ao am looking at either a Hope AM 35mm or the Raceface 35 bar and stems.

SonDa5

That frame available for 29" build?


Looks very modern. Love the color.

rockmonkeysc

Very nice. Really like the look of the frame.
If you're undecided on the fork its worth considering the Marzocchi 350 ncr as well. I would rate it above the Pike. Not ridden the new 36 yet though.

Twelly

SonDa5 wrote:

That frame available for 29" build?


Looks very modern. Love the color.

This is 26" or 650b, I think they do have a short travel 29er with the same suspension layout.

RockmonkeySC wrote:

Very nice. Really like the look of the frame.
If you're undecided on the fork its worth considering the Marzocchi 350 ncr as well. I would rate it above the Pike. Not ridden the new 36 yet though.

I was weighing up between this or a Transition like yours and it was a few minor things that won it for the Spitfire, hopefully it lives up to the hype. I have looked at the 350 and it is a good price and I have seen you raving about it on here but I think the overwhelming amount of praise for the Pike I have seen on tinterweb and when talking to guys out on the trails means I will probably be playing it safe and sticking with RS.

How would you compare the 350 and the Pike, which is better in which situations? I am coming from a 150mm Rev so my first priority is stiffness, I feel I am going fast enough now to feel the Rev giving up on fast corners and rough stuff, might be a set up issue but I can see it flexing when jumping on it in the car park and there is a definite twanging when I rumble over rocks or a lumpy root section. Would also like a fork that rides higher without being harsh. I find the Rev to be either super smooth and floaty and sinking down too far or propped up at the top of the stroke and really harsh, can't find a happy medium.

I would love a 36 but I think the only thing that would persuade me to buy one now would be if I rode one back to back with the Pike and it was more awesome in every way, tis a hell of a lot of money!

lawman

36 is a great fork, but IMO I think the new 34 is gonna be the best bet unless you're intent on full on extreme riding, for many the 36 is overkill and the 34 is both lighter and a bit more forgiving thanks to a slight loss in stiffness. The 36 is so stiff it can feel a bit harsh at times I've found.

Twelly

lawman wrote:

36 is a great fork, but IMO I think the new 34 is gonna be the best bet unless you're intent on full on extreme riding, for many the 36 is overkill and the 34 is both lighter and a bit more forgiving thanks to a slight loss in stiffness. The 36 is so stiff it can feel a bit harsh at times I've found.

Yeah I saw the new 34 pop up on bike radar last week, looks good, as good and as cheap as a Pike though? Any idea when they go on sale? I want to get this running by the end of May.

BloggingFit

Wouldn't think the 34 will be out that soon and before it is released as OE on 2016 bikes but who knows for sure. It does seem on initial review that Fox has finally sorted things out with performance and weight while flex wasn't so much of an issue before but that has been beefed up a little as well.

Any three of the mentioned forks would be a decent option to be honest. Pike is obviously the safe option and is a good trail fork that clearly performs well. I love my 36 and appreciate more how good it is when I ride back on a set of Pikes but then it does cost a fair bit more so... I have ridden a set of Marzocchi 350 and they feel more similar to the 36 but I feel they don't perform as well. However I am probably biased by owning a set of 36 and having far more riding time with them.

EH_Rob

Nice. Demoed one of these at the weekend - it rewards you for riding it like a nutcase. Very low and very slack, but still surprisingly balanced. Climbs well for such a slack angled bike. Nice that you've got the chips at the back to mess with the angles a bit too. Also, the Inline is a brilliant shock. I've only the ridden the Pike of the three forks mentioned above and couldn't really fault it. It just gets on with it without any fuss. I'll be getting one for the new build as the extra expense is unjustified for me at the moment.

Although I did really enjoy riding it, I sacked off the Spitfire to buy a Prime though as I was faster on that and decided I wanted something way different from my 140mm slack angled hardtail, which I'm keeping.

Enjoy.

ej2320

The Marzocchi is a good fork but I know someone who has been having a few reliability issues.. may just be him, who knows

Twelly

Decided to go with a Pike. Will be ordered tomorrow.

Hope headset is here, off to the shop tomorrow to have the cups pressed in. Apart from a QR seat collar, this headset is my first Hope thing and it looks fantastic, oozes quality compared to the Cane Creek/Nukeprook/generic shite headsets I have dealt with before. I guess I get peoples obsession with Hope, despite the high prices.

Also arrived: chain, cables, BB and a Reverb stealth. Went for the 125mm Reverb, I would have bought a 150mm if they were available but started thinking maybe it's a good thing they aren't after reading about reliability issues with the longer travel versions plus I figured I don't actually need the extra drop.

I took my shadow+ mech off the Meta to swap it over and found the cage wasn't actually moving at all, clutch on or off... maybe contributing to my recent shifting issues. Stripped it down and replace the clutch with one from an old bent mech I had, running good as new now. Not very good from Shimano though. The mech has only had one winters use...

So it has a back wheel and cassette, a rear mech, Reverb and a crankset fitted with a shiny new One Up 34t ring. Once the fork and new stem are here next week, should have everything to get it going in time to get some practice in before the QE day/night enduro.

BloggingFit

What's the riding like at QE now as I haven't ridden there in around 8 years? Thinking of doing a ride after work once it gets a bit lighter as I'm not far away in Godalming and can flip between there and Surrey Hills.

Twelly

At the moment its awesome because its dry. There are a lot more trails than 8 years ago, the red is longer and approx 748% better than it used to be also there is a ton of 'off piste' stuff that is good. Mostly tight singletrack with a couple of fast sections and occasional roots. Some really nice loose steep stuff which they use for the enduro. I am down there 2/3 times a week so feel free to pm me if you want a guide.

rockmonkeysc

A fewates went to QE last weekend. They were very unimpressed. Didnt have a good thing to say about it.

The new Fox 34 does look good but Fox really need to drop their prices to a more competative level. There sre a few good options for bikes like this. Even the X Fusion Sweep is very good.

Twelly

RockmonkeySC wrote:

A fewates went to QE last weekend. They were very unimpressed. Didnt have a good thing to say about it.

Each to their own. Its my local turf and there is so much there. Something for everyone apart from dirt jumpers. The enduro sold out 180 places in 24 hours so there must be something there worth riding..

rockmonkeysc

Sold out fast but not too popular after the event. I don't think it would sell out again.

Twelly

Umm... This is the second year for the day/night, sold out quicker this year than last. Why so much hate for the place? There is a lot of people working hard digging most weeks and the trails have been improving massively over the last few years. Have you ridden there?

rockmonkeysc

I did one of the Gravity Project races there. Brilliantly run event on a really terrible track. Too short, too flat and too boring. I believe Gravity Project have moved on somewhere better now.
I havent heard anyone say anything good about the place.

Ferrals

It's where I grew up riding and used to be great in the mid nineties, haven't ridden there since but looking forward to having a look next time I visit the rents and have time. Used to be loads of stuff nearby too, although I know one jump spot got turned into a nature reserve :-(

BloggingFit

TwellySmat wrote:

At the moment its awesome because its dry. There are a lot more trails than 8 years ago, the red is longer and approx 748% better than it used to be also there is a ton of 'off piste' stuff that is good. Mostly tight singletrack with a couple of fast sections and occasional roots. Some really nice loose steep stuff which they use for the enduro. I am down there 2/3 times a week so feel free to pm me if you want a guide.

Cool, probably get into May and I shall give you a shout.

Twelly

Finished! Bit earlier than I thought, just in time for my all day epic tomorrow as a test. Lots of ups, lots of fun downs, should be a good chance to get to know it.

I have it set in the neutral position for the moment, I'm going to keep it there until I am used to it, then change to slack setting so I can really see what the difference is.

650b fork and 650b dropouts, it really shows how little there is between the two wheel sizes. With the 26ers in it just looks like it has slightly better than average mud clearance.

Twelly

Out in the wild.

Climbs better than I had hoped, it's no XC whippet but it is better than the Meta so I am happy.

Descends like a steam roller, so much faster this afternoon on trails I ride all the time.

Put in 35 miles today with over 4000ft of climbing and it felt great all day, very much a good all-rounder.

Only problem I had was a pedal that decided it had had enough halfway round, quick diversion to Petersfield and it now has some unexpected new DMR V8s, not as wide or grippy as the Superstar ones but they are ok.

Twelly

To any suspension fettlers out there, particularly people with twin link bikes and/or ccdb shocks - the bike felt good almost everywhere yesterday but when the speed really picked up over long rooty sections the pike started feeling very harsh and reluctant to start moving. Sag set at 25%ish, in descend mode, lsc all the way off. Too much rebound damping or too little? Not enough sag/too high pressure?

The felt fine apart from on steeper sections under braking the rear would just lose traction and slide, weight back, heels down, same as I have always done. On the Meta I could feel the back suck.into the ground and give more grip under hard braking. Is this the braking affecting the rear suspension or do I need to back of the LSC and LSR to help it move more and find traction?

mike hunts alpine

Try slowing your rebound and see if its any better if not drop air pressure to about %30 percent sag im sure thats whats suggested for aggressive riding.

rockmonkeysc

Have you done many miles on it yet? Most forks and shocks need a bit of bedding in to loosen up the seals and work the oil around them. My Rockshox Monarch felt extremely harsh for the first couple rides, much better now.
It's worth giving the Pike a lower lube, Rockshox quite often don't put enough (or any) oil in fork lowers from new. I always open mine up from new and lube them, there's usually nowhere near enough oil in them.
This guide is really helpful for setting up Cane Creek shocks but the techniques apply to any fork or shock
http://www.canecreek.com/resources/prod ... nglish.pdf
Also, Cane Creek have a base tune for your bike on their tuning guide
http://www.canecreek.com/products/suspe ... base-tunes

Twelly

Ridden the bike a lot these last few weeks and I am definitely getting used to the way it behaves. The suspension seems to have settled down and feels good. Every ride I am getting a long list of PB's on Strava descents. I am going to leave the shock at the base tune and the dropouts in the neutral position for the summer. Will start fettling with angles and damping once I really know the bike on lots of different trails.

Took my proper camera out last weekend



Off to Wales this weekend to give it its first properly rocky thrashing. BPW uplift Friday, Coed y brenin Saturday, any suggestions for Sunday??

Twelly

Little update on the Banshee. Have had the wheels rebuilt with 27.5 rims (arch ex) because, why not. Superstar did it under the crash replacement scheme so new rims, new spokes, new nipples and they even replaced the freehub body (didn't ask or expect them to) all for £130. Couldn't really say no.

New wheels means new tyres so I have gone for a Minion DHR II out back and a High Roller II on the front, both 3C Maxx Terra compound. Bigger wheels plus softer, chunkier tyres should mean approximately 478 more grip so looking forward to getting it out this week. Wales weekend in a couple of weeks so I can really put it through its paces.

I also swapped the bar a few months ago for a Fatbar with a 38mm rise as I found the front end too low on steep stuff.

Lots of tinkering with the suspension has left me with a few bottomless tokens in the fork and much higher pressure in the shock than I originally had in there, bike definitely has more 'pop' without losing the smooth ride.

Twelly

Reverb shortened and bled as I was having some speed issues.
Couple of volume spacers in the DB Inline.
Finally got round to going tubeless.
XTR crank and a carbon Fatbar are on their way

I had been havin some issues with the shock, there was a small step at the start of the stroke which felt very soft and had no damping. This meant that any time the rear wheel was leaving the ground and landing again (jumps, roots and rocks) it felt really harsh and clattery. TF Tuned agreed to take it in under warranty, said they found a load of problems with it, changed almost everthing and sent it back.... Step still there. I rung them back and apparently its normal, positive and negative air chambers equalising or something. So it felt shit and there was nothing I could do about it.

Popped in a few volume spacers and reduced the pressure, the step is still there but the difference between the soft, undamped start and the rest of the stroke is now less so it is less noticeable.

I was running a Vivid coil shock on the bike and it felt incredible but my god was it heavy. I started to avoid using the bike on any rides with serious climbing as it was such a tank. At one point it was touching 16kg. Air shock, tubless, new carbon saddle and losing a few unneccesary things have dropped it to 14.3kg, the new cranks and carbon bar should take it below 14.

Full spec (after the new bits have arrived)


Frame: Banshee Spitfire XL
Shock: CCDB inline
Forks: Pike
Bars: Renthal Fatbar Carbon
Stem: Hope AM
Headset: Hope
Grips: Deathgrip
Front Brake: XT
Front disc: 200mm Uber
Rear Brake: XT
Rear Disc: 180mm Shimano
Shifter: XTR
Rear Mech: XT 11
Seat: PX carbon
Seat Post: Reverb Stealth
Cranks: XTR
Chainring(s): 32t OneUp
Chain: XTR
Cassette: XT 11-42
Pedals: DMR V8
Bottom Bracket: XTR
Front wheel: Arch on Switch
Tire: DHF
Back Wheel: Arch on Switch
Tire: HR2
Weight: 13.9kg

Twelly

First round of the Southern Enduro series on Sunday, pissed it down all day Friday and Saturday so the venue was looking pretty grim when we turned up and I was struggling with a knee injury I picked up the day before whilst trying to bunny hop up a flight of stairs on my XC bike... What an idiot... So things weren't looking great at the start of the day.

But the sun came out, half dried the stages (which were brilliantly built) and my knee magically improved for my race run. 13th out of 41 in the fun category which I'm happy with considering I was 18th at the last one. Bike was working really well, just me that is holding it back!

Twelly

Carbon Fatbar, XTR cranks and a good coating of welsh dust. Just had a cracking week of BPW, Afan and the first two dry rides of the year at QE. QE day and night enduro next weekend, hopefully it stays dry as the trails are amazing at the moment.