The next project - FS build

slc123

Evening,

So last winter I decided to take on my first project and build up a trail HT bike. I throughly enjoyed the experience and learnt a lot. It’s been great riding it through spring and summer. Ive noticed a bit of a mismatch with certain components e.g I should have gone shorter on travel but all in all pretty happy with the result.

However, as I got the bug for building last year I’ve decided to have another go this winter... do I need to? No, but who cares, it’s fun and who doesn’t need more bikes.

I’ve only ever ridden hardtails and got on well with them but recently noticed riding with a couple of good mates that have top spec FS bikes, it does become some what tricky on some of the more technical rides.

I’ve already got the frame a 2015 Trek Slash 9 that has the monarch plus RC3 rear shock. My plan is to move some of the components over from the trail HT and then fill in bits on that as I go. I’m going to take the 160mm Yaris off that as they will go nicely on the trek. I’ve then got to start thinking about the shopping list.

I’ll probably get a reverb stealth for it as the KS Cruxi I bought has been troublesome. Then it’s really the drive train and brakes.

So the advice I’m after.

1. Any ideas on a suitable secondhand fork for the HT 140mm travel 27.5 wheels.

2. Brakes. Currently running sram guide r’s which have been excellent. Should I just get another set or is there better for similar money.

3. I’m running a sram groupset made up of GX and X9 components. Again really happy with that but was considering giving shimano a go. Any thoughts on what to go for.

4. Finally, wheels - I have Easton ARC27 with SRAM hubs. They seem pretty good but again wondering if it’s worth a change on the new bike for similar money.

Thanks for any opinions on advance.

joebristol

Brake wise you could step up from Guide r’s to Guide RE for not much money. Same levers but they have he Code downhill brake caliper on them so more stopping power. The guide r’s are probably fine (I’m running them with 200/180 rotors on my 170f/160r Enduro bike) but I am a little Guide RE curious myself. That or some of the 4 pot Maguras are said to be uber powerful.

Wheels are up to you - do you want new ones for the slash (I’m assuming you’ve gone for the 650b slash) or the hardtail?

Drivetrain I like my 11 speed GX but eagle is now getting cheaper......

jamski

There's the new NX Eagle which is very budget friendly, and Shimano have 'Deore' 4 pot brakes which could be worth a try. They're basically Deore, they just don't say so. I'd probably spec both of those if I was building now.

140mm travel you could go Pike if your budget allows, not sure off the top of my head how long the cheaper forks go. But if you liked the Yari, then Pike is a good option.

Look at the Brand X dropper, great value, and two year warranty.

Is there anything better than speccing parts for bikes??!!

slc123

jamski wrote:

Is there anything better than speccing parts for bikes??!!

There certainly isn't!

Thanks for your replies.

I'll be interested in checking the "Deore's" out, have you got a link?

I did look at the NX eagle, but generally second hand it didn't seem much more cost-effective as the GX as I guess most people sell the GX with a few more miles on.

For the forks, I am looking to spend around £200, so I may have to opt for some lower spec RS, but may be able to get a deal on the Yari's.

Heard good things about the Brand X, but never given it a go. Food for thought.

Both bikes will be 27.5 boost, so I guess I can interchange wheels, so again I'll probably look at £100 - £150 second hand for a second set.

jamski

slc123 wrote:

jamski wrote:

Is there anything better than speccing parts for bikes??!!

There certainly isn't!

Thanks for your replies.

I'll be interested in checking the "Deore's" out, have you got a link?

I did look at the NX eagle, but generally second hand it didn't seem much more cost-effective as the GX as I guess most people sell the GX with a few more miles on.

For the forks, I am looking to spend around £200, so I may have to opt for some lower spec RS, but may be able to get a deal on the Yari's.

Heard good things about the Brand X, but never given it a go. Food for thought.

Both bikes will be 27.5 boost, so I guess I can interchange wheels, so again I'll probably look at £100 - £150 second hand for a second set.

Given a quick google, here's a link to an article about them. They are being specced on bikes so must be available.

http://off.road.cc/content/news/shimano ... brake-2702

joebristol

£200 isn’t going to get you a great fork if buying new unless you find an outrageous bargain - like the CRC Yari deal for £233 a while back or the bike discount.de Fox 34’s they were punting out a while ago. Either wait for a bargain or go second hand I think. A Pike would be on the list definitely, although again a Fox 34 could do the job. Even a RS Revelation would be ok at 140mm travel for a trail hardtail.

I’m not convinced Deore 4 pots are going to be too much different in terms of power to guide r’s - but if you can get them cheaper then the Guides then it’s worth a look.

slc123

Joebristol wrote:

£200 isn’t going to get you a great fork if buying new unless you find an outrageous bargain - like the CRC Yari deal for £233 a while back or the bike discount.de Fox 34’s they were punting out a while ago. Either wait for a bargain or go second hand I think. A Pike would be on the list definitely, although again a Fox 34 could do the job. Even a RS Revelation would be ok at 140mm travel for a trail hardtail.

I’m not convinced Deore 4 pots are going to be too much different in terms of power to guide r’s - but if you can get them cheaper then the Guides then it’s worth a look.

Pretty much everything will be second hand - I don't really buy new unless like you said I can get some bargains.

I think I will put the Yari on the new FS build and look for something cheaper for the HT, maybe another Yari or Revelation like you said. I can't really complain on the Guide R's and you can pick them up for about £50-£60 second hand, give them a bleed and some new pads and they should be good to go.

I think my biggest choice is about the groupset really. I like what I currently have which is a mixture of SRAM components, but it's starting to get some miles on it now, so maybe for the FS it might be better to get something with a bit less wear. Keep looking at the X1, but heard good things about most of the newer shimano stuff. I fitted an SLX setup on a mates bike for him and I was really impressed for the money how smooth it felt.

jamski

I think, I prefer Shimano brakes, which is why I would potentially go for those over the Guides. But the Guides are good brakes, I have them on a hardtail. I also think I prefer SRAM for drivechain. I currently have SLX 11-46 and it's fine, but with the clutch on it does stiffen things up, and shifting isn't 100% crisp. I've tweaked the clutch to the point where any less and there's no point it being there. So I think NX Eagle will potentially be a change in the future, when it's needed.

jamski

£267!!! Cranks, chainring, cassette, shifter, cable, mech, bottom bracket and chain. Just insane value. And because it's only an 11t cog on the cassette it fits onto a standard Shimano freehub.

https://www.bikester.co.uk/sram-nx-comp ... 21133837:s

joebristol

Is that cheap for a full nx group?

I prefer Sram to Shimano for gears too - I like there gx 11 speed I’ve got - you get the xd driver for the 10tooth highest cog, but you haven’t got the huge long vulnerable mech. Although sometimes I do think it would be nice to have that 50 tooth lowest gear.

The Rookie

XT 1x10 FROM £157
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shim ... prod126347
or 1x 11 FROM £187
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shim ... prod142199

Just add cranks.

slc123

The Rookie wrote:

or 1x 11 FROM £187
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shim ... prod142199

Just add cranks.

Thanks... That looks insanely good value!

jamski

slc123 wrote:

The Rookie wrote:

or 1x 11 FROM £187
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/shim ... prod142199

Just add cranks.

Thanks... That looks insanely good value!

Can’t confess to have gone through every option, but an 11-46 cassette and all other bits was coming out at £220. Still think the eagle is better value but depends if you want seam or Shimano.

slc123

They are both good value. I already run sram in my other bikes so know it’s good but felt like I might give a shim setup a go. Likelihood is I’ll buy some secondhand so I’ll see what comes up!

slc123

An update on the build.

The frame has arrived, I've given it a quick tidy up. I'm pretty happy with it. Looking forward to getting it started.

joebristol

Looks nice - very orange! Is it 27.5”?

slc123

Joebristol wrote:

Looks nice - very orange! Is it 27.5”?

Yes I thought it was very orange too. All my other bikes are black so slightly out of my comfort zone.

Yes 27.5.

joebristol

You’ll get used to it - my Aeris is bright orange. I had wanted the green but I’d have had to wait for it to come back into stock and I was too impatient! The orange has grown on me.

jamski

I have an orange Aeris too. Wanted the green but decided on the 120 in the end which does t come in green. I love it! Lovely looking frame that too!

slc123

I did look for a second hand Aeris frame to build on but just couldn’t find a good deal.

joebristol

They still seem to go for quite a lot of money at the moment. Think the 145 is too new to get a bargain, and the 1 / 1.5 didn’t sell in the same numbers and people tend to hang onto them.

The slash is going to build up into an awesome bike with 160mm forks.

slc123

Joebristol wrote:

The slash is going to build up into an awesome bike with 160mm forks.

Thanks man, let’s hope so.

cycleclinic

I would get the SRAM groupset too. The eagle nx is really good. My daughters bike has it. Super impressed. Shimano kit works but the sram kit is better for 1x

Shimano brakes or natural would be my choice

slc123

thecycleclinic wrote:

I would get the SRAM groupset too. The eagle nx is really good. My daughters bike has it. Super impressed. Shimano kit works but the sram kit is better for 1x

Shimano brakes or natural would be my choice

Thanks, I’m going to work on getting a SRAM setup secondhand, ideally X1 or X01, failing that I might by the NX eagle new. Hopefully I’ll find an XT brakeset again secondhand if I can.

slc123

So the build is finally underway. So far I’ve got the following ready to fit.

FSA orbit headset
RS 160 Yari’s
SRAM X0 11 speed drivetrain
Descendant cranks and 32T chainring
Guide RSC brakes
Bontrager drop line dropper

So currently no wheels, stem, pedals, saddle or handlebars but I did manage to get some DMR death grips...

Most likely going to build some DT Swiss E512 rims with DT Swiss 350 hubs.

First job new bottom bracket and headset fitting... pics to follow.

joebristol

Sounds like some good kit you are gathering together to make a nice build.

On the wheel front, unless you’re going secondhand I found Hope Pro4 hubs came in cheaper than DT Swiss 350’s so I’m about to build a pair of them into DT
Swiss xm481’s. Can’t wait!

Starbike are the best pricing for DT Swiss rims I’ve found and they arrived pretty quickly.

slc123

I found the 350s for £60 front and £90 rear. How much were the hopes and where did you get them?

joebristol

Where did you find them that cheap? Got the front hub for about £60 from Wiggle, but didn’t get anywhere near £90 for either 350’s or Pro 4’s. Think I paid about £140 for a rear hub in the end.

slc123

I found it on Ebay, it was brand new. The guy seemed to have front and rears in quite a few different configuration. All in original packaging.

joebristol

Ah ok. Was going to say I scoured 10’s if online shops and lbs’ and couldn’t find anything near that. Hence the Pro4’s. Laced up the back wheels in spare mins today / yesterday. Going to start the front soon as the wife has popped out for an hour. Hope to get there front mostly done - although it’s a bit fiddly with phr washers that the DT rims need. Going to be a gorgeous wheelset!

slc123

Sounds good. Get a pic up when you’re done!