Upgrading my bike GT Avalanche 06 1.0 Disc

Andy_M

Hey there,

I've saved up œ200 and I want to upgrade my '06 GT Avalanche 1.0 Disc. It's got the same spec as when I bought it, and the only thing I've upgraded is the crank and BB to a shimano hone. I'd like to get a pair of Hayes HFX 9 DH V8s and a rear XTR Mech.
Heres the sites:
http://www.merlincycles.co.uk/acatalog/ ... rakes.html The DH version and not in carbon.
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... 5360030411 The long cage version.

Would I need to upgrade shifters or anything else? Here's my GT Spec:
http://www.extremesports.ltd.uk/mtb/product23-1474.htm
The only difference is on my bike I have hayes sole discs

Andy_M

gibby12100

Why do you want to Put Downhill Brakes on a Cross Country Bike? And 8 inch Rotors, total Overkill, and would invalidate the warrenty... The best place you could spend your Money would be the Brakes or Forks, as the LX mech isnt too bad... I would say the Forks before the Brakes as they are too flexy, i would recomend Some Marzocchi MX Pro's, or Rockshox Tora, as these are the best/most recomended Sub œ200 forks.

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GT Avalanche 1.0 Disc

mmm_pie

It's an XC bike, so get the hayes XC brakes, you don't need 8" rotors.

Also I think it might be a better idea to change the forks rather than the gear system, if you can afford it.

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Andy_M

I can't afford to upgrade the forks, and I see what you mean about the discs. And also, would I need to change my shifter/chain/freewheel for the XTR shifter to work?

I foud these discs on wiggle, would they be better than the hayes 9 xc discs?

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... 5360030002

mmm_pie

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Andy_M</i>

I can't afford to upgrade the forks, and I see what you mean, but if I went for the XC brakes would they work?
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What do you mean would they work? 6" rotors will be more suitable than 8" ones for an XC bike. They are lighter and have more low range modulation.

Also your forks are probably not warranted for 8" rotors.

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Andy_M

Yeah. Just edited my post... but too late.

would these discs be any better?

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... 5360030002

mmm_pie

Yeah I'd say the Shimanos would be better for XC use. The Hayes are more powerful IMO but they don't have a lot of modulation. You'll have more control with the XT's.

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Andy_M

Ok, so I'll got for the XT brakes. But will the XTR derailleur work with the deore rapidfire shifters?

gibby12100

It would work, but wouldnt be much point, apperently, for Full use of XTR, you should have XTR shifters aswell, and you can break a mech quite easily, which would mean œ70 down the Drain.

Yes you can afford to upgrade the Forks, You can get MX Pro's for œ145, which would probably make the biggest difference to that bike. The next part that i will upgrade on my bike will be the Brakes, as i have already got new forks, and chainset, although This will be going on a new Frame [:}].

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GT Avalanche 1.0 Disc

mmm_pie

I think so but not 100% sure.

Might be on one of their compatibility charts here:

http://cycle.shimano-eu.com/publish/con ... harts.html

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Andy_M

I don't think it is on their compatability charts. But it should work, shouldn't it if it's just rapidfire.

supersonic

Is there anything actually wrong with the current rear mech? Seems an expensive upgrade, a bit overkill. It will work.

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Andy_M

Yeah, my LX has been playing up since I got it, and the XTR should give a faster and smoother shift.

supersonic

Well, I'd check other factors first such as the cabling - cables are the cause of most shifting problems. LX is a good mech.

<center><font size="1"><font color="red">GT Zaskar LE</font id="red">
<font color="red">GT Ruckus</font id="red">
<font color="red">Me!</font id="red">
<font color="red">Supersonic</font id="red"><hr noshade size="1"><font color="red">Park Tools - help and instructions for all general bike fixes</font id="red">
<font color="red">Sheldon Brown - info about anything and everything</font id="red"></font id="size1"></center>

gibby12100

yeah, i was considering new mechs, but then, with a quick play of Re-Tensioning cables, and repositioning front mech, They now shift Perfectly, Although, I will probably Feck it up when it comes to swapping mechs on my new frame...

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GT Avalanche 1.0 Disc