New old 9r

[wesintl]

Less than 3 weeks from 22 years separated. Only parts I have are matching painted steam and a post to suffice til a dropper. I'm still not sure how I'll build it out, what fork. Not sure about drivetrain but it will be shimano. I've always ridden triples I'm afraid to go 1x. I'm old skool but trending to the 1x if I'm going to do it.

I'm interested in recommendations though...

 

[DaveInDenver]

Sweetness!

My Gunnar is a 1x10 cobbled together with a Wolf Tooth 30 in front an 40 in the back. So the spread is 11-40 x 30. Top is 78.3 inches and low is 21.7, using a 2.10x29 tire.

It's roughly the same low end as a 2x10 using 26/38 and 11-36. On that top is 99 inches, low is 20.7 inches. So you give up your top two gears since 38x14 is around 78 inches.

On a triple using 22/32/44 and a 11-32 cassette you get a top of 115 inches and low of 19.8.

So it's all about the top side as you know. In my experience you can configure it so that you don't miss any low range (30x40 is plenty low, I'd run 32 front if I had it to do over) and I don't miss anything on the high end on pavement usually. On flat or slight down 30x11 is tall enough that you're still actually pushing at about 20 MPH and that's about all I ever need with fat tires. I really don't miss the top gears because anything where you'd use it I'm spun out anyway, but down hills are more about just keeping up, you're not pushing.

But if you're really worried both SRAM and Shimano now make an 11 speed cassette with a 10-42 range, which allows you to run a bigger front. With a 34 tooth front and 10-42 rear your top is 97.5 inches and your low is 23.2 inches. This will be a little tall on really steep climbs but not impossible. And 97 or 98 inches on a 29'er will give you a speed of 23.5 MPH at 80 RPM. Compared to your 3x, where 115 inches at 80 RPM is about 27 MPH.

Personally I see the utility of a 1x with gears and I'll never run a front derailleur ever again. I don't miss it and the weight reduction is not small. I dropped about a pound off the bike going 2x10 XT to 1x10 but it's a noticeably more reliable in mud since there's nothing to collect. I like the significant jumps between gears, but this irritates some people. But my other two bikes are single speed so standing isn't foreign and I just power through. I run 34/19 on the Rhygin (26") and 42/26 on the REEB.

 

[DaveInDenver]

I'm digging this long travel hard tail shift going on lately.

Very happy with the new Fox (I got the Float 34 Factory 130mm FiT4), although MRP (FWIW, they're made out in Grand Junction) would be very high on my short list. Probably for that frame the Loop or Stage would be the best matches, probably the Loop being a little less enduro. Weight-wise the Loop and Float are about the same at 4 lbs.

Also run at least a 180mm front rotor, don't even think twice about that. For what you do 210mm is overkill, but not by much.

I ended up with a standard post, I don't see the need for a dropper and Kirsten's was unreliable. She had a Rock Shox Reverb Stealth (internal routing) and unless the weather was warm it wouldn't extend fully after being dropped. Bleeding made no difference. For the once in a great while that dropping the seat might be useful all the complexity just seems silly. And heavy, man was that sucker heavy. We took it out last week and I think she's planning on selling it. It's 31.6mm.

 

[J Kimmel]

Can you retro a single front on a bike with a triple?

Seems like a dumb question but I have no clue

 

[aprosise]

Nice!

1x for sure. Front Derailleurs are dead! You'll love the benefits.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Can you retro a single front on a bike with a triple?

Seems like a dumb question but I have no clue

You mean change a triple to a single? Absolutely, there's no restrictions that would prevent it. You're removing a bunch of parts is all. The only limitation would be your rear derailleur's ability to deal with the range. How many gears do you have in the back now? As long as it's 8, 9 or 10 you'll be able to rebuild the cassette to put a giant cog in the lowest slot. With a derailleur designed for a triple you'll probably be safe and not snap it off. It might be a little sluggish but cranking the B-spring tension to 11 will make it totally tolerable.

 

[wesintl]

thanks Dave!
I can't decide between a 32 and 34 ring.

I was leaning to a factory 32 or 34 but i can most likely get a rock shox for cost but not fox. So i was considering a pike or sid but can't decide.

I'm leaning to turquoise king hubs and arch ex hoops. I considered the i9 but the ultralight or trail would run me double what the classic would.

 

[DaveInDenver]

A 32/42 is a good compromise of an almost granny but not quite pushing for steep climbing. 43/42 will feel a little tall if you're looking for a bail out like on Mt Falcon. Of course anything in the 19-to-22 inch range is toeing the line on where a tall guy like you will walk faster anyway, but having a granny is nice when you're tapped. Standing is always an option and 34/11 won't feel so much like a hamster in a wheel.

 

[aprosise]

I love my Pike.

I wouldnt touch anything Fox unless it was a DH40 or 36.

 

[DaveInDenver]

I wouldnt touch anything Fox unless it was a DH40 or 36.

Why?

 

[J Kimmel]

You mean change a triple to a single? Absolutely, there's no restrictions that would prevent it. You're removing a bunch of parts is all. The only limitation would be your rear derailleur's ability to deal with the range. How many gears do you have in the back now? As long as it's 8, 9 or 10 you'll be able to rebuild the cassette to put a giant cog in the lowest slot. With a derailleur designed for a triple you'll probably be safe and not snap it off. It might be a little sluggish but cranking the B-spring tension to 11 will make it totally tolerable.

Guess I'll start looking into it. I've got a 9 rear. For that kind of weight saving might be worth looking into

 

[aprosise]

Why?

-Their customer service sucks
-Rebuild kits cost more
-Some shops charge more for Fox rebuilds
-They are no longer in the US
-Bought out 3-4 years ago by a overseas investment firm that severely cut manufacturing costs
-The CTD and FiT cartridges are junk
-Many new forks have a metal on metal feel and lots of stiction
-They cost more than a better Rock Shox fork
-Bushings wear out quick
-Seals suck
-Not a single person I know likes their Fox, unless it's a 36 or 40.

Ive heard tons of horror stories regarding recalls...Brand new forks out of the box with an audible metal on metal noise through the travel, only to receive a fork that has the same problems. Receiving a different fork back that has scratches...

Not all 36's are great either...a buddy just ordered a 160mm Fox 36 and it measured only 150mm of travel... until you pull up on the fork. 10mm of dead travel. It does feel nice through.

 

[wesintl]

All fair points, What is difference in pike and sid? i'm more of an xc guy and the frame is built for 120mm with 51mm rake

 

[wesintl]

I hated rockshox back in the day. I had judy rebuilds down quick with white bros cartridges. I realize things have changed but seems like everything is either fox or RS.

 

[aprosise]

SID= Light weight XC 32mm stantions
Pike= All mountain/Enduro/Light DH 35 mm stantions

Rock Shox is a little different these days...

Also, MRP makes a great fork. A couple buddies I ride with love them. (Cheaper too) Better small bump compliance than the Pike...Which I thought was pretty darn good.

 

[rover67]

I'd do a pike even if I were a x-country guy. I mean I kinda am.

The Talas forks with the CTD thing suck. In "descend" they feel too stiff unless you lower pressure. with lower pressure they bottom out hard. There just isnt enough air volume for it to work like a good spring, the rate increases too quickly so you have to run less pressure... then it bottoms hard all the time if you get frisky. I mean a variable travel fork is a neat idea I just don't think it works with the limited space in those smaller stanchions. I had Dirt Labs do a float conversion on my 120mm Talas 32 fork with CTD and then it got better because there was more air volume. The stiff setting was always weird but descend felt kind of OK. I rode that for for thousands of miles like that and thought it was just OK. I never could get the valving right since Dirt Labs said they couldn't really change it so we played with different oils instead with limited success.. Heavy oil was nice and stiff but descend was too stiff, different lighter oil and stiff wasn't very stiff but descend was OK... over and over.

On a whim i bought a pike set up for 120mm and the difference was night and day. I can run lower pressures and it still feels bottomless. I haven't missed the fox fork at all. The larger stanchions are not only noticeably stiffer but also have a higher air volume so the spring works MUCH better. Lots of low speed compliance and has that bottomless feel. Haven't felt the need to play with oil or valving yet.

Compare the weights the Pike isn't too bad either.

 

[DaveInDenver]

-Not a single person I know likes their Fox, unless it's a 36 or 40.

This isn't true, I like my 2012 Float 29 32mm a whole lot. I've liked all my Fox forks so far, which is why I keep buying them.

I'd do a pike even if I were a x-country guy.
-snip-
Compare the weights the Pike isn't too bad either.

The way you described all that makes it clear to me that I have no idea what I'm doing. If the o-ring on the stantion is near the crown at the end of my ride I consider the day a success. Clueless.

 

[wesintl]

Maybe i should go with a pike since i'm a svelte 230. 20 years ago with 1% BF a sid might have been the way to go.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Also occurs to me I've never had a CTD Fox, although I guess my new fork is going to be similar with the 3 setting compression damper. The Float 29 100mm on the Gunnar is the simple FIT RLC and other than running out of travel I've always thought that fork felt great. I also tend to run minimal sag, which is partially a consequence of having just 100mm. But, I thought the FiT4 was an evolution of the RC2 that everyone raves about in the 36 and 40? So far I like it, but it's still not even fully broken in, so we'll see in the long run. I've settled on 75 psi and it feels just like the old bike except that I never run out of travel. I'm also running this one at 25% sag (with 3 volume spacers) instead of the more like 10% I ran on the old one.

 

[rover67]

Also occurs to me I've never had a CTD Fox, although I guess my new fork is going to be similar with the 3 setting compression damper. The Float 29 100mm on the Gunnar is the simple FIT RLC and other than running out of travel I've always thought that fork felt great. I also tend to run minimal sag, which is partially a consequence of having just 100mm. But, I thought the FiT4 was an evolution of the RC2 that everyone raves about in the 36 and 40? So far I like it, but it's still not even fully broken in, so we'll see in the long run. I've settled on 75 psi and it feels just like the old bike except that I never run out of travel. I'm also running this one at 25% sag (with 3 volume spacers) instead of the more like 10% I ran on the old one.

Well it sounds like you know what you're doing