Mountain Biking - Upgrade Fever - I've caught it...

Ok, this is my first post here - so be gentle!

I just bought a bike and am actually waiting for it to be delivered. One of the things that I love about biking is you can upgrade parts, etc. But (yes, there's a "BUT") I'm not sure what's good and what isn't. Here is a link to my bike and the parts it has on it, so I'm wondering what - if anything - needs to be upgraded? Is a SRAM cassette better or worse than a Shimano?

Like I said I'm new here and to the sport, so any helpful advice would be appreciated...

Check out my bike here (http://www.dvdauthority.com/new/mattysbike.asp)

Thanks in advance!

hot damn, that's a nice bike. I wouldn't worry about upgrading cassettes, you can do that when they wear out. (well I guess you can upgrade anything when it wears out, but whatever).

Yeah, so you bought the wrong bike if you want to upgrade. That's a sweet bike as is. It's xt and lx, and the only thing better in shimano is xtr. If I were to upgrade one thing without trying it, I would probably do the brakes because I have only heard bad things about htem.

Unfortunately my work blocks your website, probably since dvd's are usually considered work related. Anyway, what bike is it?

'04 jekyll 800, xt everything with an lx FD. Lefty front, fox float rl rear.

Hey, thanks. I meant to ask about the brakes as well. I didn't know if Hayes were the best or to go with Shimano XT - but since I haven't received the bike yet, I'll try it first. The person I bought it from spared no expense in upgrading the parts - so I'm assuming that these Hayes brakes are going to be top notch...

the only thing I could see upgrading (not really "upgrading" -- changing is more like it) would be the saddle and tires to suit your preferences. Other than that, it's a schweeet ride as it is, you'll be puhlenty happy :D

yeah, since it's used, I'd imagine that if the brakes had problems the guy before you probably dealt with the problems.

Also, If I were to upgrade my front derailleur - what type would I need to get. 9 speed, obviously, but are they all pretty much the same or would it be a waste of money?

It would pretty much be a waste of money. Before you upgrade you need to know if it is a top or bottom pull, top or bottom swing and what diameter the seat tube is.

I wouldn't bother with the upgrade until it is worn out though, most likely you won't notice any difference at all.

the brake sucks. piece of #$(*&( the screw on the brake lever will keep backing out, unless you put thread lock on it. rotor is very fragile, bent easily. hard to position the pads correctly.
however, it does provide nice braking power.

nice bike overall, very light.

pointless upgrading the front derailleur, LX is fine.

I guess I just want my bike to be all XT. And this might sound stupid, but based on this picture, can anyone tell me what type of front derailer I have (bottom pull, top pull)?

http://www.dvdauthority.com/new/front.jpg

Bottom pull.

Bottom pull.
How can you determine if it's top or bottom pull? Just wondering.

I was thinking bottom pull too. It just looks like it would need a force in the downward direction to to cause the derailler to pivot up. I don't really know though, just guessing.

it's (from) where the cable connects to the derailleur, in this case, from the bottom --pulling the cable actuates the derailleur (releasing the cable allows the derailleur's spring to pull it back) check out Sheldon Brown's Glossary here (http://sheldonbrown.com/gloss_ta-o.html#toppull), where Top-pull and top-swing are defined right next to each other :)

(edit: Top-pull being the opposite of bottom-pull :D)

How can you determine if it's top or bottom pull? Just wondering.

A guess. Also I don't think top pull would work FS? No connected seattube.

it's (from) where the cable connects to the derailleur, in this case, from the bottom --pulling the cable actuates the derailleur (releasing the cable allows the derailleur's spring to pull it back) check out Sheldon Brown's Glossary here (http://sheldonbrown.com/gloss_ta-o.html#toppull), where Top-pull and top-swing are defined right next to each other :)

(edit: Top-pull being the opposite of bottom-pull :D)
OK, thanks. :)

A guess. Also I don't think top pull would work FS? No connected seattube.
http://img167.echo.cx/img167/4512/toppull3ea.jpg
http://img173.echo.cx/img173/2396/raiynrockhopper10yt.jpg
It does on mine. It depends on how the cables are routed more than the frame itself


EDIT: I need to rephrase that. Actually the frame DOES play into it my lower front pivot would block the routing for a bottom pull

It does on mine. It depends on how the cables are routed more than the frame itself[/color]

-as soon as I wrote I figured someone probably had, let someone post contrary.
A frame with both would be good for custom building.
Do you see any aspects of an upper pull that makes it better for FS?
I can think of possible fouling\damage to the cable or guide on a lower pull (FS or HT.)

the brake sucks. piece of #$(*&( the screw on the brake lever will keep backing out, unless you put thread lock on it. rotor is very fragile, bent easily. hard to position the pads correctly.
however, it does provide nice braking power.

nice bike overall, very light.

pointless upgrading the front derailleur, LX is fine.

ok first of all i have HFX-9s and i have had very little problems with them. yes my leverage screw did back out, but that was before i sent hayes an email and the sent me some cool nylock inserts and i havent had a problem since. i havent had a problem with my rotor yet either the rear one has a slight rub to it, but guess what, disk brakes rub. and the pads are really easy too. just push the pistons back but the pads in put the calipur on put a buisness card in between the rotor and the pad pump you brake lever and then center the calipur.

it looks like you picked up a sweet bike. doesnt look like it needs any upgrading at all. just replace the stuff as it breaks.

Dont go for XTR. XTR is a little lighter (5-10 g) and weaker than xt.

Dont go for XTR. XTR is a little lighter (5-10 g) and weaker than xt.

The new XTR front derailleur pivot link is 50% wider for a 110% increase in rigidity. You get a faster and more responsive shifting action plus a longer service life. The derailleur also includes the new "Dual Pull" feature that allows it to be used with top or bottom cable routing. The multi-clamp adapter allows the medium 31.8mm size derailleur clamp to fit 28.6mm frame tubes. Two sealed bearings at critical pivot points reduce the shifting effort.

From Shimano... tell me how its weaker?

When are you gonna get stuff like fuzzy dice and matching water bottles? ;)

Anyway, nice bike!

Koffee

-as soon as I wrote I figured someone probably had, let someone post contrary.
A frame with both would be good for custom building.
Do you see any aspects of an upper pull that makes it better for FS?
I can think of possible fouling\damage to the cable or guide on a lower pull (FS or HT.)
Well a top pull / bottom swing is ideal on my bike due to the lower front pivot's location and the amount of space available on that frame tube. Beyond that, and having both, I see no advantage to either top or bottom pull, though I must confess I prefer the compact nature of a bottom swing derailer as opposed to a top swing.


From Shimano... tell me how its weaker?
Answered your own question.:p
I'll admit the XTR front derailieurs are the shizznit. I really liked the last model they had. XTR as a WHOLE won't last as long as XT will. They've had excellent front derailer's though.

Don't worry about brakes, yours will be fine. If you do want to upgrade them older Shimano XT brakes were the bomb, also you won't need a new hub to use them. Also look ad Avid Juicy 5's or if you do XC (which I would assume from type of bike) try out some Hope mini's. Also for XC, as long as you aren't a big person (and I mean no offence by that) you will only need 6 inch rotors. But as I said the brakes should be fine.

Don't worry about brakes, yours will be fine. If you do want to upgrade them older Shimano XT brakes were the bomb, also you won't need a new hub to use them. Also look ad Avid Juicy 5's or if you do XC (which I would assume from type of bike) try out some Hope mini's. Also for XC, as long as you aren't a big person (and I mean no offence by that) you will only need 6 inch rotors. But as I said the brakes should be fine.
I'm not exactly tiny myself and I don't need more than a 6" rotor to make me happy

If you ask me, MOST instances where people are using 8" rotors is way overkill. 6" provides a huge bit of stopping power, especially with hydros

Thanks for everyone's comments, I appreciate them. Actually my front derailleur (derailer) is XT - it was my mistake. I'll wait for the bike to arrive before I even think about upgrading anything on it. I'll make sure and post some pictures of it when it arrives.

Again, thanks for everyone's help/comments...