Mountain Biking - Ride Report and Questions.

Hi all

I have just returned from a very nice ride up in Castle Coch, Cardiff, UK. It was a killing climb followed by an ultra fast fire road downhill ( i couldnt pedal anymore on the 44t 11t gear...i dont know how many km/h that is)....the discs where smoking afterwards and they are still bedding in.... anyway....

My questions are....i am 200lbs....i have complaints about my fork...manitou axel elite...medium spring....i got 50 to 60% shag...totally unacceptable... will the stiffer spring rectify the problem or should i get a black or minute fork?

My tires are veeeeery slow....roll-x 2.0 ....i am thinking about micheling comp s light or panaracer trailblaster pro 2.1 .

Any suggestions and advice is most welcome...i am in a hurry to change those....either getting a stiffer fork spring or wait and raise money to get another fork....but the tires suck....

thanks in advance for the helpfull answers...
Yannis.

Don't get the Trailblasters.. they suck... I have a pair. Unpredictable. They work good in really loose/muddy stuff but not well enough to justify their performance elsewhere. I say go for the Comp S tires... those are good.



I also say get a new fork. Replacing the internals probably isn't worth it.

Jim thanks...are the comp-s light reliable? i have read some reviews on mtbr that they get torn apart really fast.
Is the black fork a good option?

First off...you are 200pnds riding a medium spring. Try a heavier spring first...

And what the heck is shag? (besides obvious sexual reference)

should i say sag???? if i was wrong excuse me.... i meant the amount of travel that gets lost when i just sit on the bike...it should be around 10% of total travel whereas on my fork is 60%. So maelstrom you think i should stick to the Axel and get new springs?

i am 200lbs

I would suggets getting a Marzocchi. Every one I know that rides with a Manitou has problems. Especialy the bigger riders or the guys that ride more aggressively.

Not that it happens a lot but yesterday we had a guy at the races have his Manitou Black fall apart, literaly. If you like fast dh I highly recomend a stronger fork.

For a XC tire I like the Maxxis Mobsters. They have a low rolling resistance and good cornering traction. If you want a dh tire then it would depend on the terrain on what I would use.

i would get a marz....the problem is that i have invested 120$ for adaptors and rotors for the manitou type mount....and since i went almost bankrupt for getting xt discs onto manitou forks i think that i want to stick with the manitou range. I want an XC tyre...so i was thinking about the Michelin CompS light...what do you think?

just get a stiffer spring before you go overboard and get a new fork

Thanks all for the replies.... i could really use some more opinions for the Trailblaster vs Michelin Comp S tires.

For xc I have heard that the Mich. are good tires. I have no personal expieriance with them, only the dh tires. For my xc rides i use the maxxis and they handle everything well, no complaints.

I have also used the Hutchinson Pythons and those worked well also. I guess it also depends on the terrain. I ride mostly soft sand/over hard packed trails and slick rock. The Maxxis and the Hutchinsons are my two first choices.

What bike are you riding? If you are not to concerned about weight and want to stick with Manitou then I would say look at the Sherman Flick. It is 2.12 kilos but it is a much stronger fork then the black. The Firefly is 1.9 kilos but i believe it only comes with a 20mm axle.

Of the tires you are asking about I would give the Mich. a shot.
I have used the Panaracers and did not like them for the conditions i ride

I got a specialized rockhopper 2003 hardtail...i like light stuff...but strong as well...so i steer clear of SID/Skareb stuff.

Originally posted by math2p14
should i say sag???? if i was wrong excuse me.... i meant the amount of travel that gets lost when i just sit on the bike...it should be around 10% of total travel whereas on my fork is 60%. So maelstrom you think i should stick to the Axel and get new springs?

Sorry didnt mean to come accross as mean...I thought maybe shag was another word I didn't know people used. I find a lot of those on these bb's that I visit....so sag is it...get a Marz they are built for bigger riders...obviously when you can afford it...for now don't bother with a new fork and get stiffer springs and save for a good Marz fork.

as for tires...it depends on terrain..I can't even figure out which ones I like :D

I got a specialized rockhopper 2003 hardtail

Then I would not get the Sherman. It would drasticly change the bikes geometry.

Go with Mael, keep the Black, get stiffer springs and save up for a Zoch in the future.

I dont have a black i have an Axel fork....wish i had the black....so i should get the stiffer spring for the Axel and later on get a black or a Zoch?

The Comp S rolls fast like most Michelins, but it's been rumored that Michelin tires have weak sidewalls. I cut the actual BEAD of one of mine during a fast rocky downhill, but I blame myself for the damage for running the pressure too low. The sidwalls seem plenty strong to me. I really like Michelin's tires... they really know their stuff when it comes to traction.