Mountain Biking - Bash guard

What is a bash guard ?

Justen

It's a thick piece of metal, usually aluminum that replaces the big chainring. It's called a bash guard because you tend to hit it just about everytime you roll over a log, the chainring/bash guard hits next!

L8R

Yeah, it just saves your chain rings from being wrecked on logs or other obstacles in the trail.

Okay...thanks !

I found out that the new bike I have on order (Brodie Bruzza) has a bash guard. I do alot of road cycling but intend to take this bike up to the North Shore so good to know it's going to be able to handle stuff.

Justen

You can get a third chainring and swap back and forth if riding a lot of road, a big ring can/would be beneficial. You'll have to learn to adjust your stops on the front derailleur, but after a time or two, you'll be a pro!

L8R

Stops are for pansies :o

Well, I plan to use the bike ALOT for road cycling and mix in some north shore riding. I am not that excited about needing to swap chainrings...am I really going to notice a big difference ?

Justen

Depends on howpowerful you are...some people need the third chainring due to strenght / bragging rights (Ha HA I am strong I need the third chain ring HAHA) but really unless you need to haul butt then the third chainring is off for me and I use a bashgaurd. The shore is technical enough where very very few people can use the third chain ring and need a bashgaurd anyways :)...

I must be "strong" then, I'm in the big chain ring on my bike 95% of the time. I'm only off it for long climbs, which are quite rare in Saskatchewan! ;) On my commuter I took off the small and medium rings.

I can't imagine how one would ride on the road without the "big" ring? :confused:

Originally posted by KrisA
I must be "strong" then, I'm in the big chain ring on my bike 95% of the time. I'm only off it for long climbs, which are quite rare in Saskatchewan! ;) On my commuter I took off the small and medium rings.

I can't imagine how one would ride on the road without the "big" ring? :confused:

If I lived in Sask I wouldn't have a bashgaurd either...try riding the big ring UP the side of a mountain. I have seen three people do it in the last year on the local trails. Roland Green was one of them :)...

Okay, do I have this right - for using this bike for road biking 70 % of the time, am I really going to need the big ring ? I just don't see what the big difference is.

Justen

Basicaly you can go faster in the big ring. THe small ring normaly is 22 teeth, middle is 32 and the large one is 44. Honestly it won't take long to swap rings and adjust the front deraileur after you do it once or twice and they are fairly inexpensive for a large ring.

It all depends on your riding style. You've mentioned numerous times your going to use this bike primarily on-road. If you find yourself "spinning-out" and needing more torque on some of your rides, you'll want/need the 3rd ring.

If you off-road riding is very technical with a lot of obstacles that you "leverage" over (meaning: lift front wheel over, then bash with the chainrings and power over!) you'll want to keep the bash guard.

You'll have to decide what's best for your style!

L8R

Thanks a2.
I like to keep up a pretty good pace when road cycling but need the torque/tension to be able to go faster.
Perhaps I should just keep the bash guard and smaller ring off for now ( just put them on for north shore riding) and have them put on the bigger ring for road cycling. When I was test riding, I didn't even notice the bash guard (shows you how much I know about MTB's !) or change in cycling but with the massive tires, it was hard to tell - they slowed me down massively.


Justen

Definately get some slicks or semi-slicks for the road. I cut 10 mins off of my 1 hour commute by switching from full knobbies to slicks. It's not so much the knobbies, but the higher air pressure. My knobbies had a max p.s.i. of 60, and the slicks were up to 90.

I wouldn't worry about the bash ring thing for awhile. Just go out and have fun on your new bike.

I thought you were getting it today. Has that changed?

L8R

I am going to get some semi slicks put on it. I need some grip as there are alot of shale, mud and loose gravel pathways that I go on and the slicks don't handle them very well. Also, I want my Brodie to still look like a MTB and not a pansy bike :-)

Funny coming from a female I know but my other MTB looks weird with all the front suspension and stuff and then piddly thin little tires !! I like having my tires inflated to 60 psi though and I do know what you mean by how much time they cut off your ride.

Justen

I should take a picture of my bike with the slicks! It looks stupid funny!

I've got a full suspension with a 5" travel fork, 20 mm front hub, super beefy chromoly cranks, Mavic D321 downhill rims and these tiny little 1.5" Michelin Slicks.

It reminds me of these Rice Burner Cars with low profile tires on em!

Sometimes function over form is the rule of the day!

L8R

Well, I guess when it comes down to it, you're the one that has to ride it. As much as it is nice to have a cool looking MTB, those big knobby tires really do add alot of weight and rolling resistance that I just don't need. I think my current MTB just looks so pansified (is that even a word ??) with those tiny semi slicks and everything else looking heavy duty. It would be even more so on the Brodie.

I am looking at the tires that have the flat in the middle and grips on the side. They look fatter but still roll okay.

Why the he** I am so image conscious I don't know but again, I just want a really cool looking bike !

Justen

Yeah, you want some semi-slicks. Their widths are still 1.95 to 2.1 inches and look like a "normal" tire.

You're like a kid in a candy store, trying to decide what you want!!!!!

Have fun!

L8R

Yep....and I want all the candy I can get :-)

Sorry for all the questions !

Justen

IMO the semi-slicks are crap. I've tried them. crap. If you do all road riding riding they're ok, but I'd go with knobbies if you're gonna ride in the dirt. And if you're doing all road you'd be better off with slicks. Slicks grip better than the semis when cornering. I currently commute and xc with the same bike and went back to knobbies and just deal. But it can't hurt anything but your pocket book to try the semislicks out. It's up to personal preference I guess.

I have a set of semi-slicks, but I don't run them in anything but extreme hardpack or street. I had a nasty crash due to some wet grass not to long ago. When I'm on the trail I tend to prefer some KNOBBIES!

I use a set of Specialized Nimbus EX slicks on my commuter bike. I have to agree with a2 though when I first put them on the whole personality of the bike changed. With the slicks on it's more nimble, faster, and easier to handle in the rain.