Mountain Biking - Drooooool...parts are arriving :)

My drivetrain components arrived last week and, let me tell you, XT is some beautiful stuff! The cassette is completely different from my old LX cassette and MUCH lighter. The cranks are also gorgeous and I just think it's SO cool that the BB axle is hollow.

My avid 7 levers and 7BB Disk brake setup is the coolest looking of all. I'm glad you folks here talked me out of the XT levers and into the Avids...they match the disks very well.

My Fetish Discipline frame isn't a Yeti, but it will do in the short term. It's pretty sturdy (and heavy :) but it's also nice looking.

But the part that caught my eye the most was the simple little seatpost. The person building the bike for me talked me out of a Ritchey and into a Thompson Elite. I couldn't be happier. That thing is a work of art and scary light.

Can't wait to build it up!

PICTURES !!!! :D

Congrats

Agreed- Pics please!

All who want pics, say eye! I mean....aye.

Hollow axel?

Erh? So lost...
But sweet!

I guess "spindle" is the right word. In my day (using my best old man voice), our bottom brackets had solid spindles with square, wedged ends that the cranks slid onto. My new XT (and I'm assuming this is NOT new but it's new to me) has a hollow spindle. The cranks use that octalink to attach to it but they are also hollow so when it's all built, you can see through the bottom bracket.

new to me, anyway.

I'll post pics when it's built. Right now, only the shock, frame, and brakes are in the house. The rest is at the shop.

Congrats!!! I love my SD-7 levers and I still haven't really played with my speedials just yet.

We need PICS@!!!

i would be happy to host them if ya need a host... once ya get them email them to zach.vonplato@gmail.com along with a link to this thread :)

All who want pics, say eye! I mean....aye.

Aye

I guess "spindle" is the right word. In my day (using my best old man voice), our bottom brackets had solid spindles with square, wedged ends that the cranks slid onto. My new XT (and I'm assuming this is NOT new but it's new to me) has a hollow spindle. The cranks use that octalink to attach to it but they are also hollow so when it's all built, you can see through the bottom bracket.

new to me, anyway.

I'll post pics when it's built. Right now, only the shock, frame, and brakes are in the house. The rest is at the shop.

You are two generations behind. Those wedge ends proved to be pretty weak in the way of any aggressive riding. Riders were ovalising them pretty quickly.

They went with sealed ISIS which worked well and fixed a lot of problems, but as riders went bigger they started to blow through the bearings (an old write off from getting the bb size from road bikes instead of the bigger/strong bmx bikes) so they have gone with external bearings and through axles (x-type) There are many options now but companies are starting to move to the external bearing system (bigger bearings more life)

Some of us still use a variation of the old standard. I have a set of profiles with a solid axle and unsealed bearings. Bmx is getting more and more influence which is a good thing now a days :)...

Anyways...PICS!!! ;)

Aye for the PICS.

I also completely agree about the Thomson Post. It's worth EVERY penny and there are a lot of those pennys with a Thomson.

It will be the LAST post you will ever buy. Unless you're like me and buy one for each of your bikes.

Good call on the Ritchey... they are a horrible, worthless piece of metal! The Thompson will not fail you. The Chris King/Paul of seatposts and stems :D

Im glad i read this post, i was close to buying an Easton carbon seatpost. But you know i think im going to go for Thompson

sounds sweet, i cant wait to see the pics!

Im glad i read this post, i was close to buying an Easton carbon seatpost. But you know i think im going to go for Thompson


I've tried a TON of posts. Thomson's are by far superior. My buddy recommended I buy one when I was just getting into the sport. I thought that spending $85 on a seatpost was Nukin Futs. I ended up going through about 3 or 4 cheap $15 to $25 posts before laying down the cash.

When I finally did, I was glad I did. I had that same post for about 3 years until I sold the bike it was on and it was good as the day I bought it.

I own about 4 Thomson posts. I recently bought a new CX bike and haven't put one on it yet........YET!

I will definatelt recommend the thomson to everyone. Went through 5 seatposts before the thomson came along. I will never buy anything else.

I will definatelt recommend the thomson to everyone. Went through 5 seatposts before the thomson came along. I will never buy anything else.

SUPER nice posts, for sure...and they're made nearby!

All I hear is how great Thompsons are but why exactly are they so much better? When you say you went through 5 other ones first does that mean your broke the other ones and they caused you a painful expirience or what? :p As for the hollow thing with the XT, do you mean that the cranks attach to a hollow rod? Wouldn´t that be weaker? I´m guessing that the square ones on my Trek are the old cheap type but bit by bit hopefully I´ll have it changed into a new bike. Will be interesting to upgrade until the only original component remaining is the frame :)

I broke 2 clean and bent 3 others over a period of time (one of which is bent perfectly for xc so I still use it.

Thomsons are made differently. Circular outside, oval inside to disperse the stresses better fron to back (as there is almost no side to side stresses)

The biggest complaint I heard from users of "lesser" seatposts was the saddle tilting under pressure. Lots of people said that Ritchey and others couldn't hold the saddle in position regardless of bolt torque. Given that I'm not a jumper or downhiller, I doubt I would apply the same stresses but I'd rather be secure in knowing my saddle's not going anywhere. Beside, I got a sweeeeet deal on the post :)

Sprry for taking so damn long, my mom went in the hospital the other day... so, ya know long week.


http://zach.unixforce.com/albums/Random-Pictures/mvc_736f.jpg
http://zach.unixforce.com/albums/Random-Pictures/mvc_737f.jpg
http://zach.unixforce.com/albums/Random-Pictures/mvc_745f.jpg

That frame is purdy.. me likey

Hey look someone stole my parts!

(My jekyll with XT)

http://www.ablbaseball.org/Other/jekyll2.jpg

Nice looking bike... always liked white...

Thanks! I'm SO looking forward to seeing it finished and finally riding it. I haven't been on a bike in 3 years and haven't been on an MTB in 10 years.

Thanks for posting it, Subhuman, hope your Mom's ok!!!

One more thing on the frame. Yes, it was a killer deal at $99 and looks great but there's one thing that worries me a bit. The downtube is a slight teardrop shape and the radius is pretty tight on the top edge. Unfortunately, the water bottle braze-ons they installed don't conform to this tight radius so the rivet edges aren't flush with the tube. I think it's simply a cosmetic thing but it drives me nuts. I'll bolt on a water bottle cage so it won't be visible but I really wish they had done a better job with the rivets.

Other than that, it's a good frame to start with before I decide if I'm going to get serious about racing again and buy a Yeti ARC or S-works.

The rivets thing is pretty common with ovalized down tubes. You can tap them softly with a rubber mallet to knock down the edges a bit, but don't go crazy or you'll knock them off INTO the tube and then you'll rattle as you ride. Realize, they are a soft metal and will conform a bit. Another trick is to dab some silicone around the edges to clean it up. You could with that white bike use some white silicone. (stuff you use for bathtubs and sinks @ 1.89 at a Home Depot/Lowe's/Ace).

I almost bought one of those frames. Give us a full ride report when you're done assembling it.

I was also looking at SOUL CYCLES.

All I hear is how great Thompsons are but why exactly are they so much better? When you say you went through 5 other ones first does that mean your broke the other ones and they caused you a painful expirience or what? :p As for the hollow thing with the XT, do you mean that the cranks attach to a hollow rod? Wouldn´t that be weaker? I´m guessing that the square ones on my Trek are the old cheap type but bit by bit hopefully I´ll have it changed into a new bike. Will be interesting to upgrade until the only original component remaining is the frame :)


The clamping mechanism is far superior. With a double bolt clamp, you can infinitely adjust the seat tilt angle. Thomson's clamps are longer so they hold the saddle more securely and stiffen the rails as a result. They machine out the inside diameter into an oval as Mael mentioned to reduce weight without sacrificing strength and the way the clamp is bonded to the post portion is far superior to most other posts I've tried. PLUS, they look FABULOUS!

Light and Strong, but NOT cheap!

Although you hardly see mine as I wrap black duct tape around it. I do this so I always know where to find about 2' of duct tape if needed for emergency repairs.

I want to know what SuBHuMaN is hiding behind those white sheets? :)

On a serious note, I hope your Mom is doing well.

haha,i didnt take the pics for him... ijust posted them... Yeah i think she'll be fine, thanks alot guys