New Bike, Stopping by to say hi.....
 

Hi everyone,

I bought my first real Mountain bike today. I left over Cannondale rush 6 full suspension. I think I got a good deal on it. the only thing I may upgrade(besides the seat) is the cable dicl brakes, I would like hydraulic's, What do you guys think? Just wanted to say hi and see if anybody rides in the orange county, ny area.

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Jim

Howdy, welcome to the forums. If you search you will find many threads on Mech vs Hydro.

another warm welcome here

yeah, ditch those cable brakes. put grip shift on too

mx

Welcome to BF and congrats on your new bike!

do you have a link to grip shift?

Thanks everyone for the welcomes

I think he might be joking . . . he tends to do that.

oh, OK. Thanks for the clarification. LOL

Thanks

But a grip shift is a shifter that changes gears when you twist the grip, much like a motorcycle throttle. They used to be more popular in the 90's but I think they have really declined in popularity.

I thought they sucked huge balls, but that is me. My wife's mid 90's Marin has them.

I think he was using humor to comment on your taking off perfectly good mechanical disc brakes to go to hydraulics. I think many would suggest you stick with the mechanicals for now . . . they will work plenty good. At some point down the road you can upgrade them if you want.

grip shift? ew. those things suck!

Welcome noob. Nice ride...I don't believe you have a bike w/o pic's. (that's how it works around here, hehe)

You get a new bike, you have to show pic's.

Might I suggest the Avid Juicy line of hydraulic disc stoppers. They are super easy to work on / install, and work very well. They won't break the bank either.

OK, I'll get some pics up later. Thanks for the welcome and the recommendation.

I've got a Rush myself with the BB7's (mechanical disks). I love them. Hydraulics are a little nicer, but it's not a huge change. Certainly not as huge as going from V's to disks. The brakes you have on that bike are among the nicest cable operated disk brakes available. Ride them until they don't work anymore then figure out if you want to go for hydros.

Around here the trails are very tight and curvy with narrow gaps between trees. The wide bars on the Rush were a real problem for me so I switched to a narrower flat bar. Maybe not a concern for your riding. The other upgrade I made that was WELL worth it was a set of lock-on grips. They're much more comfortable on the hands (provide me with better grip for technical climbs) and they make adjstments a snap. No need to wrestle with slip-ons. Oh, and if you have the Cannondale brake levers then pick up a set of Avid levers (or comparable). The difference in brake feel is night and day (the C'dale levers suck).

Oh, and the tires that came with my bike sucked.

Other than that, just ride the snot out of the thing. It's a great bike.

Hi, Thats a lot of useful info. OK first, I was thinking that I should ride these brakes until they stop working right. What bar did you get. What tires are good( I read that somewhere else also) I'll look into the avid levers. Where would I look for this stuff, I mean what's a good site to buy from? I'm pretty much a noob when it comes to components. Thanks for the help and I can't wait to get out on the trails.

Do not post again without photos of your new bike, preferably getting dirty.

I buy parts from Jensen USA (google it). The prices aren't the best but the service has been awsome and they have a good selection. You should be able to find Avid levers and other stuff there. I got a cheap aluminum Truvativ flat bar. With all this stuff make sure you have a general idea what you're doing before you order. For example you'll find two different diameter bars, so if you wanted to replace the bar you'd need to order the right one or it won't fit. (The stock bar is fine as long as the width isn't a problem for you.)

If you don't have a good understanding of bikes the best bet is to buy all your stuff from your friendly local bike shop and have them help you pick out what you need. Tires are a good thing to seek local advice about. The best tires for your area may be very different from the best tires for my area as local geography, geology, flora, etc will all play a part. The tires that work well in the OC are gonna be different from what I use here where terrain is rocky, rooty, leaf covered, sometimes wet, and always slippery.

Visit your LBS and I'm sure they'd be happy to help you spend money on upgrades. :)

Oh, and enjoy the ride. I'm sure you will. I love my Rush and would buy another if for some reason I ever lost this one.

I would recommend a new wheelset and tires as the best bang for the buck upgrade if you have the cash.. lots of weight savings and improved traction there.

Added some quick photos. Sorry they aren't of it getting dirty, but I haven't had a chance to get to the trails yet.

Not sure what the OP's wheelset is but the Mavic wheelset that came on my Rush (M113 or something?) actually seems pretty nice.

Just took a look at the photos. Nice bike, I like the color and decal scheme. Do you plan on using the platform pedals or swapping them out? I don't know how folks can ride those things off-road but I know some do. Every time I try platforms I bash the heck out of my shins.

I like the chain guard. I'll have to see if I can get one for my bike.

The Wheels are Sun Black Eye Disc, 32 hole. Not sure if those are good or not. I am going to try the platform pedals out for awhile and see how they do. What pedals do you use?

Nothing fancy, just Shimano clipless (forget the model number, one of the cheaper ones).

Another tip. I can't tell what shock/fork your bike came with but if they're pneumatic then try running pressure below what the manual recommends. I found the factory recommended suspension pressures for my weight were WAY too high.

no, i love XO grip shift. they are awesome!

mx

no humor this time. i would always recommend hydraulic brakes. i do not use cable disc.

modern grip shift are alive and well. not a 90's thing. they are light and shift in a flash. good stuff. XO grip is going on my new high end build

mx