Nonmarketable

For some time, I’ve wondered how I would tension the chain on the Rock Lobster. As I was determined on having an internal geared hub, I was overwhelmed with a sense of sacrilege from the thought of bolting a chain tensioner to the derailleur hanger. The clean chain line that was on offer; I couldn’t bring myself to do it, as my OCD took over. So then there were two real options: one was to approach Gripsport and do the horizon drop out conversion (which I found out that they no longer do) or fit an eccentric bottom bracket.

I decided to go with the Phil Wood Philcentric eccentric bottom bracket. Another company in Germany, Trickstuff, also produces EBBs and from the reviews they are pretty similar in terms of performance, but the Phil Wood could be ordered from my local bike shop.

I found three things worth noting about Philcentric EBB:

1)      The bottom bracket is noticeable bigger and heavier than the standard BB that came with my Shimano cranks.

2)      A special tool is required to install EBBs (this is true for both the Phil Wood and Trickstuff version)

3)      The Philcentric EBB requires modification to the crank if you are running one designed for 2 or more rings (I can’t speak for all crank sets, but this was definitely the case for Shimano). This is because the face of the EBB is larger than the factory BB and will foul the inner chain ring tabs.

First impressions are that the unit is very very professionally made and assembled. The tolerances and fitment is perfect between the cups and threaded piece. As adjustments can only be made with the cranks out, I found the process of getting the perfect chain length a little tedious. Besides that and the weight penalty, it’s definitely worth the coin if you suffer from a little bit of OCD like me.

An update is way over due for the humble Rock Lobster. Some 5 months have passed since my last post and many things have been purchased and planned. Thus far, the bike is sporting a Fox 32 Terrologic 120 Fork. I’ve read and been impressed by some of the reviews, and the set and forget approach to the fork is exactly what I am looking for – it’s a shame that Fox have decided to discontinue the range, in favour for the CTD range.

Stem and seat post will be of the Thomson flavour and headset duties left to a very capable Chris King set. Brakes were the subject of a long, internal debate. On one hand, I wanted to try the new Shimano XT range. Having never run hydraulics before, I was very eager to experience the face-ripping braking power the XT brakes supposedly provide. On the other hand, I love the simplicity of mechanical brakes, and Avid BB7 have had rave reviews for ever, and given my level of riding (I believe professionals call it slow) I think they will more than suffice.

A first are the running of carbon handle bars. At something like 128 grams, the Easton MonkeyLite XC handlebars are certainly impressive, but I’ve purchased them less about for the wank and more for the damping qualities. Or so I keep telling myself.

Wheels are Mavic XC717, laced with DT Swiss spokes to XT 15mm Front Hub and Shimano Nexus 3 Speed IGH Rear. Schwalbe Rocket Rons Evolution series for tyres running tubeless (which is another first). I was tossing up between EVO / Snakeskin series and the cheaper entry level (but lighter) Evolution series. In the end, being my first tubeless attempt, I figured I’d start cheap, and move up to thicker side walls if I have issues on the single track.

I purchased a Standard Notubes Kit, but found that the Rim tape was too thick for the XC717 (which are really shallow). Luckily, I stumbled upon the Gorilla Tape Conversion tutorial, which is apparently not a bad way to go about a tubeless conversion, as high-end carbon wheel specialists Enve, ship their wheels “tubeless ready” with a roll of Gorilla tape.  Unfortunately, Gorilla Tape isn’t available in Australia, so I’ve used Tarzan Tape, which is available at Bunnings (Australian equivalent of Lowes in the US).

You don’t need much tape, because the rim is half the width of the roll, you effective have twice the length. I had plenty left over from 5m roll with 2 layers on both rims. I followed the Pinkbike guide and it worked perfectly. If I can offer a suggestion – rather than using a book to guide the width, use a cable tie as a guide, I found it a lot easier because you can freely move it and cut with the knife.

ETA on a complete bike is early next year. I am currently waiting for a part from Germany but after that, cranks and pedals and we are pretty much ready to go. I am very much looking forward to riding the bike – I just hope On One don’t release their titanium 456 Evo in the mean time, which would lead to a very bad / poor Christmas period.

Its only been a matter of weeks since posting about the Fox Float iCD system and a test has come out of RockShox’s electronic suspension system.

No acronyms here, just the system that Fox should of released. The computer senses if the crank is rotating, and locks the shock out when your pedalling. On descends, the accelerometer detects increases in speed and opens up the shock.

While I love the engineering and thought that go into these systems, this has me wondering what mountain biking will be like in the near future. For me, the greatest satisfaction upon climbing a steep section is know that I put in the mechanical work to push me and the bike up the hill. With these electronic suspension systems coming and no doubt many already in the pipe works, will such devices remove the “purity” of riding?

Steel. Dual Suspension. Looks fun. See more at Cotic.

It was only a matter of time before companies begun looking at which components could be aided or improved with the presence of solenoids and switches. Shimano’s Di2 system has been well received (if your ignore the price) so electronically controlled / aided suspension, would seem like the next logical step.

Fox last week announced their 2013 line up will include an electronic aided front fork, dubbed the iCD system. It features a fork, with lock out adjusted electronically, powered with a battery pack developed in collaboration with Shimano. See more of the system here. The system is basically an electronic lock out system which is supposedly faster to set up, easier to maintain and operate, if you believe Fox’s marketing team.

While I am not convinced with the current system, I believe the potential is definitely there. But firstly, the claim that the system is easier to maintain is debatable. In existing lock outs, maintenance could be as little as cleaning the cable, or replacing it with some cheap derailleur cable. Now, it looks to be costly, especially if you damage the battery pack or wires on the trial. Which leads to another talking point: price. Fox forks already command a premium over their Rockshox counterparts, and the iCD system is priced at $1,499 USD.

But the potential is unlimited. There’s already talk of automatic electronic adjustment systems, which could adjust fork height, sensitivity and rebound second by second to ensure maximum comfort or grip. Active suspension has been around since the 1980′s, and was widely adopted in F1, before it was later banned – so there’s technology that this fork could potential mimic. Imagine a fork that could sense and lock out for hard pack, while immediately becoming plush and smooth for rock gardens. But until then, I guess we’ll have to wait and see what other pieces of technology makes its way onto bicycle componentry: 2014 Bluetooth seat posts anyone?

How bikes were made in the 1950s – I feel a little out dated having just purchased a steel bike…

Doesn’t have a white background, and isn’t a mountain bike but with ENVE carbon wheels, Di2 transmission and weighing sub 8 kilograms, I reckon it’s worth including. Oh, did I mention it’s made of steel?

See more at English Cycles.

The Shaver is the newest addition to the Foes line up, and is geared towards All Mountain riders. Pictures available online show the incredible detail Mr Foes puts into these frames: the welding is top notch and the CNC work is suburb. The biggest turn off for me is the weight of the frame, all 3.3kg of it (including shock). The added weight is to increase strength apparently – which begs the question: is a frame like the Shaver still relevant?

Some would say added weight helps add stability, but Aaron Gwin and Greg Minnaar seem to have no problem flying downhill on their low weight rides. I am just thinking, materials have come along way, with many manufacturers confident in using materials like carbon fibre in the most demanding races (Trek, GT and Yeti all use carbon for their downhill  bikes). Sure, more material = stronger,  but companies like Easton for years have been bringing out lighter AND stronger components (their new handlebar is one example). I guess my point is that material engineering has come such a long way, understanding and designs are better, it just seems backward thinking to substitute more material in place of research and design.