Mountain Biking

mrk

mrk

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I learned this week that SRAM have the GX AXS ready so looks like I now have an itch to upgrade my mech and shifter from the NX which has so far been absolutely superb but I just love gadgets and the prospect of yet losing another physical cable running through my frame is quite nice lol.


 
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Associate
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Regarding opinions on MTB clothing from a few posts back, I don't go for padded shorts as find them too restricting, I use a padded seat cover instead and just baggy shorts with some stretch that have zip pockets. Padded shorts feel a bit weird off bike too.

I also don't like that cycle tops often have rubber hems, get too hot and uncomfortable for me, I actually use mesh style base layers for hiking or jogging instead. Just my personal preference, I always prefer light and fairly roomy when riding.
 
Caporegime
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I learned this week that SRAM have the GX AXS ready so looks like I now have an itch to upgrade my mech and shifter from the NX which has so far been absolutely superb but I just love gadgets and the prospect of yet losing another physical cable running through my frame is quite nice lol.



Lot of money to poddle around town, no?

As much as I'd love wireless, I'll wait for shimano to have a stab. Plus the amount of mechs I've written off, I'm not sure I can handle replacing a £300 mech! Ha
 
Soldato
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I learned this week that SRAM have the GX AXS ready so looks like I now have an itch to upgrade my mech and shifter from the NX which has so far been absolutely superb but I just love gadgets and the prospect of yet losing another physical cable running through my frame is quite nice lol.


Give me a shout if you're selling
 
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So ride out today with the new drivetrain, while the gearing range was nice on the uphills, the main difference is just the quality of the shifts with the Shimano XT bits. So smooth and fast, and being able to ping down 4 gears or up 2 in one movement is a game changer.

Felt like I was hitting the trails with more speed today so, got both wheels off the ground on some kickers for the first time which felt very cool. Also getting way more confidence to hit the drops faster.
 
Soldato
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10,646
I learned this week that SRAM have the GX AXS ready so looks like I now have an itch to upgrade my mech and shifter from the NX which has so far been absolutely superb but I just love gadgets and the prospect of yet losing another physical cable running through my frame is quite nice lol.



£550 seems steep for what benefit you'll get after the first few rides of oh this is cool.

I'd argue a better fork or brakes would be a better upgrade.
 

mrk

mrk

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Lot of money to poddle around town, no?

As much as I'd love wireless, I'll wait for shimano to have a stab. Plus the amount of mechs I've written off, I'm not sure I can handle replacing a £300 mech! Ha

Not just town to be fair, over here we have two valleys with dense amount of trails, ups and downs so does get a lot of ride time around there as of recent times since being discovered. More being discovered as we ride further out toward the outskirts too through various farmland etc.

The AXS isn't something I intend to get right away, maybe later in the year for sure and I'll be making use of Rogate bike park in the summer too so that will be a full test of the NX I have now.

Shimano seem to have been very quiet in the wireless mech front and SRAM are a couple of generations down in terms of maturity and the trickle down effect is seen in the GX. I do wonder if they will release an SX or NX AXS as well at the £350 range for an upgrade kit. Probably a year or two until they emerge.


Give me a shout if you're selling

For the NX? As above it won't be any time soon but I def will upgrade at some point. I need to change forks first and today have found out my frame will take tapered head tube forks but comes with straight so am looking at options and maybe ordering something tonight if there is stock.


£550 seems steep for what benefit you'll get after the first few rides of oh this is cool.

I'd argue a better fork or brakes would be a better upgrade.

I think the price is excellent for what you are getting, it's still high yeah for sure but you are getting near 1:1 performance and robustness without paying the £1000+ the XX1 and X01 kit comes in at, plus getting the battery cage which is a £15-£20 option with the others.

Fork is definitely what I need to upgrade first. Last weekend's ride through terrain that was 100% all dried mud with fork smashing dips all over showed me that the Suntour XCM just isn't up to the task. I have found Rockshox Judy Gold for £199 so unless I can find a better option somewhere else looks like I will be ordering that shortly. I rode my mate's Norco with the 2018 version of the same fork today and noted just how lightweight his front end was and how smooth the fork travel and rebound was so I def know this is the fork for me. He had the exact same Suntour before upgrading his forks too.

Very happy with these Tektro brakes though. Have no problem with their stopping power on the Nukeproof pads, plenty of bite and feedback going downhill. Unless they fail then I am unlikely to change brakes anytime soon.
 
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Soldato
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Fork will give the best upgrade for sure. Nice air spring keeping it a bit lighter.

You may need a front wheel if the forks are only available in 15mm axle and you're on QR.

Brakes do feel better with a more dialled in 2 finger lever, Tektro will be powerful but very wooden felling. Tested a bike today with 4 pot Magura brakes and it was ridiculous how powerful they were with 1 finger.
 

mrk

mrk

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Oh the one I ordered is linked, there are both thru axle and QR versions of this fork with both tapered and straight steerer tube options. My frame will take both straight and tapered but I opted for the straight as it's in stock!

Interesting you mention Magura as my mate I mentioned above just yesterday upgraded his leaking Tektro (same as mine) to the Magura 4 pots for £90 per wheel and yes indeed it stops bang on but I did note the lever travel before the bite hit was quite long whereas mine the bite starts sooner. For £90 each it's a good price for what look to be great brakes both visually and for stopping power. For my weight though for the time being I will run the Tektros into the ground and then look at options :D
 
Soldato
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Perfect! Nice wee upgrade.

Brakes is quite personal, I'm not into softer levers with loads of modulation.

I'm a bit of a Shimano fanboy so SLX/XT would be my choice.
 
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I think the Tektro brakes on mine are about the weakest link now, really feel like I could use some more power on downhill trails sometimes, especially with getting more confidence now and thus, faster. Been browsing Shimano and Magura offerings, stock would be a nice thing! :p
 
Soldato
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I learned this week that SRAM have the GX AXS ready so looks like I now have an itch to upgrade my mech and shifter from the NX which has so far been absolutely superb but I just love gadgets and the prospect of yet losing another physical cable running through my frame is quite nice lol.



Really no offence intended but that would be wasted on your bike. The upgrade cost would be practically what paid for your bike which makes no sense imo. Definately look at forks and brakes first as mentioned above.

Magura get my vote. I swapped out my Saint brakes for Magura MT7's last autumn and haven't looked back. Lighter, as much if not more powerful and fantastic modulation. Reason I swapped them is I didn't like the on/off feeling of shimano brakes. It's not what you want on tech dh sections. Good for skids in the car park though....:rolleyes:
 
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mrk

mrk

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I understand hence the forks that have been ordered. In regards to the price of the AXS, I found the GX AXS upgrade kit for £445 so cheaper than the £550 I paid for the bike in stock form although the frame is barely any different to the higher end Bobcat Trails just the stuff attached is heavier & cheaper hence my intention all along to slowly upgrade the stuff I end up not liking as I ride and explore more :cool:

I will not be upgrading the whole bike to something higher end off the shelf though as I like this frame and colour theme so will just slowly upgrade the stuff that no longer does what I need until the frame is no longer compatible lol.
 
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Caporegime
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Fork will give the best upgrade for sure. Nice air spring keeping it a bit lighter.

You may need a front wheel if the forks are only available in 15mm axle and you're on QR.

Brakes do feel better with a more dialled in 2 finger lever, Tektro will be powerful but very wooden felling. Tested a bike today with 4 pot Magura brakes and it was ridiculous how powerful they were with 1 finger.


If my 4 pot Deores (unreal brakes too) ever fail, I'll be going Shigura.

Also personally, upgrading bikes is like upgrading a car. Just buy the right one in the first place, IMO. Totally different if your parking it every weekend and breaking stuff, but the amount of mechs I see exploded - it just isn't worth it. I mean I do exclusively ride gnarly stuff at the moment to be fair so I mean my mind might change if it was really that nice of a shift and I was doing purely xc. It can get very expensive, very quickly!

Lot of improvements to come from wireless shifting, though I would love it on my gravel bike. MTB, it's not quite there yet.
 

mrk

mrk

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Sadly at the time I bought the bike I had a set budget and also the colour and theme of the bike was only in stock on this particular bike, this was the only example in stock in the UK as well lol. I knew I'd be upgrading certain things though so as long as the frame was good then I'd be fine.The other bikes I liked the look of were on the £1500 range so that was way out of my budget. I've slowly got close to that figure now though with the upgrades so pretty much have ended with the colour I like with the bits I'd have had on the more expensive bike back then I suppose.

All's good in the end!
 
Soldato
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Have just done 25km. As far along the canal as I could get, all the way to the Harecastle Tunnel and then a few miles of up hill roads carrying a heavy rucksack full of clothes for my old man who has just been transferred to a nursing home up there. Coming back was way easier, despite getting attacked by the honking menace. Just glad the weather was so good.

And look, I believe I got a bit of dirt on the tyres and some spatter on the frame. :D

EKKPysyh.jpg
 
Soldato
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If anyone's interested here's a video of me hitting the deck at the local bike park. Reopened today for the first time since lockdown. Hopefully won't be too long before uplift parks can open again.

 
Associate
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ridden that trail a few times doing the pmba enduros at havok and lee quarry.

reguarding the gx axs mentioned above i was planning on getting it as my drivetrain needs replacing but my coilshock isn't looking healthy after todays ride, leaking oil through the actual casing. the axs cash is now going to have to go towards an EXT shock i think as they are meant to be a big improvement over the DHX2.
 
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