A few beginner questions

[wanghoeby]

Sometime over winter I plan on upgrading my 5 year old "off road" bike, as they called it back then, for something more suitable to true off road riding.
I plan on spending 500 to 800 bucks on a new assembled machine from Specialized or some other big brand. Any feelings as to which brand is best. I've got a trek right now and it does ok, I guess.

As of right now I'm thinking hardtail. What do most people ride? I'd rather get better components for a hard tail than have crappy shocks and gears with my ass feeling a little better.

Is there a big difference performance wise between mechanical and hydrolic disk brakes?

Oh, and whats the deal with these logs that are too tall to ride over? Am I supposed to go slow into it and then use my gear as a 3rd wheel?

[wintermittent]

1.) You're in Wisconsin. Be yourself a Good Olde Hometowne Boy and get another Trek or a Gary Fisher.
2.) Hardtails are swell. 2a.) Steel is real. 2b.) 29ers are finer.
3.) Yes. That being said, a good pair of mechanicals, like Avids, are just ducky.
4.) Wheelie up the front tire, then lunge up the back tire. No chainring bite necessary, biatch!

[Arty50]

Oh, and whats the deal with these logs that are too tall to ride over? Am I supposed to go slow into it and then use my gear as a 3rd wheel?

The best way is to pop your front tire up on it and over and then shift your weight and pop the rear up and over (edit: what wintermittent said). Weight transfers are so important to technical riding. Try and keep that big ring off of it as much as you can. Sometimes you just can't avoid this though; so you'll have to use it just like you said, as a 3rd wheel. As for speed, it depends on the log. Too slow and you'll get stuck easier, too fast and you have to be super precise. Like I said, each log is different though.

And then there's the case where you have a nice entrance ramp, which translates into...forget the exit ramp...HUCK THAT SHIT!!!!

Speaking of gears, I went to a 38 big ring on my triple this year. I'll never race XC, so I have no need for that huge ring. I have way more clearance than with my old 44; which means I'm cleaning more obstacles and doing a lot less damage to my big ring. I highly recommend going this route or ditching the big ring altogether and getting a bash guard.

[wanghoeby]

2a.) Steel is real. 2b.) 29ers are finer.

Explain.

Yeah, I try the whole wheelie thing, but the result is just my gear teeth gripping into the wood like crampons into ice. Ultimatly shoving my nuts up my ass with dramatic force.

BTW: Arty, that sounds like a super idea. Maybe after I get a car here at campus and don't have to bike everywhere I'll give that a try.

[Plakespear]

2.) Hardtails are swell. 2a.) Steel is real. 2b.) 29ers are finer.

You probably ride a singlespeed, as well

[phUnk]

You'll get a lot more bike if you buy used.

[Cornholio]

You probably ride a singlespeed, as well

Heh.

He's got more bikes than anyone I know, and I know a lot of people with a lot of bikes.

[wintermittent]

Explain.

2a.) Steel hardtails ride great and love you long time. Find a nice used frame for cheap!
2b.) A 29er (look at Gary Fishers), with its road bike-sized wheels, is a steamroller and plenty capable of technical XC riding. It would make a fine campus commuter, too.

You probably ride a singlespeed, as well

Singlespeeders get off more.

He's got more bikes than anyone I know, and I know a lot of people with a lot of bikes.

Pot to kettle: You've got just as many bike racks on your wall as I do.

[Cornholio]

Pot to kettle: You've got just as many bike racks on your wall as I do.

I have two people in my apartment!!

And I have nothing to add to this discussion, except that sometime in the next few months I'll also be looking at building up a hardtail. It'll be steel, but I'm not sold on the 29er wheels, although there's a lot of people here riding them.

[wanghoeby]

Isn't steel cheaper than aluminum? What is so great about steel, don't you want less weight?

[bagtagley]

Isn't steel cheaper than aluminum? What is so great about steel, don't you want less weight?

Aluminum is stiff, steel has some give = plusher ride.

Also, steel is stronger and bends, whereas Aluminum is less strong and is more brittle, so it's more likely to crack/break. This leads to the need for gussets and reinforcement making an already stiff frame even stiffer, and making the weight of a good alu. hardtail freeride frame pretty similar to a steel one.

I may be wrong, but I'm pretty sure that really good quality, lightweight steel tubing (e.g. Reynolds 853) is more expensive than most aluminum.

[wanghoeby]

A few more questions.

Tire pressure? People set theirs high, low, medium?

Sort of found a delima in my physiology. I can barely touch the ground with my toes, yet my knees are bent at the bottom of the pedal cycle. This is most likely a result of my size 8.5 feet with my 6' 2" height. Any suggestions.

My front brake seems to have developed a nice loud cheap bike screech each time I apply the brakes. Is there any way to get rid of this?

Oh, and I think I might be just replacing my front shocks and a few other small components because of my recent camera purchase. So, if you got any ideas for some mid-grade shocks let me know.

[funkendrenchman]

A few more questions.

Tire pressure? People set theirs high, low, medium?

Depends on tire, terrain, and wheel. More pressure equals a harsher, faster ride, with less traction, but it also means less chance of pinch flatting.

As for the brakes, what kind are they? You may need to clean the pads, rim, or disc depending on your set up.

And a front shock is called a fork.

[wanghoeby]

And a front shock is called a fork.

Yeah, I supposed they don't make any off road forks without suspension anymore.

[Greydon Clark]

Speaking of gears, I went to a 38 big ring on my triple this year. I'll never race XC, so I have no need for that huge ring. I have way more clearance than with my old 44; which means I'm cleaning more obstacles and doing a lot less damage to my big ring. I highly recommend going this route or ditching the big ring altogether and getting a bash guard.

This is a good idea, if you live in South Lake and Mr. Toads is your backyard (straight-up, straight-down), but if you ride on the coast, the foothills, or WISCONSIN! You want a big big ring. How else are you ever going to get any speed in the flats?

A few more questions.

Tire pressure? People set theirs high, low, medium?

Medium to high. Also, my riding is very cross-country oriented and I ride a steel hard tail.

Sort of found a delima in my physiology. I can barely touch the ground with my toes, yet my knees are bent at the bottom of the pedal cycle. This is most likely a result of my size 8.5 feet with my 6' 2" height. Any suggestions.

Raise your seat.

Oh, and I think I might be just replacing my front shocks and a few other small components because of my recent camera purchase. So, if you got any ideas for some mid-grade shocks let me know.

I assume your current bike is rigid, but you can find 80mm shocks for cheap (relatively). For example, the Marzocchi MX has 85mm of travel and sells for $279.00, retail. However, you are going to end up spend a lot more money on this plan. I got an older steel bike with XT and XTR components for $350, used.

Good luck. Bikes are more addicting than crack and only slightly less fun than skis.

[biggins]

Oh, and I think I might be just replacing my front shocks and a few other small components because of my recent camera purchase. So, if you got any ideas for some mid-grade shocks let me know.

Go to shops and see if they have any old stock forks that people upgraded from. A few years back my X broke her cheapo suntour fork and was able to get a Judy TT that came off a stock Trek or something for $35. The shop had a crate of such forks that they were willing to part with for next-to-nothing.

[wanghoeby]

Raise your seat.

I tried that, I just fall over when things get sticky. But I guess that might be the parodox. I've gotten a little better lately, I give it a try again, and see what happens.

[yentna]

Practice makes perfect.

Here is a pretty funny picture of my mom (she'll never see this thread, grin) her first time on a mtn bike in 20 years. She kept tipping over into the brush (in this pic she was stuck like a turtle) since my bike was a little tall for her and the narrowness of the trail kept spooking her.....maybe you look like a turtle too? By the end of the ride she was doing pretty good though...



My mom rocks.