Ask the experts

[Tailwind]

Ehh I thought this but I’ve found SLX wears out much faster than XT. Things like Pullies are cheaper and tend to wear out. I’d bet Deore is the same.

I would bet Deore is just heavier ??

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Where to go to in the winter that has sick riding that doesn't require shuttles/guides? Is there anywhere like this in MX I am unaware of? Are NZ/Aus the only places really like this?

[SchralphMacchio]

Define “sick” and what other trip attributes you are looking for? And what specific month? Lots of winter riding in CONUS that could possibly fit the bill. I’m not up to speed on MX but I know there is good riding in places.

[rideit]

I know you know the classic spots. I would poke around possibly in Coastal Southern California-ish. But yeah, you don't just go ride unsupported in MX /S.A.unless you know every motherfucker around.
Edit: Pisgah might serve this need?

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Does Tucson have enough to keep me entertained for 4 or 5 days? Riding doesn't have to the best ever, but awesome trails with some gravity are a plus. Good food, sunshine, etc etc.

Just did a week in Sedona and barely got to ride cause we were hanging with my mom doing tourist stuff which was fun, but I'm jonesing for a ride focused trip and after 10 days in MX last Feb we kinda want to make it a new tradition. Gotta get a break from the deepest part of winter up here.

[MegaStoke]

I’ve got a bike that I previously had professionally fitted and really liked the fit, but I just increased the fork travel by 10mm and now the fit feels a bit off.

For sure I’m going to lower the nose of the saddle and roll the bars forward, but what else should I do to get things back to where they should be? I’m thinking lower the stem by ~7mm and maybe nudge the seat forward because the STA is now slightly slacker?

[MegaStoke]

Where to go to in the winter that has sick riding that doesn't require shuttles/guides? Is there anywhere like this in MX I am unaware of? Are NZ/Aus the only places really like this?

I’ve got family in Arizona and visit almost every winter. There’s definitely some sick rocky technical riding down there, and it’s usually great weather most of the winter.

[rideit]

Tucson is pretty close to Phoenix, between the rides there and South Mountain, etc, you could get your fill in the sunshine easily.

[unitofstuff]

Turbine R is just a fox transfer with different paint. Verify with fox, but their rebuild kit should fit it.

Coincidentally, I have a friend who has a Transfer that’s struggling. I’ll let him be the guinea pig.

This is a VERY common problem when the weather turns colder, for some reason.

It seems like it was starting to struggle while it was still warm, only coming up halfway, etc. I don’t know the whole history of this particular dropper so it might just be chooched and ready for a rebuild. I picked up an SDG Tellis and loved it on its maiden voyage this morning, so I think the Turbine will get rebuilt when convenient and stashed in the parts bin.

[TCNROMPER]

Us shipping xt are $75 and deore are $40 on eBay. I don’t tend to blow up derailleurs often but if they shift the same it’s tempting to cheap out.

You can get an XT derailleur on amazon for $89.XX. Jenson will price match and you will get it shipped to your door typically in a couple days depending where you are. That's what I've done recently.

[Rossymcg]

Where to go to in the winter that has sick riding that doesn't require shuttles/guides? Is there anywhere like this in MX I am unaware of? Are NZ/Aus the only places really like this?

Innerleithen and the golfie. Will be wet but the riding is sick.

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[Andeh]

I’ve got a bike that I previously had professionally fitted and really liked the fit, but I just increased the fork travel by 10mm and now the fit feels a bit off.

For sure I’m going to lower the nose of the saddle and roll the bars forward, but what else should I do to get things back to where they should be? I’m thinking lower the stem by ~7mm and maybe nudge the seat forward because the STA is now slightly slacker?

Yeah, you're on the right track. 10mm increase on fork is typically 0.4 degrees slacker HT & ST, so changes to saddle angle and bar roll will be comparable. Your reach shortened slightly also (just a few mm) and came up, so dropping the stem a bit will help offset it.

[Roxtar]

Does Tucson have enough to keep me entertained for 4 or 5 days? Riding doesn't have to the best ever, but awesome trails with some gravity are a plus. Good food, sunshine, etc etc.

Just did a week in Sedona and barely got to ride cause we were hanging with my mom doing tourist stuff which was fun, but I'm jonesing for a ride focused trip and after 10 days in MX last Feb we kinda want to make it a new tradition. Gotta get a break from the deepest part of winter up here.

That's what I was going to recommend. I'm actually looking at a possible week in Tucson around Veteran's day.
There's a ton of Nate Hills rides that show some amazing stuff around Mt Lemon. La Milagrosa and Agua Caliente look like standouts.
There also looks like some bikeshop shuttles available to get you there.

[Roxtar]

Sheared off my xt 12 derailleur today. Are the cheap ones on eBay knockoffs?

No, just grey market.

[SchralphMacchio]

Mt Lemon

I asked WRG about month, partly because depending on if/how El Niño shakes out this winter then Mt Lemmon could get a lot of snow again. A buddy of mine rode AZT from the border to Superior in March 2022 and it was in the 70s and dry up there when he rode it; he said the ride down Oracle Ridge was totally money. But Feb 2023, that area got a ton of snow!

[Roxtar]

I asked WRG about month, partly because depending on if/how El Niño shakes out this winter then Mt Lemmon could get a lot of snow again. A buddy of mine rode AZT from the border to Superior in March 2022 and it was in the 70s and dry up there when he rode it; he said the ride down Oracle Ridge was totally money. But Feb 2023, that area got a ton of snow!

I'm assuming early November would be a safe bet.
Would that be an incorrect assumption?

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Ok good to know. If we went it would actually be in Feb during the gem show (I know I know stupid hippies etc etc).

[SchralphMacchio]

I'm assuming early November would be a safe bet.
Would that be an incorrect assumption?

Evdog and jono may be the expert mags for this area I think … I have family in Tucson. I think November is fine. Monsoon season is July-Sept and I bet November is money.

Ok good to know. If we went it would actually be in Feb during the gem show (I know I know stupid hippies etc etc).

My general recollection growing up in LA is that when we did get the cold and wet El Niño seasons, Jan and Feb is when those storms rolled through the San Bernardino range and straight through to Arizona. I don’t know if it shuts down anything other than the high elevation stuff in the Santa Catalina range though? I’d start by bugging evdog and jono!

[smmokan]

Tucson is pretty close to Phoenix, between the rides there and South Mountain, etc, you could get your fill in the sunshine easily.

Definitely add in a day at Hawes too... if you're looking for 4-5 days, I'd do a day at the following:

PHX: South Mountain, Hawes
Tucson: 50 Year, Lemmon Drop

Plenty of backcountry XC-style riding between the two cities, too. Oh, and definitely DO NOT ride the 50-year trails on a weekend.

[Duffman]

Fun with Chainlines:

My 2022 Ripley AF came with the SLX 7100 52mm chainline crankset. We just got my wife's 2023 Ripley AF and it now comes with the 7120 55mm chainline crankset, but the frame hasn't changed and is still a 52mm chainline. It was my understanding that running the wider 55mm 120 series cranks on a 52mm chainline would cause more wear and difficulty with the top 2 rear sprockets. What am I missing here? I assume Ibis just changed the spec to keep their cranksets consistent with the new V4s 55 chainline frames but that's just a guess

[g_man80]

I don’t think you’re missing anything. You summed it up nicely. Either crankset will work as long as the chainring clears the stay. My guess is that it’s simply a supply situation/simplicity as you mentioned.

I doubt you’ll notice a difference in wear. I think the most noticeable thing will be backpedaling in the 51-tooth gear as it may be more likely to drop off. The short’ish chainstay on the Ripley may exaggerate this. It really comes down to where the cassette the rider spends most of the their time.

[toast2266]

Fun with Chainlines:

My 2022 Ripley AF came with the SLX 7100 52mm chainline crankset. We just got my wife's 2023 Ripley AF and it now comes with the 7120 55mm chainline crankset, but the frame hasn't changed and is still a 52mm chainline. It was my understanding that running the wider 55mm 120 series cranks on a 52mm chainline would cause more wear and difficulty with the top 2 rear sprockets. What am I missing here? I assume Ibis just changed the spec to keep their cranksets consistent with the new V4s 55 chainline frames but that's just a guess

You could get a 6mm offset chainring, which should put you back on the 52mm chain line.

[Spencer123]

When I got my v2 ripmo (52 mm chainline) it had the 55 MM chainline crankset on it. Exactly what G-man said... No matter how well it was tuned it would drop off backpedaling in the two easiest gears. Otherwise it shifted and pedaled just fine.

I bought new cranks since I wanted to drop down in size, and having the normal boost cranks instead of the wide has made it a little nicer, but I am not sure I would have gone out and done it if I didn't also want a different size. I asked about this somewhere else in the thread, and the other option if it is bothering you that was reccommended was just to get a 6mm offset chainring to bring the chainline in.

Fun with Chainlines:

My 2022 Ripley AF came with the SLX 7100 52mm chainline crankset. We just got my wife's 2023 Ripley AF and it now comes with the 7120 55mm chainline crankset, but the frame hasn't changed and is still a 52mm chainline. It was my understanding that running the wider 55mm 120 series cranks on a 52mm chainline would cause more wear and difficulty with the top 2 rear sprockets. What am I missing here? I assume Ibis just changed the spec to keep their cranksets consistent with the new V4s 55 chainline frames but that's just a guess

[Duffman]

When I got my v2 ripmo (52 mm chainline) it had the 55 MM chainline crankset on it. Exactly what G-man said... No matter how well it was tuned it would drop off backpedaling in the two easiest gears. Otherwise it shifted and pedaled just fine.

I bought new cranks since I wanted to drop down in size, and having the normal boost cranks instead of the wide has made it a little nicer, but I am not sure I would have gone out and done it if I didn't also want a different size. I asked about this somewhere else in the thread, and the other option if it is bothering you that was reccommended was just to get a 6mm offset chainring to bring the chainline in.

Yeah, noticed the same here, it skates off the biggest two sprockets backpedaling. I had already swapped my stock 175mm 7100 crankset to a 7100 165mm set , so to avoid issues and for a better fit with Mrs Duffs new bike, I swapped my 165mm 7100 to her new bike and I'll suck it up for a bit with the 170mm length 55 chainline set and just be aware of the backpedaling issue ,which to be honest isn't something I'm gonna do all that much in the granny gear.

I'll likely swap to a 165mm again at some point bc even at a 33in inseam I did like the pedal clearance for our rooty and rocky trails.

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[grskier]

So, Specialized new DH bike, they finally took the cover off. A link BELOW the BB? I thought the new hotness was a High Pivot.. not a below the BB.

Interesting to see that finally come out after the motor cover being on so long.

eta:
Vital forum..

https://www.vitalmtb.com/forums/The-...10797?page=464