Ouch profile

The Tallcan are great for their antifog, but the lenses scratch so easily!!! I was so careful cleaning the lenses and after 6 rides, they're scratched to the point of poor optics now.

Ryder states this is normal? I'll never buy anything thing from them again!

I tried the Mudhuggers front and back, the front didn't keep much more mud off compared to small ones most people use and the rear portion of the front fender would catch the treads on harder hits. The rear fender I just couldn't get used to......it looks dorky and I constantly had to check that it wasn't wearing through the frame protection were it attached to the seat stay. Piece of inner tube worked the best.

I see the RRP is flanged up on the rear portion on the front fender, that looks like a better design, wouldn't get caught in the treads and catch the spray better. What RRP rear fender like? Is it effective for spray?

I installed the Debonair C1 "upgrade" sealhead/footnut on my 2020 Lyrik Ultimate, it now supportive in the initial stroke. NSMB did a review on it recently, and was a factor in me getting one. Totally happy with my Lyrik now!

Here's the link to the article- https://nsmb.com/articles/riding-and-installing-new-rockshox-debonair-spring/

I have the Sight A1 XL, which comes with a 200mm dropper. I'm 6'2" and 5mm is exposed from being slammed. Also the post is 34.9mm diameter, so it feels very solid.

https://nsmb.com/tag/ingrid-doerr/

Posted by: TristanC

I have never changed bars because of a concern about failure, but I am a chronic bar swapper, trying to find a perfect fit.

I'm also a mechanical engineer, and do a lot of work with aluminum fatigue. I can't guess about how aluminum handlebars are engineered, but aluminum does not have a fatigue limit, so it will eventually fail under very low cyclic loads (e.g. normal riding). That said - I would guess anyone designing bars is running FEA on them and has a life criteria (number of stress cycles to failure). Any reputable bars are also going to pass ISO 4210-5, which is the ISO spec for "bicycle steering equipment." Part of that standard is a fatigue life test on a bar, which is usually to 10 million stress cycles (unloaded -> loaded -> unloaded under the force generated by a "severe user").

Short story: yes, aluminum bars will eventually fail, but it will probably take a long time unless you are riding pro-level DH all day every day. If you want to be safe, replace them once a decade; 3 years seems very short given that there are a lot of older bars out there and they do not fail if you look at them wrong. If you damage the bar in a crash (visible gouges, which are stress risers and will decrease the fatigue life in that spot) or get hit by a car (forces much much higher than the bar is designed for) then I would replace them.

Thanks for the explanation! 

I thought 3 years seemed way too short, thus the question.

How often do you guys change your aluminum handlebars? Came across a couple of websites stating every few years, which means about every 3 years with my understanding. What criteria dictates you changing out your bars before failure?

Gone.

I've never tried the DHR2 combo, so can't comment on that. 

I had the same experience on the DHF, on the conditions you described, had my front tire slide out on me 2-3 times.

My current setup is Assegai Maxx grip exo+/DHR2 Maxx Terra exo+. I've decided maximum grip is the most important factor for me. I can't ride if I crash and I'm licking my wounds for weeks/month!

I used ride with a guy that always brought his dog, it was pretty well trained, but it would come into my peripheral vision and made it difficult to concentrate on the trail, and the odd time would dash in front of me out of nowhere. I’m not a fan of riding with dogs. Not to mention the dog shit on my tire the last time riding.

We have a family dog, there’s no way I’d take her riding. I’d feel horrible if she caused an injury to a rider or she got hit by a rider. No way I could face my 13 year old daughter if she got harmed. Not only that, I’m sure I’d be liable if I caused an injury to another rider. I have no insurance for something like that, financially it could be catastrophic!

Posted by: Kenny

I know this has come up, maybe I am just old and can't work it out, but from what I can tell the new "enhanced by google " forum search is pretty terrible. I can't tell if posts are 10 years old or 10days old. AKA,  useless.

Anyways rant off. 

I have some turbine R wheels. Hubs are awesome. Keep breaking spokes which then requires trailside surgery re-tensioning the remaining spokes to get the wheels to run straight enough to not gouge my frame. 

It's happened a few times now and I'm pretty tired of it. I'm ranting again. 

I'm thinking I should buy a WR1 union and get it laced my existing straight pull vault hub. 

I've built wheels before with aluminum dt rims i did not care much about, but I'm a little nervous to DIY a fancier rim, although I guess the process would be more forgiving..

Thoughts? I assume it'd be best to show up with a hub and rim and let the builder supply spokes and nipples. 

Thanks guys!

There’s a guy that builds wheels around Seymour Parkway and Berkley area. I’ve had a couple wheel builds from him, plus a couple of my friends have gotten wheels from him. Happy with the build,I’ve had mine for a couple’s season, still going strong. Way cheaper than the local bike shops. PM me if you’re interested and I’ll pass his contact info.

Posted by: [email protected]

Andrew's waterproof-vest-over-hoodie and Vik's softshell would be way to warm for me.

My riding kit doesn't vary much throughout the year, always shorts, always the same socks and shoes and summer gloves, I just vary short or long sleeves for my base layer and jersey and add a light windbreaker.

I rarely ride in very cold (below zero) temps or heavy downpours, in those cases I improvise with extra layers and/or a waterproof jacket. It's simply not worth it for me to invest in expensive gear for those circumstances as I wouldn't use it enough and in case of waterproof clothing, I'd sweat so much I'd still get soaked. The expensive goretex shells I have are nice but I'd probably never buy them at retail price, we got them for free or heavily discounted when my partner worked for the brand. As a human furnace my experience is that I simply overwhelm goretex membranes, making them more or less as effective as the 30 euros Decathlon rain jacket I used in my twenties.

One thing I'll add is as I improved my fitness, especially my core and legs strength, I started sweating less on climbs. Something to think about.

Primarily just my head sweats, which I inherited from my dad....... Thanks Dad!!!! Very little sweating from my torso when in a Tshirt or thin long sleeve for cooler temps. The rain jacket just doesn't breath, thus the condensation.

I'd definitely be a sweaty mess riding in a hoodie!

Posted by: craw

Posted by: rnayel

waterproof (resistant) vests:

https://www.cascadewear.com/Vest-NOPI-Gore-Tex

https://www.hellyhansen.com/en_ca/crew-vest-30270?color=291445

https://www.stormlinegear.com/product/stormtex-985g-waterproof-farming-vest/

https://www.pactimo.com/products/torrent-stretch-waterproof-cycling-vest-mens

That Helly Hansen one looks like a winner! The great thing about riding vests is that if they're a little short in the body it really doesn't matter :)

The rain jacket I have is Helly Hansen, according to their breathability scale my rain jacket is better than the vest! Obviously it would be cooler being a vest, I'm if it would be better though?

I have a wool allergy (even merino), so that's not an option. Even at 0°C, within 10-15 minutes of climbing in a thin Tshirt I'm sweating. The current jacket I have is very light weight, breathability is supposed be good (with pit zips). I don't NEED any warmth, just something to keep me dryer. Maybe with my furnace body, there's nothing out there? Guess I could experiment with a vest.

I sweat climbing when it's 2°C out. I have a rain jacket for when its lightly raining out, but there's so much moisture inside the jacket after the climb. I would love to be like my riding buddies that wear whatever and don't sweat, hell they even complain about being cold sometimes! What do you sweaters wear?