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ex-ballz Added a reply to Modern Geo Talk: Chainstays, Stack, Reach, and Bitching About It
5/27/2026 7:27am IMO this just shows that today's bike reviews are quite pointless, reviewers are splitting hair over things that are more impacted by their riding style and terrain and that can be completely irrelevant for the buyers.
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TEAMROBOT Liked a reply to forum topic 2026 MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation - Longer and Slacker
5/26/2026 6:13pm
It's good to be prepared for situations like these.
This forum topic has 5793 replies.
veg wizard Liked a reply to forum topic 2026 MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation - Longer and Slacker
5/26/2026 6:13pm
Have not noticed any significant drag on my OneUp hubs but keeping that in the back pocket as an excuse the next time I'm last up the climb on a group ride.
This forum topic has 5793 replies.
ex-ballz Added a comment about bike check DH-gnaR 180
5/26/2026 10:41am
Awesome, DHRs are the best DHRs! I am still loving (and riding) mine (poorly.)
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This bike check has 10 comments.
Primoz Liked a reply to forum topic What frame brands are nicest to bearings? Should bearings and service be a consideration when buying a bike?
5/26/2026 9:16am
Are you prying at the seal on the inner or outer ring contact point? When it comes to mine (and my wife's) bike, I am trying to protect the main bearings like this:
This forum topic has 36 replies.
Goupil Liked a reply to forum topic Are downhill bikes worth it if you're not racing?
5/24/2026 3:24pm
If it makes you feel any better, I'm considering building one because I got a really really good deal on a Dorado. I live 7h from the closest lift assisted park, and ride park like once or twice a year...
This forum topic has 44 replies.
Eae903 Liked a reply to forum topic 2026 MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation - Longer and Slacker
5/22/2026 5:02pm
I want to preface this by saying I'm not trying to pick a fight or anything, but it seems to me that people complaining that the bike wasn't made for them is partially what lead to the V6 Tallboy the way it is. It's become part of the homogenous mass of Horst link bikes. I remember times when people complained about a new bike coming out and it not being Horst link, like the g3 Kona Process. Or it's like every time a bike comes out and people complain that the chainstays aren't long enough, or the stack isn't high...
This forum topic has 5793 replies.
Poleczechy Liked a reply to forum topic 2026 MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation - Longer and Slacker
5/22/2026 5:00pm
I can confirm the REEB SST works quite well with a coil. Did 40+ miles and 9500ft descending last weekend. It would benefit from 440+ stays but overall it rips!
This forum topic has 5793 replies.
brunch123 Liked a reply to forum topic 2026 MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation - Longer and Slacker
5/22/2026 5:00pm
Short travel coil king is probably Banshee Prime, 135 out back up to 160 up front, somewhere between 25-30% progression and goated geo. On one side it is like the dumbest bike ever because it doesn't work with air shock at all (even tho it comes specced with one), which means you have to slap coil on it, and once you have coil you wanna go fast but you have 130mm of travel so you have to put on some DH tires.... and you end up with 16 kg+ trail bike which is not ideal because you basically end up...
This forum topic has 5793 replies.
ex-ballz Added a reply to Mountain Bike Consumer - New Product Vitriol
5/22/2026 12:34pm I just had to do it on a new set of Code Silver Stealths.
pinkrobe Liked a reply to forum topic 2026 MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation - Longer and Slacker
5/22/2026 10:17am
Uh, that's most bike buyers. The number of people that I've sold bikes to who don't care/know what the knobs do is... the majority. We do our best to educate, but I could see their eyes glaze over in the first 10 seconds. The number of customers who care about how suspension works is less than 5% in my experience.
This forum topic has 5793 replies.
Eae903 Liked a reply to forum topic 2026 MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation - Longer and Slacker
5/22/2026 7:10am
And that's the concern, not that the new Tallboy isn't a "good bike" it's probably pretty good for the average rider, but that SC is losing focus on what made them good. It's that cost savings comes before design and brand identity. I can see why Rob Roskopp left the brand.
This forum topic has 5793 replies.
ex-ballz Added a reply to DT Swiss DEG DF
5/22/2026 7:06am There's no 0 deg deadband setting in Sidekick, which I am starting to regret. The pawls retract when coasting and require the full deadband travel to re-engage so the 9 deg setting results in 9 deg + whatever the engagement of the pawls is of float.
ex-ballz Added a reply to 2026 MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation - Longer and Slacker
5/22/2026 6:54am Yeah, but they are quite similar - frame geos are within a few mms, same shock sizes, overall layout / shape looks the same, yada yada. I would not be surprised if SC staff was told - "we need a new bike with as little engineering costs as possible - why don't we reuse the designs of the late GT...
CascadeComponents Liked a reply to forum topic 2026 MTB Tech Rumors and Innovation - Longer and Slacker
5/21/2026 3:45pm
25% has been the middle ground for a while I feel like. The Tallboy and recent Specialized stuff are the big ones that come to mind that are this low. I was actually thinking it would be amusing to make a Genie retrofit kit for the Tallboy. But yeah I think some of it is targeted demographic. The downfall of more progression kind of depends on what you normalize for in the comparison. If you normalize for sag, full travel is harder to access. That may be a benefit for some, but if a rider is on the cusp of...
This forum topic has 5793 replies.
ex-ballz Added a reply to The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
5/21/2026 10:42am It's like comparison of digital cameras. Lens quality? Sensor size and DR? Shutter implementation? Who cares, it has 600Mpix!
Eoin Liked a reply to forum topic Helmet choice for DH - old vs new
5/21/2026 8:45am
You must know this already as you own the proframe, but my 2c. I have a proframe for racing and a dropframe for every other usage. I litterally don't consider the proframe to be safer than the dropframe, the only scenario I think it would provide additional protection is a small face-perfectly-centered impact, I can't see that chin bar resisting any kind of serious impact. So to me the proframe is a safe trail helmet, but not a real DH/ bike park helmet. That said, I don't own a real DH helmet anymore, so when I do go to bikeparks...
This forum topic has 11 replies.
ex-ballz Added a reply to DT Swiss DEG DF
5/21/2026 8:01am Thank you. I have STFU on V5 Bronson and it works very well for me, but I also have 11sp SRAM drive train on my bikes which makes its setup easier. I have a feeling that any freehub with a dead band and without some damping feature is just going to be clanging when the chain yanks on it hard...
AndehM Liked a reply to forum topic DT Swiss DEG DF
5/21/2026 7:53am
The chainstay protector on the Megatower (both v1 & 2) is not great. I replaced the stock one on my Nomad 6 with a Bronson 5 CS protector which has taller, softer fins and that helped a lot with the chainslap noise. I'm sure the STFU or VHS fin tape would work even better, particularly on the underside. I wasn't able to get an STFU loop device to work on the Nomad or Bronson without rubbing in some gears. On other little trick I found that helped a bit was putting a bit of mastic tape on the underside of...
This forum topic has 57 replies.
ex-ballz Added a reply to DT Swiss DEG DF
5/21/2026 4:47am I've been riding my Megatower with a Sidekick hub on our trails so far, no trips to bike parks yet. I started with the smallest dead band and I just don't think it's a great hub for technical trail riding, especially if you're used to instant engagement hub like Onyx. The bike is now also way louder on the downs...