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What about chainstay girth? Too far?

Forbidden went full gas on the crab link

there's a huge myth to the influencer/content creation story that always seems to be ignored. the myth is that "you too can have it all" because all you need is a selfie stick, gopro and social media. "there are no 'gate keepers' any longer like back in the olden days" is a line i often hear. i'd wager passing through the gates (held by billion-dollar companies that control the algorithm) to success is infinitely more difficult now than it ever was in 1987, 1996, 2003 or 2011. it's no different than an actor from a small midwest town going to...

I thought you were right so I built one! dropperchecker.com Doesn't solve the missing frame insertion info. But still makes it a bit easier to make a call.

Nice eye. I looked right at it and missed it... the hot patch graphics are different than the current radials.

I've never been able to resuscitate pads contaminated by mineral oil. If that stuff gets down into the pad compound, it's there to stay. No combination of iso, brake cleaner, fire, and sanding has been able to save them when I've tried. With DOT or general trail/road gunk, a couple rounds of iso & sanding usually works. If the contamination caused the pad to get particularly deeply glazed, then I've good success with doing a quick pass on the rotor with a Dremel tool to really roughen up the surface and help reset the pad.

went to check in w/ Chris Canfield at Vampire last week. super interesting stuff. showed his steel and new titanium bike and discussed it all. detail pics here https://www.vitalmtb.com/features/vampire-bikes-basement-chris-canfield

Yes both Sram & Shimano higher tier chains last significantly longer. In terms of durability, using XO1/XX1 or XTR chain are more cost effective than running lower tier chain. Zero Friction Cycling tested XX1/XO1 and GX and found the XO1 to be the most cost effective: https://zerofrictioncycling.com.au/chaintesting/ The same is usually true also for Sram Cassette between GX and XO1 because of the better coating on the XO1 cassette versus GX. But Shimano cassette in terms of durability vs cost favor the SLX for 12 speed group since it has only the largest gear in alu while XT have the...

Mainly Hardline talk but a good conspiracy from Sven at 25:00

for anyone that didn't get to read it in time, it basically says this Candian bike shop, Dunbar, is providing financial support to get the Forbidden team to the World Cups, after the Forbidden CEO reached out to them and said they were struggling. So the team is basically the same as Forbidden Synthesis, same sponsors and everything, but Dunbar is helping them to afford their spot at the World Cups, like travel and race entries; funding their season.

Vampire is not really a "fad" bike in the sense you're making it to be. Chris has a patent on multiple pivot locations and you get 3 bikes in one - classic low pivot, medium height and proper high pivot.

Chris Canfield starting to roll out new frames to customers