rentedmule

I figured some of you DH bikers may be interested in this. I have an '04 Banshee Chaparral with an '02 Boxxer world cup and some pretty high end parts - XT, king, protaper, hugi, purple hayes...



anyway, i had it set up to last through the rocks in Newfoundland and it was a "rubenesque" 45+ lbs - no fun for something i basically use as a trail bike! I figured now that i'm riding some smoother trails here in Edmonton it was time for a serious diet...

I swapped 2.7/2.5" wire bead maxxis DH tires for 2.5" kevlar bead bontrager big earls with lighter tubes and my hussefelt cranks with a DH bottom bracket and metal bash guard and rings for an exo-bottom bracket shimano saint with alloy rings a plastic bash guard. cost about $320 canadian for tires and cranks.

final total - 39.5 lbs! losing that much rotating mass made a monsterous difference in the way the bike handles, it feels like a whole new rig! I had actually been thinking about selling it but now that she's lost some fluff I'm back in love (insert fat joke)!

Scofco

Gorgeous bike.
There is a Banshee for sale in the paper here, but $3500 is too much for my blood.

ALMOST biking season here, I can't wait.
Just bought a Yakima spare tire carrier for the 4runner yesterday

gregbreakseverything

I just moved to edmonton as well. As far as I can tell there isnt much for downhill, but im planning on rocking Rabbit Hill bike park alot this summer. We should go for a ride sometime.

I feel I need to show my ride off as well. Isnt exactly top of the line, but the amount I break derailers off, cheap is all I can afford.

neliconcept

could always put on a longer travel fork like a fox RLC vanilla and drop that huge dh fork you have on their now

rentedmule

That's a sweet cove - i'll post up some pics of G-spot when I get home tonight, same white and red paint job and everything! we should definately get in a ride sometime this summer. there isn't much DH but the river valley has a few fun trials

da_bigg_wigg

Hey RentedMule, what did you do with the old parts? As it so happens, I'm looking for cranks,,,

Edit: send me a message if you've got em and wanna sell them.

jrock

that bike is was not intended for to be used with that fork. I believe that's a 5" bike, so you should have a 5" fork on there. Maybe a bomber, or a Pike...one that allows you to lock it out for steep climbs. That bike should weigh closer to 35 lbs if set up correctly. that wil allow you to ride a wide varity of trails. I have a KONA coiler deluxe...5" bike. These are actually considered cross-country bikes now, since they climb so well with a fox dampening shock...my downhill bike is 8" in comparison-no climbing.

call the BIke Co. of lake forest, ca. A pro shop willing to help you out with proper set ups anytime.

Tell them Jrock sent you!

rentedmule

sorry dude, i used all my extra parts to build the girlfriend a bike. she hasn't ridden a bike in years but half the parts on her hardtail are DH worthy! jensonusa.com has saint cranks on for 55% off, sweet deal, that's where i got mine

rentedmule

the dually counterpart to your H/T (i stripped most of the parts off this one to build the banshee)

TFJ-4runner

Awesome bikes, so are you into the extreme mountain biking like they have in Moab?

da_bigg_wigg

Greg's bike is how we got things done in Prince George... There's nothing a hardtail with a sexy fork couldn't handle... Now that we're getting older, we're slowly moving onto squishy bikes...

rentedmule

I love my hardtail too but it still kicks the poo out of you on the rocky trails, even with a nice fork. i'm not really into the crazy stuff anymore myself, just on the harder side of trail riding. I'd probably go to a lighter bike with a bit less travel if i had the money for a good one but it's hard to go up the capability/toughness of a nice freeride bike once you get used to it..

da_bigg_wigg

It's true, once you go squish its hard to go back... Learning on a hardtail gives you so much more appreciation for whatever it is you are riding though... It's really easy to just hold onto a squisher and not worry about your line as opposed to a hardtail. You try that on a hardtail and at the very least you'll eat up a whole lot of speed, and the worst, well... no point in bringing it up. I'm sure you already know...

rentedmule

true that! i had a fully rigid single-speed for a few years and that will make you appreciate your dually! i made myself ride it on the trails i took my big bike on and it was rediculous! those guys you see in the really old north shore extreme videos had some crazy skills!