Wanted: Rigid Frame Suggestions

[4500_rider]

I did see that listing on ebay...really nice bike.... funds allowing i'm going to follow in some of his footsteps.

Looking at his spec though... I dont understand two of his choices - the 12-27 cassette & the X10SL chain - both of these are for road use!

If he wanted a low ratio casette why not go for the 11-28t casette from SRAM... true its for 8spds but.... do you really 9spd?

As for the chain... the X9SL is for xc use and is the exact same weight!

[jeffhop]

mmmm where do i start? i know the forks, have you thought about the look fournales vtt fork? lighter than the rc39 and probably cheaper but with only 80mm travel, or theres always the manitou r7 thats also lighter than the rc39 and cheaper. on the tyre front how about a panaracer razor xc2.1?  lighter than a speed king supersonic and probably as wide as ive always found continental tyres to come a little narrower than they are supposed to be (im using tioga red pheonix 1.8`s on my hardtail and dont have any comfort issues with them and havent punctured in 10 months use and they only weigh 364grammes) i can understand why some people use the 9 speed dura ace cassette instead of the 12-32 xtr one, its lighter, cheaper and if your bike weighs next to nothing then your not going to need a 32 tooth bail out cog plus you can also use a medium cage rear mech. have you thought about using sram esp 9sl gripshifts at only 160 grammes per which is lighter than the x-0 twisters that liam killeen uses.(ive got a pair to sell too) instead of shaving your discs why not try stans aluminium rotors theyre very light but im not sure about longevity or is this a race only build? lastly, if you get an slr saddle get the xp version as the extra padding is worth the 40 or so grammes it adds. good luck with the build and dont forget to post the pics when you get it finished!

[4500_rider]

Jeff... cheers for that and yes... this bike is a race build.

The manitou looks like a good option - comes with lockout, weight is slightly under the rc39 and its nearly half the price of the pace!  I did think about using the fournales but... it doesnt come with lockout.

SRAM...*sighs*....  if only they made an e-type mech!  Otherwise i'd have used them.... I know you can "blend" sram & shimano but i just dont like doing it... cant offer a valid reason... it just seems wrong...

[jeffhop]

if its a race build id definately go for the tiogas rather than a speedking, the tiogas are incredibly fast and lightweight and grippy do you really need comfort in a race?! im not sure how long the stans alloy rotors last but they are the lightest that are available i think! with these options you could save best part of 500grms

[jeffhop]

 SRAM...*sighs*....  if only they made an e-type mech!  Otherwise i'd have used them.... I know you can "blend" sram & shimano but i just dont like doing it... cant offer a valid reason... it just seems wrong...

nowt wrong with adding a bit to a decent sram build