Bike Modification

Bigmush said:

Hi all,

I'm a bit of a newbie when it comes to this cycling malarkey so go
easy on me!

I have a Giant Escape M1 which is currently as purchased, i.e. with
road tyres, no suspension, no mudguards etc.

The bike will mainly be used for commuting, however, I do plan to go
off road at weekends (mainly trails, nothing too!)

I'm looking for suggestions on a couple of things, firstly can anyone
suggest some wheels/tyres/inner tubes that would be suitable for off-
roading, I'm a fairly big (read fat!) guy, should this make any
difference to your recommendations.

Secondly does anyone have any recommendations for mudguards, ideally
they will be easy to fix/remove and suitable for on and off road use

While I'm on a roll can anyone recommend a decent hand pump.

Any help gratefully received

1) Fit knobbly tyres. The wheels are fine for off road use. I'd go with
Tioga Factory XC as they're cheap and wide in 1.95 sizes. Shed mud well too.
Inner tubes shouldn't need changing - the only special 26" tubes in common
use are the heavy duty downhill ones, although lightweight ones do exist.
I've found Schwalbe tubes fine. If you want wider tyres, go for downhill
Tiogas or another make - I run rigid forks on my bike with 2.35" tyres.

2) Crud catcher are the mudguards to have for off road use, though they'll
be of little use on road compared to full length mudguards. The best road
mudguards are SKS chromoplastics, but they're not generally easily fitted
and removed.

3) Blackburn mountain air. Under a tenner and it works.

I'd not bother with suspension, it'll slow you down on the road and to be
honest, doesn't make a huge difference on a lot of UK off road riding, IMO,
particularly riding around the woods. I prefer a rigid bike with a bit of
excitement compared to the same bike with a pair of Marzocchis soaking up
the bumps and taking the fun out of it. OTOH I'd not do some riding without
suspension (bits of the dark peak for example) as you have to slow to a
snails pace with rigids in very rocky sections. See how you go on with a big
front tyre at fairly low pressure (30psi or so). If you really want
suspension, then Marzocchi have a name for being bombproof, as long as you
get the proper ones (not the ones with chrome stanchions).

If you want a second set of wheels to go with the other tyres to avoid
having to swap tyres every weekend, I'd go to Merlin Cycle's website and buy
a set of cheap wheels with Deore hubs and Mavic rims, probably something
like a 321 which is fairly wide.

Doki said the following on 31/03/2008 12:22:

Quoted message said:

I'd not bother with suspension, it'll slow you down on the road and to
be honest, doesn't make a huge difference on a lot of UK off road
riding, IMO, particularly riding around the woods. I prefer a rigid bike
with a bit of excitement compared to the same bike with a pair of
Marzocchis soaking up the bumps and taking the fun out of it.

Agreed. After all, we didn't have suspension 20 years ago and we got on
fine!

Quoted message said:

If you want a second set of wheels to go with the other tyres to avoid
having to swap tyres every weekend, I'd go to Merlin Cycle's website and
buy a set of cheap wheels with Deore hubs and Mavic rims, probably
something like a 321 which is fairly wide.

What you need to watch doing that is there doesn't seem to be a common
standard for the distance the disc sits from the end of the axle, so
swapping wheels may mean the brake caliper also needs to be adjusted
slightly each time.

--
Paul Boyd
http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/

In article <ad960738-a5ad-46f9-8966-3a376d98eb96
@i29g2000prf.googlegroups.com>, Bigmush
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

I'm looking for suggestions on a couple of things, firstly can anyone
suggest some wheels/tyres/inner tubes that would be suitable for off-
roading, I'm a fairly big (read fat!) guy, should this make any
difference to your recommendations.

The current wheels are probably fine, and the current tubes will
probably fit too (check for a width range marked on the tubes). I got a
Continental Vapor from Halfords a while ago when a knackered old tyre
suffered catastrophic failure, and it seems pretty good for a basic
tyre. There's a wider version called Gravity which will provide a bit
more cushioning/support for a heavier rider (I'm no lightweight, but I
don't ride hard off road) - you should check that there's sufficient
clearance if you want to run something that wide, and you may need wider
tubes too. Tyre pressure is a compromise between grip/comfort and
durability/efficiency - softer puts more tread on the ground and absorbs
more vibration, harder resists pinch flats and rim damage and can be a
bit easier to pedal.

Quoted message said:

Secondly does anyone have any recommendations for mudguards, ideally
they will be easy to fix/remove and suitable for on and off road use

Crud Catcher for off-road - keeps the worst off, doesn't get in the way
or break easily. I've never bothered with mudguards off-road because I
don't enjoy knackering my bike by getting it lagged in mud, so tend to
avoid it. Traditional full length mudguards for on-road, but generally
not quick to fit/remove.

Quoted message said:

While I'm on a roll can anyone recommend a decent hand pump.

No, but if you're going to be swapping tyres regularly (which is
generally quick and easy with ATB rims) a decent track pump will be
helpful.

Bigmush said:

Hi all,

I'm a bit of a newbie when it comes to this cycling malarkey so go
easy on me!

I have a Giant Escape M1 which is currently as purchased, i.e. with
road tyres, no suspension, no mudguards etc.

The bike will mainly be used for commuting, however, I do plan to go
off road at weekends (mainly trails, nothing too!)

I'm looking for suggestions on a couple of things, firstly can anyone
suggest some wheels/tyres/inner tubes that would be suitable for off-
roading, I'm a fairly big (read fat!) guy, should this make any
difference to your recommendations.

try it with the road tires first, you might be pleasently susprised as
to how adaptable it is. make sure the tires have enought air so they
don't "snake bite" ie rim bottom out, and cause two neat holes, the
snake bites.

if it is too jarring then you'll need to go wider tires. which will tend
to end up being big nobblies which tend to be fairly sluggish on road.

getting off the saddle really helps off road to smooth things out, you
should beable to tacke most things, after all it wasn't that long ago
that bikes didn't have suspention.

Quoted message said:

Secondly does anyone have any recommendations for mudguards, ideally
they will be easy to fix/remove and suitable for on and off road use

i personanly like crudcatchers, they also can be attached and detached
easely

Quoted message said:

While I'm on a roll can anyone recommend a decent hand pump.

Any help gratefully received

roger
--
www.rogermerriman.com

"Paul Boyd" <usenet.is.worse@plusnet> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Doki said the following on 31/03/2008 12:22:

Quoted message said:

I'd not bother with suspension, it'll slow you down on the road and to be
honest, doesn't make a huge difference on a lot of UK off road riding,
IMO, particularly riding around the woods. I prefer a rigid bike with a
bit of excitement compared to the same bike with a pair of Marzocchis
soaking up the bumps and taking the fun out of it.

Agreed. After all, we didn't have suspension 20 years ago and we got on
fine!

Quoted message said:

If you want a second set of wheels to go with the other tyres to avoid
having to swap tyres every weekend, I'd go to Merlin Cycle's website and
buy a set of cheap wheels with Deore hubs and Mavic rims, probably
something like a 321 which is fairly wide.

What you need to watch doing that is there doesn't seem to be a common
standard for the distance the disc sits from the end of the axle, so
swapping wheels may mean the brake caliper also needs to be adjusted
slightly each time.

Ah. I suspect that's something that could be fixed by a decent engineering
shop if you really felt the need.

Bigmush said:

Secondly does anyone have any recommendations for mudguards, ideally
they will be easy to fix/remove and suitable for on and off road use

While I'm on a roll can anyone recommend a decent hand pump.

I noticed today that Lidl will be selling some bike bits from next Monday,
including pumps and mudguards (also: panniers, toolkits, lights, computer).
I've had a Lidl track pump (that's the floorstanding type, not required to
reach the pressure your mountain bike tyres need, but a lot quicker and
easier) for a couple of years and it's been fine - it's a different design
to their new one but was even cheaper. Be warned that they tend to sell out
of cycling stuff fast - you really need to get there on Monday morning to
get the popular stuff.

cheers,

Finlay

Quoted message said:

Bigmush said:

Secondly does anyone have any recommendations for mudguards, ideally
they will be easy to fix/remove and suitable for on and off road use

While I'm on a roll can anyone recommend a decent hand pump.

For off road SKS Shockboard Front Mudguard and Crud Raceguard Rear.
But neither will keep your feet dry on-road - only proper guards (like
SKS with decent mud flaps) will do.

Bigmush said:

Hi all,

I'm a bit of a newbie when it comes to this cycling malarkey so go
easy on me!

I have a Giant Escape M1 which is currently as purchased, i.e. with
road tyres, no suspension, no mudguards etc.

The bike will mainly be used for commuting, however, I do plan to go
off road at weekends (mainly trails, nothing too!)

I'm looking for suggestions on a couple of things, firstly can anyone
suggest some wheels/tyres/inner tubes that would be suitable for off-
roading, I'm a fairly big (read fat!) guy, should this make any
difference to your recommendations.

Secondly does anyone have any recommendations for mudguards, ideally
they will be easy to fix/remove and suitable for on and off road use

While I'm on a roll can anyone recommend a decent hand pump.

Any help gratefully received

Now you have had all the suggestions on how to convert your existing
bike, it is time to consider an alternative ...

Get another bike.

You will then have one suited to road conditions and one for off-road.

This will only be that start of your collection. Soon you will need to
consider the delights of recumbent, folder, fixed, trike ... and your
shed will overflow with machines. While they will all qualify as bikes,
they will have sufficient differences to justify their existence.

Welcome to the world of cycling.

--
Don Whybrow

Sequi Bonum Non Time

"I contend we are both atheists, I just believe in one fewer god than
you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods,
you will understand why I dismiss yours."
...Stephen F Roberts