bike build help

[Bknight]

i know lots of you guys ride bikes along with rc cars, heres my build for a Niner EMD. tell me what ya think

so this is my first 29er and this is how i want to build it, i think. your guys imput would be great, any thing i should change about the build or any thing. Frame, Niner EMD Small (i'm 5'6" 130#) Fork: Reba Race PL, Headset: Cane Creek S-8, BB/Crank: FSA V-drive megeaxo, Pedals: either FUNN soljam or cranko bros mallet c (dunno if i want to learn clipless system), wheel set: WTB Laser disc trail, Cassette: SRAM PG-970, Chain: SRAM PG-991, Seat post: Thomson Eliet, Shifter: SRAM X.7, Rear Dérailleur: SRAM X.7, Seat post clamp: DKG, Tires: Kinda Small block 8 front and rear, Brakes: Avid Juicy 5's, Chainguide: e.thirteen LG1, Stem: FSA Gravity Light 70mm, Bar: Fat boy riser bar, Grips: ODI Rouge.

thats every thing right now, weighs in right at about 24.5 pounds. might notice some odd parts ie chain guide, heavy duty parts. what i'm most scared of, is snapping xc specific parts since i ride very aggressive.

[Big Mike]

Sounds like a good list of stuff. Not much compromise taking place, everything you list is at least do-able if not top drawer.

You building this yourself? The only really tricky thing would be pressing the headset cups. (you can make your own press with 1/2" all-thread and large washers) Mounting a chain guide these days is as easy as bolting it on.

I don't ride much anymore, racing expert class downhill from 98 to 02 beat my body into submission. That's why I got back into RC stuff a couple years ago

Clipless pedals - I never liked them either, but they have obvious performance advantages over flats. Power transfer is the most obvious, but they also help hold your feet on the pedal in rough sections. Nowadays they really don't have to be "learned" like in the old days when they first showed up (early 90's) the designs have evolved so much they are practically fool-proof today. I've never ridden Crank Bros pedals but I've heard a lot of good feedback about them. I always had Shimano's, the first couple generations were tricky. You had to kind of think about getting clipped until you got used to them. The last pair of 645's I raced with were great if your feet got on the pedal they would clip almost automatically (I still run them on my Trek Liquid XC bike) I always ran mine as loose as they would go so I could unclip easy, but never had a problem unclipping when I did'nt want to.

[Bknight]

i got into dh racing for the spring season, this was my first year, and i ride exclusively downhill. unfortunately i'm at college now, and all of the good dh trails are to far from campus for some one with out a car, so xc it is now.

i was planning on having the local bike shop do some of the build, probly headset and BB and chain guide, just so i can start to get a little bit of a relationship with them, other then that, i feel very confident building it

[jbrandt]

IMHO, 29ers are too big for people 5'9" and under. I'm 5'10", and the 29er's I've ridden feel odd and clumsy. The wheels are bigger, which means you have an easier time rolling obstacles, but you also have more rotating mass which means slower acceleration/deceleration.

My buddy is 6'3" and owns 2 29ers and he loves them, wouldn't ride anything else. The wheel size is much more proportional to his size. The silliest thing I've seen was this 5'3" girl sporting a 29er. It looked like she was riding a big wheel from the 1920's

If you like the 29er, then sport it, but I've always felt goofy on a 29er.

[Bknight]

i've ridden a lot of them, and i they seem fine. as long as the frame isn't to big, thats what kills me

[jbrandt]

true, FRAME size is definitely the most important. The key is to ride what is comfortable for YOU, and you obviously know what works for you. I like your parts build up, looks like it should last you a life time! I love the Juicys!

[Bknight]

i currently have the juicys on my down hill bike, and they have enough stopping power for me, so they're goin on the 29er, and the down hill is probly gettin an upgrade to Hope Moto V2, don't ask me why, but they are just really freakin bad ass and waaaay over kill

[CCFBERG]

I used to work in a bike shop about 11 years ago and have some of my own tools I would part with, like a headset cup press tool. If your interested let me know and maybe we could trade something or I could sell them to you. PM to let me know if you would like to know what I have.

Shawn

PS. Im out of town again so I wont be able to send you pics till the 13th

[Bknight]

hmm, as tempting as tools are, and i love tools, i can't justify buying a lot of tools, since i'm running on zero space at school here. so its just the basics for now, let the shop handle the specialty tools

[JohnRobHolmes]

Yeah, just let the shop ream and face the HS and BB for you, and install them too. If you don't have a truing stand might as well let them stress and look over the wheels too. Building was always my specialty, I have a whole bike shop of tooling now with exception to a reamer and facer. I love building wheels, built my first set up when I was 13.

[Bknight]

crazy i have no exerpience with building wheels, nor the tools, hence buying the wheel set some day i'll learn, but school first

[jbrandt]

building wheels is complex and easy to screw up. I teach a wheel building class, and I take 3 weeks to do it (one night a week). You're doing the right thing by leaving that to the pros. 90% of the rest can be done fairly easily with basic mechanical knowledge.

[Bknight]

yea, the plus side is being able to true your own wheels, and if you mess up a rim, your not buying a whole new rim set. i've seen my buddy build a wheel in like 15 minutes, it was crazy

since you have wheel experience, how are those? they are the strongest 29er ones i can find, but i don't know any thing about xc rims really.

[Moondust1950]

You could get juicy 7's with the adjuster knob on the handlebar. I was going to get the 7's but instead I am going for hope 4piston disc brake with the braided hose cable and the floating vented disc rotor for the rear of my jump bike.

[Bknight]

i was thinking about it, but i think i'm going to pull the juicy 5s of off my Down hill bike and put Hope Moto V2s on my down hill bike. i've tried hayes, tried juicys now its time to try a new company

[Steveakus]

Hey guys I'm an old Pro DH,DS racer and trying to sell my overload of bikes and frames and such, shoot me a pm or email if you all are looking for anything. I would even trade for some RC Stuff...........

[Steveakus]

About those Wheels, I won't even ride on wheels that I haven't built,

When your Hucking Down 30ft road gaps at 40mph you dont want to trust mister I hate my job working at a factory..........trust myself though.

[Bknight]

lol, yea, i hear you on that, but i'm not doing any 30 foot hucks on a 29er... at least not yet the wheels on my iron horse i'd trust with my life, very very strong,

[Steveakus]

Check some vids and stuff from WV, this is my Production Co.

Monkey Flip Productions

[Steveakus]

Oh yea they are all DH, and DS at Snowshoe Mtn Race Series, Monster Park and such