New Bike Day!

Hey I actually have something interesting to post today! After breaking my VerHauen frame in June, un-retiring my 2011 Specy and beating the piss out of that thing for the last 6 months (I swear that thing is one hit from snapping in half)... I finally got everything I needed to piece together my crash replacement Vassago Optimus. Was a giant PITA sourcing parts over the last month but got it buttoned up last night. Still need to install the dropper post, and make a few small adjustments. The new geo (compared to the 2011 Specy and 2017 VerHauen) is wild, so will take some getting used to.

 

Nice!

I hate to ask... What does she weigh?

 

I'm not exactly sure yet. My VerHauen (with essentially the same setup sans the dropper) was 22# fully loaded. So I figure the Optimus around the same if not a shade less.

Now my old Specy I've been riding... 19# all day long. I can feel the extra ~3# on the Optimus. Just means I need to lose 3#+ off my gut to even things out.

 

Very cool my Optimus brother!

 

Yep... I shouldn’t have asked.

 

Geez! That's a beautiful bike...

 

Another Vassago Brethren right here!
2012 VerHauen
2020 Mooseknuckle

Is that a Whiskey No.9 up front?
That is one gorgeous Ti!!!

 

Awesome!

Yep it is the Whisky #9. I was going to scavenge the Specialized rigid fork off my VerHauen (along with the wheelset)... but then I learned all about 148mm spacing. New fork and wheels it is, and a busted budget (and an understanding wife).

 

After talking to some friends and realizing that bike availability isn’t going back to normal any time soon....I decided to walk into Pro Bike Supply and pull the trigger on the Transition Spur GX build.

Probably upping the rear rotor to 180, still not sure on tire choice. Never ridden a rekon which comes in the rear. I liked the dissector in the past so may leave that on front. Or dhf and dissector....too many options. Anybody ridden dissector front, rekon rear?

 

No experience with the Dissector, but it's on my list to try. As far as the Rekon, though, I have quite a few thousand miles using it on the Hightower and the single speed. It survived the entire length of Kokopelli last year on the front and rear of the Hightower.

As an "all around" tire, it's hard to beat in the 2.4 and 2.6 sizes. Is it a Minion? No. But would I hesitate to take it down anything I've ridden in the San Gabes with its lofty exposure? Nope...

 

Congrats! Sounds like a great bike, and we know it's dead sexy!

 

Congrats! I'm hardly a tire expert, but I also have a Spur, and stuck with the Dissector/Rekon combo. I think it's perfectly suited to the bike, and have no desire to try anything different. I also ran that combo on my Pistola, briefly, and liked it, but less on that bike. I've done Dissector front and rear on both the Pistola and Smash, and did like that on both bikes.

 

Finally done. What started out ordered as a SolarisMax after a lot of delay was cancelled, I moved on to a Stanton Sherpa. Ultimately it was a better choice, more of an all around design. With just 35 miles in, coming from traditional xc geometry, this thing is amazing!

 

Congrats! Enjoy responsibly!

 

I like British bikes and I cannot lie!

 

I've ridden the DHF front and Dissector rear on the Ripmo, Ripley and now HD5. I love it on the rear but it wear much, much faster than an Aggressor or DHR. I know there are a few people who just recently started running it up front on an MTB FB page I follow. I haven't heard much feedback.

 

Congrats on the new bike......

I have the Dissector up front....I like it. Not as automatic as the DHF, but much more aggressive than the Rekon. I'd say run the Rekon on the rear til you wear it out. It's a solid all arounder.

 

British Steel FTW!
Hopefully I'll finally seen one out in the wild.

 

Congratulations to my wife’s 12-yr-old niece on her new bike! Thanks to The Path Live Oak for helping facilitate. Thanks to @tortoise for the wheels.

Our niece went from being the only one in her group of friends without a bike to (probably) the only one with a US-made ti frame. We’re happy to make it happen, happy to get stored parts back in use.

 

Awesome

 

I'm sort of looking for a secondary wheelset for my gravel bike, but these might be too wide for 2.0-2.2" tires...
...and the Freebody conversation to XDR might be another PITA. Never mind.



Any new bikes out there?

 

Just picked her up!

 

Congrats. She's a beauty!

 

Yay! Are those 2.6” wide tires?
I see you bought your Toyota from the same place I bought mine. Where are you located? The neighborhood landscaping suggests somewhere in the Southwest and not the grassy California landscaping we have been conditioned to expect around here. If you are local, wanna do a few night rides!? I’d ride my Trek too, and we could be friends!

 

I'd consider a heat shield before you do any long drives and find the exhaust has melted your tire. A few riders I know have had that happen

 

We need a picture of the old steed next to the new one. That's a nice upgrade...

 

Nice!!! Welcome to the Trek Club and enjoy your new Magic Carpet ride!

 

Sweet, I love black & blue bikes. Ditch the reflectors and go get it dirty...

 

And the dork disc while you're at it.

Congratulations!