a load of old bull?
Discussion
Iwent to a bike shop yesterday to enquire about a full suspension bike,Orange 5 .The bloke said because of my weight(17 stone) I should really go for a coil spring rather than air shock because I'll blow through the air shock.Ican see his logic but I think he's talking b
ks.What do you think?
ks.What do you think? You will be fine with an air shock.
The people who have problems with air shocks are lighter people, to get the right amount of sag they have to run a lower pressure which then is easy to bottom out.
Dont dismiss a coil shock though, I have a Fox Van r which is Push tuned and it is great. Once you have chosen your correct spring it's fit and forget with just a rebound adjuster to play with.
Steve
The people who have problems with air shocks are lighter people, to get the right amount of sag they have to run a lower pressure which then is easy to bottom out.
Dont dismiss a coil shock though, I have a Fox Van r which is Push tuned and it is great. Once you have chosen your correct spring it's fit and forget with just a rebound adjuster to play with.
Steve
Well that is wrong, but I can see from a business point of view that what was said makes sense. People seem to think that they can give no thought into buying a totally inappropriate bike and then complaining that their human rights have be violated because it has broken.
Mountain bikes are very 'specialist' these days and the when spending your hard earned on something 'good' then you need to think about what tyoe of riding you'll actually be doing and then start looking for a suitable bike.
There's nothing wrong with a coil though ;-)
Mountain bikes are very 'specialist' these days and the when spending your hard earned on something 'good' then you need to think about what tyoe of riding you'll actually be doing and then start looking for a suitable bike.
There's nothing wrong with a coil though ;-)
When I first got my 5, I was about 17 stone. I have had no problems with the shocks. It does depend on the usage. The 5 is a burly all mountain bike and built to take the worst. My intention was to lose weight. My ASR had a coil shock with titanium springs, but the frame weighed as much as the 5 and it had 7 inch travel. A lot of leverage across the shock.
The bigger problem with our kind of heft is un sympathetic gear changes especially on delicate mechs like XTR.
The bigger problem with our kind of heft is un sympathetic gear changes especially on delicate mechs like XTR.
Gooby said:
When I first got my 5, I was about 17 stone. I have had no problems with the shocks. It does depend on the usage. The 5 is a burly all mountain bike and built to take the worst. My intention was to lose weight. My ASR had a coil shock with titanium springs, but the frame weighed as much as the 5 and it had 7 inch travel. A lot of leverage across the shock.
The bigger problem with our kind of heft is un sympathetic gear changes especially on delicate mechs like XTR.
Delicate XTR, eh?The bigger problem with our kind of heft is un sympathetic gear changes especially on delicate mechs like XTR.
XTR is the best at unsympathetic gear changes - XT and XTR are the only ones I trust to do a ful bore front gear change - the difference being XT makes a bit of noise, and the XTR just snicks. I abuse my XTR, and as long as you dont bash it (much like any other mech), its fine. Do I need say anything about XO mechs then
The main problem I see with heavier riders on air shocks is that you need to carry higher pressure, and on an air shock this means you lose a lot of small bump sensitivity. With a coil, you do not, and you're able to tune a shock with different coils in order to maintain the characteristics of the frame in order to get the best out of it.
I rode an air shock for one run in France at the Mega, and then promptly rode back to the apartment and changed it back to the coil - I had to run such a high pressure to cope with the bigger hits and (at that time) my weight that it ruined the bike, and so I changed back to the properly set up coil.
YMMV as they say however, but thats my defence of the comment.
A friend of mine has a Patriot that he has both a coil shock and an air shock for.
If you're planning on losing weight then I'd go for an air shock as it will allow you to easily change the spring weight - that is you don't need to buy a new spring each time you loose 10kgs.
If you foresee that your weight is going to remain as is then I'd go for a coil shock. You can get them to fit the Five and a Fox Van R will be a fit and forget item.
I'd also set aside some budget for 'stock' spares. As a bare minimum I'd have:
A replacement rear mech hanger.
Three pairs of brake pads.
Three inner tubes.
Two tyres.
Brake bleed kit and fluid.
If you have an air shock - fluid for an air can service.
I'd also set some money aside for a fork and shock service upon your return.
With all that said - and it pains me to suggest it - a Specialised Pitch sounds exactly what you're looking for. Great spec for the price, the only 'weak' point being the air shock. Enter stage left a nice Van R. A Van R'd Pitch suitable for two months in the mountains should roll in about £1500 mark.
If you're planning on losing weight then I'd go for an air shock as it will allow you to easily change the spring weight - that is you don't need to buy a new spring each time you loose 10kgs.
If you foresee that your weight is going to remain as is then I'd go for a coil shock. You can get them to fit the Five and a Fox Van R will be a fit and forget item.
I'd also set aside some budget for 'stock' spares. As a bare minimum I'd have:
A replacement rear mech hanger.
Three pairs of brake pads.
Three inner tubes.
Two tyres.
Brake bleed kit and fluid.
If you have an air shock - fluid for an air can service.
I'd also set some money aside for a fork and shock service upon your return.
With all that said - and it pains me to suggest it - a Specialised Pitch sounds exactly what you're looking for. Great spec for the price, the only 'weak' point being the air shock. Enter stage left a nice Van R. A Van R'd Pitch suitable for two months in the mountains should roll in about £1500 mark.
neil_bolton said:
Spec Pitch Pro from me too: I've not even ridden one, and I know its going to be the next bike in my stable.
Does that mean you can close this other thread?pdV6 said:
neil_bolton said:
Spec Pitch Pro from me too: I've not even ridden one, and I know its going to be the next bike in my stable.
Does that mean you can close this other thread?
you know's it going to get left there do you I'll just rename it: Find PDV6's next new bike
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