Any mountain bikers??

[Mark Reccord]

I love and HATE this thread, just found it tonight.
I live in northsore Illinois, so i ride on the desplaines river trail. Its alright...plenty of trail, some pretty areas in the forest preserves, but really tame. I'm no adrenaline junky but I am so F-ing jealous of the trails you guys post. Even if I am not in shape enough yet to handle some of them i wish I had a chance to try them.
I'll put pics up, but I ride a Trek Marlin 29er hardtail. Its stock, so I'm sure its not an "excellent" bike, but I like it a lot. Stops fast despite the squeak in the rear wheel, and the 100mm travel on the front shock is super comfy. Loving my first bike with 29s, shocks and disc brakes!!!

Awesome, welcome aboard! Be warned: MTBing is very addictive and this thread does nothing to curb the addiction.

BTW, PLEASE HELP!
Like I said, rear brake is squeaky, is there any way to fix that? Its the stock brakes, and I was wondering if there is a quick fix or what I'd need to replace...
Don't know much about this, and mountain bike forums get over my head and over my price limit fast, hopefully the TB mountain bike community will help.
Thanks guys[/QUOTE]

What kind of brake is it? Brand and model, I mean.
Does it squeak all the time or just when you're braking? Does it do it in all conditions (dry, wet, etc.) or just when it's wet?

Some disc brakes are inherently noisy (Avid) but that often can be tamed by replacing the pads (not very $$). You might want to check the alignment of the caliper on the rotor and make sure the rotor isn't warped and make sure the bolts holding the caliper onto the frame are tight. If something's not lined up or a bolt is loose they'll vibrate and make a lot of noise.

All disc brakes howl when they're wet.

 

[morewattsplease]

Thanks Mark,
It squeaks only while braking, wet/dry.
I'll check the tightness on the bolts, and it is an Avid caliper, the stock ones on the new marlins. Thanks man.

 

[Mark Reccord]

Thanks Mark,
It squeaks only while braking, wet/dry.
I'll check the tightness on the bolts, and it is an Avid caliper, the stock ones on the new marlins. Thanks man.

No sweat!

Ok: Is it a squeal or is it kind of warble-y kinda like a turkey gobble?

If it's the latter, cleaning the rotors with isopropanol (99%) and giving the pad surfaces a quick sand with 80 grit sandpaper (or just getting new pads) will make it go away... for a while. This is a common problem with Avid disc brakes.

If it's the former, it also wouldn't hurt to give the rotors a quick clean and inspect them and the pads for burrs, etc.

When cleaning the rotors make sure you don't touch them with your fingers! The oils will contaminate them. I use latex gloves when I do anything with my brake rotors.

 

[bassteban]

^Timely info for me^- I am having SEVERE howling/vibration issues w/my front binders(Hayes- can't recall the specific model). Will run the described procedure and get back to you.
Also- lost ONE DAMN half-finger/warm-weather glove, been putting of a good ride since. Buying cheapo spares TODAY, dammit. Pardon all the potty mouth- I'm all pent-up and frustrated.

 

[Mark Reccord]

^Timely info for me^- I am having SEVERE howling/vibration issues w/my front binders(Hayes- can't recall the specific model). Will run the described procedure and get back to you.
Also- lost ONE DAMN half-finger/warm-weather glove, been putting of a good ride since. Buying cheapo spares TODAY, dammit. Pardon all the potty mouth- I'm all pent-up and frustrated.

Check the caliper and rotor bolts too. Make sure they're tight.

The noise from my last set of Avids was so bad that I just gave up and replaced them with Hopes.

And losing one of a pair of anything is bloody infuriating!

 

[elgecko]

FWIW, my understanding is that the derailleur is tougher than it looks. The hanger is weaker by design so it bends/breaks easier to save the derailleur.

Is the hanger on the 5.5 integrated into the dropout like it is on the Tracer? Hope not, because the dropouts aren't cheap!...

It was a bent hanger...removable by the way. Good thing I didn't buy a new derailleur!

So I get the bike back from the bike shop and I go to diagnose a slow leak that's been plaguing one of my Mavic UST 819s for months. I thought it was a bad valve seal so I bought a new one, went to put it in, and discovered that over the years, cranking down on the UST valve has cracked/enlarged the inner hole, making it impossible to seal. I'm going to pick up some JB Weld on the way home!

 

[bassteban]

elgecko, don't assume that a new hanger is aligned; I've had great success fine-tuning my shifting(back when I rode a wussy geared ride /)by slapping the old Park Alignment tool on.

 

[elgecko]

elgecko, don't assume that a new hanger is aligned; I've had great success fine-tuning my shifting(back when I rode a wussy geared ride /)by slapping the old Park Alignment tool on.

Hey! Don't impugn gears! I love my Granny!

I built my bike and do all the maintenance. I never once had a bent hanger. Had I known, I could've had my bike running a long time ago. Now I know! I paid the $15 this time but seeing how malleable those hangers are, the next misalignment is getting "fixed" with an adjustable wrench!

Now to get my wheel to hold air again...

 

[kserg]

I'll play

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[kserg]

Also, anyone can recommend me few trails in south lake Tahoe?

 

[elgecko]

Here's the inner rim area of my Mavic 819. The hole should be circular and the width of the "valley". I had a Stan's valve in there with the small circular gasket and I'm amazed that the sealant even sealed the rim to the extent that it did.

I'm scratching my head wondering how in the heck it got so big.

 

[elgecko]

Also, anyone can recommend me few trails in south lake Tahoe?

There is but one trail in the Tahoe area.

http://www.theflumetrail.com/

 

[bassteban]

The Flume RAWKS.
And while friendly trash-talk is a HUUUGE part of my cycling, I only kiddingly deride anyone's choice of bike- my next build/rebuild will be the 05 Gemini 900, w/2- or 1x9. I've also considered a Melvin and 2- or 3x1on one of my main off-road steeds.
Bottom line, I can talk bike(or bass)gear ALL day- far longer than I can play or ride.

 

[Mark Reccord]

elgecko, don't assume that a new hanger is aligned; I've had great success fine-tuning my shifting(back when I rode a wussy geared ride /)by slapping the old Park Alignment tool on.

Single speed is a level of masochism that I don't think I'll attain any time soon. I like my knees and would like to keep them working. Plus, I doubt it would be very fun on the local trails.

I'll play

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Very nice!

Also, anyone can recommend me few trails in south lake Tahoe?

The Flume is the really popular Tahoe trail, but I think it's on the north end of the Nevada side. I did a quick search and there seems to be loads of MTB trails at the south end of the lake from mellow to mental. Maybe start here:

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Here's the inner rim area of my Mavic 819. The hole should be circular and the width of the "valley". I had a Stan's valve in there with the small circular gasket and I'm amazed that the sealant even sealed the rim to the extent that it did.

I'm scratching my head wondering how in the heck it got so big.

Holy crap! That's pretty mangled.

 

[Mark Reccord]

Thread needs a bump so I'll post a few pics from yesterday's ride. Pretty foggy at the top of the hill. Normally a spectacular view from here but visibility was down to about 400'. I hadn't ridden this trail in a few years and I'd forgotten just how gnarly the descent to the ocean is. First time I rode it on a non-DH specific bike and the Tracer handled it like a champ! I was a bit concerned that the Tech X2 wasn't quite powerful for a front brake for me but it performed flawlessly!

Steep rock roller we discovered just off the main trail. Sweet! Rider in the pic will be 53 this year and I can't keep up with him.

 

[bassteban]

Go old dude!

 

[MakiSupaStar]

Thread needs a bump so I'll post a few pics from yesterday's ride. Pretty foggy at the top of the hill. Normally a spectacular view from here but visibility was down to about 400'. I hadn't ridden this trail in a few years and I'd forgotten just how gnarly the descent to the ocean is. First time I rode it on a non-DH specific bike and the Tracer handled it like a champ! I was a bit concerned that the Tech X2 wasn't quite powerful for a front brake for me but it performed flawlessly!

Steep rock roller we discovered just off the main trail. Sweet! Rider in the pic will be 53 this year and I can't keep up with him.

Killer bike.

 

[bassteban]

Killer bike.

Aren't you overdue for a new one by now..?

 

[MakiSupaStar]

Aren't you overdue for a new one by now..?

Ugh... Had a hard reality check last week. Thought I was jumping into a Stump Jumper Comp 29 HT. Turns out, my connection, who is a bike shop owner, just ended his ties with Specialized and will only be taking orders on Specialized bikes til the end of the month. As a result, he would have been able to cut me a deal on stock, but he has no stock (except boingers), so I think I'm resigning to the fact that I'm going to be jumping into a Carve Expert. Not quite the bike I was hoping for, but still a cool bike. I'm ordering it tomorrow. Should have it in a couple of weeks. In other words, I totally jinxed myself.

 

[bassteban]

Sorry. I am in pretty tight w/my LBS/former employer, a Spec'd dealer. Let me know if I can help a brothah out. We/they've shipped an assload of bikes- plenty of experience there. Added costs* may very well F it into nonsense territory, but I'm here.

*I'd pack it for a piddly amount of beer/bike parts/bass crap, but actual shipping can be a a**-opening experience...