OK. First couple of rides done, so it's time for some first impressions. A reminder that the Miracle FS822 is the same frame as the Lexon Flyer. I am recovering from COVID at the moment so my fitness has all but disappeared. The + side of this is it gives me a good excuse to stop and tweak at every opportunity (rear shock - I am looking at you...)!
First ride... nice pics. But deep down disappointed. A couple of niggles from the build - I didn't like where the bite point on brakes, the chainline wasn't right and... WHAT WAS GOING ON WITH THE SUSPENSION?!
It was way too soft off the top. It didn't bottom out. It bobbed like mad on the climbs. I was worried that my third Chinese build was going to be the first bad one.
Today, I rode with 2 volume spacers taken out of the shock that has a medium tune (a new Fox Float SL - here it is -
https://youtu.be/u-UdqGJoyiY?si=SieY0JbvpUUb7Mzi) and the other niggles fixed. I tweaked it along the way. It is MUCH better.
Summary:- Don't expect things to be right on the first ride. I knew this already, but I suppose we have to re-learn the same lessons sometimes.
- The whole process of choosing and building one of these frames is awesome. I love these projects!
- Miracle were great to deal with. They struggled with some of the more detailed questions, but they always gave me an answer. They got the measurements wrong for the shock hardware (see above) but... more responsive and knowledgeable than many bike shops. I'm pretty sure measurements are off (and Miracle's don't match Lexon's). I'll try and get around to posting some real world measurements.
- It was shipped and arrived quickly. Faster than I expected - I wasn't ready for it when it arrived.
- It's built into a light-ish bike. It weighs in at about 26.5-27 lbs with pedals and computer. I couldn't go much lighter without spending silly money or compromising the bike's capability. The only significant weight savings I can easily see are in the Brand X dropper and SLX cassette.
- Quality of frame appears good inside. Paint is good. Bearings are good. Everything fitted, and the BB threaded straight in without any problems.
How does it ride? Now the Fox niggle is sorted... very good! On the ups it's good at getting the power down, especially with the shock in climb mode. In fully open mode it can find grip on some quite loose sections.
My main descent has been down John Deere on Mount Seymour (Vancouver). It wants to rail around corners, drop off (rather than roll) features. It feels quite 'poppy' without the scary feeling you get on old school xc bikes.
There is nothing about it that is life changing or surprising. There is nothing about it that is bad. It just feels like a lively modern bike. It is more nimble than my Scott Genius, but likely not as capable on the steeps. Much of that will be down to set up (e.g. lighter wheels and tires) as well as the frame.
The bike is (I think!) what I set out to build: a capable modern cross country bike that I can race and use for long rides, but that is capable enough to enjoy technical trails. I would love to ride it back-to-back with something like a Transition Spur / Orbea Oiz and also the 120mm Carbonda / Lightcarbons.
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During the pandemic it was easy to sell a used bike so I could build a bike, ride it for a couple of months and sell it for component costs. Now things have changed, its very hard to sell a home built bike so I have to many bikes and therefore no space for more builds 
