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Messages - DandyAndy

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1
29er / IP-036 shock pressure (Rockshox Monarch RT3)
« on: March 27, 2017, 07:53:09 AM »
Hi Guys,
what pressure everyone is running with your shocks on 036 Frame?

Some background story:
I put brand new Rockshox Monarch RT3 2016 on my new 036 build and at 200psi was still having ~60% sag (I'm ~85kg heavy). Being a recent convert to Rockshox from DT Swiss (which had burnt on me), I assumed that shock is a lemon and sent it back for a warranty. I am used to run 165mm DT Swiss at 80-100psi and it still was way too hard on my old bike. After repair it got better - at 200psi I'm having ~30% sag, however during the ride it sags further, (very much like that burned DT Swiss) and hangs on ~60-70%.
Now, I also have got a 2nd Rockshox Monarch RT3 2015 for my old bike. It's also brand new, never ridden so far.  So I put it on 036's instead and WTF!? I need 265psi to reach 30% sag.

So, do our frames naturally need such high pressures for the rear? Or is it just my "mega-luck" to get 2 lemons in a row?

There is an older thread here which is suggestive that this might be the case. http://chinertown.com/index.php/topic,799.msg8705.html#msg8705 However it is not active anymore and people there are some monster riders and rather discuss things way above my knowledge. 

BTW for the Front suspension (Rockshox Reba RL 120mm 2015, used to run Manitou Minute 3 100-120mm which is way too stiff) the picture is in reverse - need much lower pressures than recommended to get any notable sag (less than 10%). I'm currently playing around 60-70psi. Will see if it starts to bottom out. 

2
After The Ride / Re: Where is everyone from?
« on: February 07, 2017, 07:40:14 AM »
DandyAndy > Kassel (Hessen Land/Province), Germany


3
29er / Re: Changing the pivot bolts on the 036
« on: February 06, 2017, 11:25:08 AM »
We were discussing rear pivot joints. For whatever reasons (there could be few) Karsten's bolts seems to be somewhat too short, so they rested just on one side and started to rub opposite side of the joint. That have little to do with grease of lube though. Bearings are sealed and IMHO you should not put any grease anywhere where it doesn't belong, particularly into joints outside of the bearings. Grease is a dirt magnet and resulting grit will grind carbon parts pretty fast. Though on the other hand I believe that at least accepting part of the joint is alloy. I can post a pic of joint insides if you want.
Carbon is indeed grinded super easy. Coat, paint, finish you have on the frame are actually much harder than carbon in that respect. I grinded a carbon tube - it goes almost as easy as graphite!   

4
29er / Re: Changing the pivot bolts on the 036
« on: January 22, 2017, 04:16:44 PM »
Tear apart - maybe. And still I wouldn't recommend such drastic measures. May be if you have worries - open, and take a look would be enough for the beginning? But why do you want to re-lube everything?

5
29er / Re: Changing the pivot bolts on the 036
« on: January 09, 2017, 02:50:27 PM »
Dear both, after reading Karsten's post more carefully, I understand that the diameter of pivot bolts is the same as shock bolts - 8mm. right? In this case and if you are not against titanium modding the solution for our problems could be those Ti posts like I bought. Look at this post of mine: http://chinertown.com/index.php/topic,1075.15.html
As for the shock axle - my problem was they are not long enough. But pivots are shorter, and there are shorter bolts made by chinese. The available dimensions are 13,17,21,25,31,35 and 37 mm total length. The difference that aluminum pivot bolts delivered with frame accept M5 screws and those Ti posts  - M6.




6
Vendor Discussion & Reviews / Re: A rather negative experience with XMIplay
« on: January 06, 2017, 09:43:33 AM »
Nea, the head tube bump I noticed immediately, during the unwrapping. Now I understand, that I should have done an unpacking video. Guess I'm just too trusting and naive. Live and learn! Let also others learn from my experience.

7
Vendor Discussion & Reviews / Re: A rather negative experience with XMIplay
« on: January 06, 2017, 07:44:44 AM »
Ok. Thank you guys for the moral support! I am going to escalate the case with PayPal.
Normally, I'm trying to avoid conflict at all costs. Plus, I'm a fan of China and Chinese carbon. I want them to supply us with a good, low cost carbon. But it doesn't seem like XMIplay is looking to build up a reputation and good relations with customers.     

Quote from: SportingGoods on January 06, 2017, 02:22:06 AM
I still can see how the head tube can be cracked like this during shipping. It would take a massive blow as frames are always packed with thick layers of dense bubble wrap (I have received 3 frames from China). This is not good. I mean that with such a strong hit you can't tell if there are other internal, hidden, damage.
SportingGoods, you are fueling my paranoia! Of course it would be optima to do an X-ray on the frame, but I don't have an access to a machine. I obviously did a very thorough sound check. Everywhere except for those blisters the frame sounds nice. The tone is equal and high. But of course it's not an ultimate test.

Quote from: SportingGoods on January 06, 2017, 02:22:06 AM
   
What I can't explain is the scratching on that same hit. With bubble wrap you can crack the frame but it can't be scratched. That would tell me that the hit happened before packing.

The wrap was nuclear


Quote from: SportingGoods on January 06, 2017, 02:22:06 AM
All that said, this is not acceptable. I would not be happy with a partial refund. I would only accept to change the frame (even if I had to pay again for shipping).

Yeah... If I would notice the blistering at the beginning I would go for the exchange. I have finished the frame aesthetics. Put all the decals, frame protection e.t.c. The costs and time I put into this frame are not not significant. Heck, I'm almost done with my build. If not for the faulty Jagwire Shifting kit, I'd be done by now. Built and aligned. I'd just be mega bummed to ship the frame back. And I'm pretty sure that XMIplay wouldn't sent me a new tip-top frame. They would just repaint and resend me the same frame, and I'd be none the wiser.

8
Vendor Discussion & Reviews / A rather negative experience with XMIplay
« on: January 05, 2017, 02:39:48 PM »
When I was scouting for the 036 frame I asked few vendors for a quote. Essentially the choice came between Dengfu and XMIplay. Dengfu was cheaper and their site is more professional. But Paul from XMIplay reacted faster to my emails and was able to answer most of my technical questions while the girl from Dengfu was most clearly lost or had no interest. So I asked Paul to lower the price and went to order from him. Paid with PayPal and started to wait. Paul’s behavior changed from that moment on.
First it took XMIplay more than 2 weeks to ship the frame and reminder from me like - “what’s goin on guys?! why aren’t you shipping the frame?” This is despite the fact that Paul assured me before that this frame is on stock and ready to be shipped. But ok. Another month, a pack of papers which I had to fill for the customs and 50 euros later I got my frame!

Unfortunately my excitement upon getting it evaporated very quickly. I am pretty sure XMIplay sent me a bumped one.

When I unpacked the frame - I saw that the headtube was hit on the lower ring at sharp angle. The paint got cracked and lower cup got bent, so that the headset didn't fit in anymore. The frame was wrapped very very well, I'd say - nukeproof and it is lower ring, it is not exposed to the bumps during transportation. So I am pretty sure XMIplay have sent me already bumped frame. But, I cannot be absolutely sure. Also the plastic insert which holds the pivots was snapped in two. It didn’t seem to cause any problems though, because of the good wrapping.



After few emails back and forth, when I was slowly getting angrier and angrier, Paul reacted with a promise that they gonna reimburse me if I go to the LBS and ask them to reface the cups and repaint the frame. But apparently Paul meant Chinese bike shop, while I live in Germany. His reimbursement readiness lay around 10$. May be you can do this job in China for 10 bucks, but not in Germany. Refacing the cups alone costs around 15 Euros. Paint job around 300. Ok, I wanted a compromise and told him that I will not insist on the paint job, because the defect is minimal but 10 bucks won’t fly either. Paul said that he needs to discuss this with manager and gone he was! No mails, no response, nothing.



Grinding my teeth and cursing XMIplay I refaced the cup, restored the paint for my own money. But unfortunately that was not the end of the story.

Now, after couple months, and when I have done all the aesthetics and almost 'm done with my build, I have found another defect of the frame. There are 2 blisters next to the head tube. I cannot tell whether this is just paint blistering or a structural defect. Sound test gives a clear defect, but it cannot differentiate. And I don’t have an endoscope to sneak a pic from the inside. Of course it is hard to make photos but still, you can see the 2 bubbles (1 large and 1 small) where the paint is off the frame. When I pressed it with my finger, the large bubble cracked and got a hairline. But on the other hand I cannot press further and there is no creaking. I hope it’s just paint.



So, XMIplay have sent me a defected frame! And ignored my last emails! At that moment I went ballistic and initiated a case with PayPal. Naturally after this I got a message from Paul where he accuses me of “using” the frame for 2 months, meaning how dare I to have any expectations after 2 months!!!  ;D and suggesting to give back like 70 bucks.



So, guys, what would you do in my place? I’m tending towards to escalate the case with PayPal and see what they decide.



In conclusion - looks like I should have gone with Dengfu and that is where my money ‘ll go next time.


9
29er / Re: German IP-036 SRAM EAGLE 1x12 Drivetrain
« on: October 31, 2016, 07:26:35 PM »
Rear shock

Never expected to get any troubles at this step. Rear shock mounting is the simplest step in the whole world! Yet the universe decided to prove me wrong.

So, i finally got my needle bearing - it was time to put my brand new shiny Monarch RT3. It started right at the very beginning.
1) Gliding bushings are fit so tightly in Rockshox (riding DT Swiss shock) - I was unable to remove it by myself and needed guys from LBS to do that for me. During all those attempts either I or LBS guys or both scratched and put little dents around the eyelet - so tightly the bushing sits!
2) To press-in the needle bearing I needed to remove rubber lips from my vice and press so hard I thought I gonna damage the bearing for sure!
3) For the front eyelet I just bought standard 21.8x8mm mounting 3 piece set, thinking that there is almost no movement in front, so why bother with a bearing... Am I just ignorant? I always thought that the bushing pin supposed to rotate in the gliding one... That is why it is called GLIDING! That is why it is coated with nylon or whatev! The bushing pin doesn't just slide in. It needed to be press fit. I pressed it against a wooden block and that wood got dents. So the bushing pin is now fixed, it is not gonna twist. Ok, I thought, bushing is going to twist around the shaft (shock bolt). Apparently not so easy. If you tighten the bolt with any strength it's enough to fix the bushing pin completely (against the frame), so the shock doesn't turn at all.

At the moment I see only 1 solution to that - put a liter of loctite in the bolt and do not tighten it seriously.

I mean, what a heck?! DT Swiss got a fancy mounting hardware, but there is never a problem fixing it. Rockshox is idiotically simple and yet...   

Update 09.01.2017

I attempted to solve this problem by ordering new Titanium shock bolts. Ordered 37mm ones, thinking that I'll shorten them a little. When the bolts arrived it appeared that our Chinese friends have their own understanding of standards. Given 37mm, is the total length of the bolt, not just the shaft as anyone would expect. So the length of the shaft was exactly the same as old shock bolts - 34mm. And no longer Ti recessed bolts are made by them.

Luckily, a standard aluminum profile sold in local building supplies stores has exactly needed dimensions - 8mmx1mm. I made a 3.1mm long spacer (and am left with another 1.5m of the profile  :D ). This gives a perfect axle length, so when I tighten it, the frame mounts are not compressed and in turn do not compress bushing pin.

The alternative was to source some longer steel bolts and cut them. Unfortunately, in Europe, those recessed bolts are not so easy to come by. 

This is how it looks:



For comparison - here are the standard shock bolts which come with 036 frame:



So, apparently my case is unique. No one else experiencing this problem with their shocks. Do you, guys, use shorter than recommended bushing kits?   
 

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29er / Re: German IP-036 SRAM EAGLE 1x12 Drivetrain
« on: October 25, 2016, 04:04:28 PM »
Thanx Alex! This is actually a great idea! So, I assume you do heat (shrink) the shrink? It is fixed, then.

11
29er / Re: German IP-036 SRAM EAGLE 1x12 Drivetrain
« on: October 24, 2016, 01:21:55 PM »
Thanks. So, maybe I really need to think less and just go straight for the port. None of you had issues caused by working stays shifting the whole line because there is no flex loop? I mean it's a significant shift - 5-8mm...

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29er / Re: German IP-036 SRAM EAGLE 1x12 Drivetrain
« on: October 24, 2016, 08:03:51 AM »
Quote from: Carbon_Dude on October 23, 2016, 06:24:16 PM
To set the crown race, all I used was a small block of wood and a rubber mallet.  However, many people say just buy a short length of PVC pipe of a particular diameter from your local home improvement store, and tap the crown race down using the pipe and a couple wacks with a hammer.  It doesn't really need to be a press fit fixture as sophisticated as you show.

Yep. I just whacked mine against the floor couple of times - sat perfectly. The press fit is for the star nut. 

13
29er / Re: German IP-036 SRAM EAGLE 1x12 Drivetrain
« on: October 24, 2016, 07:58:46 AM »
Quote from: Carbon_Dude on October 23, 2016, 06:24:16 PM
I routed my rear brake line under the pivot, between the crank and the pivot.  I then put one of the snap on rubber cable savers in that same spot.  Seemed two work fine, never had any problems with the brake line being routed there.  I did start to see some rubbing on my brake line where it entered into the frame up by the head tube though.
I also wanted to route just along the crank. It seemed obvious at first - just a straight line. However! When I moved pivots the whole range - line snaps in that cleft between the pivot and BB. It can crash the line. Can you post some pics? May be I'm overthinking the issue.

14
29er / Re: Danish CS-036 build
« on: October 24, 2016, 07:28:58 AM »
Sure! I asked this one:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Titanium-Ti-Recessed-Bike-Bicycle-Brake-Bolt-Nut-13mm-17mm-21mm-25mm-31-5mm-35mm-37mm/32551496712.html
Those are actually brake posts for older type frames. They cost a penny, taking into account that recessed steel bolts cost under a dollar. Still... :)

15
29er / Re: Danish CS-036 build
« on: October 23, 2016, 02:55:40 PM »
Quote from: karstenhorn on July 21, 2016, 12:02:29 AM

The bolts provided with the frame was around 4 mm too short and 0.3 mm under the 8.0 mm bushing diameter in my shock. They seemed of very low quality and I bought new ones before I took it for the first ride. I have similar issues with all the bushing bolts holding my chain stay together, causing a lot of flex.

Do yourself a favour and take everything apart and inspect/grease all part before first ride - My frame came dry at all joints from the vendor.

Karsten

4mm?!  :o Jezuz! No, mine are only about 2.1mm too short and diameter is spot on. Nevertheless I'm myself still entertaining the idea of substituting them with Titanium ones (again Chinese  :)). I asked one vendor and he mailed me pictures. Tolerances are ok. The diameter is 7.93-7.96mm. I'm not sure about buying longer ones and shortening them myself...

I actually wanted to ask about greasing of all the pivot joints though. What did you actually grease? You opened bearing seals? I'm obsessing about the joints and want to fix them before mounting all the components on.     

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