Gloss looks nice!

Your experience mirrors mine, so far. I did add RWC kit on the shock mount, front and rear, and notice a tiny bit of play when lifting the bike off the ground ... just a tiny little "click". I think I need to adjust the spacers. I also agree, the shock bolt looks very cheap.

Looking forward to the final build!

I probably raised it but did not measure. I like my knee a little more bent than what is said to be "optimal". I've made a few cockpit adjustments since as well ... raised my bars a little and moved my controls in a bit. Running 780 bars and may trim them down 10 or 20 mm.

Really liking the looks of this bike .. may have to consider an XC build!

Bike looks great!

Re 170mm cranks. I put 165's on mine and did not notice one bit of difference other than fewer pedal strikes. There was a study done and linked to on MTBR forum that shows the loss of power is barely measurable. I've also read that shorter cranks are a little better for people with knee issues so there's that as well.

Quote from: emu26 on June 25, 2019, 03:42:41 AM
Sorry to keep bugging you, at the bottom of page 1 you measured BB height to the bottom of the BB, can you measure it to the centre of the BB?  Most BB heights are quoted to the centre and that makes it easier for us to compare to other frames, or bikes we have.  Thanks.

Oh and please make sure you have a velcro strap around that pump, my best mate was killed many years ago when his pump dislodged from his road bike, jammed and somehow sent him head first into a tree.

I just put a set of 29's on it ... I will measure it again for you tonight.

I'm gonna say no to the blues but that depends on your parks ... I think 100 rear is too short. Most parks around here (North Carolina, USA) say 150mm minimum.

That's the same from as my TanTan ..

http://chinertown.com/index.php/topic,2208.0.html

Some pictures from last weekend ..

The color flip doesn't show as well in these photos but it goes from a deep blue to purple to red then gold ...

Bike gets lots of compliments on the trails and I might have sold a couple more frames for TanTan ...

Tire is about 28.25" top to bottom.

Update on creaking ... It was the rear axle/ cassette and NOT the BB. I went ahead and remove the wheel and re-greased the cassette/hub/bearings and axle. Then I cleaned all the mating surfaces on the frame to hub connections, and reinstalled making sure everything was torqued down properly ..... quiet as a kitten now!

A few updates:

Wheels ... had some 29's built and the should be here on Monday. The pedal strikes were happening too often for me. Even with the 165mm cranks ... I noticed on a recent ride while following someone that they were pedaling in a lot of places that I couldn't or didn't because of the possibility of a pedal strike.

BB ... it's creaking badly. I noticed on my first, longer ride that my crankset came loose ... this was after about 9 miles. A few rides after getting it tightened back it started creaking. I wasn't sure where it was coming from so I torqued and greased all the pivot points, checked rear axle tightness but still had the creak. Pretty sure it is coming from the BB. I hate press fit BB's. Reading up on it I see where some say to use carbon paste instead of grease on aluminum BB cups like I have.

Got a great deal on a remaining 2018 Hope Tech 3 V4 front brake in blue .. so grabbed that and got a E4 for the back. Using the Shimano rotors for now but plan on replacing them with Hope rotors.



Started the wrap on the bike this week. I chose Avery Roaring Thunder Gloss color flip. I really like the blue/red/gold flip on this and the Avery color films are much easier to work with compared to 3m. I don't plan on wrapping the entire frame but haven't decided on an exact design yet ...





Hopefully finish the wrap this weekend and get some pics with the new wheels next week.

Quote from: sclyde2 on May 20, 2019, 08:24:45 PM

Quote from: supermoto65 on May 15, 2019, 10:56:34 AM

I'd be happy to answer any questions about the build or if there are any measurements you need or want ...

Hey Supermoto,
Yeah, I am interested in a few measurements:
BB height - floor to middle of BB spindle
Eye to eye at bottom out - distance between middle of shock mounts when the tyre contacts the frame.  Would need the shock off for this.
If you could do these measurements with your 29 wheels and tyres if would be much appreciated.  Thanks.

Darnit .. I just saw this and last night I had the shock off to install RWC needle bearings in the mounts. I did not get those measurements. I did measure the BB height from ground to bottom of BB and it was at 12" with my 27.5 2.6 Minions if that helps.

Finished the initial build last night.

Overall, I am pleased with the frame construction and quality. I ran into a few snags but nothing major (hoping the BB imperfection doesn't haunt me later). The internal cable inserts were no big deal to drill out ... cut down the long screws that intruded into the head tube without issues. Dropper cable was a little bit of a pain but I got it in ... TIP - route all cables BEFORE installing forks. That makes it much easier to grab the cables as the come into the head tube area.

I would probably have it painted if I ordered it again today ... I did not realize the UD Matte was also a paintjob and thought I would get the frame sooner if I opted out of custom paint. The UD Matte shows everything and there are a few areas that look like mistakes or just look aesthetically bad. The front of the headtube, for instance (see pics). I am designing a vinyl wrap for the bike ... not sure which way I am going with that yet so not a big deal.

Still need to cut down the steerer once I get the cockpit fit nailed down. Also have 165mm crankset to go in place of the 175mm on it now. On the lookout for a nicer dropper with a little more travel.

I hope to hit the trail this evening .. will report back with ride report.


Build Sheet


TanTan FM08 Frame - UD Matte 29'r version
Fork - 2019 Pike 150mm Debonair Charger 2 Boost
Shock - Fox - Factory DPS EVOL (210x55 for 150mm rear travel)
RWC Needle bearing shock bushings on the way .. not yet installed.
Groupset - SRAM Eagle GX
Brakes - Shimano XT 8000 180mm rotors
Wheels - 27.5" Race Face ARC 35 with Bitex hubs built by SpeedGearBike
Minion DHF and DHRII 2.6 WT
Spoon bars and 35mm stem
ODI Troy Lee lock on grips
Dropper - KS Eten 100mm with Wolftooth lever
Seatpost Clamp - Amazon blue anodized no name
WTB seat

I took most components off my 2019 Motobecane HAL Eagle Boost.
I got the Fox shock on Pros Closet for $149 shipped .. it's a 2017 Yeti takeoff.
SpeedGearBike built the wheels and I had them on my MB HAL for a couple of months ... very happy with them but I may have a 29 set built as well.


Shock all mounted. Was a little tricky holding the flip chip parts while getting the shock in place.


Fitting the Fork and bars




Eagle GX


Had to adapt a few parts to get the BB in .. the press I bought would not clear the inner bearing race so I had to improvise. Got it in without issue though. Plenty of grease applied so let's hope no creaking.


Crank is in.


32 Chainring fits easily.


Those are some nice blue fookers ... lol (Fooker Pedals on Amazon)







These pics are from a couple of nights ago ... I will post some pics of the completely finished bike later.

I'd be happy to answer any questions about the build or if there are any measurements you need or want ...

Quote from: emu26 on May 10, 2019, 09:02:03 PM
Take the screws all the way out, cut them down and I think your problem will be fixed. Make sure you put a nut on the screw before you cut it down, that way once it has been cut you can file down the cut end to clean it up and then remove the nut and that will clean up any burs you have without cross threading the screw.

With the rear, can you swap one side for the other?  I was super impressed with the BXT I got when it came to this, they had three different size entry points so you could swap and change for brake line, gear line with outer and then also just gear cable. It also allowed me to set up right side front brake like we ride down under.

Good luck with it, these little snags will all be worth it once it is finished and dialled in.

Yeah ... thanks ...planned to do all that ... just a bummer that wasn't addressed by them.

Started the build last night ... ran into a few snags.

Forgot to order 2 rear shock mounting kits .... for some reason I only ordered 1.

Frame issues:

1) When trying to insert my fork ... it was binding for some reason .... well when I took it out and looked down into the head-tube ... this is what I saw ..



Nice.. right? Yeah. The inserts for the internal cable routing have these screws that hold them in ... and they extend right into the head tube. Scratched up my fork stem nicely.

2) Rear triangle cable inserts. Again an issue with the cable routing inserts. The brake side has way too small of a hole in it for a brake line, while the drive side has a much larger hole.

I did put my 27.5 back wheel on it ... did not take pictures of clearance - rim was a 35mm with a Minion DHR II 2.6WT  - looks like you might get a 2.8 on there.

3) My donor bike frame has XT brakes with the adaptor for 180mm rotors. This frame take 180mm without adapter so my caliper bolts are too long.


I will get some pictures tonight.


Question on frame protection ... What is everyone using and what areas of the frame do I need to protect?

I will take some pics tonight.

So unwrapped it last night and had a good look at it. Looks good to me except one area pictured below ...

Any idea if this will affect BB at all?



Here are a couple of quick images of the frame ..





Just about finished the disassembly of the donor bike last night as well.

Tonight I will start the build!

And it begins!