Quote from: jonathanf2 on August 02, 2023, 11:10:10 AM
I bought these photochromatic glasses on a whim. I thought they would be junk, but they're surprisingly clear and the photochromatic feature works decently for sub $5 USD. I now use them exclusively when I know I'll be riding into the night. Though I still use tradition tinted glasses for daytime.

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805019047818.html

I use these same glasses (both photochromatic and tinted lenses) and I agree they are surprisingly good.  I have tried various versions of Kapvoe, "POC", and other glasses, and these have been my favorite so far.

Here's my new ride.  Size large with the 120mm rear link.  I slowly purchased parts over a period of about six months as I saw them pop up on sale or on local classifieds.  The color ended up being a darker blue than I was hoping for, but I've grown to really like it.  It looks black in low light and photos, but up close or in the sun the blue peeks through.  I appreciate everyone's experience and shared knowledge, it really helped me with my build.

I've been riding this for a couple of months now and have been really happy with it.  The bike shop weighed it at around 26 lbs.  Could I have saved a little weight...yep.  I could have gone with a shorter or non-dropper seat post (currently running a 210mm OneUp) .  I could have built up a lighter wheelset, used shorter bars, etc. etc.  My focus with the build was to create a light duty trail bike rather than a XC bike, so I'm happy with how it turned out.  It's a nice compliment to my longer travel trail bike.  The only thing that I plan on updating is the rear suspension.  I purchased a used shock before the 120mm link came out, so I'm currently running a 42.5mm shock.  When I do my next shock tune-up I'll change it out to 45mm.  I also found a 130mm fork with the intention to decrease travel to 120mm, but so far I like it at 130mm and will probably keep it there. 

I'm using a Lyne Components Holy Rail to hold two water bottles.  I can fit a small and large water bottle in the frame; there's just not quite enough clearance for two large water bottles. The Holy Rail has been great, I'd highly recommend it if you're looking to get a couple of bottles on the frame.

All in all, I like my positioning on the bike, it's comfortable for long stretches of climbing in the saddle. It's also pretty quick on the climbs, I've been setting numerous PR's on trails I've ridden for years. I'm not smashing my old times by any means, but I may be a minute or so faster on a 20-minute climb.  Key for me is that I feel like I have more energy in reserve when I get to the top of the climb.  It's also a different feeling on the down than my longer travel bike, where I usually just point and smash.  Coming down on this bike it's more of a dance, trying to avoid the worst of the rocks/roots/etc., but it's light and easy to throw around.  It can handle some rougher stuff, I just have to pay closer attention and take it a little slower.  My times coming down on smoother, flowy trails are actually a little faster than my long travel bike.  On chunky, more technical terrain my long travel bike no question is faster and more plush coming down.  I'm comfortable taking it off jumps or drops of a couple of feet...anything more and I physically wince.  Maybe the frame can handle it, but I'm not comfortable pushing it.

Overall, I'm really happy with the bike. 

I've reached out to Carbonda a couple of times over the past several weeks as well.  I'm trying to purchase a couple of extra derailleur hangers to have on hand.....and crickets.  No response from them at all.

Quote from: 00Garza on April 21, 2023, 09:18:20 AM
Yeah if you search mtb shorts or mtb jersey you get mostly knockoff stuff. There seems to be one generic pair of shorts sold under different names.
The Rockbros mtb shorts look halfway decent, but no personal experience with them. The fast house jerseys look good. Might take a shot at one in the near future.

For mountain bike shorts, some of my riding buddies use the Arsuxeo branded shorts and have no complaints.  I've never tried them mostly because I don't like stretch elastic waist bands, just personal preference:
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2251832638012459.html?spm=a2g0o.detail.1000060.1.66261924VLc6Gr&gps-id=pcDetailBottomMoreThisSeller&scm=1007.13339.291025.0&scm_id=1007.13339.291025.0&scm-url=1007.13339.291025.0&pvid=6db5b925-5cc7-4a6a-8fac-6f16a5c59e1e&_t=gps-id%3ApcDetailBottomMoreThisSeller%2Cscm-url%3A1007.13339.291025.0%2Cpvid%3A6db5b925-5cc7-4a6a-8fac-6f16a5c59e1e%2Ctpp_buckets%3A668%232846%238113%231998&pdp_npi=3%40dis%21USD%2126.7%2118.96%21%21%21%21%21%402103244816820992240058690ef622%2112000021563385552%21rec%21US%212546784661&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa&_randl_shipto=US

If you're interested in more of a brand name short, I just picked up some Backcountry "Second Quality" shorts for not much more than the generic shorts on AliExpress.  They've been great so far, I can't even tell why they're second quality.  I did order the wrong size originally though. I'm a 33 waist, and I thought their sizing chart showed that to be a medium size.  Nope, had to exchange them for a large size.  I have long legs and the shorts hit the center of my knee:
https://www.steepandcheap.com/backcountry-empire-bike-short-mens-bccz2pc

They have 10-inch inseam length bike shorts as well, if that's your preference:
https://www.steepandcheap.com/backcountry-slickrock-bike-short-mens-bccz2pg?CMP_ID=PLA_GOc005BR&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=PLA&k_clickid=_k_CjwKCAjw6IiiBhAOEiwALNqncSwK_b72n8LyfnlfRk7IKjNwA-m6NkbkP5uHKPD9NDiikMN_zOdEERoCymEQAvD_BwE_k_&utm_id=go_cmp-795052476_adg-45358446630_ad-189327077725_pla-421016483676_dev-c_ext-_prd-BCCZ2PG-OLI-M_mca-115422057_sig-CjwKCAjw6IiiBhAOEiwALNqncSwK_b72n8LyfnlfRk7IKjNwA-m6NkbkP5uHKPD9NDiikMN_zOdEERoCymEQAvD_BwE&gclid=CjwKCAjw6IiiBhAOEiwALNqncSwK_b72n8LyfnlfRk7IKjNwA-m6NkbkP5uHKPD9NDiikMN_zOdEERoCymEQAvD_BwE

Quote from: 00Garza on April 21, 2023, 09:18:20 AM
Yeah if you search mtb shorts or mtb jersey you get mostly knockoff stuff. There seems to be one generic pair of shorts sold under different names.
The Rockbros mtb shorts look halfway decent, but no personal experience with them. The fast house jerseys look good. Might take a shot at one in the near future.

I ordered a couple of mountain bike jerseys from "loose ride store" a couple of months ago.  They fit me well and have been running strong so far this spring.  Their size chart was pretty accurate for me.  The weather hasn't been really hot yet, so I don't have a good gauge on how well the polyester knit will breath, but based on my rides so far in 70-80F weather they should be no worse than some of my other brand name jerseys.

I bought this tie-dye print jersey...because why not:
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804597328306.html?spm=a2g0o.order_detail.order_detail_item.3.36d9f19c6omY2r&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa&_randl_shipto=US

I liked the jersey so much I just ordered a couple more from the same store.  Tracking says they should arrive here within the week, so fingers crossed they fit me as well as the other jerseys do:
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256805150253142.html?spm=a2g0o.store_pc_groupList.8148356.21.5de64507ctb9UE&pdp_npi=2%40dis%21USD%21US%20%2422.80%21US%20%2413.68%21%21%21%21%21%40210321b416820957647052255e5ebb%2112000032658014635%21sh&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa&_randl_shipto=US
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804724149881.html?spm=a2g0o.order_detail.order_detail_item.4.55aff19celGqRC&gatewayAdapt=glo2usa&_randl_shipto=US

I also like the look of these, but haven't tried them yet:
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804602057924.html?gatewayAdapt=glo2usa&_randl_shipto=US

Another option, I read on a forum a while back where someone raved about 3/4 sleeve baseball jerseys they ride in.  I've never tried them, but I may order a shirt at some point:
https://www.boombah.com/us/product.html?item=598261

Hey:

I've been following this website for a few years.  Found it originally when I was looking for recommendations on new drivetrain parts for my trail bike.  I appreciated the info I found then, so I came back to the website a few months ago as I was looking to build up a new XC/marathon bike.  Ultimately, I purchased a Carbonda FM936 frame and will start building the bike up this week.  I appreciate the guidance I gleaned from everyone's collective experience.

Even more interesting....they sell the bike (frame or complete) with an Ohlins TTX Air 1 shock.  I didn't know a shock like that would fit in the frame.

https://www.detrailbikes.com/sv/produkt/kolfiberram-stig-115/

Here's a few options, none of them are really budget pricing though.  First is the Wolf Tooth Components chainring (they have both oval and round chainrings):

https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/collections/mountain/products/direct-mount-chainrings-for-sram-cranks?variant=26132214021

Next is the oval chainring from Absolute Black:

https://absoluteblack.cc/sram-oval-boost-direct-mount-chainring-for-12spd-shimano-hyperglide-hg-plus-chain/

Next is Alugear (both round and elliptical).  Unlike Wolf Tooth and Absolute Black that have specific teeth profiles, the Alugear chainrings are designed to work with both SRAM and Shimano chains.  If you're in the United States, you can purchase them cheapest here:

https://www.alugearsale.com/alugear-elm-narrow-wide-boost-chainring-for-1x-sram-3-bolt-direct-mount-sale/

Otherwise, you can purchase them from their company website or from r2-bike:

https://alugear.com/chainrings-1x/219-10951-round-boost-for-sram-3-bolts-mtb.html#/26-size-26t/11-color-black
https://r2-bike.com/ALUGEAR-Chainring-round-ELM-Direct-Mount-1-speed-narrow-wide-SRAM-MTB-3-hole-BOOST

Last option I found is OneUp Components and their "Switch" chainring:

https://www.oneupcomponents.com/collections/chainrings-round/products/switch-sdm

Hope this helps.

A starting place to learn about the Brain system is on Specialized's website:

https://www.specialized.com/gb/en/stories/brain-technology

Depends on which holes you're asking about.  First, there are threaded holes on the seatstay used to to mount the hose that runs between the shock and the "Brain" mounted on the rear triangle near the axle.  Second, there is a larger hole to mount the Brain itself, since it has kind of an "L" shape.  When installed, part of the Brain is external on the frame, part of it is internal in the frame.  The larger hole for the internal part of the Brain is what I am questioning how well a rubber stopper will work to protect.

Oh, and here are a couple of pictures of the mounting bolts on the swingarm for the Brain shock hose, as well as the Brain mounting location near the rear axle.

I'm curious about this frame as well.  I was set to purchase the Carbonda FM909 until I saw this post.  However, I'm still on the fence because I have a question/concern with the rear triangle.  It appears that the seller provides two options for the link: 1) threaded link for a 200x50 Brain shock and 2) normal link for a 190x40 standard shock.  However, there is only one option for the rear triangle itself.  By comparison, Specialized offers two different links and two different rear triangles depending on which version of the Epic you buy.  The Specialized Epic rear triangle has the threaded link, bolt holes on the non-drive side swingarm for the Brain hose, and a larger hole near the rear axle for the Brain itself to install on the rear triangle.  The Specialized Epic EVO rear triangle has the regular link, and it eliminates both the bolt holes on the swingarm and the extra hole for the Brain near the rear axle.   

I reached out to the seller about this, and they confirmed they only provide a single version of the rear triangle whether you want to use a Brain shock or not.  It has the holes on the swingarm, which is not too big of a deal to me, I can just install some bolts to plug them up.  I am concerned, however, with the hole for the Brain.  Since I plan on using a regular rear shock, the seller said they will provide a rubber stopper to plug the hole in the back.

I have asked for photos of this and will post them if/when I get them.

Anyone have experience with a Brain shock that could comment on whether I should be concerned with this rubber stopper design?