EXPERT WORKSHOP ADVICE
DC POWER
I’m a 50-year-old who started riding in the late ’80s. After being injured while serving, I was told I’d never ride again, but I dabbled with hand-powered bikes, then got my first e-MTB in 2017. I’ve ridden every Ard Rock since, along with Mountain of Hell, TwentyFour12 and others. My problem is this – my 170mm(ish)-travel Vitus E-Sommet 297 makes me ride stuff that my legs and back just can’t cope with anymore! It’s going to have to go.
What I’m looking for is a lightweight, short-travel, ‘downcountry’ e-MTB. Do you guys know of anything that might fit my needs? I love the look of the Trek Fuel EXe, but at 140/150mm, it’s got a bit more travel than I want. The BH iLynx Race looks ideal, at 120/120mm, but they’re like rocking-horse poo over here and I’ve no idea what the Spanish brand’s customer care is like. The Orbea Rise squeaks into this category, too, at 140/140mm, but there must be others, surely?
Chris, via email
Good work on getting out there and surviving some pretty epic races, Chris! As you’ve found, there aren’t huge numbers of e-bikes of this ilk, although we suspect more will come as motors and batteries continue to get lighter. The Rise is the obvious answer here, but there are a few other options.
Pivot’s new Shuttle SL has 132mm of rear-wheel travel. All bar the (extremely expensive) top model come with 150mm forks, but adjusting the travel or swapping the fork could be an option. Other shortertravel bikes include the Merida eOne-Forty (140/140mm), Cube Stereo Hybrid 120 (130/120mm) and Canyon Neuron:ON (130/130mm). A slight curveball could be the Trek E-Caliber. It only has 60mm of travel at the back, but this is paired with a 120mm fork. It’s definitely more on the XC side of things, which might fit the bill, but might not.
On some of these shorter travel bikes the geometry is a little dated, so if you’re looking for something that has the same feel as your Vitus but with less bounce, it may be worth ‘sizing up’ to get a longer reach.
THORNY ISSUE
On a number of bridleways I ride regularly, hedge-cutting leaves hawthorn debris on the path, which inevitably causes punctures. I’m running a Schwalbe Nobby Nic Performance front tyre and a Maxxis Minion DHR II EXO on the rear, both with inner tubes. The wheels are tubeless-ready. Would converting to a tubeless set-up prevent or reduce the number of thorn punctures? If so, what would you recommend?
Tim Harper, via email
Converting to tubeless is one of the easiest and best ways to improve a bike’s performance, and we’d generally suggest riders do it from the off. In your case, running the wheels without tubes ought to drastically cut the number of punctures you get, as the tubeless sealant inside the tyres should plug any small holes made by thorns almost instantly. It’ll also improve ride quality, giving a suppler feel (as there’s no inner tube rubbing on the inside of the tyre), allow lower pressures and save weight.
Your current tyres should be ready to run tubeless, unless they’re several years old – check the sidewall graphics to be sure. You’ll need to buy a pair of tubeless valves and some sealant. There are loads of valves on the market, but without knowing what wheels you have, we’d suggest Stan’s NoTubes’ valves, which have a cone-shaped rubber bung that works with most rim shapes.
You may also need to add some tubeless rim tape, or replace worn existing tape. In this case, first clean the rim with isopropyl alcohol, then wrap an appropriately-wide tubeless tape once or twice round the circumference. Many issues with tubeless sealing can be attributed to poor rim tape application, so doing this right from the start is important.
WALK THROUGH
SETTING UP AIR-SPRUNG SUSPENSION
1 Finding the correct spring rate (ie. air pressure) for your bike, riding style and terrain is vital. A fork or shock that’s too stiff or soft can be dangerous, or at least make your bike uncomfortable or difficult to handle. Sit in the saddle wearing your riding gear and pack, and with the compression damping fully open. On a long-travel bike, tweak the air pressure until the rear shock sags 30 per cent into its travel. For a trail bike, try about 25 per cent. You can adjust these figures to suit your riding, but not by more than a few per cent, or you’ll start to upset the bike’s dynamic geometry. For suspension forks, 18 to 20 per cent sag is common.
2 The next step is to set up the damping. Bear in mind that although many suspension forks and shocks offer external rebound and compression adjustment, these dials have to cover a wide range of spring rates. So, there will usually only be two or three ‘clicks’ of adjustment that you can use to fine-tune things for your particular weight, riding style and preferred trails. Lighter riders (low air pressure) will be at one end of the settings range, while heavier folk (higher air pressure) will be at the other.
3 Set the rebound first, as this is directly related to spring rate. (Higher pressures require more damping to keep the suspension controlled as it re-extends after a bump.) Starting at the rear, turn the dial until the shock only oscillates once after a good-sized compression, such as riding off a kerb. Then increase or decrease the damping one click at a time until the suspension is quick enough to actively track the ground and recover between hits (otherwise it’ll ‘pack down’ into its travel and begin feeling harsh), without bouncing you down the trail. Match the fork rebound feel to the shock.
4 If you’ve got your sag and rebound correct but find yourself using too much travel too often, you need to make the spring curve of the fork or shock more progressive, by installing volume spacers. These reduce the volume of the air spring, which increases the end-stroke ramp-up for a given pressure. If your sag is correct but you can’t reach full travel, try removing volume spacers (if you have any installed), one at a time. This will make the spring curve more linear, with less ramp-up. Remember to record your pressures before releasing air from the fork or shock to install or remove tokens.
5 Now the spring supports your weight, you can adjust the compression damping. Low (shaft)- speed compression controls how the suspension responds to pedalling, pumping and bodyweight shifts under braking. High-speed compression limits how fast it can move to absorb impacts. Start with the manufacturer’s recommended settings (or low-speed in the middle and highspeed fully open), then turn the dial one or two clicks in each direction to find the behaviour that best suits your riding style/terrain. Compression damping reduces suspension sensitivity, so only add as much as is needed to increase support.
6 Getting the balance right between the front and rear suspension is vital to get the most from a bike. If the fork is overly firm, supportive or fast compared to the rear end, this will shift the weight balance backwards, negatively affecting handling. The opposite is also true, and potentially more dangerous. If you bounce the front and rear suspension together in a flat car park, the fork and shock should offer similar support and shaft speeds under compression and rebound. Adjust the damping until they do.
BLUFFER’S GUIDE
HANDLING TWEAKS
Tips to improve how your bike rides
Stem length
A longer stem moves your bodyweight forward, helping you to get weight over the front tyre for more grip through flatter corners. If your bike feels twitchy, it can also help slow down the handling a touch. When sat in the saddle, it will make the front of the bike feel roomier. Fitting a shorter stem quickens the bike’s reactions to cornering inputs. It also pushes your weight further back, so you don’t get pitched forward on steep and rough terrain, and makes manuals easier.
Angle-adjust headset
These can be used to slacken a bike’s head angle, to improve stability at speed and stop you getting pitched over the front. This is particularly useful on older bikes with shorter and more upright frame geometry. They work using cups with offset bearings, which change the angle of your fork’s steerer tube as it goes through your frame’s head tube. Generally, they’re used to knock 0.5 to 1.5 degrees off the head angle, depending on the type of headset your frame is designed to take. Not every bike can accept an angled headset, but they’re increasingly being factoryfitted, to offer riders the opportunity to fine-tune handling and fit.
Offset bushings
Offset shock-mount bushings are another way to relax your bike’s head angle, while also lowering the bottom bracket for improved cornering. They do this by shortening the eye-to-eye length of the rear shock. This doesn’t change the shock stroke, so the same rear-wheel travel is maintained. However, offset bushings slacken the effective seat tube angle by the same amount as the head angle, which may negatively affect climbing. They also reduce the frame’s reach figure slightly. Depending on your frame, they can be used at one or both ends of the shock.
Seat & bar position
Sliding the saddle forward steepens your bike’s effective seat tube angle, which can make pedalling more efficient on steep climbs, and shifts your weight forward, too. However, it shortens the distance from seat to bar so can leave you feeling cramped. Rolling the bar backward in the stem is a way to make your bike feel less stretched-out, without fitting a shorter stem, which may have a more drastic impact on handling.
