Small victories. It’s been over a week since I’ve been able to pedal a bicycle. But, I’ve managed to keep myself from spiraling into a despondent character arc worthy of a DeWitt protagonist so I’m taking it as a win.
Jealous of all the folks I see out on their bicycles? Yepper do. But I’m optimistic, until I hear otherwise, that I’ll be groad riding before the end of May and mountain biking by the middle of June. If that sounds a little ‘rainbows and puppy dogs’ to you, then ferme ta bouche. It’s all blue pills until someone with a medical degree force-feeds me a red one.
Project MXg*
*{Drewitors Note: Project MXg is a nerdy experiment, ongoing. BUT, if you’re doing a ISCG single speed setup I would still recommend the MRP G5 2-bolt mini as the best option on the market.}
It’s massive, it significantly reduces adjustment, it requires an elevated chain stay or rotatable ISCG tabs {like the splined ISCG adapter on my Enigma}, and this is the “cheap” version with a steel backplate instead of the aluminum SL model. In other words, not by any stretch is the MXg perfect for the purpose.
And it’s smooth. Terry Walker “Not enough ‘O’s in SMOOooooooooooTH,” smooth. And it’s so quiet. MRP could build the raddest ISCG single-speed tensioner.
I ordered this MRP MXg guide, intended for HP+I bikes, before I was broken, and I’m excited to get a chance to ride it soon. It’s significantly larger in person than it appears online or even in photos in its intended high-pivot + idler bike setup. The large diameter roller, with 14 ‘mini-teeth’ spins effortlessly.
A single-speed-conversion-specific version would need a different back plate that situates the pulley below a standard double-diamond chainstay with fixed ISCG tabs. I’d probably also make the pulley a bit smaller just from the perspective of aesthetics. But my only real complaint is that the pulley is in a fixed position. If the pulley could slide horizontally, it would have a whole other plane of adjustment range.
I know that single-speeding is a tiny niche of hardtailing, and single-speeding without sliders or some kind of eccentric is even rarer. But as more companies launch one-speed kits for MicroSpline and XD drivers and more folks seem to be learning towards joining 50,000:1 club, I would love to see MRP making a tensioner specifically designed with this purpose in mind.
Way more hardtail frames have ISCG tabs than sliding dropouts. And it’s easy enough to BB mount and an adapter for frames that don’t. The name of the game is a wider adjustment range. More on the MXg when I’m back to pedaling my Banshee.
Support Over Squish
The grips on crutches are symbolic of everything that’s wrong with how we showroom comfort. I need to dig up what’s left of my last pair of crutches and swap the thick-ish SQLab grips over to my new ones because as soon as I put down any pressure, I can feel the hard bar beneath.
I want a contact point that has the right combination of squish and support. My ODI Longnecks would be too thin and soft, but some cut-down Chromag Wax grips might do the job splendidly? I tried a few sets in the past before settling on these SQLab 711R push-ons as the ultimate crutch grips.
The rubber runs cool, they come in FOUR sizes (S, M, L, XL), and installation was a breeze. Worth every penny if you’re going to be crutching around a while.
Anyway, I wasn’t even dropping in here to talk about grips, but rather saddles. A little update on the 3D printed BikeYoke Sagma I’ve been riding after spending a heck of a lot of time sitting on it over the Easter Weekend.
Somehow… well, actually, not somehow. Through advances in 3D printed techniques and materials, BikeYoke has managed to create a saddle that’s both more supportive and more comfortable than the more traditional covering-over-foam construction of the previous generation product.
If you’re a fresh seat curious and want to try one perch this year, this is the saddle I’m recommending. Good relationship with your preferred local shop? Ask them if they’ll bring in a demo. I’ll bet they’ll sell a few if folks have a chance to sit on them.
7iDP Youth Transition Knees
The Clairebarian has tried a lot of different knee pads on the trail and even more in shops and there is exactly one model that she’s ever been truly stoked on, the Youth Transition Knee from 7iDP.
She’s been wearing these for a good while now, so what’s new that I’m stoked about this week? Well, Claire was due for a new pair and after trying on a couple of different options {including my favourite, the Chromag Rift} we picked up a fresh pair of these.
Actually, her old ones were shit-kicked enough that the pulling on the freshies was a delightful difference.
{Above photo: Hardtail.Life}
My message then is two-fold. If you’re minuscule pedal masher is in the market for new grom armour be sure to check out what 7iDP is cooking. If your knee pads are horrid & haggard from frequent usage, maybe it’s time to treat yourself to a pair of freshies?!
Which reminds me, I should really use this downtime to wash mine. If you mixed up both sets and blind folded me, I could definitely get them back into pairs based on which ones smelled the worst. Gross, yuck, icky, and ewwww.
9Point8 Digit 2.0 Dropper Remote
Made in Canada, solidly supportive, and with an action so light it borders on vague when combined with some seat posts. That’s the beautiful, Wolf Tooth derived & 9Point8 evolved and produced, Digit 2.0 dropper remote.
I was switching dropper posts around as part of a couple of ongoing projects, which resulted in my BikeYoke Revive making its way onto my Freeride BMX. The Revive works perfectly with any number of actuators – BikeYoke Triggy, Wolf Tooth ReMote Pro, etc. – but the lightest action 9point8 remote is sweet all the same.
Put another way, I’m not suggesting anyone rush out and replace their awesome dropper remote for the sake of burning money, but if you’re in the market for a new lever, definitely check out this Canadian-made option. Especially if the lightest cable-pull action on the market interests you.
Surface Voyager Dropouts
They’re heavy; they’re beautiful; they’re Chromag.
For all my passion about ISCG-mounted single-speed tensioning, and the myriad of hardtails that it opens up to reliable, clean, efficient, one-speeding, I’ll readily admit that dedicated sliders still have an appeal. And these might be the nicest ones on the market?
That appeal stretches (pun intended) well beyond their significantly larger range of gearing adjustment* to a so clean and uncluttered aesthetic. Commissioning a new custom steel bike tomorrow, these would be the first-choice dropouts for me.
For the record, my ISCG chain guide setup is super-low-drag, faster to adjust than sliding/swinging dropouts, and the only maintenance required is changing a blown jockey wheel when one dies. Even a nice chain guide, like an MRP G5 SL 2-bolt, is a relative value compared to having sliders added to a frame or, in most cases, flipping a frame you love to pick up one with sliders built in.
My point? If you already own a rad rig sans-sliders, like my Banshee Enigma or Claire’s Samurai, and want to try single speeding, then an ISCG guide is an awesome and effective way to go. If it’s a custom frame or fresh build, and I can find a frame with sliders that fits the geometry I’m looking for, then these Voyager sliders would be my premier choix.
*{I’ll write more about this in the future, but to use an ISCG setup, one must plan to be as close to a ‘magic gear’ combination for their chainstay length as possible.}
And that’s a wrap on this week’s SBTISAOAF. Fingers crossed that there aren’t too many more of these before I’m back in the saddle, but in the meantime, I’m hoping you’re having all the best-ride-ever experiences.
Larry Talker Tunes
I have mixed feelings about Fleetwood Mac. On the one hand, I love the album Rumours and binge-listen to it for a couple of days every year. On the other hand, in a world where only the most established artists and AI programmers have any hope of making a living from art, is it not my duty to be seeking out and supporting original human expression, by original humans, from the now?
Anywho, I’ll leave the philosophy for someone with a much bigger brain than mine and join with you in enjoying this week’s LTT. Take it away Terry.
Model-T says:
Live albums. I haven’t listened to a lot of live albums. Seemingly rare, almost every band has at least one (obligatory?) live album in their catalogue. Great live recordings, the ones most of us may own: Bob Seger, Cheap Trick, Deep Purple (Made in Japan), and Peter Frampton, are a cut above most live albums.
This week’s album is one of those great live recordings. It passed me unnoticed until two weeks ago. Rumours Live by Fleetwood Mac
Released in 2023, after apparently being archived since being recorded on August 29th, 1977, live at the Forum in Inglewood, California. A teenager in the 70s, there is no doubt this band was at its peak. During lunch break, airwaves from every car radio blasted Go Your Own Way in the high school parking lot.
Even if you’re sick of hearing Rumours, give this a spin. What makes this live album worth a listen is because it is so familiar. A band hitting their stride, the production is sonic and clean, the ad libs and quirks make it all sound refreshingly new.
Rumors Live (Released 2023/ Recorded 1977).
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