Finish It!
The last time SBTISAOAF appeared in the title of a SBTISAOAF piece was July 11th, 2025, or, 11/07/25 if you use the ‘International’ date format, or 07/11/25 if you use the ‘North American’ date format and there was some confusion, even though it was published in July, because it went live on the 12th, which is a Saturday. So, a little over a year ago I flipped the title and subtitle, and I’ve never been 100% stoked on the finish of it. So, I’m trying this way again, but with an alphanumeric format to the date. And, yes, I’m aware that this too is in the ‘North American’ style rather than the ‘International’ style, but isn’t there some saying that the creator is always right, in matters of taste? No? Ah, too bad.
Related but unrelated, today was my first day back in the suspension shop after Cumberlandworx, and wow are we riders ever mean to our sh*t. Stinky oil, scarred air shafts, corroded shims, seized bearings, cracked damper bodies. I mean, with the amount of service I’ve done in the last two days, and have yet to do, I’m not throwing this around as a judgement so much as a reminder. Extended downtime sucks and hard parts are expensive, and sometimes even rare.
The last major bit of service I have to do on my Arcturian is a rebuild of the pre-production Project 321 G3 rear hub that I’ve been beating on since October 2023. I’ve opened them a couple of times for a proper cleanout and some fresh Dumonde Tech Freehub Oil and I have pulled seals and greased the hub shell bearings, but they’re well and truly due. Amazingly, the freehub bearings themselves are still spinning like new!? Anywho, in addition to being continually impressed with the magnetic-pawl-fast G2 hubs, G2.5 hub {Stan’s}, and these G3 hubs from a performance perspective, I’m also impressed they’re so well sealed form units having such little drag. Though, I do always note in these situations that I’m not a hoser. I’ll have a teardown and update piece, probably next week, as I continue onto the next few hundred hours of G3 single-speeding.
[Aside] Fair warning, since it’s a ‘minor’ obsession, that said teardown and update will definitely include references to a Project 321 G-BMX super-low-drag and high-engagement thread-on freewheel that doesn’t exist, and probably never will, but absolutely needs to be a thing. Along with Chromag alt-bars, proper grippy flat-pedal shoes with actually wide toe boxes, a thicker version of the ODI Longneck push-on grips {not for me}, and any number of other products I’m not sure how we live without {slight exaggeration}. [/Aside]
Annnnnnywho, I should probably roll on with it here or it’s going to be Saturday {jokes on me} before this goes live, again.
{All photos by Andrew unless noted.}
Machined, Not Laser Etched.
Compared to laser-etching, machining logos into metal parts adds significant costs for zero improvement in performance. And, let’s be honest, laser etched anodized aluminum looks pretty rad. But whether it’s a limited production batch or a top-end brand trying to bougie {or boogie, or budge, or bludgeon – all the ‘B’s} their way into a saturated market take it from my anecdotal experiences, if not my personal lust for tool marks, that machined graphics grab eyeballs. And post machined graphics? Oof!
There’s perhaps no better example than my {Claire’s?!} ano-pink P321 G2 hub set that’s been punished on Enduro-travel sag-wagons and rigid or stapler-build single-speeds since October, 2017. The front hub graphic pops in a way that invites even non-bicycle-nerds to inquire as to its provenance. It jumps out of photos in a way that a laser-etched graphic simply does not. And I know {I know, I know!} it’s a silly feature to, well, feature, but, shout out to Jake Liles, it really does look stoketastic. Not just machined, mind you, post-machined for that graphic contrast.
Profile Racing, North Shore Billet, Paul Components, and countless other examples of nice stuff with machine logos exists in the bicycle world. But I can’t think of an example that pops more than these hubs.
Cosmic Lilac.
Painting a bike tomorrow? My current one-colour frame favourite for steel tubing is the ‘Seaside Blue’ that Chromag is using on the Stylus MX, although Reeb’s ‘Sea Foam Pearl’ option is a similar second. Summer shades that look great year round. I must have the blues, but Surly’s Elderberry Tonic Sorceress screams to me, Soma’s Pelham Blue with yellow decals is classic, Rivendell’s Periwinkle pops, Kona’s Metallic Gentian goes, and I miss my Marinster Truck in Gloss Blue. And, I mean, Claire’s ’20 Samurai, right?!?
[Aside] Okay, and, who doesn’t wish they bought a ‘Dusty Rose’ Unit in 2022?[/Aside]
Still, as I walked down the stairs of Sensual Cycles today with a couple of crown races in hand {more on that some other day}, and I saw my lilac Mini-Max, and, yeah, that’s a great looking rig. At some point I need to figure out a wider gear range than my 34×11-26t {manual shift to 28t} but other than that it’s a lovely bicycle experience, with cargo upside, in a perfect colour.
Not the perfect colour mind you, there are plenty of those, but oof are there ever some boring belly-button bicycle tones on shop floors these days? Cannondale killed black-on-black-on-black-on-black-on-black in like ’99 and you’re not going to do it better, so try something else. Maybe lean into the past and just steal whatever is currently cool in BMX? Everyone loves metal flake! Just tone it down with the fifty shades of shades.
Saying “No” to Black Grips
I can’t say anything about the people running Lizard Skins, I’ve never met them, but Marta and the folks who used to run Oury grips {1968-2017}, before Lizard Skins bought them, were beyond lovely. I met them on a couple occasions at Interbike and regularly hold it up as a reason for trade shows to exist. Before that, they were just another {good} option for rubberizing my handlebar, and afterwards? Well, they were that but also some genuine folks making a product they believed in.
Yeah so, I was in Vegas the year they launched pink grips and stopped by to say hello, not because of the bright new colour but because I find nice people magnetic, and received their honest assessment of the state of selling bicycle components. The vast majority of folks, bigger than all other SKUs put together, are going to buy black grips. But they want to choose that option from a sea of colour, so every brand and shop needs to stock multiple other options.
I’ve seen this play out many times personally. Customer asks if we have any grip colours other than black. No, but we can order in anything you like. Customer looks at pictures of coloured grips on B2B site. Customer decides they were always going to just buy black all along. But why not treat your bike to a bit of personality that doesn’t cost one dollar more even though economies of scale would suggest that black grips would be cheaper?
I can sense your skepticism. You don’t have to be rad like Brixton-Jim and boat your bike with a red grip on the port side and a green grip on the starboard side, you can match your frame colour or purposely not match your frame colour, or match your decals, or just do what I do and put iridescent purple on everything, or do what Claire does and rock all-blue-all-the-time, but be stoked and pick something that isn’t basic.
Or, okay, fine, buy what you want. But at least thing about it?
i40 {or i35} Front Rims
It’s decently well known that Maxxis WT tires {all their MTB tires are now ‘Wide Trail’ so they’ve dropped that distinction, but same-same} were designed around an i35 rim and there were {are?} multiple folks who preferred them up front on an i40. Yes, as from XC to DH an internal 30mm rim has sort of become the standard {with the odd i28mm or i32mm option}, it’s hard to argue with the fact they work awesome with the most common rim dimension as well. But there’s plenty of folks who’ve never tried anything wider.
In my experience, there have been a number of tires – namely every Bontrager 2.6″ I’ve ridden – that I think work better with a wider rim, at least for the plunking I do on a mountain bike, and I now count, as a front tire, Schwalbe’s radialish Magic Mary amongst them. I’m still not advocating for more-radial tires at any cost for every rider {see what’s happened with Specialized tire pricing} but for folks who want a more progressive ride without running inserts, I think there’s logic to the purchase. In the future I suspect many riders and racers will run a more-radial front tire with a standard construction rear tire.
Running my Gravity Pro Magic Mary, which I didn’t love-love originally, on an i40 rim rather than an i30 rim I’ve dropped 3psi and noticed no negatives in support, especially cornering {not that I’m a cornering master}, but increased braking traction and comfort. Essentially a more controlled feel. It will be interesting to see, but if/when the industry starts shipping wheelsets with i30 rear {I like the taller tire profile on the back} and i35 or i40 rims up front, let me be the first to say it’s not just another micro-improvement to sell new stuff, I appreciate the difference.
The Perfect Dominion Brake Bleed
The 4-piston Hayes calipers on my Arcturian will have suffered seven years of use come this November. Still on the original pistons and seals, though they’ve been thoroughly cleaned a couple of times, and still retracting and engaging like a well oiled team. The original levers were swapped for carbon blades off my 2-piston brakes {with the piston rods adjusted to match the blades that came off} and despite needing a bit of grease to keep them quiet and a slightly less-than-new feel, they’re still excellent. I bring it up because I still receive the odd message from folks frustrated with the lever pressure after their bleeds and after one too many long e-mail chains I’m stoked to have finally figured out what folks are missing.
I’m not pretending to know why this is the case, with the Hayes brakes or any other system, but step one in achieving the perfect bleed with many brakes is to wind the lever reach adjustment all the way out {lever is at it’s farthest from the bar}. Just try it, blade out, bleed the brakes as you will, and adjust it back to the starting point. I count turns and for me the Dominions feel right with the lever adjusted about 1.5 turns out from the closest Reach position.
[Aside] Using the same method, the 2-piston Hayes brakes feel even snappier. It’s sad that four-pistons have become such a psychological necessity because the T2 and Cura2 are two of the better brake systems I’ve used long term. [/Aside]
If bleeding the brakes with the lever reach adjusted to max doesn’t quite have you there, my Hayes riding co-workers turned me on to one more trick {bleeding new or used brakes}. Start, with the primary cylinder closed, with both syringes at the two caliper bleed ports and cycle fluid back and forth there first to find any sneaky bubbles that may be hiding behind the pistons. Then close one side, thread the syringe into the lever {tighten it with a tool} and bleed it up from the caliper.
The {4-piston} brakes will still have a bit more throw than some other systems and this is compounded mentally by just how light action they are, but the engagement will feel tauter than a lot of Dominions that I’ve pulled on. New and used* between Claire’s grom hands and the difference they’ve made {instantly way longer descents without taking hand brakes} and my mechanic hands** and the difference they make for me on long descents, they’re all we’ve been mountain biking on since I moved the Gustav Pro brakes over to the Omnium.
*{IMHO the quality of the lever internals and availability of pistons/seals/bladders makes them one of the few used brake systems worth considering.}
**{Riding year round, ’round here, we run fantastic-plastic lever blades for the boost in cold/wet weather enjoyment. I wish this was an affordable option for everyone who struggles to manage their hands in braking-heavy technical winter riding.}
Climbmax
I ordered a fresh pair of Shimano GF6 flat pedal shoes this week. It’ll be my third pair. As much as I enjoy the convenience of the GF8 BOA adjuster, especially pedaling to/from work, laces speak my Luddite love language. They’re my best compromise shoe. Awesome grip, nice stiffness boost standing & cranking compared to many other flat pedal shoes I’ve used. But wow do I wish that Shimano, or someone, would bring the knowledge they have from making clip-in shoes, that is that some folks have wide feet and prefer some space, and make me the same shoe with space for my toes.
Is wasn’t a huge deal for me until I started wearing zero-drop, wide toed shoes as my dailies, but now I have to make a pouty face every time I put on cycling shoes. And please don’t send me a note that the Five Ten Freerider {but not Freerider Pro} are wide enough for you. I’m happy for you, really, but no matter how many folks suggest it, it still, shockingly, isn’t a solution for my grumbles.
I know this is supposed to be SBTISAOAF but, the said shoes would be so stokefying that I can actually imagine my happiness putting them on and so I’ve decided it tracks.
{Photo by Colin Amos}
Larry Talker Tunes: By Terry Walker
Rolling through a Rock/Bluesy rotation all week, and settled on a terrific album from a band I’ve never heard of, even though they’ve been famous for over three decades: Gov’t Mule’s Peace… Like a River from 2023.
Stand out tracks:
- Same as it Ever Was
- Shake Our Way Out (ZZ Top flavour you won’t be surprised about)
- Made My Peace (a favourite track)*
- Your only Friend
*{Drewitors note: Originally I was thinking “You can keep your nInE MiNuTe song Model-T!” but Made My Peace has a Supertramp vibe that I’m 100% into. Never heard of Gov’t Mule either; great ‘find’ TW.}
{Photo by Gov’t Mule.}
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