MEATengines

The Clairebarian’s Next Mountain Bicycle (1)

I get asked quite a lot about Claire’s bike, both online and in person. And, while the questions come in all shapes and sizes, the most common two inquiries are, firstly, if I would choose to go with a rigid for again for her 20″ bike and, secondly, what her next bike will be.

The answer to the first question is a resounding yes. We don’t use a tow rope or shuttle, so the lighter weight of the rigid front end has absolutely been beneficial for getting up climbs, whether it’s pedaling her heart out in the grannie gear or off the bike pushing up the hill one foot at a time. 

Also, the bottom bracket on a 20″ bike is low enough, even with a smaller chainring installed, that she regularly thwacks her ring. I think the static geometry has been a real net benefit. Her Early Rider Seeker 20″ has hydraulic disk brakes and a clutch derailleur which are both key features in my opinion. 

I just wish I was able to find some more aggressive rubber in stock whether a 2.4″ Flow-Snap from Vee Rubber or the pending 20″ DHF from Maxxis. The ‘rona related parts shortages we’ve experienced are the key reason that we jumped on putting her next bike, a 24″ wheeled Marin, together well in advance of her needing it. 

The Clairebarian
The Clairebarian’s Early Rider Seeker 20″ has delivered everything we wanted for her first trail bike. It’s very suprising, and a bit sad, to me that they no longer have Canadian distribution.

When it came time to choose a 24″ bike a surprising percentage of folks I talk to seem surprised that we’re sticking with a hardtail. I’m not certain why. Nina and I both mountain bike on hardtails and I think the lighter weight and lower maintenance makes even more sense for a kids’ bike than it does for us two. At any rate, buying a full suspension bike for her first 24″ wheeled bike (or 26″, or 27″, or 29″) never crossed my mind for a moment.

The plan this round is to add a suspension fork. Specifically, a 2012 Fox 32 Float that Pope Jimmy at SuspensionWerx built for Nina’s old hardtail years ago. It’s the nifty lightweight version with no webbing on the arch and scalloped crowns. My plan was originally to drop it to 80mm travel, or shorter, to roughly match the geometry of most 24″ rigs; however, the smart folks who designed her new frame build it around the axle-to-crown height of a nominal 100mm travel 27″ fork. Bonus.  

{*EDIT (07/30): confirming if the stock fork is a 26″, 100mm, Judy TK – 473mm a-to-c – or a 27″, 100mm, Judy TK – 488mm a-to-c. Un-sagged, Claire’s F32 currently has a 490mm a-to-c at 120mm travel.}

Claire’s favourite tool in the shop is absolutely the headset press. She’s done a few headsets for me and those in her mom’s commuter and mountain bikes. This is the first time she’s pressed in her own.

I actually didn’t have to go down the geometry chart rabbit hole very far to know exactly what 24″ hardtail I wanted to buy for the Clairebarian’s next step. Marin’s San Quentin 24″ rocks. Claire’s favourite riding buddy Derek has been putting one to good use and seeing the bike in person, it really is just a smaller size of their take on a hardcore 27″ wheeled hardtail. From the 65° to the 1029mm wheelbase, it looks like too much fun. 

The complete bike comes with a good spec for the price with a RockShox Judy in front, Shimano hydraulic brakes, and a clutch-equipped MicroShift drivetrain but we already had a fork and 60% of a bike ready in a box so I’m feeling very, very lucky to have been able to purchase the SQ-24″ as a frame only. Last year Marin started selling a number of their bikes with a frame-only option and the values are very good. The 27″ version of the San Quentin is currently available as a frame kit and if you could see yourself purchasing a 24″ frame in the future that’s some feedback that’s worth giving to your local Marin dealer. 

The goal is for Claire to build as much of the bike as possible. So far we have a headset installed but parts are starting to come together and I figure I have until October before she’s ready for the move.
Those crazy kids at Marin are using a 36.5 seat collar, which would not have been something I had laying around except that I needed one for my SB104 Before Brunch Ride project.

Parts are coming together. My grom has a sharp eye for the shinies and we’re playing a bit fast-and-loose with the theory that if we already own it it’s cheaper than going out and buying something. It started with the 36.5mm QR off of my SB104 BBR project and it’s extending to other areas of the bike too. And fair enough. What am I going to get for a used stem, even a high-end one, versus then just turning around and buying something ugly, heavy, and boring? Chances are I may just break even. That’s what I keep telling myself. 

There are two obvious holes in my plan right now. I’m working to track down some 24″ 32h rims, with a strong eye towards the new Crest, and my plan to buy some 145mm Spawn Styx cranks seems to have been undermined by the ‘vid so I’m currently planning to try my hand and cutting, drilling, and tapping some old Stylo cranks that Crash Test Kevin had sitting around. 

Claire’s very excited about how this is coming along. She “found” some anodized orange aluminum bolts to replace the water bottle bolts and now we’re in a bit of a holding pattern waiting on wheels & cranks.

The used parts are many. CTK’s old XT rear hub, a DT front hub I’ve had on Pinkbike’s buy-and-sell for ages, a Wolf Tooth headset, and, of course, the Chromag Radar pedals she’s had on a few bikes now. My first choice for brakes was to acquire a pair of Magura MT-4s and install some HC lever blades I have; however, like so many parts they’re sold out for the foreseeable future. As luck would have it, I have some sticking Guide brakes that a customer at the shop (thanks Rob!) gave me – just a full master cylinder rebuild away from being able to stop the bike! 

I’m going to leave it there for today. My plan is to do a couple or a few more updates as the bike comes together and then, in way less time than I currently feel like I have to get this done, it’ll be time for a first ride report. 

Cheers!