Dirtbox 1
So as mentioned in my intro I am an off road equivalent of the bike tart himself. I like nice looking, well engineered kit and I am a sucker for red anodising! So in my first proper post I thought I’d just show you a few things that have interested me recently.
I saw quite a lot of nice frames at the bike show last year, there were three which I really loved. First of the Pace 104. This thing is just sublime, I could easily see myself on something like this. Classic lines, really nice construction, topped off with a really nice paint job. One of our dudes Martin has the Pace freeride hardtail (whatever the number is) and I’ve got to say if this baby handles anything like that does not only will it be sweet to look at but an absolute blast to ride as well.
Next we have the Demon Frameworks jump bike. A lugged steel jump bike? Ooh, suits you sir! This thing looked just phenominal, they are definitely one to keep your eye on for the future…
Finally the Niner hardtail, I know the bike tart has already mentioned this elsewhere on the site, but I’ve got to say when I first saw one at Mountain Mayhem this year I was totally blown away by it. Not to mention the super sweet carbon fork too, man that thing is totally lickable! I could see something like this appearing under me in the not too far distant future.
Now on to bottom brackets, a totally mundane yet essential piece of equipment. We seem to be fairly settled on the outboard bearing type, unless we all go BB30, but I don’t plan on changing my Hummer frame any time soon! Shimano and Race Face aren’t particularly good as far as bearing longevity goes and a few new boys have entered the fray this year with some interesting twists to the standard format.
Both Pace and Chris King have launched BB’s along with a dedicated grease gun to push all the old gunk out and refill with fresh life giving spooge. There’s something highly satisfying about purging contaminated grease from bearing seals, or maybe that’s just me. I reckon this has got to be the way to go though and I can see my Hummer being adorned with a nice anodised red Pace unit as soon as the current Shimano BB dies.
Also getting in on the game is Phil Wood with his super polished bit of stainless steel bike jewellery. Man this thing looks so sweet it almost seems a shame to put it in a bike, you’d definitely need a bit of ‘time alone’with it before you fitted it! I’d want a frame with a clear bottom bracket shell to show it off too. [Hubba hubba - Bike Tart]
Amazingly all three are a similar price, but I think the Pace will win the day for me, it looks sweet and I don’t think there will be a delay getting your hands on the regreasing tool unlike the Chris King which seems to be in short supply at the moment. Imagine it, bottom brackets that last more than six months!!
Until next time,
Hummerlicious
