# Freshly Back To MTB



## Tom B (17 Jan 2017)

Having been away from cycling for around 12 years i got back in to commuting / road cycling aout 5 years ago.

I have now bought myself a Full Sus Boardman Team FS.
I hadn't initially intended on a FS but at £800 after about £200 with of discounts it was too tempting.

I have now been out and had a good play and fallen off it a few times.

Somethings that I have noticed are that,

1. MTB seems to exersize more core muscles/different muscles.
2. Riding position is key.
3. You have to be patient climbing and spin it out.


I have a couple of questions...
As supplied the bike has Continental XKing Tyres 27.5" - I weigh just under 11 stone.
As supplied they are inflated to 40PSI which to me seems a little high am I correct or outdated?

Do these tyres have an orientation? I cannot see arrows on the sidewall (or any pressure guides)

Being a FS the bike has several pivot points for the rear sus how do I maintain these?
Do I lube them? Do they have bearings to check and replaced? Any dos and dont's?

The bike is fitted with a Monarch R rear shock, the shop took my weight and pumped it up allegedly to 150psi, in fairness it felt a little soggy when I got home so I bought a pump and was surprised to find it was 10-15 under 150psi. Once pumped to 155 it felt much better and less soft and spongy.
How fast should the can lose pressure in the normal course of events?

I think the first thing to be changed when I have some money will be a rear sus damper with a lockout. First things to buy are going to me some form of mudguard and parts to repair the hot outside tap.


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## Spiderweb (17 Jan 2017)

Depends upon terrain but 35psi might be better.
My MTB shocks don't loose pressure (mine are Fox). It may be worth checking again after a ride or two with your own shock pump, the shops gauge may be out?
I'm not sure on your bearings but they should be sealed so maintainence free, they will eventually need replacing with another sealed unit once they wear.

As you said up hills you stay seated and spin, get out of the saddle and you loose traction, I found this odd to start with.
I can highly recommend Whinlatter Forest, Braithwaite, shouldn't be too far from Lancashire?


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## Cubist (17 Jan 2017)

Congrats on your purchase!

Tyre pressures are indeed too high. 40psi is a maximum for offroad tyres, and at 11st you don't need anything like that unless you are riding on tarmac for most of your journey. Start off at say 30 front and rear, and if that improves things be brave and drop the front a pound or so at a time. If your tyres are tubed and you ride a lot of rocky stuff, especially with square edges, be aware of the possibility of pinchflats if you go much lower. The principle is that your tyres need to deform a bit under your and the bike's weight and conform to the trail surface to bite. At 40 psi the rear will be bouncy/skippy, and the front skittish. 

Pivot bearings (or bushes in some cases) are largely maintenance free, but you do need to keep the pressure washer away from them. You should be able to find a maintenance schedule for them online, as they eventually wear out and will need swapping. Listen out for squeaks and graunchy noises. 

I suspect that the rear shock was at 150psi when it left the shop. Attaching a pump and gauge will bleed 10-15psi from such a tiny air spring on its own. Forget weight charts, and indeed pump gauges to set your correct air pressure, they are notoriously inaccurate. To set the correct pressure you need to use trial and error. You want to aim for between 25% and 30% sag as a start point. If you ride smooth flat trails fast, then you want the spring to be firmish but not too wallowy, but if you ride harsher, rocky stuff with lots of drops you want the spring to absorb big hits without bottoming out, or flinging you back in the air. There's a three-dimensional sweet point to find, and depending on the spring rate of the shock together with the damping settings it takes a good few rides to find the ideal compromise. 

There should be an O ring on the shaft of the shock. Push it to the top of the shaft next to the main body. Get on the bike next to a wall and use that for balance. Stand on the pedals and without bouncing climb off carefully. The O ring will be pushed down the shaft showing how far the shock travelled when you were standing up. That's the sag. If it's more than a third of the way down, put more air in. If it sags less than a quarter of the shaft length, let a bit out. Make a note of what the gauge was reading as you finished pumping, and don't reattach it once you've taken it off or else you'll bleed out that 10-15psi again! 

While you're at it, set the fork pressure in the same way. This time you need to stand on the pedals with your weight slightly forward, as if going down a hill. Again, initial sag should be somewhere between 25% and 33%. Depending on the fork you also need to adjust the damping to make sure it isn't bouncing or over damped for what you want to ride.


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## Tom B (17 Jan 2017)

Cubist said:


> Congrats on your purchase!
> 
> At 40 psi the rear will be bouncy/skippy, and the front skittish.



Exactly that and I'm yet to be convinced the rear is on the right way around.



> Pivot bearings (or bushes in some cases) are largely maintenance free, but you do need to keep the pressure washer away from them. You should be able to find a maintenance schedule for them online, as they eventually wear out and will need swapping. Listen out for squeaks and graunchy noises.



Noted - I will have a look.



> I suspect that the rear shock was at 150psi when it left the shop. Attaching a pump and gauge will bleed 10-15psi from such a tiny air spring on its own. Forget weight charts, and indeed pump gauges to set your correct air pressure, they are notoriously inaccurate. To set the correct pressure you need to use trial and error. You want to aim for between 25% and 30% sag as a start point. If you ride smooth flat trails fast, then you want the spring to be firmish but not too wallowy, but if you ride harsher, rocky stuff with lots of drops you want the spring to absorb big hits without bottoming out, or flinging you back in the air. There's a three-dimensional sweet point to find, and depending on the spring rate of the shock together with the damping settings it takes a good few rides to find the ideal compromise.
> 
> There should be an O ring on the shaft of the shock. Push it to the top of the shaft next to the main body. Get on the bike next to a wall and use that for balance. Stand on the pedals and without bouncing climb off carefully. The O ring will be pushed down the shaft showing how far the shock travelled when you were standing up. That's the sag. If it's more than a third of the way down, put more air in. If it sags less than a quarter of the shaft length, let a bit out. Make a note of what the gauge was reading as you finished pumping, and don't reattach it once you've taken it off or else you'll bleed out that 10-15psi again!
> 
> While you're at it, set the fork pressure in the same way. This time you need to stand on the pedals with your weight slightly forward, as if going down a hill. Again, initial sag should be somewhere between 25% and 33%. Depending on the fork you also need to adjust the damping to make sure it isn't bouncing or over damped for what you want to ride.



I've just had another look at the pressure and it had indeed dropped, which having played with pumping it up/attaching detaching the pump a few times was producing a drop of 10-15 psi each time the pump was removed. I have now increased the pressure slightly as i will be next riding some way on tarmac, then onto a lumpy bumpy farm track/bridleway which I expect to be smoothish, but not smooth enough for the hybrid.

I have Sektor front forks and I'm still learning, but theyre easier to fiddle with on the go. - Can I add a remote lock out to these?


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## Cubist (17 Jan 2017)

Tom B said:


> Exactly that and I'm yet to be convinced the rear is on the right way around.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You wont add a remote lockout without a lot of hassle. Bar remotes are a great sales gimmick, but in my experience are more trouble than benefit. I've ended up taking g them off altogether on a couple of bikes. Not too much to simply reach over and swing a lever on the very few occasions I want to lock the fork.


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## Tom B (19 Feb 2017)

Im still alive and still learning to MTB again. Particularly finding climbing a bit of a struggle.

The brake issue is fettled and the SRAM Level brakes seem to be performing. I can at least stand the bike on its nose and lock out the rear at will - a definite improvement.

I am now wondering about the tyres, http://www.mbr.co.uk/reviews/full-suspension-bikes/boardman-fs-team-650b-2015-review mentions they are not fans of the Continental X King tyres.

In fairness I have been riding them in muddy conditions but never the less for me they seem to break traction a little too easy and spin, on rocky stuff I struggle to find a pressure but on tarmac they roll well for a knobbly.

I was wondering if anyone can give their thoughts on these tyres, or recommend replacements ideally from the Schwalbe range, on which i get mates rates.


What are folks views on mudguards for FS MTBs?


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## MarquisMatsugae (2 Mar 2017)

Tom B said:


> Im still alive and still learning to MTB again. Particularly finding climbing a bit of a struggle.
> 
> The brake issue is fettled and the SRAM Level brakes seem to be performing. I can at least stand the bike on its nose and lock out the rear at will - a definite improvement.
> 
> ...



Mudguards are Lucifer's spank paddles


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## EltonFrog (2 Mar 2017)

MarquisMatsugae said:


> Mudguards are Lucifer's spank paddles


The fragrant MrsP and I are pissing ourselves laughing.


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