Our set of Zee cranks have seen their fair share of use and abuse since we bolted them on last spring, everything from sloppy shuttle runs, lift served laps at Whistler, and plenty of human-powered rides as well. Throughout it all, the cranks have held strong, without a creak of complaint despite a number of solid encounters with rocks and stumps. There are a few dings at the ends of the crankarms from those aforementioned solid encounters, and the finish on the outside of the arms has begun to wear off in spots from foot rub, but that's almost a given considering the gritty conditions we often ride in - a long muddy ride is nearly the equivalent of going at them with 80 grit sandpaper. As far as stiffness goes, we're not exactly on the Clydesdale side of the weight spectrum, but there was no noticeable flexing during harsh landings or hard cornering, and power transfer felt quick when standing up and putting the power down. Overall, the Zee crankset offers a good value given its reasonable weight and even more reasonable asking price. - Mike Kazimer |
No matter how many features a helmet has, if it doesn't fit well all of those extra amenities amount to nothing. Luckily, the fit of the Bell Full 9 proved to be exceptional, making it one of the most comfortable full face helmets we've tried in quite some time. It wraps the head securely without any pressure points or loose spots, and has remained secure without even a hint of side to side slop, even after almost five months of regular usage. The shape of the helmet has plenty of room for goggles, and also allows for excellent peripheral vision - the area around the eyes extends far enough back so that the shell doesn't interfere with a rider's vision. The Full 9's ventilation works well, and we never felt overheated, even on rides that saw us riding under the blazing sun during the hottest part of the day. Truth be told, we haven't taken advantage of the Full 9's helmet camera mount or speaker pockets, but it's good to know they're available should we decide to film our exploits while bumping tunes. Bell has introduced an excellent contender into the high end helmet arena, one that offers superb fit, good ventilation, and light weight, all while meeting the major safety standards, traits that make it a winner in our book. - Mike Kazimer |
The N'Fluence shorts were comfortable from the beginning, with a slightly baggy fit that provides plenty of room for knee pads, and a high enough crotch so that we never caught the shorts on our seat. Much of our time with these shorts was spent in the bike park, where we found the elasticized pass holder to be a convenient little bonus feature. On foggy, drizzly days the DWR coating was beneficial, keeping us dry longer than we would have been with non-coated shorts. Granted, a full-on deluge will definitely soak through the shorts, but for rains of less-than-biblical proportions it's nice to have the additional protection from the elements. The side vents worked well, keeping things cool when the mercury climbed as long as there was adequate airflow, although we did have the zipper catch a few times on the inner fabric when we were opening or closing the vents or hip pockets. Related to this point, we never quite figured out the reasoning behind the double zipper system - it seems like having a separate zippered pocket and side vent would be simpler, and if smaller zippers were used the shorts would be much lighter. Another request would be the addition of an adjustable waist band instead of (or in combination with) the belt loops on the N'Fluence short - it's helpful to be able to make those micro-adjustments, and riding with a belt can get uncomfortable, especially if you end up spending any time doubled over in the saddle grinding up a long climb. As it is, the construction of the N'Fluence makes them best suited for lift-served riding or riding in cooler weather, since the thicker fabric and heavy duty zippers can make things pretty toasty on longer rides. That being said, the same construction that makes these shorts overkill for cross-country riding has helped them survive all of the rides we've taken them on, and despite numerous washings and multiple outings in foul weather they don't look any worse for wear, with no rips, tears or blown seams. - Mike Kazimer |
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Thanks for the link. Now I just have to learn Japanese so I can read the site and watch anime without subtitles. ;P
Love all the Ghost in the Shell series' and movies. I'll check out the other titles. Thanks!
a real thorough review.
descendants: flexy as fook
saint: unbreakable
zee: pretty much same as saint and heaps cheaper
sixc: lightest option, still strong enough but expensive
X0: shrapnel grenade
fuark almost forgot about atlas cranks being really nice but a bit expensive, the respond stuff is probs just as good but heavy.
gravity make some nice cranks too, they're oem on a couple of DH bikes.
Zee stuff is great gear, but think I'd stump up some extra cash for saint cranks.
$125 for a set of shorts? What? Sombrio shorts are great, but I feel it's pretty dear for light weight materials ..
Shorts, no doubt will be great, and no doubt on par with TLD pricing, not a bit fed up of the prices though?
Zee stuff is great and I'd run it no worries.