RSD Middlechild & RS-291 - Builds & Chat

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RSD Middlechild & RS-291 - Builds & Chat
Author Message
flag Ksquared13
Posted: Dec 3, 2022 at 10:30 Quote
Cvega624 wrote:
What chainring and chains are you using when setting a bike up for single speed? Still using 11/12 speed chains?

I’m using the same (less than 1 month old) ten speed that I had on there before. From the little bit of research I did it seems like it matters more that you match the chain size to what your chain ring was designed for. That said it seems like a lot of SS folks just use 8/9 speed chains because they’re cheap and strong
flag Ksquared13
Posted: Dec 3, 2022 at 10:37 Quote
Cvega624 wrote:
What chainring and chains are you using when setting a bike up for single speed? Still using 11/12 speed chains?

I’m using the same (less than 1 month old) ten speed that I had on there before. From the little bit of research I did it seems like it matters more that you match the chain size to what your chain ring was designed for. That said it seems like a lot of SS folks just use 8/9 speed chains because they’re cheap and strong
flag Ksquared13
Posted: Dec 7, 2022 at 7:47 Quote
Just wrapped up an edit on my RSD Middlechild before we essentially go into hibernation up here in Bend, OR. Hope it inspires you to get out and rip today!
flag Cvega624
Posted: Jan 13, 2023 at 19:03 Quote
Hopefully getting my frame soon, but I keep going back and forth on what size frame I should go with. I'm not exactly sure what stack height and reach and all that stuff really means. I'm 5'6 5'7. I have a medium on order and both my other bikes are mediums as well. (Specialized epic pro and Santa Cruz Bronson). Any input is appreciated!
flag Ksquared13
Posted: Jan 14, 2023 at 4:41 Quote
Cvega624 wrote:
Hopefully getting my frame soon, but I keep going back and forth on what size frame I should go with. I'm not exactly sure what stack height and reach and all that stuff really means. I'm 5'6 5'7. I have a medium on order and both my other bikes are mediums as well. (Specialized epic pro and Santa Cruz Bronson). Any input is appreciated!

Medium sounds like a great fit for you! Is your new frame the Middlechild or the RS-291? The 291 will be a bit bigger per size since it’s intentions are focused more on speed/stability whereas the Middlechild leans more towards the playful/agile end of the spectrum.
flag Cvega624
Posted: Jan 14, 2023 at 5:25 Quote
Ksquared13 wrote:
Cvega624 wrote:
Hopefully getting my frame soon, but I keep going back and forth on what size frame I should go with. I'm not exactly sure what stack height and reach and all that stuff really means. I'm 5'6 5'7. I have a medium on order and both my other bikes are mediums as well. (Specialized epic pro and Santa Cruz Bronson). Any input is appreciated!

Medium sounds like a great fit for you! Is your new frame the Middlechild or the RS-291? The 291 will be a bit bigger per size since it’s intentions are focused more on speed/stability whereas the Middlechild leans more towards the playful/agile end of the spectrum.

Ok thanks! Its a middle child, hoping that it will come in before the weather breaks here in the Midwest. I've got one more question, how many spacers should I run between the stem and the frame. I'm gonna be using a 140mm fork and a 35mm stem.
flag Ksquared13
Posted: Jan 16, 2023 at 16:16 Quote
Cvega624 wrote:
Ksquared13 wrote:
Cvega624 wrote:
Hopefully getting my frame soon, but I keep going back and forth on what size frame I should go with. I'm not exactly sure what stack height and reach and all that stuff really means. I'm 5'6 5'7. I have a medium on order and both my other bikes are mediums as well. (Specialized epic pro and Santa Cruz Bronson). Any input is appreciated!

Medium sounds like a great fit for you! Is your new frame the Middlechild or the RS-291? The 291 will be a bit bigger per size since it’s intentions are focused more on speed/stability whereas the Middlechild leans more towards the playful/agile end of the spectrum.

Ok thanks! Its a middle child, hoping that it will come in before the weather breaks here in the Midwest. I've got one more question, how many spacers should I run between the stem and the frame. I'm gonna be using a 140mm fork and a 35mm stem.

Honestly it’s a personal preference thing, but thankfully it’s easy to adjust!
flag incriminator
Posted: Feb 25, 2023 at 8:36 Quote
Winter MC Chromoly Configuration

Chromoly, Carbon Fibre, Ti, Magnesium, Aluminium, Tungsten Carbide
Got most of the key materials covered.

photo
photo

And no... Front tire logo isn't aligned with the Rim. Ain't really care.
flag DoctorHotwings
Posted: Mar 26, 2023 at 17:30 Quote
Hello friends. Here is my new RSD RS-291 in frame size small.

My new RSD RS-291
My new RSD RS-291
My new RSD RS-291
My new RSD RS-291
My new RSD RS-291
My new RSD RS-291
My new RSD RS-291
My new RSD RS-291
My new RSD RS-291
flag jesse-effing-edwards
O+
Posted: Mar 29, 2023 at 8:10 Quote
Congratulations! That build looks fun as hell. Saints! You'll have to report back. I definitely wanna hear about those tires. 150mm up front?
flag DoctorHotwings
Posted: Mar 30, 2023 at 15:03 Quote
jesse-effing-edwards wrote:
Congratulations! That build looks fun as hell. Saints! You'll have to report back. I definitely wanna hear about those tires. 150mm up front?

Things went well after those pics - went on a ride that afternoon and yesterday at night. Yes, the fork is a 2021 Lyrik Ultimate, 150mm with 42mm offset - a new, old stock I bought on Amazon for $733.90 to my door. I thought that was a decent deal. Originally, I spec'd myself a Bomber Z1. Decided to go Rockshox since I was on Fox the last few years.

The first shakedown ride was just over 6 miles on my local trails. I spent the first mile or so just bombing down a few long roads to bed the new pads in with the new TRP rotors. The second ride, last night was just over 7 miles with about 700 feet of climbing and descending.

I do like my Shimano brakes; I've been using various models since 2000. These brakes I've had for about 3 years now. The front brake is a Zee branded caliper that I mated to a Saint lever. I'm using non-Shimano pads - both sintered from Hardheaded Ram. Very quiet once broken in - for those of you having problems bedding in sintered pads to a new rotor, make sure you're going fast enough to get the pads up to the proper temperature.

After the pads were broken in, I stopped to raise the stack height another 5mm. The Raceface bars came in at 820mm - which I rode on the first day to figure out how much I wanted to cut down. Last night before my night ride, I cut the bars down to 780mm, which felt really good.

The tires are both in the downhill casing, with the rear using the super soft compound, and the front using the soft compound. I've been running them around 22/20 psi - rear and front with no inserts. The wheels aren't great, just takeoffs from an old Stumpjumper I bought new in 2018. I'll be putting on a custom Chris King wheelset once my parts finish getting here. The hubs will be laced to a pair of DT Swiss FR541 rims.

Both tires have a crazy amount of grip. So much that I'm only going to use them for bike parks and the rockier terrain of Western Virginia - when I start going on riding trips there in the Summer.

I have a pair of the same tires in the trail casing that just came in and I'm mounting those to a set of Shimano WH-M8120 wheels I bought a few years ago as a spare wheelset. I'm planning on trying the lighter tires and wheels this weekend on a longer ride - I'm shooting for something around 15 miles but on a new trail I've never been on.

The bike definitely wants to be ridden hard and everything feels so good when descending. I need some more runs on my test trail for the suspension settings. Right now, I'm close to a general trail setting and I'm going to have another setting for the bike park and more gravity oriented setup. I'm heavy, and running about 92 psi in the front w/ 4 tokens. Planning to take one out with the same pressure.

I've got the dropouts pushed all the way back and I like how the bike feels for my height - a hobbit like 166cm.

Unfortunately, I haven't launched it off any sizeable jumps so I can't comment on how it feels in the air. Once I finish dialing everything in, I will get to work on some air time.

Also planning on doing some urban freeride on it - I told Alex at RSD that this thing is the hardtail I wanted 20 years ago.

I'm very satisfied with things right now. Apart from the wheelset change, I don't any need to swap out other parts.

*Also, I love this paint. Not overly gloss, nor is it super flat/matte. It's a subtle satin finish.
flag jesse-effing-edwards
O+
Posted: Mar 31, 2023 at 7:48 Quote
Thorough report!

This bike is super stable at speed, which sometimes gets you a little over confident, for a hardtail ahah. I switch back and forth between this and a Ripmo and I've got myself in to some rocky moments with a little too much enthusiasm. As a slow and steady to fast down kinda guy, the bike works great. I've got mine with a 160 up front, but could see a 150 being good if my climbs were a bit more technical (I save those for the full squish).

As for your finish, I think that might be the ED coating vs being actual paint. It's the base layer before paint which keeps the rust out etc. but only comes in one colour, which luckily is cool! Might be a touch lighter too. I've bugged Alex for years to do a raw steel frame but he won't cause he'd never sleep at night thinking the frames were rusting, haha. He's Keen.

291 is the most capable HT I've had.
flag jesse-effing-edwards
O+
Posted: Mar 31, 2023 at 7:52 Quote
incriminator wrote:
Winter MC Chromoly Configuration

Chromoly, Carbon Fibre, Ti, Magnesium, Aluminium, Tungsten Carbide
Got most of the key materials covered.

photo

And no... Front tire logo isn't aligned with the Rim. Ain't really care.

Single Speedin in the winter - that's hard! Dig that purple nurple.
flag james-chainbrothers-mtb
Posted: Apr 22, 2023 at 18:25 Quote
Ordered the 291 - gonna put Saints on it too. Very excited!

 


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