Check Out: Fresh Shoes, Lights, Tools, Snacks & More
A lot of gear comes across our desks here at Pinkbike. Check Out is a round-up of everything our tech editors have gotten their hands on. Sometimes it's products we're doing long-term tests on, other times it's stuff we're stoked on but don't have time to fully review. And, sometimes it's crazy shit someone sent us unsolicited and we're having a laugh.
Silca Ypsilon Home Kit
Features
• Y-Wrench with fixed 4mm and 5mm hex
• 1/4" bit collet with magnetic bit attachment
• $108.00 USD
• 1/4" bit collet with magnetic bit attachment
• $108.00 USD
• S2 steel Hex bits: 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3 and 6mm
• S2 steel Torx® bits: T8, T10, T15, T20, T25 and T30, Screw Bits
• silca.cc
• S2 steel Torx® bits: T8, T10, T15, T20, T25 and T30, Screw Bits
• silca.cc
 | A $108 Y-wrench is undoubtedly a little over the top, but Silca's Ypsilon wrench is as versatile as one could get. The tool is constructed with soft over-mold grips and is able to be tailored to a mechanic's preference. In addition to the 4mm and 5mm hex that are fixed, there's a 1/4" magnetic bit collet that allows other bits to be interchanged. A variety of other bits are included in the fancy birch case, and any 1/4" bit should fit. While it's incredibly pricey, Silca have a reputation for tools and pumps that can last a lifetime. The Y-wrench is surely one of the more practical tools available, the trouble is that many times is that it doesn't offer every bit that you may need. Silca have made a good move towards adding versatility to a mechanic's favorite. |
Bontrager GR2 Shoe
Features
• Tachyon rubber outsole
• Weight: 720g (Pair, size 43.5)
• $139.99 USD
• Weight: 720g (Pair, size 43.5)
• $139.99 USD
| Gravel shoes are XC shoes in my mind and Bontrager's GR2 gravel shoe is one of the better-looking lace-ups I've seen lately. Laces allow for a little more fine-tuning in the fit department, and for an all-day XC romp that's always welcome. The upper is synthetic and the sole is a nylon composite that is made to be stiff when pedaling yet still retain some walkability. The shoes measure a 6 on Bontrager's stiffness scale, which goes up to 14. The toe and heel have Bontrager's "GnarGuard" rubberized coating to protect feet from flying rocks and the tread is a Tachyon rubber that should have some grip even on rough terrain and slippery surfaces, according to Bontrager. |
Trail Butter
Features
• Dark Chocolate & Coffee, Maple Syrup & Sea Salt, Original
• 3 sizes - Single, big, jar
• $2-$15 USD
• 3 sizes - Single, big, jar
• $2-$15 USD
| Trail Butter is one of the best snacks I've had on the bike, off the bike, and sitting at my desk with a jar and a spoon. It's high-calorie, high-fat, and high-protein - all things that are good to have for a long day in the woods - and it's made of trail mix and nut butter blended together. The flavors are easy on the stomach during exercise and provide a huge dose of energy that tastes a lot better than any gel or bar I've sampled. There are small individual serving sizes and then larger "big squeeze" bags with a screw-top cap that fit nicely in the pocket for longer outings. |
Magicshine Allty 1000 Light
Features
• Garmin computer-style mount
• Weight: 132g
• $84.99 USD
• Weight: 132g
• $84.99 USD
| Magicshine's Allty 1000 light is designed to put out 1000 lumens of light in its maximum power mode. It also has lower power modes including a 25-lumen daytime running option. The light uses a CREE LED main light and can run for 1.8 hours on full brightness mode. In the low power safety mode, the light is said to run up to 28.5 hours. The light is USB rechargeable and housed in a CNC alloy housing. The standard mount fits most handlebar sizes, including 35mm bars. The optional TTA out front mount allows users to mount a computer on top and a light on the bottom. It also fits most handlebars, including 35mm. |
Saris H3 Direct Drive Smart Trainer
Features
• Quiet electromagnetic resistance
• Measures speed, power, cadence with no external sensors
• $999.99 USD
• Measures speed, power, cadence with no external sensors
• $999.99 USD
| If you're stuck indoors due to rainy weather or other factors, a trainer is one way to maintain and build fitness so that getting back on the trail is a seamless transition. Saris' H3 smart trainer is their top-of-the-line option. The trainer is compatible with road and mountain bikes and links up to computers or phones for those who want to use an app such as Strava or TrainerRoad for a workout. The trainer provides resistance that can adjust on the fly with apps or a steady resistance that Saris claim is similar to their fluid trainer. The trainer legs collapse for storage and there's a built in carrying handle to make moving the nearly 50-lb machine easier. Saris claim the H3 is one of the quietest trainers available, outputting only 59 decibels at 20mph. |
Must Read This Week
103 Comments
Crap thing, now we need to hire another person.
@RoadStain: sounds as harsh from Employer as stupid from Employee... 15 toilet rolls. My 4 person family uses no more than 4 per week... are we weird? Should we be more full of sht?
People have a hard time controlling their fear. By average we have incredibly low understanding of, or rather limited relation with our reptile brains. It is visible enough on bikes, when hearing people talk about taking risks. Some people will tell you they are afraid of hitting something and then they go full bananas on something else, completely out of their skill and talent, with luck holding it together. We still live in stigma that admitting being scared is a sign of weakness, hell I do it with my son sometimes, I have to remind myself to not get pissed off when he does something because he is scared. Sure we can't live in society of sissies, but to be honest? We have no idea when are we too harsh. Huge portions of irrational behaviors come from repressed fear and when people get anxious, the mother effing - bullsht - please get a head check - holistic community tells them to meditate and find inner peace by listening to some ridiculous music. There's diminishing returns to everything, even seeing a shrink, but hell we got to be able to face the inner shit. yes, there's some awful scary stuff inside! That is because we can become monsters! We can flip out in the middle of a crowd and cry. Yes we are capable of truly genuinely hate another person, we can be in great relationshiop with our spouse and then shag someone random in a weirdest way. Yes we can. And that's the effect: We are capable of losing all dignity because we are scare we will have to crouch in the bathtub or under the shower and wash our ass there until we get a hold of a roll of toilet paper. Or we are that lazy to steal from work.
We now have a number of staff members who claim that they are not required to go to work for their own well being and "Trump is mailing checks to cover their lost wages and rest" (sic), Took us less than an hour to have per diem CNA and MA staff on site from a staffing company (that will replace any staff member who opted to not come into work).
If we did not fire a person for theft of toilet paper, where do we draw a line? Meds (samples)? Schedule 3 meds? Schedule 2 meds? Petty cash? It is a simple situation - steal anything, you will not have a job.
Hey baby, I got the TWO PLY!!!! Know what else.....Depends........ :-)
Psychedelics... legalization, education and treatments under suspervision. So many people to train, it will take years. It can't go on like this. There may be better ways to look within, just like there can be a better way to do a suspension fork or drive train, but psychedelics is what we know that we have, there's developed science behind it. It's the greatest tool we have for introspection. Covid19 is still mild. It is. What a stroke of unbelievable luck it doesn't affect kids. It would be a fkng nightmare if it did. it would be a social and economical game over, end of the world as we know it, somethign so contageous that affects kids. parental instinct would turn us into fkng killing machines. There's surely plenty of worse stuff out there... so we fkng need to get demons on the leash.
While I think that any person with a congenital condition, heart/lung failure etc. needt o maintain their safe zones (as they should every other day of the year). The rest of us should simply be business as usual. But, instead, I was at a store this AM as they opened so that I could get toilet paper. In a mass of people also getting.....toilet paper. Partly due to the stolen supply, partly because a staff member at another clinic had none in her home. Sigh....so, so many lemmings.
What is going on with the world, what have we succumbed to... oh the depravation!
No wonder it tastes good. hah..
Everyone should also know that a bacon sandwich is the ultimate (and tastiest) post-ride snack.
I also find that if you make a bacon sandwich and wrap it foil to put in your backpack, it makes for the ultimate (and tastiest) mid-ride snack.
"Laks boy: I WILL try this NUTZO as we share a name."
You mean the COVID-19 global pandemic?
Just say it.
I get that good tools are worth the extra cash, from a good dead blow hammer to high end socket wrench. But this.......should be the official shop tool of dentists who ride Yetis (but not very often or very hard).
Nope.
Park's 3-way Hex Wrench: $12.
Foundation (no-name discount brand from Jenson) 3-way Hex Wrench: $3
Silca's version: $108
It's a pretty sweet box though.
I'm going to start an Etsy store where I spraypaint the Foundation wrenches in Yeti's new 2020 "Storm" colorway, build some awesome plywood boxes and sell them for $216/ea.
silca.cc/collections/workbench/products/ypsilon-y-wrench
@atourgates:
Dude off the back: Hey! Does someone up there have new chamois butter? Smells weird.
silca.cc/collections/workbench/products/ypsilon-y-wrench
They look like old people shoes.
I have a mid range smart trainer and spent a fair bit of money on it, but then I'm using it every day because a trip to my local trails is a 5hr round trip and job and family commitments that make that VERY difficult (plus I ride with annoyingly fit people where being a weekend warrior means you're holding them up... A lot...).
For me the benefit is that my smart trainer is direct drive (i.e. Wheel off) so no wheel slip and you can actually crank up the resistance, and immersion. No, it's not the same as a actually getting out (not by a loooooong way!) but it does mean that you can just plug in some headphones and smash an hours training out with no thought, or ride around Zwift and be moderately engaged.
I'd not recommend such expenditure to my friends who live near trails and/or are able to get out more easily, but it fits in with my current lifestyle and, personally, I feel my fitness improvements have been worth the investment.
Horses for courses and all that!
Boys and their toys...
About Lance. He was on the juice but he still rode round France seven times faster than everyone else, who was also on the juice. He was the best rider and the best cheat at that time. Even though he cheated, he still turned the pedals. It wasn't like he was secretly using an ebike or anything. He didn't take the train (unless you count the Blue Train). He didn't get a tow from the back of the team car when no one was looking. What he did, everyone else did. He was just better at it.