trailpooch

@mountainsofsussex: just make sure when you take it apart you remove the base assembly, from the tube, and change the seals in that, they bleed air through them when worn, or if they've leaked from the beginning the stuck down actually comes from the quad lip seal aquaplaning over the top of the grease, and pulling air down into the neg chamber; having dealt with enough claims and seen enough FX, DPS, and fork stuck downs as warranty, it was, and is a thing. And there were many 'discussion' with the factory to control the amount of grease used, it's still the same.

@matthewfmtb: Sorry to hear about Deviate, hope you get sorted going forwards. Very odd that it is possible to aim criticism at this... How many folks are sitting in the garage on a smart trainer peddling and going nowhere I wonder? Currently it's very cold here, I'm recovering from the Flu (and the associated cough) for the last few weeks, and my fitness is pretty cooked, so I'll be on the smart trainer until I get some level of ability back to peddle and breathe at the same time, and maybe the temperature gets above 1 or 2° (I know I'm a wuss, but my lungs are a bit cooked for the cold air right now) but this did make me want to go and get on the trainer, it's a mind game, your head will quit long before your body, so if you can peddle a smart trainer, the rollers, or around a car park, you'll peddle anything and anywhere. Maybe, just maybe, Matt did this just for shits and giggles, crack on Matt, good luck for whatever 2026 brings you.

@Dougal-SC: I'm never sure where the need to add grease to dust wipers came from, I worked with SKF on those seals back in the day, (they're still the same) and a little bath oil was always the way to lube them, in reality it doesn't last long, and grease inside the seals adds friction when it starts too harden, add in perhaps colder temperatures, and it makes it worse again. There are a few trick to reduce the stiction, but I'll keep those to myself.

@aly-14: It does say Prototype... maybe some folks never got that part. I built 3 Stage Evo as, let's say XC/DC bikes, they come in at around 11kg, pedal well, and at 130-120mm travel they work really well. I've had some big days on that bike, and on occasion when I don't want to haul the bigger bike around, I just use that. I guess this is the replacement for the Stage Evo, and for sure the rear end is not the final shape... I've run a Stage 6 Evo for a couple of years, it works just fine, she's a big ol bus, but the geo is bang on, and unlike my Mondraker Foxy RR, I don't need to replace 12 bearings every few months, just two, once a year whether they need it or not. I've had plenty of multi linkage bikes, but I end up back on an Orange, I can appreciate that there's a myriad of technology out there, but, Starling and Orange are just doing what they believe to be the right way, if it's not your 'thing' then it's not your 'thing'...

if you don't have the PN it is as follows for the super soft part number SB40255-00, and for the soft part number SB40233-00, I know they have them in stock in Prato, I bought two last week...drop them a mail, or as the Formula guys are saying, chase your local distributor. As a side note, I'm 73KG (depends on beer intake) and run the soft, and I've gone back to the Blue CTS, gives a good small bump feeling, but enough support through the mid and into the end stoke to work with the spring. Hope some of that helps.

same age, my thoughts are that we stop bouncing any time after around 35... I quite often ride in the mountains here, and one particular trail has a skinny edge into a fairly long drop, I'd say it's quite a high risk trail... But I normally let the Refugio know I'm going up (quick coffee and ciao) plus I have a handy app which is '112 Where Are U' it's free to download, and we did use it on a ride two years ago when a rider was injured on a trail in the forest, it worked really well. But solitude is is a mental reset away from Tinnitus, and the daily grind... to quote from Heat, 'It's worth the stretch'

Phops, all that was banned back in the early 90's in Moto GP (500 GP) Cagiva ran an electronic lock out on the rear which stopped the bike squatting, which was a button on the bars, I think it was Lawson who ran it. There is no GPS system on Moto GP bikes, the system is operated by the rider. (see Fabio's Yamaha system failed at the British GP when he was leading by 4.5 seconds) Moto GP has ride height control, for the rear which is hydraulic and activated by a button on the bars, (think TALAS system) the launch control to drop the fork is a pretty simple hook device activated by a small lever on the bars, it's why you see them doing stoppies on the way to the grid, the system is deactivated when they brake for the first corner. It's also banned in F1, if I recall correctly, the Williams F1 team and Benneton with John Whyte (him of Whyte bikes) had traction control, ride height, anti lock brakes, and active suspension controlled by GPS, and the Benneton had a form of 4 wheel steering... in 1994 the FIA banned it all (to a point) But really, is there a place for all this in DH racing?

NO, not at all...

@psullivan65: they're trail/adventure bikes for the road fella, and it was a comparative to costing, as for more serious injury, jury would be out on that one, having raced both MTB and Moto, by far my biggest injury came on an MTB..

@Hsawaknow46: you're assuming I was assuming that, no, the point I was trying to make is that the relative cost of a bike made of plastic and off the shelf OEM parts could be the same price as, or more expensive than a motorcycle, the longevity of e-bikes is just not there, they're worthless in a very short period of time. the BOM cost on that bike cannot match the MSRP. I wasn't suggesting everyone go buy a moto, although, adding up the costing, and presuming you have a licence etc, the moto is probably cheaper to run for a year.