AM Banshee Titan
- Thread starter teK--
- Start date
Mattyp
Cows go boing
/End thread
wkkie
It's Not Easy Being Green
teK--
Eats Squid
Oh come on!!!! Don't you want to have 8 or 10 different bottom bracket tools instead of one single press, a hammer and punch that does them all
teK--
Eats Squid
NEW. BIKE. DAY!!!
(actually yesterday, but the site was offline).
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v3.2 Banshee Titan Mullet
Thanks for playing along and all the guesses which really weren't far off the mark.
Will post up some more pics as I complete the build over the next couple of weeks.
(actually yesterday, but the site was offline).
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v3.2 Banshee Titan Mullet
Thanks for playing along and all the guesses which really weren't far off the mark.
Will post up some more pics as I complete the build over the next couple of weeks.
teK--
Eats Squid
Yeh I know, if money was no object I would have bought both of them too.
Plus a Frameworks Enduro, and a Forbidden Dreadnought.
A different rig for each week of the month
teK--
Eats Squid
After first day, the Ridewrap is on. Always such a pain in the dick to do this neatly.
Missus comes in after 2 hours "i swear last time you were standing in the exact same position holding that sheet" i had to explain there are 22 pieces to apply apply
Though I'd already planned to replace the lower half of the stock Banshee headset headset with a Wolftooth which has a crown race seal, i discover the top half has a gap completely open to the elements. Will replace the upper too, and cannot recommend the Banshee headset if you ever ride in the wet.
Also took the Slayer out for its final hoorah and stripped the frame of parts. Will be sad to see her go... keep an eye out for the garage sale
Missus comes in after 2 hours "i swear last time you were standing in the exact same position holding that sheet" i had to explain there are 22 pieces to apply apply
Though I'd already planned to replace the lower half of the stock Banshee headset headset with a Wolftooth which has a crown race seal, i discover the top half has a gap completely open to the elements. Will replace the upper too, and cannot recommend the Banshee headset if you ever ride in the wet.
Also took the Slayer out for its final hoorah and stripped the frame of parts. Will be sad to see her go... keep an eye out for the garage sale
teK--
Eats Squid
After many late nights, swearing and having to buy extra parts, the build is now done!
The frame feels as stiff as it looks.
Some nice drainage for a change.
One of the late nights.
The Summer Soltice has come early; definately the longest day and into the night for this stage.
Did a cut and shut with 2x fender guards.
Just took it out for the maiden voyage today. Ride report to follow!
The frame feels as stiff as it looks.
Some nice drainage for a change.
One of the late nights.
The Summer Soltice has come early; definately the longest day and into the night for this stage.
Did a cut and shut with 2x fender guards.
Just took it out for the maiden voyage today. Ride report to follow!
teK--
Eats Squid
Quick rundown of first ride last weekend!
It was a rather late night getting the touch points and suspension settings adjusted, so I thought it was going to be a real gumby of a ride next day.
Two fuckwits moments though. In my half asleep haste I did put the front tyre on backwards, and the grips were on the wrong sides.
Surprisingly, the Fox recommended DHX2 settings felt bang on and leaves little room for more tweaks. The forks are what I had on the Slayer, but with the lowers swapped out for 29er. Cyclinic gave the bushings a good burnish prior to shipping them down, and I feel like I need the next spring rate up. More tuning needed for the fork.
Now back to the frame..
Numbers wise the reach is about 20mm longer, and the chainstay about 20mm compared to the Slayer. So my weight remains quite central and it's a familiar feeling. I still have to slide my hips forward and back more aggressively compared to the shorter bike. There is zero cable noise when using foam tube liners inside the frame. The longer chainstay makes it noticeably more difficult to pull manuals
Front end felt noticeably high and typical of the high stack number, plus probably a 29er thing I'm not used to yet. I will see how it fairs on a few more rides and maybe drop 5mm from under the stem. For taller riders I imagine this frame will be good as you no longer have to run lots of spacers which reduce your reach.
The marketing spiel goes on about how they go to the trouble of forging, machining, and aligning the rear end linkages etc. Can attest that everything fit together very exactly during the build, and the breakaway force on the suspension is exceptional. The rear of the bike is really noticeably stiff, and QUIET with very little chain noise. It is a joy to plow through tree roots and not have the back wheel deflect or the chain make noises. I did add mastic tape to the inside of the seat stay at the cassette, and chain stay near the chainring; maybe that helped?
Currently running the flipchip in the HIGH setting, which combined with a 175mm fork gives 63.8deg head angle. Feels great and for all round use I wouldn't want it any slacker or the bb any lower.
This is the heaviest bike I've owned at 17.5kg. Not sure how others are building this up to be around the 15Kg mark, sometimes with a larger frame. Surely their carbon rims, bars, lack of tyre insert and coil suspension cannot save 2.5kg?? Either way, the weight (800g more than the slayer) is not noticeable, and the suspension is active but still feels efficient enough to get up climbs without too much effort.
Super stoked at the moment and will continue to share updates.
It was a rather late night getting the touch points and suspension settings adjusted, so I thought it was going to be a real gumby of a ride next day.
Two fuckwits moments though. In my half asleep haste I did put the front tyre on backwards, and the grips were on the wrong sides.
Surprisingly, the Fox recommended DHX2 settings felt bang on and leaves little room for more tweaks. The forks are what I had on the Slayer, but with the lowers swapped out for 29er. Cyclinic gave the bushings a good burnish prior to shipping them down, and I feel like I need the next spring rate up. More tuning needed for the fork.
Now back to the frame..
Numbers wise the reach is about 20mm longer, and the chainstay about 20mm compared to the Slayer. So my weight remains quite central and it's a familiar feeling. I still have to slide my hips forward and back more aggressively compared to the shorter bike. There is zero cable noise when using foam tube liners inside the frame. The longer chainstay makes it noticeably more difficult to pull manuals
Front end felt noticeably high and typical of the high stack number, plus probably a 29er thing I'm not used to yet. I will see how it fairs on a few more rides and maybe drop 5mm from under the stem. For taller riders I imagine this frame will be good as you no longer have to run lots of spacers which reduce your reach.
The marketing spiel goes on about how they go to the trouble of forging, machining, and aligning the rear end linkages etc. Can attest that everything fit together very exactly during the build, and the breakaway force on the suspension is exceptional. The rear of the bike is really noticeably stiff, and QUIET with very little chain noise. It is a joy to plow through tree roots and not have the back wheel deflect or the chain make noises. I did add mastic tape to the inside of the seat stay at the cassette, and chain stay near the chainring; maybe that helped?
Currently running the flipchip in the HIGH setting, which combined with a 175mm fork gives 63.8deg head angle. Feels great and for all round use I wouldn't want it any slacker or the bb any lower.
This is the heaviest bike I've owned at 17.5kg. Not sure how others are building this up to be around the 15Kg mark, sometimes with a larger frame. Surely their carbon rims, bars, lack of tyre insert and coil suspension cannot save 2.5kg?? Either way, the weight (800g more than the slayer) is not noticeable, and the suspension is active but still feels efficient enough to get up climbs without too much effort.
Super stoked at the moment and will continue to share updates.
Oddjob
Merry fucking Xmas to you assholes
Nice! Coils and more compliant suspension work so well with Banshees because they are so stiff.
There's no way you're getting sub 16kg with that. The only way to get close would be: Carbon rims and DT240 wheels, DVO Topaz shock, XTR cranks, Cura 2 brakes etc etc.
There's no way you're getting sub 16kg with that. The only way to get close would be: Carbon rims and DT240 wheels, DVO Topaz shock, XTR cranks, Cura 2 brakes etc etc.
teK--
Eats Squid
It's all relative hey. Mate just built up a RM powerplay (Alloy) with "light parts" and it is 26kg
The 17.5kg is only noticeable when hauling it up onto the roof racks.
ForkinGreat
Knows his Brassica oleracea
AKA The Banshee upper-body workout.It's all relative hey. Mate just built up a RM powerplay (Alloy) with "light parts" and it is 26kg
The 17.5kg is only noticeable when hauling it up onto the roof racks.
teK--
Eats Squid
After a couple more outings I came to the following observations and made changes:
Grips:
Burgtec Bartender Pro Josh Bryceland grips are terrible. They have this section under the palm which is full thickness, by cutting out that part of the hard plastic sleeve.
Yes it feels nice and squishy there; very comfortable under grip. However it also means that part of the grip flexes and folds upon itself, even lifts away from the bar when riding. It is a terrible feeling and I have taken them off after 2 rides. Might try the hairspray or spraypaint tricks for push on grips, but for now they are back on the shelf.
Frame Geo:
The increased stack height of the frame/29er (around 20mm) was causing the front to feel way too high. My weight felt either too far back, or when trying to get over the front, made it difficult to drop my heels. It was some pretty wild bucking horse kind of riding in some trails. After a lot of time on geometry geeks, decision was to swap out the 35mm rise bars for 20mm, and slightly more bar rotation towards the rear.
Those changes got the stack height and spread angle (ratio of reach to stack height) very close to the Slayer, but with the benefit of increased reach. First ride with the new setup and I feel instantly more comfortable.
On the dirt:
Spent the day shuttling the King Lake DH trail yesterday and really felt at one with the bike. The rear suspension feels insanely active; to the point where I question whether the spring needs to be uprated. Bottom outs don't feel harsh at all, so it's unclear whether this is just the newer DHX2 with the longer bumpstop smoothing things out, or whether I'm not actually bottoming out. Will have to get the travel indicator reinstalled to be sure.
A quick edit: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/KVWjBqyCeqxEMSFQ/
Grips:
Burgtec Bartender Pro Josh Bryceland grips are terrible. They have this section under the palm which is full thickness, by cutting out that part of the hard plastic sleeve.
Yes it feels nice and squishy there; very comfortable under grip. However it also means that part of the grip flexes and folds upon itself, even lifts away from the bar when riding. It is a terrible feeling and I have taken them off after 2 rides. Might try the hairspray or spraypaint tricks for push on grips, but for now they are back on the shelf.
Frame Geo:
The increased stack height of the frame/29er (around 20mm) was causing the front to feel way too high. My weight felt either too far back, or when trying to get over the front, made it difficult to drop my heels. It was some pretty wild bucking horse kind of riding in some trails. After a lot of time on geometry geeks, decision was to swap out the 35mm rise bars for 20mm, and slightly more bar rotation towards the rear.
Those changes got the stack height and spread angle (ratio of reach to stack height) very close to the Slayer, but with the benefit of increased reach. First ride with the new setup and I feel instantly more comfortable.
On the dirt:
Spent the day shuttling the King Lake DH trail yesterday and really felt at one with the bike. The rear suspension feels insanely active; to the point where I question whether the spring needs to be uprated. Bottom outs don't feel harsh at all, so it's unclear whether this is just the newer DHX2 with the longer bumpstop smoothing things out, or whether I'm not actually bottoming out. Will have to get the travel indicator reinstalled to be sure.
A quick edit: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/KVWjBqyCeqxEMSFQ/
northvanguy
Likes Dirt
What’s the latest with this bike??
teK--
Eats Squid
Sorry been busy working, and riding
But thanks for your interest so here are a few updates!
1. Cable routing for derailleur was terrible and causing unreliable shifting. I jumped on the AXS bandwagon and instantly noticed the weaker clutch and noisy chainslap. It was so bad I wasn't even enjoying riding the bike as much.
Then I found this: https://madronecycles.com/products/super-shims
(sourced the relevant parts for the kit myself off Fleabay)
Also found a part of the chainstay was getting the shit smashed out of it by the chain, and have added mastic tape to cover this area:
End result, the bike is quieter than even when I had Shimano running gear. The bike is actually a joy to ride again.
I will soon have a bunch of leftover parts for the Madrone kit and set up a post to distribute them to fellow burners if there is interest.
2. Some Ti-bling to replace the rusty stem bolts. Leftovers fit the brakes too; bonus!
3. Deep dive into hot waxing the chain. Recommend not using the default stovetop pot method as it takes bloody ages for water to melt the wax in packet. Missus was also cussing me to not leave a mess in the kitchen.
Will buy a cheap rice cooker for next time and pour the wax directly in.
2 rides later and the chain is still dead silent and dirt just hoses off the entire drivetrain. Recommended.
4. Fork was feeling noticeably softer/slower than 6 months ago. Thought I was just getting fat.
During the 6 month service I found the Smashpot spring had shrunk about 2mm in length, causing me to be running near zero preload. Once this was rectified, on next ride it literally transformed the feel of the bike.
As it turns out this is not an uncommon issue with the Smashpot springs, so best to check yours. Stock length should be 400mm but they can be a few mm less from new, and settle after use.
5. Been riding! Last week was end of season at Lake Mountain and boy was it a misty beautiful weekend breaking out into sun from the halfway point. The 20mm of rain made everything extremely tacky and is one of the best rides I've had there. Hope you got to enjoy it!
northvanguy
Likes Dirt
Cheers. I’ve become banshee-curious the last few weeks.