Evie

[Cardy George]

Cool bike, congrats. 36,000km on a frame is pretty nuts, certainly got your value from it!

Two frames, but who's counting? I received the first warranty replacement just after the Supercaliber was released. I was secretly hoping it would last until they had no option but to give me one. Was just a bugger it didn't arrive in time for the Odyssey. I caught a bloke on a Top Fuel just as we hit a rooty climb in Yaughers. I didn't change how much effort I was putting in but he slowly drew away from me until we cleared the roots and I caught him again.

I also don't understand how this isn't closer to the 10kg mark. Did you get a frame weight?

No frame weight, but it's a death by a thousand cuts scenario. Chasing a creak (already ) and literally just saw the cranks are the M9125 version, which are a trail bike spec and a bit beefier, the wheels are built to be used everyday so are 1,400g when the trend is closer to 1,300, I have Ergon GA3 grips not foam, the Bontrager seat post isn't uber light and the SQLabs saddle is the same. Could probably throw the tyres on this list too. But it actually feels lighter than the previous bike, and is incredibly more efficient at what it does. As already mentioned the Procaliber came out of the shop at 10.8 kg, and gained a little weight over it's lifetime. I'm not losing out.

Keen to hear a review of the Pirelli's, I've got some to try for my upcoming build.

I love them. These are my second set. They roll extremely well, are predictable and last quite a long time, even considering the amount of tarmac I ride.

 

[Cardy George]

Paging Dr Beebenson, @beeb enson your preliminary results are in......

Starting to use it like I did the Procaliber, and the early stages of the bike-brain connection were forged yesterday. Sat it on its nose and the front just tracked, the rear following along like a lost puppy. It was glorious.

I can't be certain why, but on paper I was worried this bike would be an understeering pig of a bike. The bars are wider, the stem while the same length is not as angled, it squats through corners. But it's the polar opposite. It's everything I wanted the Procal to be. Sharp turn in, holds the line, isn't drastically unstable. Tire pressures are up and I still trust the front end.

@beeb please correct me if I'm wrong. Are the extra reach, steeper seat angle and extra trail from the 'wrong' offset fork combing to give it more bite, and is the rear suspension contributing by stopping the bike from becoming unsettled over mid corner bumps?


Either way, as much as I loved the Procal, the Super is next level.

 

[creaky]

I was worried this bike would be an understeering pig of a bike

LOL, it's an XCO race bike.

 

[Cardy George]

LOL, it's an XCO race bike.

Under steering pig compared to what I'm used to

 

[creaky]

Under steering pig compared to what I'm used to

Numbers look pretty damn similar to me. That STA is going to slacken out a degree once you sit on the bike, unlike the hardtail.

Apparently, to non-mortals, the 51mm offset fork will provide quicker steering compared to 44mm. I think the rear suspension is having more of an impact on your newfound grip than the minor geo variations though.

 

[Cardy George]

Numbers look pretty damn similar to me. That STA is going to slacken out a degree once you sit on the bike, unlike the hardtail.

That's why I was concerned about the cockpit set up. It took a bloody long time to get what I wanted, and everything on this bike goes against that philosophy.

 

[moorey]

compared to what I'm used to

You’re not descending fast enough.

 

[cokeonspecialtwodollars]

You’re not descending fast enough.

I reckon he gets from his highest elevation point to his lowest elevation point quicker than most of us.

 

[moorey]

I reckon he gets from his highest elevation point to his lowest elevation point quicker than most of us.

Still needs faster.

 

[Dales Cannon]

Paging Dr Beebenson, @beeb enson your preliminary results are in......

Starting to use it like I did the Procaliber, and the early stages of the bike-brain connection were forged yesterday. Sat it on its nose and the front just tracked, the rear following along like a lost puppy. It was glorious.

I can't be certain why, but on paper I was worried this bike would be an understeering pig of a bike. The bars are wider, the stem while the same length is not as angled, it squats through corners. But it's the polar opposite. It's everything I wanted the Procal to be. Sharp turn in, holds the line, isn't drastically unstable. Tire pressures are up and I still trust the front end.

View attachment 387558

@beeb please correct me if I'm wrong. Are the extra reach, steeper seat angle and extra trail from the 'wrong' offset fork combing to give it more bite, and is the rear suspension contributing by stopping the bike from becoming unsettled over mid corner bumps?


Either way, as much as I loved the Procal, the Super is next level.

So only one more stack before you get another new frame?

 

[Cardy George]

So only one more stack before you get another new frame?

If it was cracked from a crash I wouldn't be getting a new frame.......

 

[cokeonspecialtwodollars]

If it was cracked from a crash I wouldn't be getting a new frame.......

What crash?

 

[Dales Cannon]

What crash?

You haven't heard? First ride... stump... red kangaroo...

 

[cokeonspecialtwodollars]

I'm pretty sure that he was just riding along

 

[Cardy George]

I'm pretty sure that he was just riding along

Great minds think alike

 

[beeb]

Paging Dr Beebenson, @beeb enson your preliminary results are in......

Starting to use it like I did the Procaliber, and the early stages of the bike-brain connection were forged yesterday. Sat it on its nose and the front just tracked, the rear following along like a lost puppy. It was glorious.

I can't be certain why, but on paper I was worried this bike would be an understeering pig of a bike. The bars are wider, the stem while the same length is not as angled, it squats through corners. But it's the polar opposite. It's everything I wanted the Procal to be. Sharp turn in, holds the line, isn't drastically unstable. Tire pressures are up and I still trust the front end.

View attachment 387558

@beeb please correct me if I'm wrong. Are the extra reach, steeper seat angle and extra trail from the 'wrong' offset fork combing to give it more bite, and is the rear suspension contributing by stopping the bike from becoming unsettled over mid corner bumps?


Either way, as much as I loved the Procal, the Super is next level.

@Cardy George - on the right is the geo of your Procalibre at sag (if I remember you ran quite a bit of sag on you Procal?), turns out there's a reason the Supercalibre doesn't feel too dissimilar!

The improved cornering is likely a combination of a few things... But mainly the slacker HA, and like you and @creaky have touched on, the rear suspension will help overall traction and balance too. Probably a lot of the benefit is just in improved confidence from more consistent traction.

In regards to fork offset, on something this steep - I'd probably choose the traditional offset as well. It'll feel a bit more "pointy", but have little-to-no effect on leant-over grip at all.

 

[Cardy George]

if I remember you ran quite a bit of sag on you Procal?

You're a legend as always Doctor.

It's the fork from the Procal that's on the Supercal, and to be honest I haven't looked at the number for a long time, but at 90psi the pressure is low, any lower and the fork won't fully extend. It's still very rare that I use full travel, even in the more technical stuff like the Otways. About the only time I hit the stops is descending flights of stairs.

So far the rear is showing the same trend. It is using a little more travel than I want, and bumping the pressure up has made it feel a bit harsh, so as soon as the correct size BB spanner arrives I'll drop the pressure back, chuck in a bigger volume spacer and see how it goes.

 

[Cardy George]

Four months down the track and all is going fantastically well. All the new bike niggles are pretty much sorted, all that's left is tweaking the angle of the handlebars for long term comfort. I've bumped the fork pressure up to match the feel of the rear.

Change of season means rear shock minor service time, so as promised in a different thread, here's some photos of it's innards.

Thought I'd have crack at the rear-steer setting.

It's a pain in the arse. To get the rear triangle to pivot like that requires bottle cage, cranks, rear brake and chain guide to be moved or removed plus pivot axle and mounting bolts. Worth it though. Removing it completely requires disconnecting the derailleur and removing the internally routed outer. No, thank you.

As mentioned before, the carrier is just a double ended fork outer.

Oil soaked foam is used to help control horizontal flex. The rear stays attach where these blocks sit. The one on the right of the photo has fallen, and I must have folded the corner over on the other as I inserted the strut last time. A little awkward to reassemble, but I've done worse.

The strut itself. 30cm of Kashima goodness. Only half filled with the Fox damper.

It's a very short stroke

Driven by a bolt.

Secured through the carriage

 

[link1896]

Sweet bike dude. It’s nice that all of the modern fox products, even OEM, gets service manuals published.

Knowing fox’s prices, that’s a couple of grand of custom tools easy.


Cardy, don’t get caught with your pants down with spares, this appears to be a bespoke, one off design, that if orphaned as a product, you’re screwed.

Rebuild instructions

2020 TREK IsoStrut Rebuild | Bike Help Center | FOX

www.ridefox.com

Drawings
Drawings https://www.ridefox.com/fox17/help.php?m=bike&id=1047


Have you priced up a complete spare rear shock assembly? Or expecting to snap this one too before spare parts become unavailable?

 

[Cardy George]

Cardy, don’t get caught with your pants down with spares, this appears to be a bespoke, one off design, that if orphaned as a product, you’re screwed.


Have you priced up a complete spare rear shock assembly? Or expecting to snap this one too before spare parts become unavailable?

I haven't priced one yet, but I kinda know the ballpark in US$. It's absolutely on the purchase list. As for the damper, I'm not keen for doing it myself, there has to be somewhere I can send it.

Not expecting to crack this one, but then I also wasn't expecting crack the first one. The problem area on the hardtail is now the home for a spring, and the only issues I've read about with Supercalibers are seat stays cracking caused by over tight bushings in the carriage. This one is silky smooth.