smitho
Likes Bikes and Dirt
New bike day has come.
My previous bike was a 2016 Specialized S-Works Enduro 650b until a hairline crack near the shock top mount ended its riding career. Thankfully the excellent crew at BikeNow sorted out a warranty and there was a crispy fresh 2017 S-Works Enduro frame in my sweaty little hands.
After two Enduros I thought it was time to try something new, so it went up for sale. After the demo day at the You Yangs I had my heart set on a Craftworks ENR before fate intervened. A complete Insurgent came up for sale on Facebook and I offered the bloke a reasonable price for the frame only, but he wasn’t willing to split. My long-standing lust for Evil bikes got the better of me and I pulled the trigger on the complete in the hope that I could sell the surplus parts. Thankfully the gamble paid off. The upshot? An immaculate Insurgent frame for about $1100. Not bad.
The result:
The drivetrain, shock, saddle, wheels and cockpit were recycled from the old Enduro but there were a couple of parts that were due for an upgrade.
My old Pikes were the first to get the chop. They were just undergunned on a bike as burly as the Enduro and under 90kgs of my hack riding the flex was noticeable. Managed to pick up some near new 170mm Yaris and a second hand Charger 2 RCT3 damper for cheap off Facebook. A new 160mm Debonair Air Shaft and we had a Lyrik. The switch to Boost was going to mean an adaptor before a snap CRC sale had me a new Hope Pro 4 Boost for much the same price. Was even able to lace it with the same spokes!
The OCD in me struggles to cope with the Air/Coil, RockShox/Fox combo of suspension so this will likely change when the credit card recovers. Options are a PUSH ACS3 conversion for the Lyrik/Yari, or possibly a Helm coil. I struggled to see the advantage of a coil shock on the Enduro, but the Insurgent linkage should be more suitable.
Next up was the brakes. I liked the feel of my old Formula T1s but they had their issues with reliability. One Pushys sale, a few beers and a driving need to over compensate and this was the result. Hope V4 front with 203mm Hope floating rotor, paired with a Hope E4 rear and another 203mm floating rotor. The setup was a fairly involved process but first impressions are that they could stop a locomotive.
The other main change was the dropper. The old Specialized Command Post attempted a blunt force castration every time you pulled the trigger, such was the return speed. The OneUp review on here persuaded me and by my calculations the 170mm post would fit. It did. Just. At maximum insertion it’s exactly at my seat height.
The only other change that is likely to happen is a wider 35mm bar (probably Renthal FatBar or Enve M7) and a stubbier stem (Thomson X4 TR35 40mm when they become available for a reasonable price - CRC have them at way above RRP).
More pics for good measure:
My previous bike was a 2016 Specialized S-Works Enduro 650b until a hairline crack near the shock top mount ended its riding career. Thankfully the excellent crew at BikeNow sorted out a warranty and there was a crispy fresh 2017 S-Works Enduro frame in my sweaty little hands.
After two Enduros I thought it was time to try something new, so it went up for sale. After the demo day at the You Yangs I had my heart set on a Craftworks ENR before fate intervened. A complete Insurgent came up for sale on Facebook and I offered the bloke a reasonable price for the frame only, but he wasn’t willing to split. My long-standing lust for Evil bikes got the better of me and I pulled the trigger on the complete in the hope that I could sell the surplus parts. Thankfully the gamble paid off. The upshot? An immaculate Insurgent frame for about $1100. Not bad.
The result:
The drivetrain, shock, saddle, wheels and cockpit were recycled from the old Enduro but there were a couple of parts that were due for an upgrade.
My old Pikes were the first to get the chop. They were just undergunned on a bike as burly as the Enduro and under 90kgs of my hack riding the flex was noticeable. Managed to pick up some near new 170mm Yaris and a second hand Charger 2 RCT3 damper for cheap off Facebook. A new 160mm Debonair Air Shaft and we had a Lyrik. The switch to Boost was going to mean an adaptor before a snap CRC sale had me a new Hope Pro 4 Boost for much the same price. Was even able to lace it with the same spokes!
The OCD in me struggles to cope with the Air/Coil, RockShox/Fox combo of suspension so this will likely change when the credit card recovers. Options are a PUSH ACS3 conversion for the Lyrik/Yari, or possibly a Helm coil. I struggled to see the advantage of a coil shock on the Enduro, but the Insurgent linkage should be more suitable.
Next up was the brakes. I liked the feel of my old Formula T1s but they had their issues with reliability. One Pushys sale, a few beers and a driving need to over compensate and this was the result. Hope V4 front with 203mm Hope floating rotor, paired with a Hope E4 rear and another 203mm floating rotor. The setup was a fairly involved process but first impressions are that they could stop a locomotive.
The other main change was the dropper. The old Specialized Command Post attempted a blunt force castration every time you pulled the trigger, such was the return speed. The OneUp review on here persuaded me and by my calculations the 170mm post would fit. It did. Just. At maximum insertion it’s exactly at my seat height.
The only other change that is likely to happen is a wider 35mm bar (probably Renthal FatBar or Enve M7) and a stubbier stem (Thomson X4 TR35 40mm when they become available for a reasonable price - CRC have them at way above RRP).
More pics for good measure:
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