AM Santa Cruz 5010 Carbon CC

jda

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Five years on and I am still loving this bike but things have begun to wear out and I have just begun the process of making some major upgrades.

First upgrade was the rear shock. The old Fox CTD was never anything special but after 5 years of abuse it had gotten really bad, very harsh initial travel and then it would easily blow through all the travel with nothing in the middle.

I thought about getting is serviced and tuned but then just decided to put something much better in.



The Fox float X2 was installed but I also went with an extra 5mm of stroke to get a bit more rear wheel travel. I was pleasantly surprised to still be able to run a water bottle in the medium frame. I had to drop down to a 650mL bottle and use a Wolf Tooth B-RAD Base Mount to slide the side entry bottle cage back as far as possible.



The new rear shock is a game changer for sure, it has taken some time to dial in the settings but I feel I am getting close now.
 
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jda

Likes Bikes and Dirt
The upgrades keep coming along with some more maintenance. Installed some fresh brake pads and gave both ends a bleed, replaced the bottom bracket as it had some play in it and was 5 years old and a fresh set of tyres.

Replaced the Thomson elite dropper with a Bike Yoke Revive. The Thomson was good but I should have got it serviced sooner and it ended up getting a lot of dirt inside once the seals wore out, plus its gone squishy. I'm sure it can be repaired but I just wanted a new one.

New dropper.
 

leitch

Feelin' a bit rrranty
Looks so good mate! 5 years of service what a trooper. If you're still adding bits I can really recommend a -1 degree Works headset on the mk1 5010!
 

jda

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Looks so good mate! 5 years of service what a trooper. If you're still adding bits I can really recommend a -1 degree Works headset on the mk1 5010!
Cheers mate, yes 5 years and a close to 6.5k kms.

Currently thinking about getting a new Fox 36 and running it at 140mm since I added a little travel in the rear. What is the benefit of this headset you recommended?
 

leitch

Feelin' a bit rrranty
-1° headset slackens the head angle by a degree but also steepens the seat angle a bit (maybe ~0.5°) so starts to bring the geo a bit more up to date as things have changed a lot since 2015! From memory my 5010 with the -1 °headset and a 140mm Pike was something like 66.5° HA and 73° STA.

Was also running a 57mm stroke shock (Cane Creek) like you and it handled so well, was a real little party bike!
 

sane

Likes Bikes and Dirt
I’ve had mine longer than any other bike, I guess that says something similar to your experience @jda

if you’re looking to do something with the fork have a look at the Pike c1 air spring. Lots of people here have been been banging on about the improvement over the first gen debonair but I dropped one in my pre debonair pike, same as yours, earlier this year and the difference is night and day. Well worth the minimal coin and you can just order a 140mm and get a travel bump in the process.
 

jda

Likes Bikes and Dirt
I’ve had mine longer than any other bike, I guess that says something similar to your experience @jda

if you’re looking to do something with the fork have a look at the Pike c1 air spring. Lots of people here have been been banging on about the improvement over the first gen debonair but I dropped one in my pre debonair pike, same as yours, earlier this year and the difference is night and day. Well worth the minimal coin and you can just order a 140mm and get a travel bump in the process.
Can't fault the bike really other than the pivot design could be a little better which is obviously why they changed it in the later models, just got to keep checking its tight.
What @leitch was saying about modern geometry might be true but honestly for my proportions I have found this bikes geometry to be perfectly balanced.

The main reason I wanted to change the fork was the creaking noise, I've just given it a service and got it feeling really good at the moment but the creaking annoys me so much. Talking to the LBS today it seems like most forks creak to some extent these days and it has somehow become acceptable. Maybe the air spring upgrade you mentioned is the way to go and instead of buying a new fork..
 

Cyclomaniac

Likes Dirt
The main reason I wanted to change the fork was the creaking noise, I've just given it a service and got it feeling really good at the moment but the creaking annoys me so much. Talking to the LBS today it seems like most forks creak to some extent these days and it has somehow become acceptable. Maybe the air spring upgrade you mentioned is the way to go and instead of buying a new fork..
Is it a CSU creak? I used some Loctite on my forks and it helped a lot to reduce the noise from horrifying to slightly annoying. It is explained here
 

jda

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Is it a CSU creak? I used some Loctite on my forks and it helped a lot to reduce the noise from horrifying to slightly annoying. It is explained here
I actually ordered some Loctite 638 today to try and fix this, hadn't seen this video but read something on the forums about it.

I've also ordered the Pike c1 air spring in 140mm that @sane mentioned, sounds like a good bang for buck mod and I get the extra 10mm travel I want.
 

jda

Likes Bikes and Dirt
The new pike air spring has arrived and I installed it today.

In the process I discovered my lower headset bearing was dry and full or mud so I cleaned it all out and re-packed it with fresh grease. Ultimately I need to replace the lower bearing but I got it feeling ok for now. I am pretty sure this is where some of the creaking was coming from but the fork still creaks so I have applied some Loctite 638 to the CSU and left it to soak in overnight.

The fork is now 140mm travel and I was able to get the same percentage of sag with 10psi less pressure with the new air spring.

 

jda

Likes Bikes and Dirt
First ride today with the new air spring in the pike, certainly was a worthwhile purchase! The fork seems to move through the first third of travel more smooth with less stiction but it still offers great support, front end grip has noticeably improved and the fork just feels more plush overall. I'm sure a small bit of that is the extra 10mm travel too.

Creaking noise is still there but greatly reduced. I think it was mostly the headset because that Loctite just does not seem to be low enough viscosity to seep into such a small gap in the CSU.

Either way I'm keeping the Pike because it feels great and the noise is not too loud now.
 
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