The QUICK question thread.....

I had the chance to pop into the MTB Suspension Centre yesterday to pick up some ye olde Talas forks where I couldn't get the travel control to behave.

Well, I was wondering and asked a few questions and wanted to share here some details here. If you are already up to speed on mounting hardware then move on.
I asked Simon about the fuzzy dark art of rear shock mounting hardware which I sure don't think about much :cool:
Essentially, is one method better than the other?
  • The older design with the DU bushing in the rear shock eyelet remaining. Commonly will use an O-ring to fill in the remaining space between the rear shock and the mounting hardware thingys.
  • The newer 'Fox' design with no DU bushing. The eyelet instead uses 2 x top hat polymer bushing thingys pressed together in place instead of the metal DU bushing. The mounting hardware that fits into it all is made of harder plastics or alloy.
The older DU design was intended to have a bit of give or flex to compensate for swing arm flex and/or poorer frame tolerances where the O-rings provide a bit of absorption. So if you have an earlier frame or one that may have some flex then the DU bushing O-ring design is likely to be the best suited.

The newer design, apparently in its early stages, had quite tightly fitting top hat bushings could lead to some binding around the shock mount and giving the feeling of stiction and bonus squeaks that were hard to find. This has been fixed in following versions.

Newer frames with more rigid CF swingarms with a higher number of linkages made to higher manufacturing tolerances has led to more solid mounting hardware without the need for the DU bushing and O-rings. Any O rings are there to provide a dust proof seal and are very small.

Not that either are inherently bad and are interchangeable without messing things up royally, but best to stick with what the manufacturer has done when designing the frame. Just to keep in mind when swapping over a shock to your trusty steed
 
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I think it's time to finally get glasses now. What's the general go with this? Specsavers or is that some kind of trap?
 
Calvin27 said:
I think it's time to finally get glasses now. What's the general go with this? Specsavers or is that some kind of trap?
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Specsavers have been fine for me but were not so great when my wife developed cataracts. Depends too on your local practitioners. Give them a try.
 
Calvin27 said:
I think it's time to finally get glasses now. What's the general go with this? Specsavers or is that some kind of trap?
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If it's just basic magnification that you need, you can get 'em from Officeworks, 4 pairs for under $50. That's all I got & they're fine for my level of crap short vision.
 
@calvin if you have a big head it may be cheaper to look elsewhere. I have got my last few pairs from Spec savers but they only have one frame that fits my boof head. Spoiler alert they are not in the cheap range and when i busted one of the frames they hit me for $270 for a replacement set of frames. Will get my eye test and prescription from them but will look else where for glasses. My wife has had luck ordering glasses online from the US for stuff all using her spec savers script. She has a basic single vision lense though.
 
Calvin27 said:
I think it's time to finally get glasses now. What's the general go with this? Specsavers or is that some kind of trap?
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Specsavers offer cheap frames (which are crap) but their in-shop service model means your eye examination is conducted by a suite of different technicians before being reviewed by an optometrist who does the prescription and then hands you back off to the retail staff. M'lady used them and was annoyed in the extreme. I tried Specsavers to sort a pair of cheap shed glasses based on my subscription at the time but they were rubbish frames.

Most other shops will have your examination dealt with solely by an optometrist.

Personally, I've used OPSM the last couple of times and been happy enough with the store I've used (even though the pricing is kind of eyewatering).

I've used independents in the past but the local one to me isn't impressive and the choice of frames was little better but more expensive than Specsavers. Your mileage may vary.
 
silentbutdeadly said:
Specsavers offer cheap frames (which are crap) but their in-shop service model means your eye examination is conducted by a suite of different technicians before being reviewed by an optometrist who does the prescription and then hands you back off to the retail staff. M'lady used them and was annoyed in the extreme. I tried Specsavers to sort a pair of cheap shed glasses based on my subscription at the time but they were rubbish frames.

Most other shops will have your examination dealt with solely by an optometrist.

Personally, I've used OPSM the last couple of times and been happy enough with the store I've used (even though the pricing is kind of eyewatering).

I've used independents in the past but the local one to me isn't impressive and the choice of frames was little better but more expensive than Specsavers. Your mileage may vary.
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But sometimes you strike gold with Specsavers. I managed to get 2 pairs of high end Ultralight titanium frames on sale a couple of years ago for $300. Easily as good as my Prodesign titanium ones that lasted me 15 years and cost $500 17 years ago.
 
Calvin27 said:
I think it's time to finally get glasses now. What's the general go with this? Specsavers or is that some kind of trap?
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If you need multifocals/bifocals, stick with single vision distance ones for riding, optometrist will usually steer you down the multifocal which isn't great for riding mtb.
 
Specsavers works for me too, but I did have to ask for the optometrist to have a real good go at getting my prescription right. It wasn't as crystal clear as i thought it should be. I know I have congenital cataracts and it turns out they have just started creeping in to the focusing area, but I did have to ask for the closer look for him to find that.
 
THanks, took the easy road and did specsavers. Not too pricey, paid about $300 for two pairs. Given the amount I have spent on various frames (expensive oakleys to the $5 RB rudy specials) that's not too bad.

I'm kind of worried this might be good though and it means I'll have to upgrade all my cycling lenses which is $$$. Anyone know where you can get oakley/rudy prescription lenses cheap?
 
Calvin27 said:
THanks, took the easy road and did specsavers. Not too pricey, paid about $300 for two pairs. Given the amount I have spent on various frames (expensive oakleys to the $5 RB rudy specials) that's not too bad.

I'm kind of worried this might be good though and it means I'll have to upgrade all my cycling lenses which is $$$. Anyone know where you can get oakley/rudy prescription lenses cheap?
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I won't be going back to specsavers, cheap service, very rushed and pushed the clients through as fast as they can type of show.

If you need bifocals, these are pretty good.
https://www.sharkbaitaustralia.com.au/
 
Ive been using multifocals (safety glasses paid for by my employer) for about 8 years now, wear them for MTB riding and don't have any issues even with them being photochromatic and going in and out of shade/sunlit areas. They are mainly for reading, not distance. Nice to have when the tyres flick up bits of WA gravel towards my face or getting swatted by branches.
Have also bought a few non safety pairs of multifocals, prefer OPSM to Specsavers. Last employer had us going to a local mob called eyes@(place name) and they've been good although they had to remake the first pair of safeties because the lens wasn't properly aligned to my eyes. Also got a pair of goggle inserts from them for work, which would also be good in MTB goggles
 
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@fjohn860 - I have one like the one below. I don't think I paid that much for it but it is eleventy million times better than the pressed metal ones or the skeleton type ones.
www.totaltools.com.au

TAJIMA Convoy Lite Caulk Gun CNV100L

Caulking gun Convoy Lite Black
www.totaltools.com.au www.totaltools.com.au

EDIT: This one looks like a copy

www.bunnings.com.au

Monarch Ultra Lite Speed Caulking Gun

Find Monarch Ultra Lite Speed Caulking Gun at Bunnings. Visit your local store for the widest range of products.
www.bunnings.com.au www.bunnings.com.au
 
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