# Flying like a BIRD - Time to FORGE a new path...



## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I've been loving SS life, but with winter has come some real snow and without being able to do the "granny grind" walking will become too big a part of the ride. I've also been SSing solo most of the time and I'm not so sure it'll work well in group rides where my pace will be opposite of everyone else [fast on the climbs and slow on flat/rolling terrain]. So I decided on building a geared hardtail to go with my SS rig.









Forge 29" Hardtail Frameset | Bird MTB // Born in Swinley, Built in the UK.


The Forge has been years in the making. Its roots can be traced to initial designs in 2013 and we’ve been beavering away on it ever since. The final bike is a trail-ready 29” wheeled beast, taking a 130-160mm fork and made from the perfect mix of 4130 steel and Reynolds 853 DZB. A slack 64...




www.bird.bike














Bird wasn't really on my radar as I thought they made AL bikes. But, I stumbled on the Bird Forge which is a new steel hardtail they released this summer. The geo looked good, the frame flex looked good [in so far as one can assess it online] and they had stock!










The one area where I am getting experimental is the BB height is lower than my other bikes. My new riding areas seem less rocky than the old ones so I'm hoping this won't be an issue. I will for sure be mounting a taco style bashguard and running short cranks.










I like the lack of braces/gussets. I like the fact there is room for 2 bottles inside the frame on top of the DT. A 200mm dropper fits the 420mm seattube. Threaded BB and external routing FTW!










SRAM UDH and Reynolds 853 main tubes are nice touches.










ISCG05 tabs are essential with a low BB. I'm hoping the cornering will be sublime so the low BB is worth any pedal strikes.










I got the M/L size frame and I'll run a 140mm fork on it.

Here is one of the few reviews I could find for this frame. It's certainly not a popular model!









Bird Forge review


Brilliant value full build




www.bikeradar.com


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

This was yesterday halfway up the local mountain. Still fairly rideable, but with a true granny gear I wouldn't have gotten off the bike much. With SS there was a bunch of pushing on the uphill sections that I could normally ride. I'm hoping the Bird will fly through stuff like this and Forge a new path even higher up the mountain in winter conditions.  🤘  🤘

No plans to stop SSing I'll just ride lower trails that aren't as snowed in when I am on that bike. 👌👌👌


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## HEMIjer (Jul 17, 2008)

Looks like a good choice cant wait to see final build. Just curious no desire for a fatbike I guess?


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

HEMIjer said:


> Just curious no desire for a fatbike I guess?


I've been riding 2.4"-2.6" tires in Coastal BC winters for 10 years and it's rare when these aren't the best choice for most of the ride. Our winters are also short so I want a bike that's fun 365 days a year. I haven't kept up with fatbike geo, but I don't think they are running modern geo. Finally I want my wheels, tires, forks, etc... as interoperable throughout my fleet as possible. 

I'm not anti-fatty, but I'd only get one if it was the best tool for the job for a significant chunk of the year. That isn't the case here.


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## HEMIjer (Jul 17, 2008)

vikb said:


> Our winters are also short so I want a bike that's fun 365 days a year. I haven't kept up with fatbike geo, but I don't think they are running modern geo. Finally I want my wheels, tires, forks, etc... as interoperable throughout my fleet as possible.
> 
> I'm not anti-fatty, but I'd only get one if it was the best tool for the job for a significant chunk of the year. That isn't the case here.


Most arent modern geo and same on weather here in US Mid-Atlantic has me thinking about selling mine.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

HEMIjer said:


> Most arent modern geo and same on weather here in US Mid-Atlantic has me thinking about selling mine.


Fatties are amazing and essential in some specific areas/riding conditions, but in a lot of places that get less gnarly winters they end up being overkill a lot of the time. And I care about geo a lot so I am only going to compromise on that if I have no other choice.


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## cassieno (Apr 28, 2011)

@vikb where did you move? you used to be on Vancouver island right? The biggest difference I noticed with low(er) BB hardtails is that they don't bunny hop / pop as easily. But they make great plow and corner bikes.


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## BadgerOne (Jul 17, 2015)

These are very cool bikes but that front triangle is LONG. Can't wait to see the build!


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

cassieno said:


> @vikb where did you move? you used to be on Vancouver island right? The biggest difference I noticed with low(er) BB hardtails is that they don't bunny hop / pop as easily. But they make great plow and corner bikes.












I just moved from the bottom of Van Isle [Victoria] to the middle fairly similar climate, but just different enough to have more snow riding in the mix.

I've notice that as hardtails get longer [especially CS] they are less playful. I haven't really noticed that relative to BB height. So I think the key is to match bike length to your typical riding speeds and desire for playfulness vs. stability. I don't think there is a wrong answer just depends on what you want.

With the Forge I could probably ride a Medium, Med/Lrg or a Large. The M/L seemed like the right mix of geo for me. Obviously that's an educated guess based on the geo charts. However, I have held up the Forge to my other HTs and falls right in the zone of bikes I love so I am optimistic it'll work out. That said you never know until you ride a bike what it will be like.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Progress! Wheels are ready to go. I've never had carbon rims on a hardtail so we'll have to see how these work for me. I have used this model of rim before and I did not find it harsh, but it was on a FS bike. If I decide I prefer metal rims on this bike I have some DT Swiss wheels I can swap these for.


Light Bicycle 29er rims 30mm IW
Hope Pro4 hubs 110mm/148mm
Schwalbe Magic Mary [soft] + Hans Damf [medium] - 29 x 2.6"
Tannus Tubeless insert in rear wheel
SRAM Centreline 203mm + 180mm rotors
I have Hope hubs on most of my bikes and they work well. I like doing long rides and riding from home to the trails when I can. So I have to find that balance between traction and rolling resistance. I'm loving the Tannus insert in the rear of my SS hardtail. I can ride it very aggressively without getting flats or damaging the rim. The Tannus is not heavy or hard to install so it's very easy to live with. These SRAM rotors aren't my favourite, but you take what you can get these days!


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## _RB (Dec 15, 2021)

Such a beautiful frame. I hope you share some thoughts about Bird and BFEmax after some riding.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

_RB said:


> Such a beautiful frame. I hope you share some thoughts about Bird and BFEmax after some riding.


Thanks. For sure I'll compare them. I held up the Forge to my BFeMAX and it's noticeably smaller on both ends.


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

Interesting you are getting another bike after the Sirius. So this will be geared for the snow & Sirius is SS for the rest?


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Funoutside said:


> Interesting you are getting another bike after the Sirius. So this will be geared for the snow & Sirius is SS for the rest?


I thought about getting a 2nd Sirius so I'd have one with gears and one SS. I can see how that would be pretty sweet.

I'll ride the Sirius most of the time, but I'll switch to the Forge when gears make more sense...like snow riding, fast group rides, big mountain rides, etc... I'm enjoy the SS riding and it's way more capable than it seems at first thought, but at the same time there are bike missions where gears do make things better.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I've got something vaguely bike shaped now. The 29 x 2.6" Schwalbe's are nice and meaty. The sizing is looking good when I compare it to my custom Daambuilt and the Sirius. The BBH sits at ~310mm...which is a touch lower than my Daambuilt, but only maybe ~3-5mm. So that should work okay. I'll probably use the bash guard occasionally. I don't mind that as long as I'm not dealing with pedal strikes all the time. So far so good! 

I need to swap the 170mm cranks from the Sirius to this frame, but I want to go for a SS ride first so I'll hold off on any more building until this afternoon. Once the cranks/pedals are on I can set the saddle height and position the bars. The rest will go fast.


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## cassieno (Apr 28, 2011)

I have used LB rims (don't know about those specific ones) and Reynolds carbon rims. My experience, doesn't matter. They work, just like the aluminum ones do. I have mostly been riding carbon lately because I think the edges are a little stronger to smashing and I like running lower pressures. 

Agree with the Tannus insert - I have one in the rear of one of my hardtails and it's great. Helps a ton.

Bummer to hear about the SRAM rotors. I think I have those same ones and really crossing my fingers they will be okay. The turkey wobble death noise made me swear them off 3 years ago, but like you said - take what you can get these days.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

For those keen on tire clearance information the Forge will comfortably fit a 29 x 2.6" Schwalbe tire with ~5mm clearance at the tightest spot in the BB/CS area. They are quite plump so a Maxxis 2.6" tire would have even more clearance. 👌


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

cassieno said:


> Bummer to hear about the SRAM rotors. I think I have those same ones and really crossing my fingers they will be okay. The turkey wobble death noise made me swear them off 3 years ago, but like you said - take what you can get these days.


I ended up putting some old XT 2 piston brakes on the Forge I had laying around. The work fine, but they've got the annoying wandering bite point issue. So the braking system on the Forge won't be amazing. That said riding a SS bike a lot this fall has really taught me to stay off the brakes to preserve momentum. Hopefully I can transfer some of those skills over to this bike and the brakes won't get used as much.

I have mentally planned to buy some new brakes in 2022 when a good deal crosses my path.


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

I am sure you might know but may want to keep your eye out for the Magua trail Sport(4pot front, 2pot rear). My friend said he got the set for a little under $200usd(before shipping) from Europe(to North America) earlier in the year for his wife's ht. I think the Magura rotors were on sale as part of the bundle.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Funoutside said:


> I am sure you might know but may want to keep your eye out for the Magua trail Sport(4pot front, 2pot rear). My friend said he got the set for a little under $200usd(before shipping) from Europe(to North America) earlier in the year for his wife's ht. I think the Magura rotors were on sale as part of the bundle.


Thanks for the suggestion. I really like standardization across the fleet so I am sticking with SRAM Codes or Shimano brakes. Magura makes good brakes. I just don't want to deal with another brand of brakes.


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

Totally get it. I do like my G2s.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Mostly done. Just need to bleed the brakes and cut the steerer. That 200mm dropper is hilarious. More drop than I need, but it's what fell to hand and it does look badass like that!


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## cassieno (Apr 28, 2011)

Not usually a fan of colored cables. But that looks really good.

I have a 200mm dropper on one of my bikes. Basically the same thought. More drop than I need but, it works.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

The brakes were already setup with blue hose and I didn't feel like swapping that out. I figured when I get new brakes the hose will be black and I can swap the shift/dropper housing to black. I wasn't sure at first about the blue, but the the grips and pedals were in my parts bin so I decided to just go for it and see what I think in a month. It's growing on me so that's good!


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## AdamR83 (Jan 21, 2021)

I don't think you can have too much drop, on hardtail especially - having the saddle way down is great for super tech stuff, and the flex a long dropper gives is great.

Bike looks superb! I love the simple frame, and the colour. Enjoy


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## BadgerOne (Jul 17, 2015)

Yep, looking good. What is that white crap all over the ground though?


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I know some folks don't love my penchant for festooning my bikes with frame bags and fenders so here are a few shots of the naked Bird. She'll never be this clean and this free of accessories again...so if this is your jam enjoy!!!  










She does have some nice lines.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

BadgerOne said:


> Yep, looking good. What is that white crap all over the ground though?


Cocaine! We had a hell of an early Christmas party! 🤣🤣🤣


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## SSsteel4life (Jul 1, 2016)

That is one nice looking frame! Man I wish it had sliders!


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

SSsteel4life said:


> That is one nice looking frame! Man I wish it had sliders!


Thanks. It turned out nicer than I expected. I'm going to say it's the nicest looking hardtail I've ever had.  

For what I plan for this bike I don't need sliders and I appreciate the clean rear end, but in general I'd take sliders on any hardtail. Not only does it allow for a clean SS setup, but folks can play with CS length making more people happy than a fixed CS.


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## Schmeg (Nov 2, 2021)

I love the clean lines.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

The Forge is finally done. I've been busy shoveling snow, dealing with last minute Christmas stuff and shredding the white stuff when I had some time. 🤓 










All my bikes get setup with fenders, bags and bottles so I can ride in any weather without a pack. The Forge has room for a 2nd bottle inside the frame. I'll put another cage in there come summer. Most winter rides I drink almost nothing. 










Initial spins around the neighbourhood feel good. Sizing is correct and no surprises. I got some custom coloured fork decals I was going to put on, but I like the stealth look so I'll save them for now. I'll consider putting them on next time I service the fork. 










It's been a while since I used Schwalbe rubbers so I am interested to see how these work. They are bigger in volume than the 2.6" Maxxis tires I am used to.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Getting the Bird dialed in. Lots of little tweaks to be made.









It's still getting dark early so I brought some lights for the ride home on the street.









I packed my onboard tool kit. I'm just missing a derailleur hanger, which is on order at my LBS.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I spent a while today adjusting the cockpit on the Bird.









I swapped in a higher rise bar that is a bit narrower.









I also swapped in a set of larger diameter grips.









I adjusted the bars up and down a bit in smaller increments.









I added some pressure to the fork to raise the sagged ride height.









By the end of the session I was enjoying the riding position a lot better. Tomorrow I'll get out for a solid ride to give this setup a good test. 🤘


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

How are you liking those grips so far? Which one did you have previously? 

Your pics are getting me stoked to get on my bike & ride some dirt.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Funoutside said:


> How are you liking those grips so far? Which one did you have previously?
> 
> Your pics are getting me stoked to get on my bike & ride some dirt.


I loved the bigger RF Getta Grips [33mm] on one other bike, then didn't love them on a different bike and now I'm digging them on this bike. It's interesting how saddle position, BB, bar type/bar position and grips all come together differently on different bikes. It's still too early to say if they are keepers on the Bird. I need a few solid trail rides to be sure.

The grips that came off were Ergon GA2 grips [30mm]. I enjoy those grips a lot on other bikes. For some reason on this one they felt too small.

I don't have a logical explanation for why some bars/grips work great on some bikes and not so well on others. All I know is if I am not 100% happy with my cockpit/riding position it's worth experimenting with a few options. 

I'm looking forward to seeing your new rig unleashed on the trails. It should be rad! 🤘


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I ended up swapping in a Wolftooth 28T oval ring with a 6mm offset so 49mm chainline. This gives me a straight chain in the 3rd largest cog on the cassette and avoiding heavy drivetrain wear in the high torque gears.









The back end is a 11 speed Shimano XT cassette with a 49T Wolftooth GC cog hacked in.









Fun ride today. Getting to know the Bird better. 🤓


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Great ride today. First day where I could just shred and wasn't thinking about bike setup. I did a lot of extra riding beyond what I had planned. That's good sign when I don't want to turn the bike for home. 🤘


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## cmg (Mar 13, 2012)

@vikb, I see you got the M/L frame, but I didnt see anywhere where you said how big you are? 
Im 188cm so according to Bird right at the top end of M/L Frame ,but geo specs of the M/L are really close to my Meta (except BB Drop)

I want a Steel HT (currently on a Meta AMHT), and have a list of potentials, the Forge looks very interesting to me.


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## yetiman71 (Mar 12, 2008)

cmg said:


> @vikb, I see you got the M/L frame, but I didnt see anywhere where you said how big you are?
> Im 188cm so according to Bird right at the top end of M/L Frame ,but geo specs of the M/L are really close to my Meta (except BB Drop)
> 
> I want a Steel HT (currently on a Meta AMHT), and have a list of potentials, the Forge looks very interesting to me.


It's a tough one. I'm the same height as you and I like my hardtails to feel different to my full suss bikes, a bit smaller and a bit more playful, so for that reason I think I would opt for the ML. The seat tube is a bit on the short side though, but a 200mm dropper would fix that. One caveat though, if I didn't have my large Bird AM9 and the Forge was going to be my only bike I would probably opt for the large.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

cmg said:


> @vikb, I see you got the M/L frame, but I didnt see anywhere where you said how big you are?
> Im 188cm so according to Bird right at the top end of M/L Frame ,but geo specs of the M/L are really close to my Meta (except BB Drop)
> 
> I want a Steel HT (currently on a Meta AMHT), and have a list of potentials, the Forge looks very interesting to me.


I'm 5'11"/180cm with a 33"/84cm pants inseam. Looking at the Forge geo chart I am between the M/L and L sizes. Having just sold a hardtail because it was too big [not too big to sit on and pedal, but so long I didn't love riding it] I wasn't going to err on the long side again and went with the ML. That was a good choice. It feels a bit "long", but isn't excessive in that regard.

On the other hardtail I am shredding at the moment [Pipedream Sirius] I am on a medium [aka Long] frame.

Bikes have been getting longer and longer the last few years. So you may well be happy riding the smaller option. I would fire Bird an email with your current ride details and ask them for their opinion. They've sized a lot of people on their bikes.

In most bike frame ranges a typical rider can fit onto two sizes.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Great ride today. For January in Canada I won't complain about the weather!  🙏🤘


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## cmg (Mar 13, 2012)

yetiman71 said:


> .......read it all above if you need too.......


I´m also thinking if I went this route an L is the go



vikb said:


> I'm 5'11"/180cm with a 33"/84cm pants inseam. Looking at the Forge geo chart I am between the M/L and L sizes. Having just sold a hardtail because it was too big [not too big to sit on and pedal, but so long I didn't love riding it] I wasn't going to err on the long side again and went with the ML. That was a good choice. It feels a bit "long", but isn't excessive in that regard.
> ...............................read the rest above if you need to


OK, Im 34"/87cm inseam.
The Large Meta Im on feels a "little" too small, and Ive spent a lot of time comparing Geo charts and sitting on it trying to figure out how another frame would feel.
I have a list of Frames with Geo Charts of the following:
NS Bikes Eccentric Chromo
Jamis Dragon
Ragley Big Wig
Orange P7
Kingdom Vendetta
Stif Squatch
Nordest Bardino
Stanton Switch 9er

All theses Frames are cool, but all have something that I dont like.
The Forge is just beautiful, no gussets/braces, cable routing outside, thin tubing and no weird standards anywhere

its all irrelevant though, M/L and L only available in Black, but the Black imo isnt nice at all.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

A few posts back I said I was done setting up the Bird and it was time to just shred. I was wrong. I took it on some harder trails and decided there was more dialing in to be done!









I'm waiting for one more part to land and I should be done. I'll hold off on commenting on the ride until then as I want to capture the full potential of the bike.









The bike is riding well as is so I've been out exploring and seeing what 's going on at higher elevations with the snow.









Gears definitely make riding easier. Not necessarily better, but definitely easier and more relaxing.









The Forge definitely has its own personality that's different than the Pipedream Sirius and Cotic BFeMAX I have been shredding the last couple years.









Snow was nice and hard so I could ride on top with 2.6" tires.









Hikers really packed down this trail and it rode better than summer since the roots were all covered in snow.









Sorry for all the bike leaning against stuff photos, but that's what you get when you ride solo!


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I decided to head up towards the top of the local mountain to see what snow conditions were like. This is mid-mountain and it wasn't too bad.










Freeze-thaw effects on the soil makes it super soft/weak so I stayed on the snow in this area.










1'-2' of snow at the top of the climbing trail and some nice views. Snow was really firm so I could ride on top easily.










This surface was actually a lot of fun to ride on.










Time to hit the trails down.










The trail goes right through that pile of branches. I moved a lot of branches on this ride.










Took the limbs off this tree with my hand saw so it was easy to get under.










Reported two large trees on Trailforks so someone with a chainsaw could tackle them later.










I just need to hit this with enough speed!










Almost clear.










Super fun. In the open the trails were running like a bobsled track. That's ^^ a log ride technical feature!










Back down mid-mountain the snow was giving way to dirt again.










Lower trails were running really good. 👌


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## yetiman71 (Mar 12, 2008)

Great photos as always


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

yetiman71 said:


> Great photos as always


Thanks. I got tired of my phone's camera and bought a stand alone camera that's small enough to take on rides. It's been a while since I had a dedicated camera on rides, but I am appreciating the better quality photos....especially since a lot of the time I am in a dark forest.


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## cassieno (Apr 28, 2011)

What camera did you get?


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

cassieno said:


> What camera did you get?












I have a consumer level DSLR with a nice fast lens that does great in the forest, but it's too big and delicate to carry on most rides. I had a shitty phone camera and just got a better phone camera [jury is out how much better for my MTB use]. I debated getting the smaller form factor of P&S vs. the still small, but noticeably larger size of the mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras. I ended up with the Canon G7X.

It was on sale from a dealer so I got it fairly cheap. It fits into my top tube frame bag in a padded case. It has a large sensor for a P&S. It's cheap and rugged enough I will take it on every ride. If I were to kill it in a crash or for some other reason it's not so expensive/fancy that I would cry.

If you look at the ride photos from my Cotic BFeMAX thread those are all camera phone and the shots in this thread and my Sirius thread are almost all G7X shots.

I've mostly used Canon cameras and I don't pretend they are the best choice, but since I can work my way through their menus intuitively and they are popular so I can get a sale on them I tend to stick with them. They have also fixed two of my cameras for free when I damaged them even though it was my fault and not a warranty issue. So they have a lot of good will from me.









Canon PowerShot G7 X Review


This is where things get interesting! It's over two years since Sony shook up the compact camera market by putting a 1"-type sensor into a genuinely pocketable compact. The Cyber-shot RX100 looked a lot like one of Canon's S-series of high-end compacts but used a sensor 2.8 times larger to offer...




www.dpreview.com


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

My GF and her friend wanted to explore some new trails a bit north of where we live yesterday.










Turned out to be some really nice trails.










With some great scenery.










There were some entertaining tech sections and savage climbs to keep things interesting. Sorry I didn't stop for photos on those sections as we always take breaks in mellow areas.










We hit a decent amount of snow.










Mostly it was rideable though with a bit of speed.










Living in a lightly populated part of an island meant we didn't see any bikers the whole ride despite being on amazing mountain bike trails.










That's just fine by me. 🤘


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## cassieno (Apr 28, 2011)

I am amazed at the amount of variety you have right near you. That's great! In California that picture with the green would all be poison oak.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

cassieno said:


> I am amazed at the amount of variety you have right near you. That's great! In California that picture with the green would all be poison oak.


We do have poision ivy and some other toxic plants out here. I should probably pay more attention to stuff like that, but thankfully it's not so common that it's a huge problem.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I'm putting trail miles on the Bird and I'll post my thoughts on the overall package in a week or two as I finally locked down the setup this weekend so I want a bit more time on it. I figured while I wait for that I'd comment on some of the components. After the frame the fork is the most expensive and important component on a hardtail build. Top of the line products from companies like Fox and SRAM are pretty big $$ a la carte at full MSRP. Normally I can find a deal somewhere to lower the cost, but with COVID in the mix it wasn't easy to find a fork at all. Let alone get a good price.

So I was kind of surprised I found Jenson had stock of Marzochi Bomber Z1s in the travel/offset I wanted and even though I paid MSRP at least it was a lot cheaper than a premium fork. Like a lot of long time MTBers I had my share of Bomber forks back in the day, but had no idea what to expect from the current version now that they are owned by FOX other than some reviews I found online that seemed promising.






Let me get the stuff I don't like out of the way first. The decals are budget and they got peeled off right away. The gold compression dial is ugly and I'm probably going to paint that black some time soon. The "M" shaped fork brace just eats up tire clearance...especially with a large fender. It comes with a QR axle instead of a bolt on axle that I would prefer. It weighs a bit more than a fancier fork. That's about it for complaints. None of them are deal breakers and I'd rather have the extra $$ in my pocket than a different fork.

In terms of what I like aside from the price I like that the fork is simple. Especially on hardtail tweaking suspension settings to the max seems pointless with a rigid rear end. I tend to set all my forks the same - run LSC full open, run rebound fast and set the spring on the supportive side. Doing that with the Bomber Z1 has provided a very pleasant ride. I've managed to achieve the promised land of plush off the top yet supportive/riding high in its travel. I haven't messed with tokens so it's got whatever the stock setup is for a 29er fork with 140mm travel. The traction and comfort are both excellent. I like the stiffer chassis without it feeling overly stiff. It feels well matched for how I am riding this bike. The steering response is nice and the fork never feels noodly. To sum it all up I can't think of one time where the Bomber Z1 was ever doing anything I didn't want it to. It just works.

I ride my hardtails on the same terrain I'd ride my 160mm/140mm travel 29er FS bike. A bit slower and with more careful line choice when things get zesty, but the hardtails still get shreddy. So having a solid fork up front leading the charge is wonderful. In terms of ride feel the Bomber Z1 reminds me most of the 2009 Fox Float 36 RC2 I had on my SC Nomad. I loved that fork so that's a positive comparison. If I had to buy another fork today I would most likely just get another Bomber Z1. If the Z1 Coil 29er fork came in a 140mm travel I'd be interested in trying that. It seems Marzochi only sells that configuration in a 160mm+ travel option.

I mentioned the decals and gold LSC knob are ugly, but the fork itself looks/feels very well made and once the decals are gone it's a nice looking fork. When you are holding it and working on it you don't get any budget feel from it. Some people may like the gold adjuster so I can't hold that against the Z1 too much.

I've got a 29 x 2.6" Schwalbe Magic Mary on a 30mm IW rim and a RRP Max fender stuff inside the fork. The MM is a meaty tire. Noticeably higher volume than say a Maxxis DHF in the same size. With that large fender and the "M" shaped fork arch there isn't any room for a bigger tire in the front. That's okay for this particular bike, but might be an issue if you wanted to go Plus up front and run a fender.

_For any Canadians out there just some 411 that Jenson will not ship SRAM or Fox forks to us in Canada, but they will ship Marzochi forks to the Great White North. No idea why, but it's a reasonable option with free shipping._


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

Thank you for that review. I've read in the forums here that 2.8 do fit fine in the Z1 & Z2, but I guess if you need some mud clearance then 2.6 I guess would be the max. You have me thinking about changing my order from a 120mm Z2 to a a 120mm Z1 now. Hmmm


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Funoutside said:


> Thank you for that review. I've read in the forums here that 2.8 do fit fine in the Z1 & Z2, but I guess if you need some mud clearance then 2.6 I guess would be the max. You have me thinking about changing my order from a 120mm Z2 to a a 120mm Z1 now. Hmmm


If I got rid of the fender I could fit a Maxxis 29 x 2.8" tire in the fork for sure.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Next up lets talk about wheels. I have been enjoying metal rims and other than this set ^^^ of carbon hoops all my other bikes roll on metal rims. I try not to get too dogmatic when it comes to materials for bike parts. So as I was ponder what rims to use I had a look at the Light Bicycle website and saw they made these Recon 30mm IW rims and they were available without any major delays so I jumped on a set. I had used them before in 275er size on my Pivot Mach 6 and liked them. They were light without being fragile...I bought them in 2014 and gave them to my buddy in 2021 to keep using. The shallow cross section means they aren't overly stiff. The 30mm IW hookless bead works well with the ~2.6" tires I planned to run. The cost was reasonable for a quality carbon rim. FWIW - I have had 2 sets of LB rims with no issues and I know of at least another 10 sets in my group of local riders without a single problem/failure so despite being lower cost I don't think they are lower quality. When I was waiting for this order LB contacted me to let me know they had rejected one rim during QC and would make me a new one. That took an extra week, but it's good to know they are keeping an eye on their product quality.



















All my custom built wheels roll on Hope hubs. I don't claim they are "The Best!!!" or anything like that, but they work well, are priced reasonably and I like running the same brand hub so I can share spare parts. They are not crazy high POE [~8 deg], but I have never noticed any issues or wanted higher POE so that doesn't matter to me. They take a 6 bolt rotor. And a great feature of these hubs during COVID times is that I could actually buy a set!

32H rims/hubs were laced with DT Swiss Competition spokes and brass nipples. And finished off with cheap and cheerful SRAM 200mm/180mm rotors because that's what fell to hand.

I had used this 29 x 2.6" Schwalbe Magic Mary tire on my FS bike and liked it, but at the time I had a Nobby Nic on the rear and that was so disappointing. It lost traction all the time in areas where I had never had traction issues with other tires. It lasted about 3 rides before I gave it away. I grabbed a new and improved Hans Damf for the rear of the Bird. I had liked the previous version of the HD, but it had durability issues. Apparently Schwalbe has fixed that so I figured it was worth a try. The front tire is the orange/soft compound and the rear tire is the blue/speedgrip/medium compound with both being in the EVO APEX construction. Compared to Maxxis tires with the same size printed on the sidewall these Schwalbe tires are noticeably higher volume. They mated well with the LB rims and setup tubeless without a compressor.










On the trail these feel like big tires....I dare say they even have a tiny bit of Plus tire feel....both in the good way [comfortable ride] and in the bad way [slightly vague feel]. They aren't Plus tires, but if you want to get a taste of that in a "normal" sized tire these could be worth a shot. For a hardtail that'll be ridden on a lot of roots and rocks I'm enjoying the way these soak up vibrations and especially how combined with carbon rims they avoid any harsh ride feel. If I was riding flow trails and smashing berms a lot I might want a smaller volume tire, but that's not my reality. In terms of traction they perform quite well. I'd say they were equivalent to the 29 x 2.6" DHF/DHRII I am running on my Sirius. The different tread pattern hooks up a little differently, but overall I'm riding confidently over wet rocks, roots, snow and in mud.

I've got a Tannus Tubeless insert in the rear and no insert in the front. For pressures I'm at ~16psi front and ~18psi rear. Geared up with water/tools I'm around 200lbs. So far I've had no issues with flats or rim hits. The larger volume allows for some fairly low pressures. Come summer I'll probably go up 1-2psi on each end as speeds will increase and smashing rocks at high speed will be more of a concern than finding traction.

Overall I am pretty happy with the way these wheels are working for me. Combined with a longer, supple steel frame and plush fork the whole ride experience is supremely comfortable and allows me to ride confidently at speed in a very relaxed way. These wheels want to go on long rides exploring new trails and they are ready to shred whatever comes around the corner.


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## SSsteel4life (Jul 1, 2016)

vikb said:


> Next up lets talk about wheels. I have been enjoying metal rims and other than this set ^^^ of carbon hoops all my other bikes roll on metal rims. I try not to get too dogmatic when it comes to materials for bike parts. So as I was ponder what rims to use I had a look at the Light Bicycle website and saw they made these Recon 30mm IW rims and they were available without any major delays so I jumped on a set. I had used them before in 275er size on my Pivot Mach 6 and liked them. They were light without being fragile...I bought them in 2014 and gave them to my buddy in 2021 to keep using. The shallow cross section means they aren't overly stiff. The 30mm IW hookless bead works well with the ~2.6" tires I planned to run. The cost was reasonable for a quality carbon rim. FWIW - I have had 2 sets of LB rims with no issues and I know of at least another 10 sets in my group of local riders without a single problem/failure so despite being lower cost I don't think they are lower quality. When I was waiting for this order LB contacted me to let me know they had rejected one rim during QC and would make me a new one. That took an extra week, but it's good to know they are keeping an eye on their product quality.
> 
> All my custom built wheels roll on Hope hubs. I don't claim they are "The Best!!!" or anything like that, but they work well, are priced reasonably and I like running the same brand hub so I can share spare parts. They are not crazy high POE [~8 deg], but I have never noticed any issues or wanted higher POE so that doesn't matter to me. They take a 6 bolt rotor. And a great feature of these hubs during COVID times is that I could actually buy a set!
> 
> ...


Curious, whenever you have time. Wonder what the overall diameter/height difference is between the Schwalbe tires and the Maxis 29 x2.6. Being seem Schwalbe are higher volume, wonder if taller as well.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

SSsteel4life said:


> Curious, whenever you have time. Wonder what the overall diameter/height difference is between the Schwalbe tires and the Maxis 29 x2.6. Being seem Schwalbe are higher volume, wonder if taller as well.


I don't know that I'll be able to answer that. Measuring a wheel diameter/height is really hard without a jig as it doesn't take much side to side movement to add more error than the likely difference between the tires. The one way I can think of getting the number is to measure from the fork brace to the top of the tire. That'll tell you any difference in tire height, but not the overall diameter. I'd have to remove and reinstall a fender. We'll have to see if my innate laziness can be overcome in the name of bike nerding!


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## SSsteel4life (Jul 1, 2016)

vikb said:


> I don't know that I'll be able to answer that. Measuring a wheel diameter/height is really hard without a jig as it doesn't take much side to side movement to add more error than the likely difference between the tires. The one way I can think of getting the number is to measure from the fork brace to the top of the tire. That'll tell you any difference in tire height, but not the overall diameter. I'd have to remove and reinstall a fender. We'll have to see if my innate laziness can be overcome in the name of bike nerding!


No worries. When you mentioned how much more volume and supple the Schwalbe was, it brought up something I have been thinking about lately. I was analyzing why I like 29plus so much and after riding them for 5+ years I came to the conclusion the most important part to me is the increased roller over and momentum due to the increase height. Not the extra width or volume necessarily. I came to this conclusion after now riding a 29X2.8 for a few seasons that measure more like a 2.7 I have been digging more then my previous 3.0 setup. I was then pondering, I wish they made a 2.6 tire that was at or above the 30 inch tall mark. Was tempted to post a thread asking different heights for different brands, but did not get around to it yet.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I ran into a bit of a snag with the stock Bird headset. I'm not sure what went wrong, but I was unable to preload the bearings properly so I had a small, but noticeable amount of play in the fork. I couldn't feel it when riding, but it was easy to feel when standing still and rocking the bike a bit with the brakes applied or the front wheel turned 90 deg. I had the front end apart a dozen times checking everything I could think of, but no joy. So I ordered a Wolftooth headset [the Forge uses an oddball 34mm/44mm EC cup setup]. The WT unit dropped right in and everything was perfect without any faffing around. I'm generally not a bling headset guy, but in this case I just couldn't put any more time into the problem without losing my mind. So spending a few extra $$ was worth it. 










Given the COVID supply chain issues going on I was lucky to find any compatible headsets for this particular bike. I would have preferred black, but blue is what they had. Even for me the bike is a bit too blue, but I'm just stoked to have the problem solved. The WT headset is a work of art well worth the $$ if you want something fancy or need a headset for a bike with an oddball headtube. 

_FWIW - Bird was very easy to work with and they refunded me the $$ for the stock headset without any complaints. Their stock headsets are a great value and I am sure the issue I had was not normal so I wouldn't hesitate to try another Bird headset down the road if I was buying a frame from them._


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

On my computer the blue doesn't look too far off in color to the frame, which I see as a positve. My gravel bike is from their bike brand Otso & have no complaints about their parts including their headset & BB.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Funoutside said:


> On my computer the blue doesn't look too far off in color to the frame, which I see as a positve. My gravel bike is from their bike brand Otso & have no complaints about their parts including their headset & BB.


I've used a number of WT products over the years and they've all been great. Congrats on having one of their gravel bikes. I'm sure it's very nice. 👌


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Sometimes when I get a bike I can write up a pretty decent review after 5 rides. The story of that bike is 100% clear and kind of writes itself. For whatever reason the Forge isn't one of those bikes. I've bene riding this bike since late-December and I am still learning stuff about the bike and making adjustments. Nothing really better or worse about that longer process it just takes more time to figure out the bike before I can really talk about it.

That said there are elements of the ride that have stayed consistent through my riding that I can discuss at this point. One of the design features of this bike I wanted to try out was the fairly low BB. With a 140mm fork Bird's geo chart says the Forge is ~74mm BB Drop and ~304mm BBH. Measuring the bike while holding it steady is a bike hard to do, but those numbers seem about right. That's the lowest BB of any hardtail I own.

I should note I hate frequent pedal strikes. Ya I know how to ratchet, but if I was to spend a good chunk of the ride thinking about where my feet are to avoid pedal strikes I think that's stupid and I'd rather just have a higher BB.

With 170mm cranks and relatively thin pedals [~18.4mm middle and ~14mm at the edges] I find the BHH just barely adequate. That means that I rarely get a hard pedal strike, but I do touch stuff lightly a number of times per ride and I do have to ratchet occasionally in chunkier sections. If it was any lower I expect it would be a deal breaker for me. I'd like it ~5mm higher, but I don't care enough to actually do anything about it. Although I am tapping my pedals a bit I am not getting hard contact with the taco bash guard regularly.

The Forge can take a 140-160mm fork. I am running a 140mm fork so I could raise the front end for more BBH. I could also run 165mm cranks and/or thinner pedals if I wanted to keep the BBH low, but gain more pedal clearance. I probably won't bother.

The lower BB makes the bike feel very planted and stable. The longish wheelbase, low BB and supple frame gives the Forge and nice smooth cornering feel. Kind of like carving on some longer skis. It takes a bit more speed before the bike comes alive and pops off trail features. It also feels slower even when I am riding quite fast compared to my other bikes. The Forge definitely has that "in the bike feel".

So all in all I am happy with the low BB experiment. I have a fun bike with a different ride feel to my bikes with higher BBs. Yet it's not so low I get pissed off with too frequent pedal strikes. I also learned how low a BB I can tolerate and I wouldn't try a frame with more BB Drop. Which do I prefer better? If I could only have one bike [gasp!!!] it would be a frame with a higher BB. However, it's fun to have some different choices for bikes to ride.


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## cassieno (Apr 28, 2011)

My thoughts echo yours on BBH. If only one, I prefer a little higher. One of my bikes felt just too low, with 60mm BBD, throwing in a longer airshaft (10mm) made all the difference.

A slightly higher BB also makes a bike feel more poppy and playful. Just depends on what you need/ want.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

cassieno said:


> My thoughts echo yours on BBH. If only one, I prefer a little higher. One of my bikes felt just too low, with 60mm BBD, throwing in a longer airshaft (10mm) made all the difference.
> 
> A slightly higher BB also makes a bike feel more poppy and playful. Just depends on what you need.


I checked my times on some of my usual trails. On the Sirius setup SS I was hammering the pedals and popping off everything. By the time I finished a couple longer downhill sections I felt a bit tired and if you had asked me I rode really fast. Then I did those same sections on the Forge. I didn't hammer the pedals and didn't jump off everything. In fact I felt quite relaxed and smooth. I got done feeling like I hadn't worked that hard. If you had asked me I would have told you I had a slowish time. Looking at my GPS tracks the Forge was clearly faster than the Sirius. 

Both were fun in their own way. The Forge would be the better choice for very long days in the saddle where I want to ride well all day and stay fresh/relaxed.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Sorry for the lack of posts. I've been riding the Forge a bunch, but not been in the mood to shoot many trail photos and that leads to not posting. Part of that is I have been doing more group rides and less solo rides. It's been nice to hang out with more local riders and see what routes they are riding. But, that has meant less stopping to faff with a camera. Most of them are on FS rigs so I have to really gun it downhill to stay with the group. 🤘 🤘 🤘


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

A quick update on the Forge. I've got ~600kms on the bike and have her pretty well dialed. I've done a few things since my last post:

Replaced cartridge in my PNW dropper [warranty]
Replaced the carbon RF cranks with metal RF cranks [metal to carbon bond failed]
Swapped in taller 80mm rise bars
Dropper fork lowers to clean/relube
Stuck some custom fork decals on the Z1
Got a Garmin 530 GPS/Bike Computer [mostly for Trailforks]
I'm not sure about the fork decals. I was kind of enjoying the stealth unbranded fork look, but I had the decals and since the fork was clean after I serviced it I figured I would give them a shot. If I don't love them when I do my next service I'll peel them off and go back to basic black.

The riding has been great lately. Lots of friends passing through town [nice perk of living in a MTB destination] to ride with. The weather was supposed to get better...you know Spring and all that...but it hasn't happened yet. We've gotten pretty wet and we managed to avoid the worst of the rain. Fingers crossed it starts to dry out at some point!


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

How are you like trailforks on the garmin? I have the app installed on my Garmin watch & it keeps pointing me towards trails in another part of the metro area first.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Funoutside said:


> How are you like trailforks on the garmin? I have the app installed on my Garmin watch & it keeps pointing me towards trails in another part of the metro area first.


I have a Trailforks Pro membership. Got it back when they were offering 50% off for life. So that could affect things. Basically I wanted to be able to see various trails around me on my handlebars without pulling out my phone. The 530 does this well and it makes getting around a trail network that you don't know super well easier. It has its limitations and if I want to do a deeper dive into the trail options I'll still pull out my phone as that experience is superior, but having the 530 saves me the trouble most of the time. It shows trails/roads around the spot where my bike is. It's not trying to show me trails/roads in another area so I am not sure what's going on with your watch. I do have a Garmin watch for running, but it doesn't have Trailforks on it.


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

That's good to know. I'm using it on my 945 LTE watch, which has mapping by default. It could be a pro vs non-pro membership thing or just a locale thing.


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## GlesgaWarrior (Jun 21, 2017)

I've been following this thread with interest as I've also got a forge, but have only been out on it a handful of times so far. I'm running 160mm forks and have been thinking that the stack and BB may be a touch too high and am thinking of reducing the travel to 150mm, if only as an experiment. I don't know if I would want to run a 140mm fork, as that would be getting very close to the 80mm BB drop of the Stif Squatch I used to ride, which was a bit too much in terms of pedal strikes and constant worrying about where my feet were in relation to the ground, although it also went around corners better than any other bike I've ridden. 

Having said this I am very much enjoying how the forge rides. The back end seems to quieten down the trail more than I would think possible. I'm also finding it quite playful. Overall, I've been very impressed so far.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

GlesgaWarrior said:


> I've been following this thread with interest as I've also got a forge, but have only been out on it a handful of times so far. I'm running 160mm forks and have been thinking that the stack and BB may be a touch too high and am thinking of reducing the travel to 150mm, if only as an experiment. I don't know if I would want to run a 140mm fork, as that would be getting very close to the 80mm BB drop of the Stif Squatch I used to ride, which was a bit too much in terms of pedal strikes and constant worrying about where my feet were in relation to the ground, although it also went around corners better than any other bike I've ridden.
> 
> Having said this I am very much enjoying how the forge rides. The back end seems to quieten down the trail more than I would think possible. I'm also finding it quite playful. Overall, I've been very impressed so far.


I've got a 140mm fork on the Forge and the BB is definitely low. With 170mm cranks it's not bad, but I wouldn't be sad if it was a touch higher. I've got my eye of a Wolf Tooth 10mm headset extender.

For your bike what bars are you running? A set of zero rise/flat bars and a slammed stem might be an easier experiment than lowering the fork.

The Forge has a really nice ride quality. That's not a given for a production hardtail as they are often overbuilt/stiff. Bird did a nice job on the design. I'm glad you are enjoying yours.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

It's actually hot these days on Vancouver Island. It felt like that was never going to happen. So I had to "upgrade" from my standard 600ml bottle I was using all fall/winter/spring. It was pretty easy to fit a 750ml bottle lower down and a 600ml Fabric bottle up top. 1350ml should get me through most summer rides. I'll pack some purification tabs in my frame bag for creek refills on unusually long/hot rides. I could fit a 3rd 750ml bottle under the downtube, but it would get used so rarely it doesn't seem worth the trouble.










I don't wash my bikes much, but it might be time to wipe the Forge down with a soapy rag. 🤘


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I just haven't gotten stoked to ride FS this summer like I thought I might and I hurt my knee so I am staying off my SS bike for a while. That means the Forge is seeing a lot of action. I picked up this 160mm air shaft for my Z1. I'm lazy so I'll wait until the end of the summer when I drop the lowers to swap it in. I'm not really after more fork. 140mm is plenty, but I would like to shift my CG towards the rear tire a bit more and the longer fork was a simple was to do that. I plan to keep this fork around long term so having a couple air shafts gives me a some options if I put it on another bike at some point.


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

Looks like a fun setup. Is that a fidlock bottle or something different?


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Funoutside said:


> Looks like a fun setup. Is that a fidlock bottle or something different?


It's a Fabric bottle. No cage required so they fit into some of the tighter frame spaces you encounter. Fidlock bottles sit quite a bit higher because of the mounting system.



https://fabric.cc/products/hydration/cageless-bottle-600ml/


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

Oh that's neat. Will have to look into it.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

A friend visiting town took a photo of me on my bike! Proof that I don't just walk it around the forest and lean it against the trees for photos.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Well I've got ~1,000kms on the Bird Forge. So I figured I would post up some thoughts. My other trail bike is a Pipedream Sirius setup SS both with 140mm forks. The Forge is great. One of the best bikes I've owned. It'll happily cruise 50kms of pavement/gravel to get to the trails [as in photo above when I was coastal island hopping] or cruise blue and smash out black diamond tech laps. Sure it is a hardtail so there are some limitations on the fast, steep and smashy side of things, but it's amazing how far you need to go before you can't pilot the Forge down the trail with a smile on your face.

Build quality/aesthetics are top notch. It's a pleasure to look at it with the nicest powder coat job of any bike I've ever had. I get compliments on that all the time. The tube shapes, welds, CS brace and overall lines are just lovely. Now when I am riding it I can't see any of that so it's not critical, but when you spend many hours of your life on and around a bike you might as well love how it looks. The choice of tubing is perfect for my ~190lbs [out of the shower]. The bike flexes well for comfort and "planning" performance, but never feels to flexy.

The geo feels very neutral I rarely think about it and it just does what I need it to do. When I am pushing the Forge down something steep and techy I feel comfortable. That's awesome. in a perfect world I think I would shorten the CS 5mm and raise the BB 10mm, but it's been 9 months since I got it and I haven't made any changes so it can't be that vital. I do have a 160mm airshaft to try in the fork that will raise the front end which shorten the CS and raise the BB. Next time the fork gets serviced I'll try that out and see what I think.

The frame fits my fenders, frame bags and 2 bottles easily. All of those are essential for me. The frame size/STA are modern without being extreme. I'd be tempted to try this frame as a medium with a 5-10mm longer stem [currently on a M/L with a 35mm long stem].

If you are keen on buying one of these frames my advice is do it!  I am glad I did. 🤘

On the parts front stuff that had issues:

PNW Dropper - cartridge problem replaced under warranty
RF Next R Cranks - older set from other bike killed them and replaced with RF Turbine metal cranks
Marzochi Bomber Z2 - a bit of bushing play unsagged not a big deal....will get it addressed when I send away for service
The rest of the parts are working well.


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## ZomblibulaX (Oct 3, 2008)

Hotly debating a Forge to replace my aging TransAm 275; wondering how it does with steep sustained climbs and technical billygoating?

Short story long, the TransAm has been my only bike for the last two years (sold the fleet to buy bikes for the family), and although it's on the small side and the geo is outdated, I do love that it is so quick and responsive. Just don't want to lose the front end handling with a much slacker HA and longer front end. FWIW, I run a 160 Fox 36 on the transition, so HA is ~66 and BBH is ~320. Pretty big shift when you throw wagon wheels on to the mix as well, just don't want to lose too much climbing ability/overall agility in favor of stability at speed.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

ZomblibulaX said:


> Hotly debating a Forge to replace my aging TransAm 275; wondering how it does with steep sustained climbs and technical billygoating?


The Forge climbs great. I enjoy climbing challenges so I wouldn't keep it if it didn't get up tech well. I have other HTs with HTAs in the ~62 deg range [that handle well up and down] so my Forge with a 140mm fork seems pretty moderate with a ~64 deg HTA. The BB is low so that's something you have to consider. With 170mm cranks it's not been a huge issue. That said I have had some pedal strikes that I would not have had on my higher BB bikes. I am running the shortest fork it was designed for so I could raise the BB with a longer fork.

If your goal is a more nimble bike my advice is to size down when looking at these modern geo bikes that are quite long. I can usually ride two sizes and having tried going longer and shorter in terms of sizing I enjoy the shorter options more....keeping in mind a shorter modern geo bike is still a long bike compared to what we were riding in the not too distant past.


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## ZomblibulaX (Oct 3, 2008)

Thanks, needed a pat on the back here.
Sizing down isn't much of an option; I'm definitely XL at 193cm. My current HT isn't much of an XL, even by 2016 standards, but it's been a blast, and when I had to narrow it down to one bike it wasn't even a question for me. I'll let you know if I ended up drinking the koolaid on the Forge.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Not much Forge action in my life recently. I did a nice 50km ride and was feeling great when I broke my toe [at home!] so I've been doing a lot of sitting around at home. I have done some urban riding, but nothing epic. Another week and I'll get a bit more ambitious with my road/gravel riding to start building my fitness up again. Having lived in the new area a year now I have to say I think I prefer fall/spring & winter riding better than summer riding. A bit of heresy there!

I scored a fresh set of rubber for the Forge. Same Schwalbe Magic Mary [soft] & Hans Damf [medium] in 29 x 2.6". The old tires are worn, but not totally used up after ~1000kms so I am going to swap the old tires to my FS bike. I also got a 160mm travel airshaft for the fork. I'm going to install that this fall when I send the fork away for a damper service. Other than that no further changes planned. The Forge is running well and making me happy.  🤘


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## ZomblibulaX (Oct 3, 2008)

From Bird Bikes:










Well, that's a bummer. I was really stoked, back to the drawing board for me. The Bird crew was exceptional in communication and processing a refund, can't fault them for that. I may well just wait until they're available, it's the only one I've found that checks all my boxes, though a demo or two might well change that.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

ZomblibulaX said:


> Well, that's a bummer. I was really stoked, back to the drawing board for me. The Bird crew was exceptional in communication and processing a refund, can't fault them for that. I may well just wait until they're available, it's the only one I've found that checks all my boxes, though a demo or two might well change that.


That is a bummer.


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## Sparticus (Dec 28, 1999)

vikb said:


> Not much Forge action in my life recently. I did a nice 50km ride and was feeling great when I broke my toe [at home!] so I've been doing a lot of sitting around at home. I have done some urban riding, but nothing epic. Another week and I'll get a bit more ambitious with my road/gravel riding to start building my fitness up again. Having lived in the new area a year now I have to say I think I prefer fall/spring & winter riding better than summer riding. A bit of heresy there!
> 
> I scored a fresh set of rubber for the Forge. Same Schwalbe Magic Mary [soft] & Hans Damf [medium] in 29 x 2.6". The old tires are worn, but not totally used up after ~1000kms so I am going to swap the old tires to my FS bike. I also got a 160mm travel airshaft for the fork. I'm going to install that this fall when I send the fork away for a damper service. Other than that no further changes planned. The Forge is running well and making me happy.  🤘


Hope that toe of yours heals up soon, Vik. You've been down too long...
Great to meet you IRL last month and thanks again for being such a wonderful host when Cyn & I visited you on Vanc Island.
You've got a great backyard there! We already miss the riding... will be back no doubt. 
=sParty


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Sparticus said:


> Hope that toe of yours heals up soon, Vik. You've been down too long...
> Great to meet you IRL last month and thanks again for being such a wonderful host when Cyn & I visited you on Vanc Island.
> You've got a great backyard there! We already miss the riding... will be back no doubt.
> =sParty


It was great at least meeting you and your lady. I am glad you got to ride with my friends. Seems like everyone had a great time. 

My foot has gotten a lot better the last few days. I think the bone is healed. Now I just have to rehab the foot from all that shuffling/hobbling around without bending the foot. I've got a 30K ride planned for tomorrow to get my C-19 booster. If that goes well I'm going to do a XC mountain bike ride on the trails close to my house in the next couple days. Assuming that doesn't suck I'll be back on the trails at Cumberland looking for the smoothest lines and rebuilding my fitness! 🤘 

It's been a process, but whenever I got frustrated I reminded myself that I have been pretty lucky about my health in general so I can't complain about a minor, if highly annoying, injury.

I'll look forward to seeing you two and riding together...finally! 🙏


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Testing the injured foot on the Forge. 🤘


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I got a PM about sizing and took these photos. Figured I might as well share them here in case anyone else finds them helpful.

Notes:

I'm 5'11" with longish arms and 33" pants inseam
Frame size M/L
140mm fork
31mm stem
50mm rise 760mm bars
170mm travel dropper
170mm cranks + flat pedals










I like an "old man" upright riding position, but I still want to ride fast steep techy terrain well. This bike/setup is a nice compromise between all day comfort and shreddy-ness. 🤘


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## Sparticus (Dec 28, 1999)

vikb said:


> Testing the injured foot on the Forge. 🤘


BONESTORM!
Welcome back, Vik. 
=sParty


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Sparticus said:


> BONESTORM!
> Welcome back, Vik.
> =sParty


Broken bone? Test it on BONE storm. Funny how it doesn't look at that steep here.  🤘


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I came off a small drop and heard this weird sound. Psst. Psst. Psst. It's been so long since I had a flat that my brain took a moment to make sense of it. I must have landed on something sharp as I had a small hole in the tread of my tire. Big enough it took some effort for the sealant to stop the leak. Small enough it didn't want to eat any bacon. With a Tannus insert in the rear I wasn't worried about rim damage so I pumped ~8psi in there and rode out to the trailhead. I had to still ride home so I put a bit more air in [leak had sealed pretty well riding out] and spun my way home. It's been years since my last flat so I can't complain.

I have a fresh set of rubber sitting on my workbench ready for winter. So I'll put the new rubber on, patch the hole from the inside and keep it as a spare.

Since I was doing maintenance I sent the fork away to Whistler for a full suspension service. It will come back as 160mm travel so we'll see how that feels on the Forge.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

I mounted up the fresh Schwalbe rubber on the Forge. 29 x 2.6" Magic Mary [Soft]/Hans Damf [SpeedGrip] Super Trail casing. I love how plump these tires are vs. a Maxxis 2.6" tire. The tire change comes just in time as we've got a bunch of rain in the forecast starting today. 🤘


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

How wide do these come out to vs the Maxxis?


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Funoutside said:


> How wide do these come out to vs the Maxxis?


My calipers are out of batteries so I can't get an accurate measurement, but eye balling it and based on saddle feel they have noticeably more volume. That said 2.6" Maxxis tires are finally at a volume where I don't constantly think "I wish my tires were bigger." while riding. I couldn't go back to a smaller volume tire.


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## Funoutside (Jul 17, 2019)

Nice! Will keep Schwalbe in mind.


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## vikb (Sep 7, 2008)

Interestingly I put nearly double the mileage on the Sclwable rubber and the main tread looks less worn than the Maxxis tires, but the Schwalbe side knobs are more worn and a bit undercut. The Maxxis rubber is overall looking more worn down despite a lot less riding, but the wear looks very even across the centre tread and sideknobs with the later not looking undercut. Kind of a mixed bag. I like the even wear on one hand, but it would be nice for the Maxxis tires not to wear as fast.

_FWIW - Maxxis tires are both MaxTerra 3C and the Schwalbe are soft front/medium compound rear._


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