# 2014 Specialized Crave SL



## toddx (Oct 5, 2013)

I just picked up this bike. Instead of lurking around and reading your posts I now have something to post!
I want to give you real life facts and comparisons. I also ride a 19 year old LiteSpeed 26er with carbon rigid fork. 
This bike bone stock with reflectors weighed 22.53 lbs in a 19 in. Large frame. I am 6' 1 1/2" tall with a 34 in inseam and 170lb. I had my LBS make the bike tubless and the weight went down to 22.06. I changed the flat traps to my old Onza clipless and removed the reflectors. This was a net weight loss of 5 1/2 oz. if I am doing my math right I got a bike that weighs 21 lb and 11 oz. Very happy. I took the bike for a short ride around our little local wilderness and had a great time. She seemed nimble and quick, accelerated well and handled the sketchy spots with ease. I noticed right off the bat that the bike handled the sand way better than my 26. The ride quality was not radically different than my 26 but definitely smoother than the 26. The forks look smaller in the pictures than in real life. These things look stout! 
I was looking hard at the Kona Unit, Surly KM and also test road a Raliegh X1X. When the Unit and others weighed 28 lb at my LBS I just couldn't pull the $1050 ( and more) trigger. I saw some 2013 Carve's on PinkBike but when I realized the 2014's were supposed to be lighter and had Shimano Hydro Brakes instead of Avid, it seemed like a no brainer to pay $1200 (plus Tax) for a 22lb bike, than $1050 for a 28lb bike that had BB7's. I don't know what a cool looking bike is to you but this bike just looks Mean and Clean! You can get all the specs typing in my title to your browser. Specialized has a nice easy to nav site.
CONS: The rear brake cable taps on my head tube and is annoying. I had not gone on a ride with flat traps in 15 years but thought what the heck. The pedals have no teeth to grip your shoe. ( the pedals are safely in a drawer to collect dust now) The front brake cable is actually let in to the carbon Chisel fork. I guess its OK. I will post more after I really beat up on this bike. I also want to make sure you Unit users are not offended. Many people around here love Kona. I guess I'm just too much of a weight weenie?


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## jammin (Dec 9, 2005)

Thx. for the review so far, I'm going to be picking one of these up. I'm also 6'1" with a 34" inseam, I always have rode an Xl frame, How does the Large fit you? Maybe i should look at a large also.


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## dfp23 (Aug 27, 2013)

This is my 2013 Carve SL in the middle of the Prescott national forest-

Got rid of all that red stuff for the "murdered out" look-

Upgrades-

wheels: Hope hubs w/ Stan's Arch tubeless
Stem: 80mm Thomson 
Seat post: Thomson
Bar: EAston 70 CF
Saddle: WTB volt
Grips: Specialized race foam
Chainring: E13 33T
rear cog: Niner 19T
Love this bike! Here it is dirty before some upgrades!!


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## speedyuno (Aug 11, 2013)

I saw a 2014 in the bike shop the other day and was very impressed. Thanks for the review.


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## marcoxc (Sep 30, 2005)

After seeing the 2013 model in flesh and considering the weight, for the same amount of money I assembled a similar bike with a "carbon chinese 29er frame". Definitely lighter.


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## toddx (Oct 5, 2013)

Jammin
All the dimensions were real close to my 20.5 in frame 26. However the distance from my stem to seat is over 2 inches shorter. I am an oldschool long stem guy having a 135mm stem on my 26 till about 6 months ago. I am remaining open minded about the fit on this bike. I could ride an XL but prefer the smaller frame. Did you see how the CS length increases when you go to the XL Crave? So far I have no reason to adjust anything or wish I had a bigger frame. Bigger ride this weekend will tell more.


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## michaelscott (May 23, 2011)

Sweet looking bikes. I saw one of these in a bike shop once it is looks really good in person.


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## IamtheYeti (Aug 11, 2012)

Had my Gravity 29SS in the shop to get brake work done. They had one SS in the shop and it was the 14 Crave. Just seeing it I almost bought it and then I tested the weight and loved it. I am a cheap a so I didn't buy it but maybe if it ever goes on sale, I will.

Sent a pic to the wife and she told me to buy it on the spot....even after I told her the price.


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## waffleBeast (Jul 5, 2010)

IamtheYeti said:


> Sent a pic to the wife and she told me to buy it on the spot....even after I told her the price.


I am really struggling with this one. Your wife said 'buy it on the spot' and you left it there? You sure that is what you meant to type?


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## jammin (Dec 9, 2005)

toddx said:


> Jammin
> All the dimensions were real close to my 20.5 in frame 26. However the distance from my stem to seat is over 2 inches shorter. I am an oldschool long stem guy having a 135mm stem on my 26 till about 6 months ago. I am remaining open minded about the fit on this bike. I could ride an XL but prefer the smaller frame. Did you see how the CS length increases when you go to the XL Crave? So far I have no reason to adjust anything or wish I had a bigger frame. Bigger ride this weekend will tell more.


Thx. for the info, Pleas post back with a ride report.


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## toddx (Oct 5, 2013)

jammin said:


> Thx. for the info, Pleas post back with a ride report.


Got out today and decided not to drive but start from my door. Being a nearly new bike I thought some break in cruising would be a good thing. I ended up going 46 mi. https://www.strava.com/activities/91463200
I always try to get the perspective where someone is coming from when they give a review. I am coming from 26 in geared, 180mm cranks V brakes and innner tubes. A lot of what I want to say might be more related to entering the 21st century than this particular SS bike but maybe not. 
I had a great time on this thing. I climbed a 7 mi fire road leaving some cool FS guys to not be seen again. This single speed just makes you want to move. Not sure why I chose such a gnarly trial down the mountain with a new bike. Cold Springs trail from the top is a good 5-6 mi. dissent. Some people talk about rock gardens but this thing is a Rock Trail. I want to upgrade my thoughts on this bike being just a little less jarring than my 26 to noticeably/ way better than my 26. The larger wheel and Chisel fork made for a very fun, pleasant , bump eating ride. I felt like I had been riding this bike for 19 years like my Litespeed. The bike made me super confident to tackle these sketchy rock filled sections. This was my first ride with tubeless as well. I am still fiddling with tire pressure but this aspect definitely helped with the bumps. One time I hit a rock or something and the tire burped/blew out air but kept its seal. I just pumped it up and kept riding. Note to self: More air pressure. The Shimano low end Hydro brakes were great. These trials require a lot of braking. I love the 21st century! I like good quality stuff and tools and mechanisms that work well. This bike is a great tool. I have been mountain biking for 28 years and call myself a better than average rider. I am impressed with how snappy and tight this bike is. It accelerates really fast, stops on a dime, climbs well, descends with ease and goes where I want it to go. I had a Salsa Selma that I had built up in 2010 and sadly had to sell it, sniff sniff. I spent over twice the $1300 I spent on this bike. It weighed the same. The Selma had better quality long term parts and maybe felt a little better on the trail but not twice as good. I am completely amazed. Hats off to Specialized!


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## jhmeathead (Apr 15, 2013)

Great looking bike! i rode on the other day and love it. But id do the 1x10 thing to it. (dont kill me you SSers lol) Just waiting on the awol to come out so i can try that.

I kinda dislike they did away with the rack mounts this year but that aint nothing a new seat clamp and pclips wont fix


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## IamtheYeti (Aug 11, 2012)

waffleBeast said:


> I am really struggling with this one. Your wife said 'buy it on the spot' and you left it there? You sure that is what you meant to type?


Yep it is what I meant. I wanted to buy it but when it came time to pull the trigger, I knew I still had a bike that I can ride and I am a cheap a** so I left with my repaired bike.

I may change my mind though....


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## HitmenOnlyInc (Jul 20, 2012)

I almost pulled the trigger on one earlier this year. Love this bike, when I test rode it, it just felt right!


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## LeonD (Dec 26, 2003)

i bought the 2013 version. It's a great bike to just go out and have fun on. It gets used as much as my main bike that costs four times as much.

The only changed I made was to add a riser bar to get me a little more upright. I will be adding a suspension fork in the very near future. Too many roots and rocks where I ride. The first 15 minutes of the ride is fun then not so much after that (unless it's a smooth trail). The fork will fix that.


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## HitmenOnlyInc (Jul 20, 2012)

I ended up building an On One Scandal SS with Xfusion fork. I love SS, I try and ride it everywhere and the suspension does help.


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## IamtheYeti (Aug 11, 2012)

How's the 32/20 gearing? Thinking of changing mine cause the 33/18 on my 30lb plus is owning me


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## HitmenOnlyInc (Jul 20, 2012)

32/20 gearing will be easier on your climbs but you'll spin out a lot sooner on the flats and down hills. I am running 32/18 and considering 34/18 for my area.


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## slannon (Feb 6, 2007)

jammin said:


> Thx. for the review so far, I'm going to be picking one of these up. I'm also 6'1" with a 34" inseam, I always have rode an Xl frame, How does the Large fit you? Maybe i should look at a large also.


Jammin- I'm a bit closer to 6'-2" with a 34" inseam. I picked the 19" also. Been riding a Raleigh XXIX with carbon forks since late 2006 and geometry is very close to the Large Raleigh. Only had it a week and 1 ride last weekend. Leary of the Aluminum frame (stiffness) but was very impressed with the ride- Smoother than my XXIX.


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## leider (Dec 29, 2013)

anyone know if the red on the fork is a sticker or is it on for good? I'd like to peel it off if I get one....


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## njSS (Jun 5, 2013)

On my Crave, the red on the fork is painted on there so it doesn't look like it would be as easy to remove the red as the stickers on the wheels.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk


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## njSS (Jun 5, 2013)

Pouring outside and we're in a thaw right now so I have been playing around with the bike inside and checking out the components. Can anyone verify their calipers on their 2014 Crave SL are BR-M447 and not the BR-M505 as stated on Spec's site. I checked out Shimano's '13-'14 MTB catalog and it states the 447 is the Alivio line and not Deore which is pretty much what had me sold when comparing to the 2013 and the Avids. The levers are the 505s though. I haven't had the bike out on the trails yet so I don't know if this is a deal breaker or if these kinds of changes are expected without notice and the 447s will perform moderately well for the price point.

When you picked up your bike, did you also receive the derailleur hanger for a geared option (not likely but a 1X10 or 11 would be a nice idea to play around with)? I only received a plastic chain guard from my LBS.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk


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## JUNGLEKID5 (May 1, 2006)

i belive that you should get a hanger with it.


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## chowdownca (Jun 21, 2006)

Can you Crave owners also confirm that it's the same set screw EBB, or did they change that for 2014? Any issues with the EBB at all? I like the bike, but I'm leery of the EBB, as I'm a Clyde gear masher...


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## weeman (May 26, 2006)

Just checked my 2014 Crave SL and it does indeed have BR-M447 calipers. I noticed on the weekend ride that the brakes were not quite up to the task and require a lot more force than the XT brakes on my FS bike.

I believe they are using the same EBB as previous models. I haven't had any issues with mine & I've had to adjust it a few times when changing cogs, however I'm only 140lbs.

This is the EBB that is on my 2014 model:

http://static.specialized.com/media/docs/support/0000003978/0000003978_IG0297_revB.pdf


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## leider (Dec 29, 2013)

that's not what is considered a set screw EBB is it?
this is a split shell EBB right?


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## DonH (Oct 1, 2004)

njSS said:


> Pouring outside and we're in a thaw right now so I have been playing around with the bike inside and checking out the components. Can anyone verify their calipers on their 2014 Crave SL are BR-M447 and not the BR-M505 as stated on Spec's site. I checked out Shimano's '13-'14 MTB catalog and it states the 447 is the Alivio line and not Deore which is pretty much what had me sold when comparing to the 2013 and the Avids. The levers are the 505s though. I haven't had the bike out on the trails yet so I don't know if this is a deal breaker or if these kinds of changes are expected without notice and the 447s will perform moderately well for the price point.
> 
> When you picked up your bike, did you also receive the derailleur hanger for a geared option (not likely but a 1X10 or 11 would be a nice idea to play around with)? I only received a plastic chain guard from my LBS.
> 
> Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk


On my 2014 Crave SL the calipers are BR-M446 and the levers are BR-M505's.
I love my Crave btw. It was my 1st singlespeed....also ended up buying a 2014 Stumpjumper Carbon singlespeed a few weeks ago, so I may have to sell the Crave.


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## Doc_d (Feb 11, 2005)

My 2014 Crave SL just came in today. Supposedly Specialized redesigned the frame for 2014 and claimed as 12% weight reduction. I just got it home and threw it on the scale. 

I was pretty shocked... It's a 17.5" with no reflectors or pedals it weighed in at 20.98. 

That's pretty impressive for a bike at this price point that honestly has some pretty heavy components on it. I'm going to leave it bone stock for a bit, but I suspect there's quite a bit of room to lose some more weight.

I'm really dying to get on it for a ride but it's single digit temps here in Michigan right now and I've got a nasty cold. So I think I'm going to have to be patient for a few more days.


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## Brad2064 (May 13, 2013)

Just ordered a black XL Crave. Can't wait till it gets here. LBS said probably end of Feb.


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## Doc_d (Feb 11, 2005)

Brad I got mine in about 18 days. Good choice getting during the winter. My shop has sold a ton of these and they're very scarce once the weather warms up.


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## leider (Dec 29, 2013)

would someone be willing to measure their bb height for me?
I measured a stumpy at the shop the other day and it was way off from what specy had in their specs.


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## Brad2064 (May 13, 2013)

Thanks Doc. It was a tough choice between the Crave and a Raleigh XXIX. The Raleigh was in stock (instant gratification) and the Crave needed to be ordered. So hopefully it will get here sooner.


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## mr3z (Jan 26, 2014)

dfp23 said:


> Got rid of all that red stuff for the "murdered out" look-


I am intensley curious about how you went about taking the red accents off bike (mainly the fork).

I found a guy that used nail polish remover and a magic eraser to get it off the stem and seatpost, and I know the rim has stickers. Unfortunately he had the 2013 fork which was already blacked out. I'm picking up a 2014 in a week and I have plans for it...

How did you do it???


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## Harshmellow (Oct 24, 2013)

JUNGLEKID5 said:


> i belive that you should get a hanger with it.


Yuck. I'll ride a geared FS bike from time to time but I want my singlespeed to be dedicated with no braze-ons or hangers for insurance in case I can't handle singleness. I know this isn't how the bike industry and their mainstream customers see this and therefore 95% of singlespeed bikes have the option for gearing but in my dubious opinion I think this is püp.

As for the Carve SL, I rode this bike for a few minutes and it despite it's nice lines, turning felt sluggish to me. But so far this has been my experience w/ 29er in general. I do recognize some of the benefit of the big wheel in certain situations but prefer the torque, acceleration, stiffness, and handling of 650b or 26 for most off road applications.


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## Harshmellow (Oct 24, 2013)

mr3z said:


> I am intensley curious about how you went about taking the red accents off bike (mainly the fork).
> 
> I found a guy that used nail polish remover and a magic eraser to get it off the stem and seatpost, and I know the rim has stickers. Unfortunately he had the 2013 fork which was already blacked out. I'm picking up a 2014 in a week and I have plans for it...
> 
> How did you do it???


A heat gun is the best tool for decal removal. Just use it with care e.g., keep it moving.


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## Brad2064 (May 13, 2013)

When I originally ordered I wanted the Silver XL but was told it would be an even longer wait than the black (early March). I didn't mind the Black, so I decided to order the black since it would be in earlier. Whelp, my LBS just called today and said he could have a Silver by Wednesday! Can't wait.


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## Brad2064 (May 13, 2013)

Picked up the bike today. It's great. Super lite, especially for an XL frame. When I picked it up, I took it for a quick spin and when I'd stand up and really crank on it I would hear a tinging sound coming from the front brake area. I took it back in to my LBS and the owner tried aligning the disc a little better. I got home and took it for a spin and the same noise occurred. Any ideas?


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## Stevob (Feb 27, 2009)

Brad2064 said:


> Picked up the bike today. It's great. Super lite, especially for an XL frame. When I picked it up, I took it for a quick spin and when I'd stand up and really crank on it I would hear a tinging sound coming from the front brake area. I took it back in to my LBS and the owner tried aligning the disc a little better. I got home and took it for a spin and the same noise occurred. Any ideas?


Tighten the QR skewer.


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## solo-x (Feb 16, 2010)

Stevob said:


> Tighten the QR skewer.


That doesn't always work....

I had a similar problem with my disc CX bike. One of the washers between the caliper and the adapter was shifted towards the disk a little. A 9mm qr allows enough flex that when I'd stand and crank on it, the disk would brush that washer and "ting". Only happened when I was cranking out of the saddle. No amount of aligning the pads made a difference, tightening the skewer to the point it would bruise my hand didn't work either. To fix it, I just had to loosen the caliper mounting bolts, push the washer away from the rotor more, then tighten. No "ting" since. HTH!


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## Brad2064 (May 13, 2013)

Awesome. Thanks to both of you. I with give both a try and report back.


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## MarcusSommers (Sep 11, 2008)

I can't believe you are brave enough to ride onza pedals in the winter. I put those in a drawer in 1995 and forgot them until now. 


toddx said:


> View attachment 841534
> 
> I just picked up this bike. Instead of lurking around and reading your posts I now have something to post!
> I want to give you real life facts and comparisons. I also ride a 19 year old LiteSpeed 26er with carbon rigid fork.
> ...


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## Brad2064 (May 13, 2013)

I got a chance to take a quick look at the front end today. Checked the QR and it was good and tight. Checked for washers sticking out hitting the disc and nothing. But what I did find was the aluminum caliper mount is sitting to close to the disc on the fork mount. Less than a mm away from the disc so the flex under hard pedaling makes the fork mounted caliper mount rub the rotating disc under the torque of the fork when pedaling. So I am eith going to take it into my LBS where I purchased or just take my dremel to the mount. Thx again for the suggestions that led me to this discovery. It was confirmed when I looked at the disc and saw the rub marks on the disc from where the mount was hitting it.


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## XXXSHOWTIMEXXX (Sep 17, 2011)

Just picked up a Santa Cruz Bronson and now this SS is next on my list!!!


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## leider (Dec 29, 2013)

aside from 1x10, would this version of the crave be able to run a 2x10 setup?


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## Stevob (Feb 27, 2009)

Yes.


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## rchoi23 (Jun 26, 2013)

Did you sell your 14 crave? i was looking in to stumpy carbon ss but my local dealer didn't know when to expect in stock again... i had to get crave...did you get your stumpy carbon ss?



DonH said:


> On my 2014 Crave SL the calipers are BR-M446 and the levers are BR-M505's.
> I love my Crave btw. It was my 1st singlespeed....also ended up buying a 2014 Stumpjumper Carbon singlespeed a few weeks ago, so I may have to sell the Crave.


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## DonH (Oct 1, 2004)

rchoi23 said:


> Did you sell your 14 crave? i was looking in to stumpy carbon ss but my local dealer didn't know when to expect in stock again... i had to get crave...did you get your stumpy carbon ss?


I did not sell the Crave. I'm probably going to sell the Stump carbon ss instead. Its only been ridden once, because of time constraints and snow.


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## Zoo1424 (Jul 20, 2010)

BR-M447s on my 2014 as well. I did get a derailleur hanger with mine. I'm putting a Niner carbon seatpost and a Loaded XLite carbon bar on mine before spring arrives.


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## rchoi23 (Jun 26, 2013)

Hi, i am new to SS, 

what cogs will fit? any brand or any size?


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## njSS (Jun 5, 2013)

rchoi23 said:


> Hi, i am new to SS,
> 
> what cogs will fit? any brand or any size?


Any splined cog that looks like this will work:









I'm not positive on the maximum cog size as I'm still on the stock 20T but you can get anywhere from a cheap, stamped cog all the way up to a titanium cog.

I've put about 75 miles on this bike so far and I LOVE IT! (Comparing to my old monocog) Loves to climb, really responsive steering, and the chisel fork soaks up a TON of trail vibrations/bumps on my east coast rocky trails. After a few rides I've had to rotate the EBB a little to tighten the chain up as it was developing a lot of slack and may strip it down to clean out the gunk and re-grease it. The brakes surprisingly do a pretty decent job, although I ordered the XT brake deal from PricePoint a few days ago.


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## rchoi23 (Jun 26, 2013)

yes, i went with the chris king, thanks. 
also mine skipped time to time so I had to replace the rear hub last week. anyone had similar issue? I went up to 19 and now with 18. there is only one hill that i can't clear with 18t cog at my local daily trail but i am working on it...

with this ss training, i became a much better climber. i was always on my friends a$$ (29 hardtail) whole time but i managed to climb much faster than him with my 26er fs on single 800ft climb.


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## edofloat (Mar 23, 2008)

Here's mine.

18.6 Pounds (no pedals - Candy 2) medium frame, upgrades:
Stans Arch EX
Hope Pro 2 Evo SS hub
DT Swiss super comp spokes
Race Face Sixc 785 carbon bars
Syntace Hi Flex carbon seat post
Bontrager Paradigm RL saddle
Sram XO1 spiderless crank
MRP Bling Ring 32T chain ring
Chris King 20T rear cog
Sram PC-890 chain
Schwalbe Racing Ralph EVO 2.25 and 2.1

Next upgrades:
Magura MT8 brakes off SW Stumpy
Syntace F109 stem
ESI chunky grips
Skewers

The wheel set save a bunch of weight over the stock wheel set. The new wheel set climbs so much better, if you do one upgrade this is the one.


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## rchoi23 (Jun 26, 2013)

*plasti dip*


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## CharlieDog (Apr 3, 2008)

That all black fork is awesome. Anyone running a suspension fork on this bike?


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## Tyrich88 (Nov 13, 2012)

edofloat said:


> Here's mine.
> 
> 18.6 Pounds (no pedals - Candy 2) medium frame, upgrades:
> Stans Arch EX
> ...


That's a nice build. I wonder how light you can get these bikes to be...


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## solo-x (Feb 16, 2010)

That's a pretty epic level of lazy to not even remove the front brake before hitting it with the plasti dip.


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## wjphillips (Oct 13, 2008)

Ha! YA!

I'm not sure I'd even use that stuff in the first place. There are plenty of shops out there that handle painting and repair of frames (carbon frames too). They can re-spray your frameset and make it look pretty sick (for a cost of course). Rattle can jobs are fine, but they tend to look cheesy.


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## Tyrich88 (Nov 13, 2012)

wjphillips said:


> Ha! YA!
> 
> I'm not sure I'd even use that stuff in the first place. There are plenty of shops out there that handle painting and repair of frames (carbon frames too). They can re-spray your frameset and make it look pretty sick (for a cost of course). Rattle can jobs are fine, but they tend to look cheesy.


Rattle can jobs can be nice, if the person knows what they're doing and is patient. I've done many a rattle can job on steel frames and get compliments all the time on them. You just have to be patient, let the paint cure properly and get a good clear coat on it as well. 
Powder coating is always better though, just more expensive.


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