https://www.tredz.co.uk/.DMR-V11-Pedals_232842.htm. I recommend these pedals, they are composite, reasonably priced and your foot has plenty of room for moving about and they grip well.
I tried putting that protection tape on my bike and it looked a dog so I ripped it off and thought well if it gets scratched then I'm not bothered as its a bike and they all get scuffed eventually anyway.
Looks a nice area where that bike is as well.
Thanks for the recommendation - I'll keep it in mind! The bike did come with some very cheap all plastic flats, which physically do the job but don't grip well while the bearings are notchy as hell.
I've got a pair of apparently serviceable MTB-ish Shimano dual-sided pedals (flats on one side, SPDs on the other) which I'll probably give a try before putting my hand in my pocket for anything else.. I've not ridden with SPDs for a while since my joints fell out with the narrow Q-factor of the crankset on my Genesis, but can see the potential advantages for this type of riding.
Irritatingly there were some decent-looking Nukeproof pedals down to a tenner on
CRC, but now the price has gone back up to £30-odd.
I hear what you're saying about the tape, although personally I'd rather it looked cack (within limits) and was protected. One of the reasons I've not gone quicker on this bike so far is all the stuff hitting the downtube - I suspect really hammering it down a gravel descent with muddy tyres would rapidly destroy the paint on the downtube.. which would be a real shame and of course leave the door open to rust.
The pics perhaps over-sell the ride - it's very nice in parts but accessibly-local routes like this are short and limited; especially with snotty land owners increasingly going out of their way to block routes and limit access. Terrain and obstructive gammons notwithstanding I could probably get 10-15 miles in circling the village, however in reality I'm not sure how feasible this would be. I'll probably give a full loop a go nearer the summer when the ground's more amenible..
Great looking bike Wafter, looks like you picked yourself up a right bargain there. I would love a nice steel hard tail myself, but couldn't find a bargain like yours so settled for an aluminium framed one.
As for mudguards, I use mudhugger guards which attach simply and offer a reasonable range of coverage, though to be fair, they protect me much more than the bike! At this time of year, I tend more to just quickly hose the bike down after every ride before sticking it away in the cellar. Here's a picture of the mudhugger guards on my bike:
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One of the issue's you may come across also is your water bottle getting pretty muddy and horrible, especially around the top. I tend not to use the cage anymore in winter and instead keep it in a feedbag mounted to the handlebar.
With the drivetrain, those cassettes are incredibly hardy things and last for years. That said, do yourself a favour and keep an eye on chain stretch, don't let the chain get too worn out and replace it at about 0.75% wear. That way you'll probably get through about three chains before needing to replace the cassette and thus saving yourself a bucket of money.
Above all else enjoy the muddy side of life!
Thanks - I like to think I did OK, however I guess time will tell and there's the distinct possibility that the brand may cease to exist, depending on what happens to its parent company. Sadly steel's niche nature seems to command a premium and there seem to be few if any "affordable" steel MTBs; evidently they're less-well-represented than ferrous road-going alternatives
Thanks for the Mudhugger recommendation - I've happened across these and thought they look pretty decent; although I guess you still have to accept a fair bit of much on the bike given their evidently limited coverage. Ideally I'd like something that keeps crap off the seat tube and BB as well (along with as much of the rest of the bike as possible!), although I appreciate that's probably difficult to achieve in a universal format.. while on such bikes clearance when caked in mud potentially becomes more important than shuttering everything off.
Thanks for the thought about the bottle - hadn't considered that! My cycling backpack does have the facility to fit a bladder, so perhaps this might be a better way to go.. another stark difference to what I'm used to!
I appreciate what you're saying about the cassette but again it's an alien world.. I waxed the chain and so far it seems to be holding up well, but I wonder if I'd cocked up by leaving it on the bike when I washed it; potentially diluting the mud and allowing contamination into the links.
While I appreciate you assurances I'm used to the drivetrain on my other bikes basically lasting forever on account of the wax; which I think will be a tall order on this bike. That said I suppose despite the harsh conditions it'll probably see a lot fewer miles, so perhaps it'll even out. I noticed a lot of mud was splurging outwards from the BB and onto the chain; I'd at least like to protect it from this as I suspect this is where the bulk of the wear will come from...
I love being out in the countryside but so far my experiences have really tweaked my OCD - I'll cling to the epic experiences in your posts for hope, however
I'm not in any way an MTBer but that bike looks lovely
I'm sure you'll get many hours of enjoyment out of it
Thanks - appreciate you saying so
Nice bike. I understand that many Poms are reticent about money matters but do you mind sharing what it cost you?
Wide handlebars, it should be possible to cut them down at bit, particularly for your intended use.
Cheers - the RRP is on the Ragley website, the rest can be worked out from that
As an aside I see CRC /
Wiggle have had a big clearout on their website and there are now very few Ragley and Nukeproof products listed - I hope this means they're not for the chop! While I appreciate that Ragley have always been a bit niche / below the radar, Nukeproof seem pretty big with a lot of coverage on GCN and plenty of critical acclaim..
Nice bike!
I'm not so stealthy, and my MTB is bright red.
I'd fit mudguards if I were you, on the basis that there'll be less muck to clean off yourself at the end of a ride. Riding on mud-slicked fen roads during the sugar beet harvest has taught me that much at least!
if you find the bars too wide, you can always cut them down a bit, although you don't want to do that too much, as you'll lose a certain degree of stability (changes the CoG / polar momentum).
It is a different kind of riding though, and for me, MTB = gravel track bimbler for the most part, but also useful in the winter on icy / muddy roads. You may have to play around with tyre pressures to get that sweet spot between off road performance and not being too "riding through treacle" on tarmac.
Cheers!
Totally appreciate what you're saying about the mudguards; however sadly everything I've found so far seems to be somewhat of a halfway house; the longboards on my more road-centric bikes having really spoilt me it seems, in terms of both coverage and easy of fitment on proper, bolted mounts.
Thanks for the thought about the bars - this had crossed my mind and back in the CRC fire sale there were quite a few Ragley and Nukeproof bars at rock-bottom prices; I'd considered buying a second set to chop down but by the time I'd committed to the bike they'd sold out. I've done a bit of research on bar width and by convention thinking they're "right" for me; while on the one hand I don't have the stones to be smashing it down the side of some mountain, I don't want to compromise the bike's performance just so I can get it through the house easier.
Once I'm a bit more confident I'll see how it rides with my hands progressively closer to the centre of the bars..
I think my intentions are very similar to yours - nothing hardcore; just the ability to ride in rural conditions that would be off the menu with other gear.
I'm currently running 25psi rear / 20psi front on the recommendation of the Chinook tyre pressure calculator; which feels really good - not too squishy and wallow, nor dragging on the road (within context of course) but nicely planted off-road to a standard I've never experienced on anything more road-centric
me too mate and i find the market sparse of options.. .love steel and bought a Genesis day one 20 when they came in steel with a nexus 8 speed hub 2018 model options are few and far between
Nice work - got to love the Genesis gear!
I like the look of their longitude (like a rigid MTB in essence) however Genesis seem to have done well at avoiding the post-covid crash so prices are still too robust for my wallet..
Nice write up wafter.
Glad yo see your having a good start to 2024!
A new bike always helps!
Pitty about the mixed group set.
Thanks! "Good" is subjective as a new bike is usually both a source of anxiety and joy; at least to begin with - this one especially as it was less of a planned purchase and unlike the last two I can't justify it to myself for owt other than leisure.
I agree about the groupset; however again the gear on it has acquitted itself well so far and it's not like there was much choice - it was this or bust as any alternative steel hard tails would have cost many times more and been totally out of the question. In this respect I think I might have scored a bit of a unicorn; not that most are concerned with the allure of a ferrous frame..
Since I list rode the Ragley I've been out on the Fuji and Brompton - on both occasions I was shocked by how gutless and spongy (if ultimately adiquate) the cable-operated rim brakes were on each compared to the mammoth four-pot hydros on the Ragley - certainly no complaints in that department, as much as I'm dubious of SRAM
A lovely write up. I also know nothing about mtb so it was good to have something written from a perspective I could relate to. Some times it’s nice to step back and just have fun on a bike.
Thanks - appreciate you saying so! Hopefully my blind stumblings through this hitherto unknown land might provide a bit more insight for the MTB-curious amongst us. It's certainly fun; if heavily tempered by uncharted amounts of anxiety about buggering it up..
Nice descriptive write-up of a nice bike! I almost exclusively ride MTB through the winter and the constant hosing off of the bike (and even oneself if extreme) is a burden. I use mudguards to keep the worst off of me and I have bodged a small guard on the rear of the seat tube to keep crud at bay from the bottom bracket.
I also use the dropper post a lot - mostly for when I am at a standstill so I can rest seated on the bike (since, as you say, it’s a lofty perch). I also ride exclusively with SPDs off-road - I like that my feet are always in the right place on the pedal and stay in place over very rough terrain (for example a fast, bumpy descent).
Tyre pressure is also worth experimenting with. I run tubeless meaning I can run soft with no fear of pinch flats. However I hate the squirmy feel of soft, fat tyres so tend to run harder than most recommend and it suits me. Get some different tyres for the summer too - a faster tyre is a joy over hard-packed, polished trails (I use Continental Cross Kings - not ultimately fast like a Race King but still offers some grip in less dry summer conditions).
Cheers
I notice you're a bit of an MTB fiend and appreciate your input. I was thinking similar with the back of the seatpost tube - especially because the dropper post is the only item that has internal routing (which enters near the bottom, just in front of the rear wheel) so it'll be difficult to get protection tape in here.
I guess it's a toss-up between protecting myself / the frame and allowing enough clearance to stop accumulated mud becoming an issue - how do you get on with chain cleanliness? As above I've found claggy mud rapidly migrates out to the chain from the BB area; then onto the crankset and cassette. I'd love to mitigate this but as yet am not sure how to.
Interesting point about the dropper - I can just about sit on the bike with the seat up, but as you say it's certainly lofty! Tbh I find the whole thing somewhat perplexing currently; especially because the dropper lever is in the same place as the most-used gear selector on the Brompton.. and I find myself instinctively going for it by default. While I understand the reason for the post (and may use it in time if I become more confident in such circumstances) in reality so far its deployment still seems very much more "slapstick comedy" than functional. It certainly perplexed and amused my mother when demonstrated...
I can certainly see the appeal of SPDs and since I already have a set of pedals and shoes will doubtless give them a go at some point.. really need to swap the pedals anyway as the current cheap placcy ones really don't afford much grip on the mirror-polished soles of my shoes.
As above the tyre pressures I'm currently running seem pretty good, but again it's all new to me so maybe there's room for tweaking. I can fully appreciate the advantages of tubeless and will likely go this way in future as I have much of the gear already. I'm slowly cobbling together the bits to make an inflation tank from a discarded nitrous bottle, however given the cost of fittings I'm wondering whether it's worth just biting the bullet and buying a Topeak Tubiboost as these can apparently be had for £50. I'd also need a repair kit / stabby plug set - do you have any recommendations please?
I hear what you're saying about the different tyres; however in practice I have the gravel bike for less gnarly terrain and don't fancy swapping tubeless tyres about. I did buy a second set of rims for the Genesis with the intention of sticking on some knobby rubber for the winter, however that stagnated and then I bought this
Buy a good MTB specific bottle with a cap to keep the muck out. Mudguards why bother , cleaning is time wasted ,its only the chain that gets a wipe.
One tip for the 29er bikes, was told you sit in it not on top of it. Buy a few sizes smaller .
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Cheers - good point about the bottle although unfortunately something more specific I was hoping to avoid!
See you point about mudguards and agree to a degree; however while I can tolerate cleaning, a) I don't like getting filthy, b) I want to minimise damage to the frame as much as possible in terms of chips / scratches / corrosion and c) I'd like to keep as much crap out of the drivetrain as possible to mitigate cleaning and reduce wear.
I appreciate I'm never going to keep the bike as clean and pristine as my road-going gear; equally I'd like to score any easy wins I can to minimise the worst of it - such as frame protection tape in obvious areas of impact and abrasion.
Embrace the slop - you aren't getting away from it. I'd advise keeping an eye on jockey wheel bearings, BB and rear wheel bearings - these take a hammering. As a minimum get a small splash guard at the front - this helps keep the stansions clean and stops some mud going straight up into youe eyes, but you are going to get filthy doing propper MTB'ing. I'd also very strongly recommend decent MTB winter boots - Shimano MW5 or MW7 are pretty waterproof (I use dry suit cufs oner the top if I know it's going to be a mud and water fest, and the advanyage with these you can hose off the worse then just wipe off - the tops have a flap that covers any lacing, so wipe clean.
Also make sure you clean the stansions and seals after rides, and a squirt of silicone lube on them after - preserves the seals well.
Modern MTB's are massive, Full Suspension even more so. You'll notice a difference coming from road bikes, and even old MTB's - my old rigid 26'er is tiny compared to the 27.5" full suspension.
Hydration pak on ong rides, water bottle short. The mud and crud doesn't bother me.
Thanks - agree to some extent; although I can't help but think of how dry and accommodating the routes I've covered so far would be in the summer! So far the wheel bearings appear to have fared well, although both times I've been out the RD has become totally caked in mud. Best I've found so far is to wash out the excess then let the rest dry out and just flake off the next time the bike's used..
So far the stanchions have remained mercifully damage-free, although they've certainly got covered in their fair share of mud. Hopefully as you suggest a decent front guard will keep the worst of it off. Not sure I'm committed enough to the grot yet to be buying dedicated shoes, but I'll keep you suggestions in mind
I did wonder if I'd made a mistake going 29" over 27.5, however since I've ridden it I've found it to be unintimidating and perfectly manageable. Wish I could say the same for getting it through the house!
Will look into a hydration pack
You’ve inspired me to blow the dust off mine and get back in the woods. It’s a full carbon 2007 26er, built up from bits and bobs for my son (he’s now outgrown it, but fits me perfectly) and great to chuck about, still a very fast downhill bike. I kept it to replace the unreliable S Works which I ended up selling a few years ago.
I completely stripped and rebuilt it a couple of years ago and it’s been hung up in the garage since. Time to get it down, pump up the tyres and get it filthy!
View attachment 718836
Excellent - looks like a nice ride!
Think of me when you're covered in sh*te, hosing half the countryside off it in the freezing cold
So.. not much to report other than that I've found the first bit of damage at the chainstays in line with the tyre; no doubt as a result of stones in the claggy mud that get sheared off as the tyre rotates. Will probably touch it up with some of the Fuji's inappropriate green paint as I'll never get the metal flake matched, then I need to pay some serious attention to how I'm going to protect these areas.
Protection tape should be OK on the round-ish sections, however the flat "finger bridge" on the drive side is going to be a bit of a pig..
I guess I'd also best look at some mudguards - mudhuggers are looking like the least-worst option so far, however I think I'll still need to try and lash something up to protect the rear of the seatpost and chain; if this is even practically possible.
It's currently living in the dining room and usually elicits a smile when I pass, which must be a positive sign
