Custom Cysco 29er Build-up

[JBaker]

I too really like those twisted tubes. Functional and unique.

[Bigred15]

Finished product. Better pictures to come tomorrow when I pick it up from the shop. As well as some pics once it gets some dirt on it.

[rsutton1223]

That came out incredibly nice. I like the all black with blue accents look. Let us know what you think once it gets dirty!

[Kris W. Jones]

Looks good! Love the blue lettering.

[Kris W. Jones]

That blue bike in the background looks great as well.

[Bigred15]

Thanks.

The inaugural ride took place at the Chickasaw Trace MTB Trails. Chickasaw is one of the few places that offers a little bit of everything from rocks to swoopy singletrack, to tight, scrap the handbars trails. So my thoughts after the first ride:

• This thing climbs like a scalded dog. I'm not sure I've ever ridden a bike that climbs this well.
• It may be the twisted tubes or just the quality metal, but this bike is seriously stiff laterally.
• The geometry was spot on for my riding style. I can still stand and climb, it's slack enough to bomb down descents, the front end lifts easily so I can lift over roots well and the bike pumps well too.
• It's really nice to have a bike without a mile of seatpost sticking out.
• Pedals REALLY well.
• The bike rides shockingly smooth. I expected something a tad harsher, but it ride better than my SS does. Not too surprising considering the quality of the metal, OX Platinum vs. generic 4130 Chromoly.

That covers my initial impressions of the frame. The bike only has 20 miles on it so far, so it will probably be awhile before I pick up all the nuances. Not that I want to toot my own horn too much, but I really selected a spot on build kit. This was my first ride on a true 2x10 drivetrain and it was everything I hoped. Having had experience with SRAM X9 3x10 speed systems, I was shocked at how smoothly it shifted. There was no need for me to shift to the small ring, so no report on that yet. This was also my first ride on a Fox fork with Kashima coating and the first with a 15QR. I'm still playing with the settings and finding the right air pressure, but the Kashima coating allows for a lot more initial movement than previous models. Not so much when you are pedaling along or climbing, but it really moved when I got out of the saddle. I will probably play more with the compression or air pressure to remedy this, but I don't want to do too much. The fork feels phenomenal riding over roots and bombing downhills. The 15QR is simply awesome. After years of riding standard QRs and 9mm thru bolts, I can finally see why everyone raves about it. The fork is amazingly stiff and doesn't deflect at all. It is definitely worth the minor weight penalty. I am seriously considering buying another 15QR fork for my SS. The rest of the components performed great as well, but they didn't stand out to me because I have been using them for quite a while. Thomson, Chris King, Stan's, WTB and Maxxis all performed as expected.

As of right now there is only one change I would make if I could go back. I wavered on getting a remote handlebar lockout for the fork. Looking back, I kinda wish that I would have gotten one. I'm still not sure I would use it all that often, but it would have been nice to have. In the future I will most likely swap out the bottom bracket for a blue Chris King and may go to a XO crankset to drop a bit of weight. I have also been tossing around the idea of getting a rigid carbon fork to use on smooth trails. I will also be swapping on a pair of XT pedals instead of the standard PD-520s that I use now. For those interested, the bike weighed in at 24 pounds 3 ounces with pedals.

[Bigred15]

[rsutton1223]

I didn't even notice the tubing shape in the original picture. That is pretty damn cool.