attilasbb

What can geometry do in itself? Does it really make all the difference when it comes to how capable a mountain bike is?
Oh yes. It does make all the difference.
See for example I used to think that my bike was lacking grip because the wheels are 26 inch, and because the rims and tires werent wide enough.
Same wheels and tires on a radically longer bike and I found that those wheels and tires had all the grip I needed. That is true both downhill and uphill. The latter is further helped by the extremely steep seat tube. Steep climbs on which I would spin out and nearly fall on my back are suddenly fine. And I never even have to make any effort to put my weight forward.

SLIDE LEFT FOR GEOMETRY. So how important are all those numbers?There is a lot of talk about long low and slack these days, and as my old frame is 16 years old, taking its components and putting them on a very progressive frame was a unique opportunity for a very clean experiment so to say. What can geometry do in itself? Same wheels, same suspension components, same everything. But the geo is vastly different. To only mention a few numbers, the head angle is 3° slacker, the seat 9° steeper. Lengthwise, the change is even more radical. The reach is 125mm longer and the wheelbase nearly 200mm longer, with the chainstays only growing by 10mm.

On to chapter 2 of how we got here.
This is the part where I found myself working an office job with lots of idle time on my hand in front if a computer. So much time in fact that I got to dive deep into mtb geometry numbers and suspension kinematics. This is also where I first stumbled upon the likes of and the like and realized that steel, along with custom made bikes was in fact a thing.
It is here that it first occured to me that - maybe - Building a bike from scratch is something that I might be able to do.

A bikebuild starts with a jig. In my case that’s a self made one out of more mild steel than I can ever hope to lift. It is neither pretty nor a 100% straight, but it will have to do.
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Nincs bringaépítés hegesztősablon nélkül. Esetemben ez ez egy házikészítésű darab sok tíz kiló vasból, ami se nem szép se nem 100%-ig pontos, de megteszi.