klein attitude, but fork etc ...

Hi all, I've been riding a lot of hardtails in the $1200 to $1500 range
and the one that felt best (right away, as soon as it started moving)
was the klein attitude. It's at the low end of my range (about $1000)
and heavier than I'd like (at least 26 pounds) so I wonder, should I
just ride it as is (and save some money) or upgrade it before it leaves
the shop?

The fork, a Duke XC, seemed like the logical place to start, but it got
real confusing reading MtbREVIEW pages. It seemed like there were people
with something bad to say about every 3 pound (or less) fork. Are the
light forks giving up too much, or is there something that will work
well for a 150 pound recreational xc rider?

Maybe the Duke XC is a good trade-off(?).

BTW, if you'd like to look over the attitude's equipment list and comment,
it's here. I'm not really sure if the "extra" weight is centered in a
few things, or spread out in all the components:

http://www.kleinbikes.com/bicycles/bikes.asp?p=1031

Thanks.

higb wrote:
Maybe the Duke XC is a good trade-off(?).

Or a Manitou Skareb Super?

"higb" wrote in message
t...
higb wrote:
Maybe the Duke XC is a good trade-off(?).

Or a Manitou Skareb Super?

"higb" wrote in message
t...
Hi all, I've been riding a lot of hardtails in the $1200 to $1500 range
and the one that felt best (right away, as soon as it started moving)
was the klein attitude. It's at the low end of my range (about $1000)
and heavier than I'd like (at least 26 pounds) so I wonder, should I
just ride it as is (and save some money) or upgrade it before it leaves
the shop?

The fork, a Duke XC, seemed like the logical place to start, but it got
real confusing reading MtbREVIEW pages. It seemed like there were people
with something bad to say about every 3 pound (or less) fork. Are the
light forks giving up too much, or is there something that will work
well for a 150 pound recreational xc rider?

Maybe the Duke XC is a good trade-off(?).

BTW, if you'd like to look over the attitude's equipment list and comment,
it's here. I'm not really sure if the "extra" weight is centered in a
few things, or spread out in all the components:

http://www.kleinbikes.com/bicycles/bikes.asp?p=1031

Thanks.


That bike is spec'd almost exactly the same as my '02 Sugar 3, thanks to the
Trek marketing scheme. To lighten up, I'd get IRC Serac 1.9 tires (which I
think are the best XC tire in anything but total flood conditions), any top
level crank/bb (I recommenend anything RaceFace, though for you, the
TruVativ Stylo Team may be a bit better...it's lighter than some of the more
affordable RF stuff, and at 150 lbs. I doubt you'll miss the RF
immortality), and high end Avid brakes/levers like SD Ti.
If the shop works with you, or if you shrewdly shop online, you can do all
that for probably around $400. Just for fun, I went to Cambria and put in
the cart a Next LP square taper, RaceFace taperlock bb, Avid SD Ti brakes
and SD Mag levers, and a pair of Serac 1.9s. The total was $442, and the
tires and Avid stuff are probably cheaper at PricePoint.
Sooooo...if the Klein was on the low end of your price range, whch had $500
in wiggle room, you're now at the high-end, but the bike has some amazing
parts on it and is probably, give or take, a pound-plus lighter.

Also, weight could be saved and ride bettered in the seatpost/bar/stem
areas - after a season on the stock Sugar 3, I knew I wanted all the
Bontrager stuff gone.

Regarding the fork...if you have bad luck, RockShox forks will leak, botom
out, crack, and ruin your ride fairly often. If you have good luck, they'll
flex a bit and need a little more maintenance than Manitou, Fox, or
Marzocchi. You're being 150 lbs. helps. So, for pure weight savings, I'd
let the fork go - for now. For the best handling/performing bike, I'd get
it the hell off of there.

I'd get rid of the Deore shifters and FD too...

Chris

I picked up a Klein Attitude a couple of weeks ago - managed to find one
at a really good price, and the geometry was great for me. The bike has
been a great ride so far - I'm finding myself really looking forward to
the weekends to take it out again!

First thing I'll be upgrading is the brakes - the Avid brakes just don't
feel like they'll be up to the task in the long haul. I'll probably be
getting a set of discs sometime in the next few months. Nothing wrong
with the fork so far. I'll also change out the tires in the not too
distant future too - 2.35s are just a bit wide for the sort of terrain
I'll mostly be riding. As a 220lb rider, there's no point in me worrying
about a few extra pounds on the bike, so can't offer much advice there.



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Chris wrote, in part:
If the shop works with you, or if you shrewdly shop online, you can do all
that for probably around $400. Just for fun, I went to Cambria and put in
the cart a Next LP square taper, RaceFace taperlock bb, Avid SD Ti brakes
and SD Mag levers, and a pair of Serac 1.9s. The total was $442, and the
tires and Avid stuff are probably cheaper at PricePoint.

Thanks for the many details. I'll have to mull that over a bit. If I
don't change the fork, I might just start riding it and then change things
over time (and as sales present themselves).

I appreciate the hint on which light tire to look at.

"stubacca" wrote in message
...
I picked up a Klein Attitude a couple of weeks ago - managed to find one
at a really good price, and the geometry was great for me. The bike has
been a great ride so far - I'm finding myself really looking forward to
the weekends to take it out again!

First thing I'll be upgrading is the brakes - the Avid brakes just don't
feel like they'll be up to the task in the long haul. I'll probably be
getting a set of discs sometime in the next few months. Nothing wrong
with the fork so far. I'll also change out the tires in the not too
distant future too - 2.35s are just a bit wide for the sort of terrain
I'll mostly be riding. As a 220lb rider, there's no point in me worrying
about a few extra pounds on the bike, so can't offer much advice there.



--
--------------------------
Posted via cyclingforums.com
http://www.cyclingforums.com

I've put many a mile on Avid linear pull brakes. You'll wear pads and rims
(on a much slower rate) but if you are riding just weekends it seems
unlikely that they won't last the "long haul".
Now having said that, I have just converted to discs myself. I needed a new
rear hub and rim anyway and have other reasons why I would like to try out
the Avid Discs.
They include braking performance on long downhill decents and in wet or
muddy conditions. The "V" brakes worked OK, but I found them less reliable
after 6 miles of downhill.
YMMV.

--
Craig Brossman, Durango Colorado
(remove .nospam. if replying)

Stephen Baker wrote:
higb says:

and the one that felt best (right away, as soon as it started moving)
was the klein attitude.

If it feels good, really good, as soon as it starts moving, then WTF
would you want to change _anything_ on it.?

You know how it is, you walk into a bike store with money in your
pocket ... pretty soon you start smelling smoke.

At this point, I seem to be leaning toward just riding it.

Stephen Baker wrote:
higb says:

You know how it is, you walk into a bike store with money in your
pocket ... pretty soon you start smelling smoke.

Unfortunately, "yes". ;-(

My problem is walking into the LBS, with NO money in pocket, and the smokey
smell is still there.

LOL, been there too