Any mountain bikers in here? Noob needs help!

[unrlmth]

Just a couple thoughts.

What ever bike you ride don't get a shimano drive train. I rode for a team for two and a half years and Shimano just does not make good components, they tend to break, a lot. I would recommend Sram whenever possible, they actually make their components out of metal. Also, don't get a GT, they are garbage bikes, same with Giant, they are not the best. Specialized, even though they are so main stream I guess you could say, they still do make pretty good bikes with decent components in your price range. Also used bikes cam be, in my opinion, the best option.

I've seen a pretty equal amount of failures with both Shimano and Sram. I've ridden thousands of miles on both they both make good stuff. And also my shimano components are almost exclusively metal when SRAM likes to include lots of plastics and carbon in theirs, so I'm not really sure where he's getting that from. And IIRC the GT bikes were good enough for Lopes to win 4 World Championships, I mean what a POS. (I'm not really a fan of GT though and apparently they have gone downhill since then) Giant is making some very high quality bikes and many of their carbon bikes are excellent and are just as competitive as the other companies.

[JGood]

reroute your front hydraulic line through the fork uppers & lowers where it's supposed to go, so it doesn't get fucked up or jack up the fork stanchions. same with the rear hydaulic hose, get it down on the routing points on the seatstay before it gets sucked up in the wheel. the front quick release lever is on the wrong side. whats the parts spec? looks like a deore level drivetrain? parkers are a good entry level bike imo. the rockshox rear shock of that generation is meh, but it'll do the trick until you outgrow it. good score for $500!

Thanks for the tips, I thought the lines seemed like a jungle.

And I thought the quick release lever was wrong, as there's not much room to move it over there.

It's completely stock, except for an apparently expensive chain, and a shorter stem (he game me the stock stem and told me I'd want to put that on for the riding I'll be doing, more weight over the front tire when climbing?)

http://www.bikepedia.com/quickbike/BikeSpecs.aspx?Year=2008&Brand=Jamis&Model=Parker+1.0&Type=bike

[JGood]

Can anyone recommend a decent clipless pedal that won't break the bank? Are they all pretty much the same design, or does each require it's own type of shoe? Obviously I have no idea what I'm talking about.... haha. I've just heard that this is considered one of those must-have's.

[quikveedb2]

any pedal manufacturer will have comparable pedals at different price points, it's more about cleats, most cleats will work with a variety of shoes. get a shoe that fits how you want, and maybe see if you can demo different pedals. i ride spd's (shimano's name for their "clip-less" system), some people like look, crank brothers, shimano, etc., at this point it comes down to personal preference. different cleats or pedals allow for different "float", which refers to how much you can pivot on your cleat before it releases. they also engage differently. look cleats are very similar to ski boots in terms of feel & design, spd's, not so much.

as far as the stem goes, it's more fit than performance. if you feel cramped in the cockpit, swap to the longer stem, but if you feel comfortable, rock it. i like a short cockpit & low front end, makes the steering feel more immediate, and the front end stiff. this is just me, others might call it twitchy, or unstable. your body position defines climbing & decent characteristics to an extent, after bike geometry, so ride a bit and figure out what you like. don't forget to have fun, bikes are about fun, not gear. i'm stoked for you!

[JGood]

any pedal manufacturer will have comparable pedals at different price points, it's more about cleats, most cleats will work with a variety of shoes. get a shoe that fits how you want, and maybe see if you can demo different pedals. i ride spd's (shimano's name for their "clip-less" system), some people like look, crank brothers, shimano, etc., at this point it comes down to personal preference. different cleats or pedals allow for different "float", which refers to how much you can pivot on your cleat before it releases. they also engage differently. look cleats are very similar to ski boots in terms of feel & design, spd's, not so much.

as far as the stem goes, it's more fit than performance. if you feel cramped in the cockpit, swap to the longer stem, but if you feel comfortable, rock it. i like a short cockpit & low front end, makes the steering feel more immediate, and the front end stiff. this is just me, others might call it twitchy, or unstable. your body position defines climbing & decent characteristics to an extent, after bike geometry, so ride a bit and figure out what you like. don't forget to have fun, bikes are about fun, not gear. i'm stoked for you!

Thanks man! I stopped by my LBS, I think I'm going to pick up the basic entry level SPD's for ~$50, and then just a basic cheaper shoe. He explained how the more expensive shoes are stiffer to provide better pedaling power... but you can't really walk in them. I don't want that.

I think I'm going to need to take the bike to the shop to have the shifters adjusted :( I spent an hour last night, and can't get the rear derailleur to work properly. I tried reading a few procedures, which told me to start with the high and low stop, which I got right, but it never stays in gear in between. I can get it to work in the higher gears with a little fiddling, but then it won't work in the lower gears, and vice versa. It will either try to jump up or down. There's two knobs for adjustment, one on the shifter and one on the derailed, which effect cable tension. Then there is the b-tension adjustment. I'm trying to use the cable tension barrels to get it in line, and the b-tension screw to get the guide pulley as close to the large sprocket as possible without touching. I feel like it's just too far off and I'm just too inexperienced to get it close to where it needs to be for fine tuning (which I think I can handle).


The front derailleur wouldn't go into the smallest sprocket, so I adjusted the low stop so that it now goes in. i didn't want to do any further adjusting, as I've heard you're supposed to get the rear sorted first.

[JGood]

EDIT

Alright, drank a beer and calmed down, and started over. The bike now shifts, and stays in a gear... most of the time. It still shifts kinda hard and makes some noise. If I make a correction that effects the low gears, the high gears make noise. And vice versa. I'm using 1/8 turn increments on the cable barrels, and it's still not working properly. I feel that for a $1300 new bike, it should shift better then my neglected $200 ten year old bike. Am I wrong in assuming this?

The main thing that's bothering me is that when I'm in either the highest or lowest rear gears, it takes two pulls of the shifter to go to the next gear, then one pull for each gear after that. It should go on the first one, no?

I followed the following procedures exactly:

http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/rear-derailler-adjustments-derailleur

http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/front-derailleur-adjustments

[quikveedb2]

sounds like drag on your cable from moisture, grit, or corrosion in the cable housing. clean & lube the cable in each section of housing, check your limit screws, and readjustment cable tension.

[JGood]

sounds like drag on your cable from moisture, grit, or corrosion in the cable housing. clean & lube the cable in each section of housing, check your limit screws, and readjustment cable tension.

Will do. I am ordering a bottle of "Rock n Roll Extreme Chain Lube", as it had the best reviews on mtbr.com

I also am ordering a Topeak shock air pump so i can hopefully get the bike set up for my weight.

[JGood]

As I was cleaning the chain, I realized it wasn't even going on to the smallest sprocket on the rear. So I started all over again. Same results. So I started all over again, doing the exact same thing. Now it goes into all gears, but not very smoothly. i can get it to go up through the gears fine, but going down through the gears doesn't work, the chain jumps around, and vice-versa, depending on how i adjust it. Some gears will be 100% fine, I'll just be shifting down through the gears, then it will suddenly be so far out of alignment on one that it jumps around. I really, REALLY, don't want to take it to my LBS, as this should be simple shit. but I also don't want to get more and more frustrated every day, if there is actually a bent part that I would never find.

[quikveedb2]

there are only so many variables at play in the shifting of the rear deraileur; limit screws, b limit, cable tension/derailleur spring tension. that's all you need for shifting. things that can make it shift crappy are a bit more numerous. if cable tension & cable drag are not the issue, i'd get the deraileur hanger alignment checked by your lbs. have you looked to see if the cage or hanger looks bent? check the deraileur for lateral play by grasping it at then end of the cage and moving it side to side. does the shifter actuate cleanly without the cable and derailleur hooked up? will it run smooth in the little ring without the cable hooked up? are all the drivetrain parts the same age? what derailleur/shifter combo are we talking about here?

[JGood]

there are only so many variables at play in the shifting of the rear deraileur; limit screws, b limit, cable tension/derailleur spring tension. that's all you need for shifting. things that can make it shift crappy are a bit more numerous. if cable tension & cable drag are not the issue, i'd get the deraileur hanger alignment checked by your lbs. have you looked to see if the cage or hanger looks bent? check the deraileur for lateral play by grasping it at then end of the cage and moving it side to side. does the shifter actuate cleanly without the cable and derailleur hooked up? will it run smooth in the little ring without the cable hooked up? are all the drivetrain parts the same age? what derailleur/shifter combo are we talking about here?

Yes, everything seems to operate smoothly, nothing appears bent, but then again I'm not sure what is normal or not. Shifters and rear derailleur is Shimano Deore, front derailleur is Suntour XRC-414. are Shimano Deore. It's the stock parts which have less then 20 miles on them.

I'm going to swing by the bike shop today and see if they can take a look at it for me.

[JGood]

Well, 5 hours and $60 later, the bike is in good shape. They disassembled it, and reassembled it CORRECTLY. Turns out, all the rear bushings were loose, causing irregular drive train alignment. They installed new shift cables for me, installed the large crank gear properly (it was on wrong!) etc... There was a whole list of shit messed up. I guess the previous owner just disassembled it when he got it, reassembled it incorrectly, then sold it to me for 1/3 the price?

Anyway, I'm happy now. It shifts great, handles great, and stops great. Tomorrow I'm hitting the trails for the first time.

Thanks for all the advice. I really appreciate it.

[quikveedb2]

60 sounds like a deal and a half for what you got done. Have fun!

[JGood]

Just got back from my first trail ride. Spent 3 hours in 38 degrees, 25mph wind, with no sun. Still couldn't stop smiling. The bike performed flawlessly. The lockout for the front did wonders up the hills, and it soaked up everything I could throw at it for downhill. It's like learning a whole new way of riding.

I'm glad I didn't let my anger get the best of me and throw the bike out my window a few days ago :) I'm sure I'll be able to handle the maintenance from here on out, knowing that I'm at least starting with something assembled correctly.