View Full Version : update on riding trials with a .243
A week or two ago there was a thread on riding trials on a .243 frame. Went for the first ride on my new .243 today, and here's how it was.
I am using a 32-18 gear ratio with dual 24" wheels with urban type tires. The bike has short chainstays so it's easy to get up onto the rear wheel, and pedalkick about. TT length is 21.5". The gear ratio is the perfect mix, low enough for trials but high enough for cruising about and getting speed for jumps. I have been riding trials for 1 month and with the .243, I can rear wheel 2.5-3 ft pretty easily, which is good for a steel urban bike. The bike is very easy to control on the rear wheel, not twitchy at all. I am using a 95MM Pike on the front so the head angle is around 71 degrees, which makes it pretty easy to pivot on the front wheel. You probably ask, why not just ride a dedicated stock? Here's why: after some trials, I was able to pedal over to the local DJ's and the bike was perfectly suited to those too. Since the bike is so easy to ride, I was able to hit my first 180 out of a bowl after only 2-3 attempts.
All in all, the bike is actually a great all around bike, a bike for someone who wants to do everything when they're out on a ride, rather than have a specific bike for each type of riding. Trials is still much easier on my Monty, and downhilling is much faster on my Foes, but the .243 packs all of those capabilities into one package.
Here are some of the component highlights:
108pt Hadley trials hub
24" singletracks
170MM diabolus cranks
Hayes mag brakes with dangerboy 1 finger levers
Kenda K-rads 2.3
Rockshox Pike 140-95MM
A pic...http://photo.pinkbike.com/photo/431/pbpic431448.jpg
http://photo.pinkbike.com/photo/431/pbpic431447.jpg
hello?
03-29-2005, 07:05 PM
what does it tip the scales at? dual discs too eh. niceee
what does it tip the scales at? dual discs too eh. niceee32Ibs
hello?
03-29-2005, 07:31 PM
oh..thats not to bad. i thought it would weigh something like 40 pounds.
DanBowhers
03-29-2005, 07:58 PM
thats crickets, not romantic music
UNitrials
03-29-2005, 08:22 PM
I wish I had $ to buy one... but i just dumped 2500 into a freeride bike.:(
from what ive heard/seen/felt/stroked, bikes that are built to do "everything" generally suck for everything. hope it works out for you
Ross W.
03-29-2005, 09:22 PM
how old are you? 15? 16? where'r you getting the money for that beast, plus other bikes? Damn. Nice ride though.
uownme
03-29-2005, 10:21 PM
parents- duh- like i do.
how old are you? 15? 16? where'r you getting the money for that beast, plus other bikes? Damn. Nice ride though. 15... bike shop job, plus I buy a lot of items used. There's no way I would have enough money for my Foes at retail price. Plus, I buy and sell parts and labor on the side. I build wheels, and sell them for more than my investment in the parts.
from what ive heard/seen/felt/stroked, bikes that are built to do "everything" generally suck for everything. hope it works out for you generalities don't apply to this bike... it was built as an urban/dj bike that happened to have trials capabilities. Trials capabilities were not a priority when i built this bike. The 24" wheels, k-rad tires, short stem, narrow bars and 7Ib frame don't hint toward trials riding being a goal.
seeing as how the title of the thread is "riding trials with a .243" i could see how somebody would take it as you were trying to ride trials o na bike clearly built for somthing else. and hten you post somthing about doing "everything" on this very .243. "everything" sounds pretty "general" .
:joshers:
DanBowhers
03-29-2005, 11:49 PM
Elan= owning you
That is just a short list of parts that you listed that make this bike pretty crappy for trials. What about your gearing?
I figure this bike is good for hitting home made ramps, riding over stairs and thats about it. Might be ok for park and dirt or what not, but the only trials will be you hopping up stairs. Road bikes would get you to the dirt jumps faster...why not ride one of those?
seeing as how the title of the thread is "riding trials with a .243" i could see how somebody would take it as you were trying to ride trials o na bike clearly built for somthing else. and hten you post somthing about doing "everything" on this very .243. "everything" sounds pretty "general" .
:joshers:the person who posted the original question was curious if trials riding is possible on a .243. In my thread, i said that yes, it is possible, and described the feeling of the bike. Now, read over my original post. I mentioned that a FOES (fly) and a MONTY were a couple of my possessions. Now, wouldn't that suggest to you that I don't need to build an all around bike? You seem to think that I built this bike as a trials bike.
uownme
03-30-2005, 12:13 AM
who gives a fuckkk
just ride it the way you want too, dont need to explain yourself to us
Elan= owning you
That is just a short list of parts that you listed that make this bike pretty crappy for trials. What about your gearing?
I figure this bike is good for hitting home made ramps, riding over stairs and thats about it. Might be ok for park and dirt or what not, but the only trials will be you hopping up stairs. Road bikes would get you to the dirt jumps faster...why not ride one of those? Please explain why the parts I listed "might be ok for park and dirt or what not". To me, they sound like a great set up. Strangely enough, they also sound like a great urban/dj set up to every person who has ridden the bike. BUT, according to Elan the postwhore and his sidekick, Dan, the bike sucks at everything. Elaborate on why the bike sucks at everything, since you have extensive riding time on the bike and know the perfect urban/dj bike set up.
who gives a fuckkk
just ride it the way you want too, dont need to explain yourself to usThat's what I plan to do, I just can't resist responding to people like Elan and Dan. It always amuses me that some people on online forums choose to be assholes. Maybe someone can enlighten me on why these two choose to be sphincters? Maybe they are jealous that I have these bikes at my age and they didn't.
wow, you need to take some chill pills, sit back, and read what you jsut wrote. The intrawebs are for your viewing pleasure, try to take it a little less personal and literal.
Poopslush
03-30-2005, 12:25 AM
who gives a fuckkk
wow, you need to take some chill pills, sit back, and read what you jsut wrote. The intrawebs are for your viewing pleasure, try to take it a little less personal and literal.yeah i overdid it, but what pissed me off was that you and dan decided to pick apart my post and my new bike. I think it was pretty obvious that I was pretty excited about my new bike, it was kind of unnecessary to state everything that you find wrong with it.
DanBowhers
03-30-2005, 01:18 AM
no dude, its unnecesary to associate your bike as a reflection of yourself, its just a bike. You built is ass backward for trials, even for urban trials. Look my street bike has a 36-18 gear ratio and if i were to try to pedal kick i would just break the chain.
im not elans sidekick, if anything i dont think i like him.
its a cool looking bike. but i ride tons of street and i hate the paper sidewalls of the k rads, always ride rigid, hydro discs like all hydros scare me and teh .243 geo is kind of wak ( i looked into the SL)
my point is this. i dont bother to give you all the back story cause its jsut a post on a message board and its just a bike, if you like it, swell, youshould you bought it. dont call me an ass hole you dont fucking know me.
jmkimmel
03-30-2005, 04:59 AM
A week or two ago there was a thread on riding trials on a .243 frame. Went for the first ride on my new .243 today, and here's how it was.
I am using a 32-18 gear ratio with dual 24" wheels with urban type tires. The bike has short chainstays so it's easy to get up onto the rear wheel, and pedalkick about. TT length is 21.5". The gear ratio is the perfect mix, low enough for trials but high enough for cruising about and getting speed for jumps. I have been riding trials for 1 month and with the .243, I can rear wheel 2.5-3 ft pretty easily, which is good for a steel urban bike. The bike is very easy to control on the rear wheel, not twitchy at all. I am using a 95MM Pike on the front so the head angle is around 71 degrees, which makes it pretty easy to pivot on the front wheel. You probably ask, why not just ride a dedicated stock? Here's why: after some trials, I was able to pedal over to the local DJ's and the bike was perfectly suited to those too. Since the bike is so easy to ride, I was able to hit my first 180 out of a bowl after only 2-3 attempts.
All in all, the bike is actually a great all around bike, a bike for someone who wants to do everything when they're out on a ride, rather than have a specific bike for each type of riding. Trials is still much easier on my Monty, and downhilling is much faster on my Foes, but the .243 packs all of those capabilities into one package.
Here are some of the component highlights:
108pt Hadley trials hub
24" singletracks
170MM diabolus cranks
Hayes mag brakes with dangerboy 1 finger levers
Kenda K-rads 2.3
Rockshox Pike 140-95MM
A pic...
Wow - you're so right! You made a great choice in buying that bike for what you do. However, Elan (AKA sarcastic postwhore) is right. OTN means tha aim is real-live trials, not fun-bike-to-ride. As always, if you post a glowing review of a non-trials bike on this site, claiming it's good for trials ("easy to get up onto the rear wheel"), you'll get shit. My worthless advice? Take your dirt-street rig and fish for compliments on ridemonkey or something. Don't get mad that we don't like your bike. We're just being honest.
My 4 cents.
PS
That you're 15 and claim to pay for all those bikes is another matter completely (we all have parents - don't be ashamed). God damn - even if you're getting wholesale Foes is ridonkulous.
Mehukatti
03-30-2005, 11:48 AM
that bike probably weights two times as much as a light 26" trials bike. but still who cares, you can learn the basics with it and buy a proper trials bike if you feel like it.
chronic
03-30-2005, 03:00 PM
im not elans sidekick, if anything i dont think i like him.
hahaha....That was really funny. I didn't laugh out loud, but almost. Just a smidge more and I woulda.
Anyway, I wouldn't get all pissed off at what people are saying. As you are on a strickly trials forum, and saying you want to ride trials on a bike like that, not that I am judging you or it, is going to inevitably get some negative feedback due to the setup.
Even ten teeth less on that front sprocket is a harder gear ratio than I ride.
Dont worry dude, I ate lots of cheese and cannot shit properly because of it.
DanBowhers
03-30-2005, 03:25 PM
and most importantly who puts t shirts on coat hangers! god
afrobot
03-30-2005, 03:44 PM
Looks like a comfort bike for old crons:dunno: Also looks like a "stock: bike from 6 years ago. Soon enough he will ride a UCI type bike and turn to the darkside. Even if his 'rents pay for it.
vince
03-30-2005, 10:26 PM
I hate all of you "urban trialsriders". Get a freeking BMX and stop associating trials with urban freeride. You can't do trials on it. Being able to bunny hop up somthing and do some dinky pedal kicks doesn't mean it's ok for trials. :luke:
I owned a .243. ... Good luck doing trials.
Gee I can pedal kick on my BMX. Therefor it is alrightttt for trials. :wuteva:
Burn
I hate all of you "urban trialsriders". Get a freeking BMX and stop associating trials with urban freeride. You can't do trials on it. Being able to bunny hop up somthing and do some dinky pedal kicks doesn't mean it's ok for trials. :luke:
I owned a .243. ... Good luck doing trials.
Gee I can pedal kick on my BMX. Therefor it is alrightttt for trials. :wuteva:
Burn
LIES.
check out "do the goon again" using the search function
AgrAde
03-31-2005, 12:27 AM
omg lol i'm a trials faggot too
AndyT
03-31-2005, 12:43 AM
i haven't read any of this thread, but that bike sucks a dick for hardcore trialsings.
Peace
03-31-2005, 01:23 AM
yeah i hate elan too :)
Peace
the bike is a farkin stair hucker.
lucky13
03-31-2005, 04:41 AM
:slap: NIEN! "Oh, did I say bllloowwwit up? Vell, then LET'S BLOW IT UP!"
oh,. HEY! I put T-shirts on hangers! What? You just pull em out of the wrinkly basket? I've even Ironed T-shirts before. Better than looking like a 15 yo that can't do his laundry. Oh, I guess his mom probly did that for him.
Dan, no one holds it against you that you don't have a mom.
tomacropod
03-31-2005, 05:48 AM
ironing sucks, iron-free pants and hanging up wet shirts = teh werd.
I have to do washing tomorrow. I have a huge washing machine which I got for cheap so I feel obliged to wait 1.5 weeks until I have a full load...unfortunately I wear all my good shirts first :-(
- Joel
lucky13
03-31-2005, 06:19 AM
I almost want to buy a front loader and matching dryer for my studio since the ancient coin-op's in the basement are shite.
See what an inteligent thread this has devolved into?
Anyone use fabric softener? I tell ya' what, it's more important than DJ bikes on a Trials forum.
jOeL
this thread has gotten a little out of hand...
thought i would say:
-i already own a mod trials bike (Yes, a Monty, but still a trials bike)
- I do actually do my own laundry (in exchange for a cable modem)
- i bought the foes used
maybe to offset this thread, i will start another thread describing the experience of dirtjumping on a Monty mod.
I hate all of you "urban trialsriders". Get a freeking BMX and stop associating trials with urban freeride. You can't do trials on it. Being able to bunny hop up somthing and do some dinky pedal kicks doesn't mean it's ok for trials. :luke:
I owned a .243. ... Good luck doing trials.
Gee I can pedal kick on my BMX. Therefor it is alrightttt for trials. :wuteva:
BurnI'm pretty sure Ryan Leech and Jeff Lenosky do "urban trialsriding". I guess you should contact them and say that trials is impossible with the bikes they ride.
Sondre
03-31-2005, 11:53 AM
I love that look of the bike...( I asked about i for a while ago!)
I looks like a beast!!! Lucky lucky you...
Faction Bike
03-31-2005, 01:04 PM
I'm pretty sure Ryan Leech and Jeff Lenosky do "urban trialsriding". I guess you should contact them and say that trials is impossible with the bikes they ride.
watch nopogo Koxxdays paris.....Ryan and Jeff are demo riders now, not trials riders. Don't get me wrong, they're good at what they do but they want to make money with their bikes, not become UCI world Champs.
why does everybody hate me. it makes me really really sad and emo style.
goose
03-31-2005, 01:27 PM
Elan, I think some people just can't take the sarcasm... it's too bad.
ACR, for what it's worth, I think that bike looks awesome. I considered a .243 (being from vancouver, they were very popular there), and I think the reason I didn't get one is cause the seat tube is so short, I couldn't get the seat high enuff to pedal. I tried one when I was in north van, and I couldn't really extend my legs enuff to climb comfortably, even with a long seatpost
I also quest for an excellent all-rounder. I have loads of respect for pure trials, having done 2 comps and ridden with some pure trials riders, but I prefer to bring trials-inspired moves to other types of riding (except road).
It's lame, but I think that both arguements can be made for that type of bike. First, they definitely aren't suited to pure trials as they're heavy, short and slack. But some of the component choices and geometry (adjustable fork, wide bars... etc) allow you to incorporate lots of trialsy moves into your riding, which is cool. I am uncertain of the gearing ratio, though. I dunno if you could do a pedal-up or a big sidehop with the gear being that tough.
my $0.02, but I'm canadian so it's worth around $0.016:)
vince
03-31-2005, 01:37 PM
I'm pretty sure Ryan Leech and Jeff Lenosky do "urban trialsriding". I guess you should contact them and say that trials is impossible with the bikes they ride.Yeah they designed the bikes they ride for that purpose. It's the guys who go out and buy freeride hardtails is what I'm talking about. Hence the .243.
Burn
why does everybody hate me. it makes me really really sad and emo style.
:heart: Elan.
Elan, I think some people just can't take the sarcasm... it's too bad.
ACR, for what it's worth, I think that bike looks awesome. I considered a .243 (being from vancouver, they were very popular there), and I think the reason I didn't get one is cause the seat tube is so short, I couldn't get the seat high enuff to pedal. I tried one when I was in north van, and I couldn't really extend my legs enuff to climb comfortably, even with a long seatpost
I also quest for an excellent all-rounder. I have loads of respect for pure trials, having done 2 comps and ridden with some pure trials riders, but I prefer to bring trials-inspired moves to other types of riding (except road).
It's lame, but I think that both arguements can be made for that type of bike. First, they definitely aren't suited to pure trials as they're heavy, short and slack. But some of the component choices and geometry (adjustable fork, wide bars... etc) allow you to incorporate lots of trialsy moves into your riding, which is cool. I am uncertain of the gearing ratio, though. I dunno if you could do a pedal-up or a big sidehop with the gear being that tough.
my $0.02, but I'm canadian so it's worth around $0.016:)seat tube IS way too short to pedal about, no doubt. trialsy moves is what i do on the bike, such as pivot 180s and things like that
bylsma
04-03-2005, 12:51 AM
doesn't get more trialsy than that
bikerike
04-03-2005, 03:52 AM
Jeff and Ryan are demo riders not trials riders? I guess I always thought they performed trials demos... huh You have to be a top world competition guy to ride trials? Maybe we all need to vote on a new word to desribe what the rest of us do.
The bike looks cool man, like a good street set up; and it always nice to throw in some trialsy moves on bikes like that. I got no problems with that, and I am honestly amazed at how many people do. No wonder Trials struggles to grow, half of the people are jackasses on ego trips. Sounds like road racers talking about the latest campy gear or something. We do this for fun, so if you are in a bad mood, and need to complain, then go ride more!
lucky13
04-03-2005, 04:01 AM
It's a frigging DIRT JUMPING BIKE!
Look at the SIZE of that chainring! The Frame alone weighs somewhere around 8lbs,.. which is almost the equivelant of TWO trials frames. Hayes Disc's are for slowing down, not super quick stop and go. He even has a fat dirt jumping saddle off of a BMX for crying out loud. How in the HELL is that even CLOSE to a trials bike?
At least Jeff and Ryan know how to set up their bikes to ride trials reguardless of Suspension and Seat posts. Hell, Jeff showed me his "other" bike which was street/jump specific as opposed to his sidehopable trials rig, trust me, there is a big difference.
This .243 belongs exactly where the pic signature notates: Freerider hell.
I got to ride today, yay. On my TRIALS bike.
Simonk
04-03-2005, 04:04 AM
my $0.02, but I'm canadian so it's worth around $0.00:)
chronic
04-03-2005, 05:44 PM
180 pivots? That is trials.
CoppellStereo
04-05-2005, 07:54 PM
awesome bike!
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