On the first rides, I noticed that this rear derailleur shifts precise, smoothly and fast. Being a short cage version (used with 12-26 cogs), I have had no problems with chains falling off and stuff like that.
The derailleur was used in combination with a Sram X7 trigger, which runs perfectly up to day. A thing that I like about this derailleur very much is that it does not have that huge up-down movement on bumps as the Shimano ones do. Simply put, this derailleur cannot hit your frame. The finish on both the derailleur and trigger is very good, and the paint seems to be pretty hard to take off.
I will come back to this topic with more details after spending more time riding the X7 derailleur and trigger. Photos will be up soon !

PS: Last night’s AC/DC show was kick-ass ! This is the 100th post, by the way

The new, lighter 2010 version of Fundamental-2 features triple butted and tapered blades taken straight from the 2009-2. We kept the proven reinforced steertube, dropouts strong enough for grinding and what is really important, we now deliver a much better fork in a very similar price range. The geometry remains the same in 2010 – therefore this fork should be chosen by rider who prefer more “classic” geometry. Even though the fork now has smaller dropouts, it’s still possible to run pegs. Probably the best fork on the market in this price range.

Spec:
-material: triple-butted, heat treated 4130 cromoly
-height a-c: 435 mm / 17.1”
-rake: 30 mm / 1.18”
-steer tube length: 190mm / 7.5”
-weight: 1.39 kg
-colours: flat black, white, lipstick red

Today, I discovered that my headphones stick out too much out of the ear, out enough so that, if I put my fullface helmet on, it gets very uncomfortable. That pretty much sucks.

“Looking for some new bits to hang on your bike? Race Face has you covered, just in time as the season gets underway. Purchase a set of our new Respond cranksets and receive a free bar and stem! That’s it – no muss no fuss. Head down to your local bike shop for more details. This offer applies to black Respond components only. ” , as quoted on their website.

Cristi, who is a good friend of mine, ” allowed” me to post up his bike, including some of his opinions on the parts he has put on it. So, let’s start.

Frame: Prodigy 3.14 4130 Cr-Mo- Very good for street riding. Despite the presence of the seat-tube holes in the frame, it is a tough frame, being more dependable than the Prodigy 9.81.
Fork: RST Launch T9- it works nice, when you lube it, for around a day. It’s nice that you do not have to look after it when you ride, because there is no problem in getting it trashed, because it is simple on the inside. ” I’m going to change it for a Marzocchi Dirt Jumper 2 ” , Cristi says.
Hubs: Novatec, 4 bearings rear, 2 bearings in the front- “Awesome hubs, very tough, no problems at all” ( I approve of this, I have them on my bike too and they are extremely hard to trash and work flawlessly ! )
Rear brake: Avid Juicy 3 on 160 mm disc – Very good brake. ” I’d change it for a Juicy 5, though, because the pressure in the 3 is very low ” , adds Cristi.
Rims: Remerx Extreme Jumbo on the rear, Sun Rims Single-track up front. Words of wisdom: “The Remerx is very tough, but the Singletrack kind of sucks, it is a little bent now ”
Cranks: Truvativ iso flow single : ” The cranks are all good, but the powerspline BB is a piece of crap that gets messed up in two months” , he claims.
Tyres : Schwalbe Crazy Bob : Very good for street, very thick walls; “you can’t snakebite on these! ” Personally, I have them on my bike too, since last summer or something like that. I find them pretty much amazing, with extremely good grip on asphalt and a pretty nice grip on hardpack for a slick tyre; amazing tyre. I wouldn’t get other slicks at the moment.
Stem/handlebars : Truvativ XC handlebars that have a nice rise. The stem is going to be replaced by a Truvativ Holzfeller
Pedals: Eastern CFRP (carbon fiber reinforced plastic ) : very grippy and light. ( WORD ! )
Chain : Some Sram thing
Saddle: UMF piece of crap. I have one too, and they are very wear-resistant, but they are very uncomfortable and mess up your pants real bad.

Footjam Tailwhip

DH bicycle from the canadian manufacturer NORCO.

FRAME: 2010 Team DH frame 228 mm travel
FORK: Rockshox Boxxer Team
REAR SHOCK: Rockshox Vivid Coil
HEADSET: FSA Orbit DL integrated 1.5″ to 1-1/8″
GRIPS: Sunline “S” lock on grip
HANDLE BAR: Sunline V1 19 mm bar grey 711 or 737 mm
STEM: Sunline Boxxer direct mount stem , grey
SEAT POST: Norco double bolt 2014
SADDLE: WTB Silverado with nicro tubular rail
FRONT BRAKE: Elixer CR 8″ rotor
REAR BRAKE: Elixier CR (with match maker lever , rear only)
BRAKE LEVERS: Elixier CR (with match maker lever , rear only)
SHIFTER REAR: Sram X-7 with match maker lever
REAR DERAILLEUR: Sram X-0 Short cage
CASSETTE: Sram DH cassette 11-26 T
CHAIN: KMC EX 9 SL chrome super light chain
CRANKSET: Shimano Saint 170 mm
CHAIN TENSIONER: E13 LG1 w/taco guard
PEDALS: DMR V 12 Magnesium
FRONT HUB: Sun Jumping Flea 20 mm 32H disc
REAR HUB: Sun Jumping Flea 150 x 12 32H disc
SPOKES DT Super comp butted
RIMS: Alex Supra D welded
TIRES: Kenda Nevagal 26 x 2.35 Stick E , Cap Casing

MSRP $4750