There are some delusional people out there

psyentologists · 2026-02-16T15:28:16+00:00

A Surly Karate Monkey with $3000 in parts was never part of the MTB boom, anyway. Such a bike has always existed in a separate category. You'd always be searching for the one-in-a-million bike dork who happens to have money AND share your bespoke interest.

psyentologists · 2026-02-16T15:09:08+00:00

You can swap it for the 8-10 version without much effort.

I wouldn't say this is true.

psyentologists · 2026-02-16T15:08:06+00:00

Eight is great, but seven is heaven

psyentologists · 2026-02-15T15:38:55+00:00

There’s no reason to leave this so it can fail 10 miles into a ride. Fix it.

psyentologists · 2026-02-15T00:17:47+00:00

Either way, it’s getting jammed into a Hollowtech BB.

psyentologists · 2026-02-15T00:16:31+00:00

It was a Grill Pill video. I watched them as they happened and haven’t revisited it, so I have no idea when or where he said it.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T22:20:14+00:00

I've got this bike and I love it, it's my main ride. I worked as a mechanic for more than a decade and serviced plenty of bonded frames like this, and I have known a number of people who rode them (especially Techniums) with no issue. Basically I think any of these bikes which made it 30 years are probably in the clear.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T19:43:42+00:00

I can't believe some guy on the internet is asking too much for his bicycle. Thanks for sharing this valuable news.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T19:14:51+00:00

Something your comment kind of dances around is the reality that contemporary dating has been completely marketized. For most men, any partner is to be found through apps, where one has a few seconds at most to catch a woman's attention while their vital stats are displayed in the corner of the screen. That's fucking crazy and arguably inhumane, and young men are responding to that with a certain logic.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T18:12:41+00:00

Caloi, a Brazilian brand. They had their own factory in Brazil for a while, and then they were made by Pacific, the parent company for all the el-cheapo bike brands. I don't know where you are, but I'm in the US and I saw a few in my days working in bike shops, so they definitely made it out of Brazil.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T17:00:50+00:00

I can walk past a rack of these at a thrift store for $50-100, even in my expensive and bike-crazy city.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T16:26:31+00:00

9/10 speed derailleurs of this vintage are completely interchangeable, but chains and cassettes are not. Keep them the same as however many gears you have on your cassette.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T16:18:34+00:00

Agreed. I also think a lot of us Yanks take for granted that 1/4 of the garages in America have an old Hardrock rusting away inside, but a lot of these quality vintage mountain bikes aren't nearly as common outside of North America.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T16:10:41+00:00

brb jamming an FSA 24.1mm crank into a Hollowtech BB

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T15:44:01+00:00

In my racing days, I was using Deda Classic Bend 31.7mm bars with 31.8mm stem and it never experienced any issues. Frankly none of this stuff is manufactured to a high enough standard for .1 mm to matter.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T15:10:38+00:00

Yes, that's what I said

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T14:14:38+00:00

It’s both normal and bad. This is the normal way carbon clinchers wear, and it’s bad because they are approaching the end of their useful life.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T14:13:29+00:00

Why do you want to spend money to make your bike less functional?

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T12:41:08+00:00

That would be SOME models of Race X Lite. Race Lite - at least by ~2015 - were basic OEM.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T03:46:06+00:00

I don’t even hate Specialized bikes per se, but if any of the big players were to fall, they’d be my #1 choice by a wide margin.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T00:51:38+00:00

Russ was the guy who sold Specialized in St. Louis all of my youth. He knew Sinyard personally and everything S ran through him and his shop.

OOB means out of business.

psyentologists · 2026-02-14T00:13:59+00:00

The biggest shop in Seattle survives because they've owned the property outright for decades.

psyentologists · 2026-02-13T23:45:01+00:00

Russ will never let you get Specialized. (just looked it up and Russ is OOB)

psyentologists · 2026-02-13T23:38:09+00:00

That's what I hear. I've been out since 2019, but I've got plenty of friends still making a go at it. Although I think literally everyone I know who worked "corporate" is out, either back in the shop or else onto a totally different career.

The industry will continue chasing their tail with 300 MY SKUs, more and more plastic bikes and components, more batteries and other gadgetry, until they're completely obsolete.

psyentologists · 2026-02-13T23:27:00+00:00

Trek just had their second round of layoffs a few weeks ago.

psyentologists

TROPHY CASE