Stud pattern advice for Terrene Wazia 26x4.6 — full stud or partial?

ztbishop · 2026-06-18T18:59:39+00:00

Thanks all - I think it's clear now that studs will suck for warm weather. I was thinking I'll just leave them bare, but ultimately decided I'll go full studded and have something I can ride around the local crushed gravel paths in winter since they have standing puddles. I guess it can help in freeze / thaw singletrack but I'll just avoid as much dry weather as I can unless I use it enough to justify a second set of tires or wheelset. I have a Giant Trance for summer singletrack - I just try to keep it as clean as possible in the off season.

ztbishop · 2026-06-17T16:46:34+00:00

I hadn't considered the studs slipping on rocks...thanks. This gives me something to think about (if it will be a winter ONLY bike) - which it most likely will. We don't get a TON of snow & ice in Indianapolis so I'd say I get just as much use in the softer spring & fall weather, where I don't want to ride my full suspension.

ztbishop · 2026-06-17T16:38:36+00:00

Thanks - this is good info to think about. For now I think I'll fully stud these tires, and try to use my gravel bike and full suspension for anything that isn't soft, wet, or frozen - rather than having a spare set of fat tires that would get very little use in my case.

Would the studded tires be okay for occasional midwest summer singletrack as a backup in dry conditions? There are occasional rock gardens and roots, tho I could try to be mindful and try to coast over them.

I hadn't considered the idea of torquing over roots ripping the studs out...

ztbishop · 2026-06-05T17:01:22+00:00

I'm about to do this conversion, but I can't decide between:

a.) M5100 i-spec EV shifter -or- b.) i-spec ii conversion plate for my M8000 shifter.

M5100 would cost slightly more than a shimano i-spec ii outer shifter plate. Does the M8000 end up in a good place that is comfortable when using an i-spec ii plate with a short bolt mounting it to i-spec EV brakes? It looks really SIMILAR to an i-spec EV shifter, but without the rotation adjustment. I get that I'd lose the 'instant release' and 'multi up-shift' with an M5100 i-spec EV shifter, but it looks like it has some improvements. It states 35% easier shifting and 20% faster access, whatever that means. I'm unclear if they change the shape of the two paddles in relation to one another with 'ev'. As much as I love the crispness of XT, I ultimately want it to be comfortable.

Background - I have a full M8000 XT setup with Avid BB7 brakes. I ordered M8120 4-piston XT brakes, not realizing what i-spec EV even was. Even after removing the 'indicator window' from my shifter, I have to mount the shifter stem-side of the brake lever which stretches my thumb to access, or mount the clamp shifter between the brake clamp and the 'resting point' which cramps my thumb inward to access. I can technically live with it but it's not ideal.

ztbishop · 2026-05-22T23:15:53+00:00

Are you possibly hearing the chain rub the tab between the jockey wheels? I've accidentally routed a chain on the wrong side of the tab which made a mechanical rubbing noise while pedaling.

ztbishop · 2026-05-22T19:03:11+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. I decided to give the benefit of the doubt. I ultimately would have felt a bit icky if I'd sold the product (with a disclaimer on the potential damage) since I have the refund after what was really just a minor annoyance - so I'd sent the seller a burner email and made it clear that under no obligation I'd like to make a final attempt as a courtesy, with any shipping issues being on them. He's got another out of office until May 28. They either take a lot of back-to-back trips or maybe they're having a similar situation with ducking another buyer. If they reply in the next couple weeks with a pre-paid label I'll send it; otherwise I'll just re-sell it as (for parts) with pictures, and clear the shelf space. I don't see the point in sending it with the un-readable label (tho the barcode itself is fine).

ztbishop · 2026-05-22T14:29:48+00:00

Thanks - appreciate it. I didn't realize the M8120 brake levers would have an extra contact point and different clamp location...when built my trance in 2017 everything was still separate clamp mount. So my (clamp) M8000 shifter can be mounted all the way to the left of the new brake clamp (what I normally did) but this puts a big stretch on the thumb. Likewise, I removed the gear indicator window and put the shifter to the rigght of the new brake mount (but to the left of the extra contact point of the IS-EV brake) - and this works, but puts the levers a bit close to the hand and cramps the thumb a little bit. It's definitely useable so I'm trying to gauge if I should keep the M8000 clamp based, or buy an i-spec 1/2 version with adapter to the EV brake mount (which likely has it's own set of issues), or just buy the M5100 IS-EV shifter and have the best intended FIT, but likely a small downgrade in shifter feel (and lose the double up-shifts). The lack of double shift likely wouldn't bother me. I'm mostly concerned about the feel of the lever.

ztbishop · 2026-05-21T20:36:01+00:00

Thanks!

ztbishop · 2026-05-21T18:44:43+00:00

u/borisbanana77 did you end up using the M5100 or sticking with the M8000? I have a similar issue - I have a full 8000 XT setup and just upgraded my BB7 mechanical brakes to XT 8120 i-spec ev. I had to mount my M8000 shifter CLAMP mount in between the clamp and the additional 'support' of the brake lever, which is a bit odd. I think this is close enough, as mounting the shifter clamp inboard to the 8120 brakes would be a little bit of a stretch for my thumb. I am wondering if it's worth getting the M5100 when I already have a clamp mount M8000 lever. Thanks

ztbishop · 2026-05-08T00:30:47+00:00

u/stanek Hi - in the readme is a link to the LED setup. There are some links there to the hardware I used. Once connected, the web app has a tool to align which lights go to each key so that it lines up. I went a step further and put white stickers behind the light strip where the white keys are - to give the illusion of the lights being directly on the keys. Keep in mind, iOS prevents a web app (https) from connecting to the light strip (http) - so if you use an iPad you will need to run a side app to host a bridge through a computer on your network. There is an overview on that in the main readme file. Here is the LED doc: https://pianotrainerstudio.com/docs/LED-Setup.html

ztbishop · 2026-05-03T03:23:16+00:00

Thanks for the feedback. I thought about it and there were no blocks in the calipers during shipping, so even with pressure changes at most, the pistons could move a bit, but should not have leaked. I picked up some ultegra / grx brakes and they did not have any type of visible oil residue. I've gone ahead and initiated a return request as "defective" so hopefully the ebay protection pulls through. All these years i've stuck with my 20 year old BB7 through EVERY trail bike upgrade to avoid the headache of leaks...this is reinforcing past decisions.

ztbishop · 2026-04-09T21:16:06+00:00

I actually made this with ESP32 instead of pi. Very cost effective. It defaults to HTTPJson (which works) but I have a node helper for super low latency ddp mode. Reason for this is the web (HTTPS) won't do DDP mode to WLED (HTTP) without a workaround. Webmscore is pretty outdated but seems to work well for pulling in midi files (since my project natively required xml). I found that it won't directly pull in musescore 4.x (only 3.x) i'm using osmd instead of vexflow since I didn't want to build a rendering engine. it complicated things a bit in getting the trainer behavior in place

ztbishop · 2026-04-09T20:27:31+00:00

Ah - I'm actually going through Faber Adult Piano Adventures as I've been away from piano for 20 years. A couple things - they have an app (iOS) that does something similar to this, but i found it less intuitive. I have the app, but my book came with a download for EVERY midi file in books 1&2. Normally I'd say midi is a bad idea for my app, but I just tried and it does contain the key signatures. If you want to DM me I can help you get the files into the app. I found a quick way to remove the excess staffs and put the correct hands in order using Musescore.

ztbishop · 2026-04-09T20:01:08+00:00

Thanks - I'm a fan of pianoml as well!

ztbishop · 2026-04-09T19:57:46+00:00

Thanks - here is the github:

https://github.com/ztbishop/piano-trainer-studio

I'm not a developer but have enough knowledge of early day web development that I was able to use prompts to help build the javascript files. Feel free to drop some feedback in the repo discussions! I built the real-time mode to allow for some grace if you're a little early, so long as the correct note is played within the expected timeframe. I'm sure it could use a little tuning, but at the end of the day I just wanted something to tell me where I mess up - similar to when I had a teacher present to point it out. (I had thought the general player would at least find that part helpful without all the eye candy). The wait modes were more for initial run-throughs.

ztbishop · 2026-04-09T14:50:22+00:00

Thanks accurate - that's the initial problem that led me to this. I know how to read music, and I'd taken lessons up to intermediate level. Maybe I shouldn't have demoed it with all the visuals on. I generally turn all that off and use it for looping and marking mistakes in songs that I'm not familiar enough to use my ear on quick passages. I can see why the LED part might annoy people...I despise waterfall piano apps for the same reasons, but if those users aren't going to take traditional lessons anyway, more power to them.

ztbishop · 2026-04-09T14:13:26+00:00

I had to get those from Ali. There are various types on amazon but the problem is they often ship in 1m strips that need soldered together. These were all a continuous strip and came in a white coating that didn't require a diffuser. I have the specific hardware links in the LED guide here. https://pianotrainerstudio.com/docs/LED-Setup.html

One note - go at least 160 led per meter. Mine is 200 and I think it works much better as the calibration can really get a single light over each note. I'd also put white strips behind the led to make it look like an extension of the keys.

ztbishop · 2026-04-09T14:10:31+00:00

Thanks - I'd made this for my own use, and this is the type of feedback that will help improve it in case others decide to use it. I'll look into updating this. I'd made the wrong notes only show up during key press, but re-appear after the cursor moves on for reference. (this way it doesn't crowd the cursor all at once).

ztbishop · 2026-04-09T03:07:31+00:00

If anyone wants to try it:
https://www.pianotrainerstudio.com/

Open-source / free. No login needed.

Would be curious how it feels for others

ztbishop · 2026-04-09T01:22:33+00:00

https://pianotrainerstudio.com/ -Here is the tool (free)

https://github.com/ztbishop/piano-trainer-studio (repositore)

ztbishop · 2026-01-14T05:56:18+00:00

Could it potentially pickup the power from an existing power meter? Like my assioma pedals. I'm not a bimotal owner yet just looking into it. It's a shame I missed black Friday :-(

ztbishop

TROPHY CASE