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Home | Product Reviews | Chainring | Core Rat Original North Shore Ring | ||||
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Submitted by
Ed
from Texas
Date Reviewed: 12/26/2004 7:09:06 AM |
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| Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month |
| Strengths: | Design makes sense. |
| Weaknesses: | Not currently available from Corerat in 4 hole configuration - pester Angie to stock it again. |
| Bottom Line: | When I looked at other bash guards, the designs did not make sense to me... maybe they just spot face each bolt hole to save CNC machining time? This one made sense, but was only availible in 5 hole models with a smaller center crank hole... Decide to get this one anyway and modify it. Used old big ring as a template on the proud side of the new bash guard to locate the drill tip. Duct taped everything together and everywhich way for safety. Used a dremel with a glass cutoff saw to releive for longer crank arms around each bolt hole. Use a file for final fit. Works good - all bolt holes have 360 edges save one. It has the edges that matter. Who should buy this ring? People with 5 hole cranks. People who don't own a milling machine and want a bashguard that makes sense. Who should not buy a bashguard? People who live on the big ring. People who never crash or go over obstacles. People who are not able to learn from other peoples mistakes. |
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Submitted by
Chris
a Cross Country Rider
from Hood River, OR
Date Reviewed: 6/6/2003 9:15:35 AM |
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| Duration Product Used: | 3 months |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | corerat.com |
| Strengths: | - Burly. - Lightweight (same grams as the RaceFace 44t chainring it replaced). - Inexpensive. - Works great! - Excellent personal service from Angie at corerat. - Makes me look like a cooler rider than I actually am. |
| Weaknesses: | - Not quite big enough to cover the teeth on my Syncros 34t chainring. They stick out a little bit, but are probably protected enough to keep them from getting snapped off. Of course, I only paid $10 for the chainring.... - A little tight on the installation on my RaceFace Next LP crankarm. I think the Next LPs are a little thicker than some of the other RF crankarms. Besides, it's my problem, because the product was probably not designed to be stuck on a lightweight XC crank. I'm only 145lbs, though, so I'm not in danger of snapping anything. - As noted in previous reviews, those of us who are slaves to color coordination would like the guard to be manufactured in black. |
| Similar Products Tried: | None. |
| Bike Setup: | RM Slayer with Fox TALAS. |
| Bottom Line: | This product was recommended to me by some of my FR friends, as I have started to ride more logs, stunts, and rocks, and the low BB of my Slayer was throwing my large chainring into obstacles. Angie's product was the best-priced and lightest guard out there. Her personalized service was top-notch, and I perfer to support small, (regionally) local businesses when I can. It seems a little strange to compare one bashguard to another, since most probably function in a similar manner. Therefore, you need to make a decision based on price, weight, and durability. Do this, and you'll see that corerat's product definitely comes out on top! |
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Submitted by
Richard Westbrook
a Weekend Warrior
from Garner, NC USA
Date Reviewed: 10/4/2002 12:12:55 PM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | Beaver Dam Trails |
| Duration Product Used: | 3 months |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | mail order over phone |
| Strengths: | Works great. Very stong and lightweight. |
| Weaknesses: | None that I know of. |
| Bike Setup: | 2002 Trek Fuel. |
| Bottom Line: | Can't beat it for the money. Easy ordering over the phone. Shipped right to my door. |
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Submitted by
Thom Iverson
a Cross Country Rider
from Kirkland, WA, USA
Date Reviewed: 6/24/2002 10:16:07 PM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | Snoqualmie Ridge |
| Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | www.corerat.com |
| Strengths: | It works! Its the cheapest by far. Lightweight, Clean and simple design |
| Weaknesses: | No model for the XTR folks. It just needs an eighth to quarter inch of meat added all around to protect the chain on a 32th going over soft stuff. Maybe needs a "ratchet" edge model option. |
| Similar Products Tried: | BIG ole honkin' Rock Ring. Tacoed the original chainring on my new FSR the first ride. |
| Bike Setup: | Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Comp with twist grips, and Avid mech discs. A clean Log Crawler, for Shoulder Bashin'trails. |
| Bottom Line: | this is NOT just for "extreme" riders!!! This will instantly boost a beginner or intermediate rider to heights beyond their dreams, easily riding over stuff that would send them flying with their huge, toothed, log grabbing ring. This thing just slides over the tough stuff. Light, but seems tough, so far. And no more punching holes in the back of your calf with that grit encrusted, razor sharp, big ring teeth, when you bail. Plus that simple design, with exposed area, gives you space to add your own custom chosen decals. (I added my "For animal testing only" sticker):-) I would have given 5 flamers, but I really agree with the review that if you ride soft stuff in what is suddenly your "big" ring, you are really hammering and loading that chain. No prob if you are only slamming while in the small ring. Angie says not enough demand to support a model for the funky XTR crank design, which bums out my friends. I would think a slight half-tooth/ratchet with a SLIGHTLY larger diameter would be good for crawling over slick logs, but I could be wrong. ( I did send angie a CNC ready CAD model of a possible design to test...since I am an engineer) GET one of these! Best deal on the market. Allow at LEAST 2 WEEKS For air mail shipping, even if you are only few miles over the border in the Seattle area. Not Angie's fault... Its an international shipping gate to cross. |
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Submitted by
Andreas Schueller
from Oakland, California
Date Reviewed: 2/8/2002 2:54:34 AM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | any trail in Joaquin Miller Park |
| Duration Product Used: | 3 months |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | corerat.com direct |
| Strengths: | Simple, effective design. Light and strong. Bullet-proof industrial styling looks great, especially when dirty and nicked. |
| Weaknesses: | The core rat logo stuck to the machined-out face is only a vinyl sticker. Sounds inconsequential because it is. I had to think of something. |
| Similar Products Tried: | Worn chainring. |
| Bike Setup: | Cannondale Jekyll 3000sx. Pretty much stock except for Sun Ringle flat pedals (half the time) and this bashring. |
| Bottom Line: | This bashring slides easliy over large logs. Vastly better (no comparison, actually) than using an old chainring to protect the 32T ring. The price is amazingly low, and the product performs perfectly. I miss my big chainring a bit -- mainly because I often ride roads to get to the trails, but it's been a small sacrifice. I've used this ring to make my technical trail riding and stunts better and a lot more fun, and it's easy enough to swap it for the 44T before the epic cross country rides. |
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Submitted by
Brian Stearns
a Cross Country Rider
from Old Lyme Ct. USA
Date Reviewed: 2/7/2002 9:40:45 AM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | Hartman Park Lyme Ct. |
| Duration Product Used: | 6 months |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | Direct |
| Strengths: | Strong easy to install |
| Weaknesses: | NONE Except shipping from British Columbia to New England takes a while. |
| Similar Products Tried: | N/A |
| Bike Setup: | 2001 GT I Drive 2.0 Shimano XT Discs |
| Bottom Line: | My Son Brian saw one at a Cannondale demo @ Bluff Point Groton CT. I got on the web and found Core Rat right away. It works great it gave him the extra clearance for picnic tables rocks and logs etc .which he likes doing. |
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Submitted by
Steven Shope
a Weekend Warrior
from Newfields, NH USA
Date Reviewed: 1/29/2002 5:20:46 PM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | BLT - Exeter, NH |
| Duration Product Used: | 1 Year |
| Purchased At: | core rat direct |
| Strengths: | light, simple design |
| Bike Setup: | I only use my middle ring, and I used two of these to make a sandwich to keep the chain from falling off during drops etc. I had to do a bit of "home machining" on the inner ring, but it works slick. |
| Bottom Line: | solid product |
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Submitted by
Justin Cafferty
a Downhiller
from Moscow, Idaho, USA
Date Reviewed: 12/12/2001 3:36:41 PM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | Porcupine Rim |
| Duration Product Used: | 3 months |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | corerat.com |
| Strengths: | Looks strong, not as strong as the raceface bash guard I have, but strong none the less. |
| Weaknesses: | Need to get some different colors. Silver doesn't match my bike too well. OTherwise, nothing. |
| Similar Products Tried: | race face bash guard. |
| Bike Setup: | Giant XTC frame, marzocchi z-3 qr-20 hub, avid discs, raceface seatpost, stem, etc., sun mammoth wheels, xt hubs and deraillers, etc... |
| Bottom Line: | For the price, you just can't beat this ring. It weighs less than the large chainring that it replaced, although that doesn't matter much to me as long as it holds up. I anticipate no problems with durability, and if anything does go wrong I'll make another post to let yall' know. Angie was a dream to deal with, and I owe her much thanks for helping me get the right sized ring. Thanks Angie! |
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Submitted by
Tom C
from VT
Date Reviewed: 10/10/2001 8:26:00 AM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | any |
| Duration Product Used: | 2 Years |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | www.corerat.com |
| Strengths: | Super burly, I weigh 210 pounds and haven't broken it...Angie can fit any bolt pattern/crank style, even standard cranks. Unobtrusive look, plain aluminum. |
| Weaknesses: | Yeah right. |
| Similar Products Tried: | Girvin rock ring; Truvativ Aeroguard; many others |
| Bike Setup: | Planet X, Stratos. |
| Bottom Line: | Again, another top quality product from Angie Ho and CoreRat. Awesome for trialsy, Shore-style riding, I use it dh'ing as well, but don't get to top speed cause the ring replaces the big ring--I don't care. It's easy to switch out for those more competitive, but I ride for fun, and Angie's gear always holds up to every bit of abuse I can dish out. THe ring is the best on the market, I've checked them all out and Angie's is the best hands down. |
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Submitted by
Kevin
a Cross Country Rider
from SLO, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: 8/15/2001 7:14:24 PM |
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| Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | corerat.com |
| Strengths: | Incredibly lightweight Looks bomber 6mm outer 2mm inner idea is great |
| Weaknesses: | a little too small in diameter |
| Similar Products Tried: | Blackspire Ring God |
| Bike Setup: | stock trials |
| Bottom Line: | I love the design, but am unfourtunately experiencing a small problem...I run a 32T ring with chain, and for hardcore trials usage, I am sometimes finding that the couple millimeters or so of clearance between the chain on the middle ring and the bashgaurd is not enough. For instance, say I'm doing a pedal up to bashguard onto a picnic table from one of the ends. I hop a little too high, and therefore land rather hard into the soft wooden table, almost losing my balance to the left, and causing my bashring to dig into the wood a little bit. I look down, and see that my chain has just been crunched as well, from the wooden splinters that are now present in the chain. I understand that one of the objectives when designing the bashring was to give the rider as much clearance as possible, but isn't protecting the chain a rather important objective too? Otherwise, besides not being offered in any colors, it's a great product, and angie is a great person to buy from. It's extremely lightweight for a bashring thanks to the hollowed out design and it fits my FSA/Sugino bolt-style cranks! |
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Submitted by
Drew
from La Grange, IL 60525
Date Reviewed: 7/27/2001 9:13:24 PM |
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| Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month |
| Purchased At: | Direct from Angie |
| Strengths: | Strong, ground clearence, cheap, customer service, made by mountain bikers for mountain bikers, and gives my ride a sweet look in the lot. |
| Weaknesses: | None. |
| Bike Setup: | 2000 FSR Enduro Comp |
| Bottom Line: | For a long time I contemplated putting a bash ring on my bike. I guess I wasn't ready to part with my seldom used big ring. Well once it bent I called Angie at Core Rat and boy am I glad I did. The North Shore ring bolted on perfectly. I took it on its first ride today and I cannot get over what a difference it made. I gained about an inch of ground clearence. It worked so well in the technical sections I felt like I was cheating some how. I did not long for my big ring once. The biggest help was when I was three hours into my ride and I came upon some 8 inch logs. I was to tired to hop em' so I rolled right over at speed. I would have trashed another big ring if I had gone that route. Thank you Core Rat. |
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Submitted by
Glen
a Cross Country Rider
from Seattle, WA,USA
Date Reviewed: 6/6/2001 9:53:48 AM |
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| Duration Product Used: | 3 months |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | Core Rat |
| Strengths: | Inexpensive |
| Weaknesses: | I had to file it down to fit my 4 hole Raceface Cranks. |
| Similar Products Tried: | none |
| Bike Setup: | Giant NRS XTC2, ESP7.0,Grip Shift |
| Bottom Line: | I had been meaning to put a bash guard on my previous bike and never got around to it. I bought the Giant a few months ago and within a week I had bent the large chainring. I shopped around for a bash guard and they were all a lot more expensive and the LBS did not have them in stock. I would have had to wait twice as long as I did for the Core Rat. Core Rat is great to deal with and she got the order out right away. I know that the ground clearance and the fact that it is smooth has made a significant difference because I have not noticed any banging on things(no news is good news). It gives you a lot more confidence to really go for it without worrying about damage to the large ring. Thanks Core Rat. I will buy more products from them. |
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Submitted by
Mike
a Weekend Warrior
from Clayton NC USA
Date Reviewed: 3/26/2001 2:36:59 PM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | New Light Trail |
| Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | Core Rat |
| Strengths: | Very strong, lightwieght bash guard. Gives you about one inch more ground clearance, which doesn't seem like much until you need it. |
| Weaknesses: | Colors? |
| Similar Products Tried: | Rock ring |
| Bike Setup: | 2000 Cannondale Raven |
| Bottom Line: | This is the ultimate bash guard. Not only can you get rid of that ugly, tree grabin' big ring, but the inch ground clearance and the smooth surface make all the difference for clearing big rocks and trees. This unit is a must if you "not your average mountain biker". Plus is looks killer. |
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Submitted by
Chris Thomas
a Downhiller
from Centralia, Ontario, Canada
Date Reviewed: 2/16/2001 2:59:14 PM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | Hofadameh drop |
| Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | www.corerat.com |
| Strengths: | Light, superrr tough, the perfect bash guard! Survived some hardcore smashes with hardly a scratch! |
| Weaknesses: | I could come in different colors, but nothing has gone wrong yet. |
| Similar Products Tried: | An old chain ring |
| Bike Setup: | Kona fire mountain, Bombshell betty DS fork, Truvativ 4D cranks, deore shifters |
| Bottom Line: | No dents to my chain rings, and barely any weight increase (not noticable at all) cheap$$$!!! If you ride in rocky condition or off the beaten path, this bash ring is perfect! And it's MADE IN CANADA!!! |
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Submitted by
DMS
a Weekend Warrior
from Orange County, CA USA
Date Reviewed: 1/26/2001 7:50:16 AM |
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| Duration Product Used: | 3 months |
| Price Paid: | $27 |
| Purchased At: | www.AIRBOMB.com |
| Strengths: | Durable,Durable, Durable!!! This thing is strong. Looks great and very affordable. |
| Weaknesses: | NONE!!!!!!!!! |
| Bike Setup: | K2 Flying Monkey. |
| Bottom Line: | Great product. Very cheap insurance for your chainrings. Only complaint is it only comes in polished, would have preferred black. But that has no effect on performance. If you are thinking of removing your Big chainring and replacing it with a bash guard, buy this. www.airbomb.com. |
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Submitted by
phil
a Weekend Warrior
from trenton nj
Date Reviewed: 9/27/2000 3:16:16 AM |
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| Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month |
| Price Paid: | $20 |
| Purchased At: | core rat |
| Strengths: | Strong, ease of installation, looks, customer service |
| Weaknesses: | none |
| Similar Products Tried: | none |
| Bike Setup: | 2000 specialized fsr enduro comp. sid XL, kore elite stem, king headset, 8 sp xtr rear drive and xt front with xtr shifters and avid cables. selle italia trimatic. north shore ring. |
| Bottom Line: | best 20 bucks you can spend!!! if you ride trails with roots and rocks, you can't go wrong. unless you use your big ring often, i can't see any reason not to get this ring. even going over logs is easier since the ring gives you ground clearance and a smooth surface. five minutes to install and i gained almost and inch of ground clearance. |
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Submitted by
DeWalt
from vermont
Date Reviewed: 7/20/2000 8:36:57 PM |
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| FavoriteTrail: | Circumcision hgwy |
| Duration Product Used: | 1 Year |
| Strengths: | Bombproof! increased clearance. spin it to non-worn area on all but raceface. Industrial look |
| Weaknesses: | Yeah right, something weak from Corerat? |
| Similar Products Tried: | girvin rock ring |
| Bike Setup: | Hardtail and squishy, both with Rat rings |
| Bottom Line: | If you neeed a hardcore bash guard go with the shore ring. You won't regret it for a second. I'm still suprised a the clearance at times. I liked the first one I got so much, I ordered one for my hardtail. You won't find a better product, and at under $25 american you won't find a better price. |
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Submitted by
Roger
a Weekend Warrior
from WA
Date Reviewed: 6/20/1999 |
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| Duration Product Used: | 1 Year |
| Strengths: | Saves chainrings, raises clearance, prevents chainring hang-ups on logs, strong |
| Weaknesses: | Loss of big chainring |
| Similar Products Tried: | Steed Cycles North Shore Big Ring, Damage Control Ring |
| Bottom Line: | If you are into technical riding (BC, Northern WA), these babies are a must. Bash into logs with confidence that you won't destroy your chainrings, hop over logs and rocks bigger than you ever dreamed of because the ring is strong and has no teeth to catch on the obstacle. If you need one of these, chances are you won't even miss the lack of a big chainring. |
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