Raw 5 spot

Those raw spots look so good, and no 'first paintchip grief' to worry about. Looking forward to the full build pictures.

Congrats - I have a raw frame and like the fact I do not have to worry about scratches or cable rub.

Looks great - 26 lbs is impressive.

AIf you haven't ridden one yet you'll be very impressed. Congrats on the new ride, it' sweet.

Rode this morning and I love the bike! Turner did a great job on these bikes. I noticed that the front end likes to come up off the ground during climbs more than my Flux does, even with the Talas dialed down to 110 (it is the 150mm Talas). I would like to lower the handlebar more as I feel too upright on the bike. I was also thinking I may need to put a little longer stem on it if it will help keep the front end down better. The stem that is on it is a 100mm stem with a 6 degree rise. Will a longer stem help keep the front end down? Will a longer stem speed up or slow down the steering?

Anyone have recommendations for me?

ctimrun said:

Rode this morning and I love the bike! Turner did a great job on these bikes. I noticed that the front end likes to come up off the ground during climbs more than my Flux does, even with the Talas dialed down to 110 (it is the 150mm Talas). I would like to lower the handlebar more as I feel too upright on the bike. I was also thinking I may need to put a little longer stem on it if it will help keep the front end down better. The stem that is on it is a 100mm stem with a 6 degree rise. Will a longer stem help keep the front end down? Will a longer stem speed up or slow down the steering?

Anyone have recommendations for me?

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A couple of small tweaks to handlebar height, stem, and bar width can make a big difference, as well as technique. I run both non DWL Spot and Flux, both with 100m no-rise stems for the climbs, Flux's front end definitely stays down without much effort. In both my cases bar height is below seat height, again for climbing, though Spot is closer to even with the seat. I also run a wider bar on the Spot which slows down steering and also helps get weight forward on climbs. YMMV but try a few different combinations of these varying component setups. Good idea to wait on the steerer tube cut.

ctimrun said:

Rode this morning and I love the bike! Turner did a great job on these bikes. I noticed that the front end likes to come up off the ground during climbs more than my Flux does, even with the Talas dialed down to 110 (it is the 150mm Talas). I would like to lower the handlebar more as I feel too upright on the bike. I was also thinking I may need to put a little longer stem on it if it will help keep the front end down better. The stem that is on it is a 100mm stem with a 6 degree rise. Will a longer stem help keep the front end down? Will a longer stem speed up or slow down the steering?

Anyone have recommendations for me?

Click to expand...

Maybe you can try out a Thomson X4 100mm X 0 Degrees. That will at least lower your front even by a few millimeter.

Hope it helps. Love your Build!

Just from looking at the picture I would lower your handle bars. IMO I would stick with a 100mm stem or even try a 90mm.

Should climb fine with that set-up but a 100mm stem might help too, of course a report from you will help. I'm still deciding on stem length, currently running a 100 0 rise but am thinking I'd like a 90 but the front needs to stay down. The build looks great, looking forward to your feedback.

I went and rode 18 miles today with some good technical climbs. What a bike! Moving the handlebars lower like I did made a huge difference. This change definitely eliminated just about all of the tendencies of the front tire coming off the ground while climbing. I am not sure I can improve on the bike anymore, part of it may be me getting used to a new technique on a new frame. If I went to a 100mm/0 rise stem from my 90mm/0 rise stem what would be affected besides being stretched out a bit more? Would it steer faster or slower? Would this extra cm in length totally eliminate the tendency for the front tire to come up during climbs? I would like others input on how this change would effect the ride good or bad.

Pls post spec list... I'd like to lighten my Spot and if you've got yours 26lbs or under I'd like to see how to do it.

Digger90 said:

Pls post spec list... I'd like to lighten my Spot and if you've got yours 26lbs or under I'd like to see how to do it.

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I will post the specs on it within a day or two. Once I cut the steer tube and get my 15mm cups for my front wheel and get it on there I think the bike will be even lighter. It defitinitely is not built to take it out and bash on it, but for what I use it for it rocks!

first time i've noticed the cable routing - not very neat, but functional at least

On my RFX, I also experienced a lot of front wheel lifting on climbs with a 70 mm, 0 deg. stem. So I went with a 90 mm stem and low rise bar. Helped a little, yes. Now, I'm back on the 70mm stem simply because its much, much more fun on the descents. In the meantime, I've learned to adjust my body on the ascents and improved climbing technique that the front end wandering/lifting problem has been very manageable. Maybe you should first think if the 100 mm stem might compromise your technical descending more than it will benefit your climbing. Worth a try anyway.

all bikes like the spot/rfx will get a little light on the steep climbs, but that's the nature of the beast [+5" travel...]......Just something you will get used to and not even mind after a while...coming off a shorter travel bike, you're definitely fighting your preconceptions.

But, do not try to eliminate the light front too harshly, for you will mess up the bike for what it was designed for - riding [not racing].

jokermtb said:

all bikes like the spot/rfx will get a little light on the steep climbs, but that's the nature of the beast [+5" travel...]......Just something you will get used to and not even mind after a while...coming off a shorter travel bike, you're definitely fighting your preconceptions.

But, do not try to eliminate the light front too harshly, for you will mess up the bike for what it was designed for - riding [not racing].

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Thanks jokermtb! After getting more rides in on the spot I now know this to be 100% true. Just had to adjust my riding style a little bit. I am loving the bike!