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#2,161 ·
Hello Chisel owners!

Hoping to find out from other Chisel frame owners if this would make a great base for a new bike please!

I am (was) a casual rider, roads, gravel, bridleways, forest tracks etc (no mountains near here) - trying to get some fitness back and eventually go on longer challenging rides. Weirdly I prefer to ride up hill than down, and whilst I won't be jumping or rolling it down any cliffs, it still needs to be tough and sturdy as I'm a taller / heavier rider (6'2, 260lbs+).

Slowly making my way through this thread to find out what sort of upgrades people add to their Chisel. I'm rather new to all the latest Mountain Bike equipment and what works, so I would be extremely grateful for any offered advice or ideas please. Especially where the frame may prevent / dislike the use of certain components!

My old bike had a mix of Shimano Deore LX and XT (v-brakes) and I would like to build the Chisel with the modern equivelant. So far in my brief research, I have been led to the 2023 XL frame, Shimano SLX set, Hope Fortus 30 29" wheels, Rockshox (SID's? no idea which model), a OneUp Dropper post and possibly upgrading the shifters and BB to XT. If this new bike lasts a third of the time my original one did, it will be money well spent.

Thanks for reading - looking forward to seeing more of this thread and what people do with their Chisels.
 
#2,162 ·
I think that the chisel would be a great bike for what you describe. The first thing you might want to thinking about is your budget. You can get a base chisel for $1800 or a comp for $2400 vs a custom build for $3000-$3500. You then decided if you like the bike and what components you want to upgrade. Also, if you are not going to go on rowdy trails you probably don't need a dropper post. You can get a quick release seat binder for $10-15 and just adjust your seat the few times you want it lower.

If I were going to build a chisel right now below would be my preferred build. Prices are quick estimates, you can get some good deals right on new or lightly used components.
Image
 
#2,163 ·
Jeremy05 said:
I think that the chisel would be a great bike for what you describe. The first thing you might want to thinking about is your budget. You can get a base chisel for $1800 or a comp for $2400 vs a custom build for $3000-$3500. You then decided if you like the bike and what components you want to upgrade. Also, if you are not going to go on rowdy trails you probably don't need a dropper post. You can get a quick release seat binder for $10-15 and just adjust your seat the few times you want it lower.

If I were going to build a chisel right now below would be my preferred build. Prices are quick estimates, you can get some good deals right on new or lightly used components.
<img>
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Hey, thank you for the reply! Certainly, the budget is very much a consideration. I am not a fan of buying twice though and never regretted selecting the groupset choice on my last bike. Everything that I didn't customise from the pre-built I ended up doing so at a later date (forks, stem, handlebar, wheels etc), so this time I thought I would save up and do it right the first time around :)

The 2023 frame here in the UK is £1350, there's no stock of the Ltd versions that are cheaper (1100, certainly couldn't see one in XL). Appreciate the saver comment on the seatpost, thanks. Funnily enough I used to use my QR seat post quite often until it started slipping, I found dropping the seat between hard riding allowed some back pain relief. Will have to check out the other pieces you've mentioned there - the wheelset might be a little high budget for me though.
 
#2,164 ·
#2,166 ·
sselhtrim said:
It doesn't always have to be a rockshox or fox. Heck someone complained about the sid in a separate thread and mine is waiting on new lowers.

Image
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I also returned my second SID and to my surprise they didn`t give me a new one, but decided to refund me. How is the R7 feeling? Is it 120mm?

The R7 seems as the most sensible option, but is still a lot more than I paid for the SID Select. Fox is way too expensive here in Europe. Other option would be to move the Fox 34 from my Ripley AF to the Chisel and shorten it to 120mm and get a nicer Pike for the Ripley.
 
#2,167 ·
Hokku said:
I also returned my second SID and to my surprise they didn`t give me a new one, but decided to refund me. How is the R7 feeling? Is it 120mm?

The R7 seems as the most sensible option, but is still a lot more than I paid for the SID Select. Fox is way too expensive here in Europe. Other option would be to move the Fox 34 from my Ripley AF to the Chisel and shorten it to 120mm and get a nicer Pike for the Ripley.
Click to expand...
I run both the r7 pro and Sid sl ult at 100mm. The r7 will happily dish out travel in the initial travel stroke and the fork doesn't really ramp up that much deep into its travel. Several reviews describe this fork's behaviour as trail like and I agree.

The Sid is marketed as a xc racing fork and feels like it. Going through chunk feels harsher here compared to r7.

weightweenies.starbike.com

Downcountry/ XC shock and fork comparison

Hi, I happen to be able to test XC/ Downcountry fork and shock from Rockshock, Fox and Manitou for my downcountry bike. So I think this could be useful for othe
weightweenies.starbike.com weightweenies.starbike.com
 
#2,172 ·
Finally making some progress on my Chisel. Been so busy lately that any free time has been spent riding instead of building. This is mostly a spare parts/take-offs from a new full-sus build.

Gotta measure for a dropper & figure out what I want to do for brakes. I've got a couple sets of Srams & a set of Deore 4 pots...but may want to put the Deore's on the new full-sus. Need to pick up another Sram cassette too... After that, it should be ready to go.

Image


Image
 
#2,173 ·
kramonut said:
Finally making some progress on my Chisel. Been so busy lately that any free time has been spent riding instead of building. This is mostly a spare parts/take-offs from a new full-sus build.

Gotta measure for a dropper & figure out what I want to do for brakes. I've got a couple sets of Srams & a set of Deore 4 pots...but may want to put the Deore's on the new full-sus. Need to pick up another Sram cassette too... After that, it should be ready to go.

View attachment 2026242

View attachment 2026241
Click to expand...
Be aware that any 4 piston brake may require a little finessing to clear the rear stay. My G2 RSC just barely clears...
 
#2,176 ·
kramonut said:
Finally making some progress on my Chisel. Been so busy lately that any free time has been spent riding instead of building. This is mostly a spare parts/take-offs from a new full-sus build.

Gotta measure for a dropper & figure out what I want to do for brakes. I've got a couple sets of Srams & a set of Deore 4 pots...but may want to put the Deore's on the new full-sus. Need to pick up another Sram cassette too... After that, it should be ready to go.

View attachment 2026242

View attachment 2026241
Click to expand...
Hi there, I just ordered the full ridewrap myself. Could you please post some upclose photos of the 2 small annoying pieces by the headtube that you mentioned are not cut nicely? Thanks.
 
#2,177 ·
Gelato said:
Hi there, I just ordered the full ridewrap myself. Could you please post some upclose photos of the 2 small annoying pieces by the headtube that you mentioned are not cut nicely? Thanks.
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Hope these help. They are both around the downtube ports for the brake, gear and dropper post (if installed). I had to trim slightly on these.
 

Attachments

#2,178 ·
Taffy66 said:
Hope these help. They are both around the downtube ports for the brake, gear and dropper post (if installed). I had to trim slightly on these.
Click to expand...
Man, thanks for quick response. Looking forward to do mine this weekend. I’ll post some photos when done. Btw, was there an extra protection film piece that came with your order?
 
#2,179 ·
I don't recall an additional extra protection piece. There was additional edges and areas on the sheet that could be used, depending on size of the area you want.
 
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