gonzostrike said:
you need to decide what you want your Bullit to be. that's the first thing you must do.
the easiest way to make your Bullit friendly on XC and FR/DH rides alike is to build the bike with light but strong parts. your choices should be economically wise, too... the Ti spring for your 5th E delivers a TINY weight reduction at a HUGE price and the weight reduction is at a static point, which means you really won't feel it. ignore that one. it's tempting, but ultimately only for those with lots of disposable $$$.
recommended parts for a multi-use Bullit:
+ LX or XT Hollowtech (2003 or 2004) crank/BB... XT lighter by a good amount
+ Marz Z150 fork... can do XC or FR, the ETA feature makes climbing MUCH easier
+ lightish wheelset -- i.e. Mavic XM321 rims with 14/15 db spokes
+ 6" rotor in the rear
+ lighter brakes like Magura Louise FR or Hope Mono M4
+ light handlebar & stem... can't beat a Thomson stem with Answer ProTaper bar for strength & lightness
+ two tire sets, one for XC and one for FR/DH. save the heavy sidewalls and fat treads for FR/DH
+ new E13 chain tensioner for 3-ring setups... way lighter, just as effective on all but full-on super rough DH.
the cheapest (but hardest) method is just to ride more and train harder, but most of us ride as much as we can/like, and this might not be within your reach. but it's free, and has rewards that extend beyond the bling-bling.
A few added suggestions.
-Z150SL (maybe wait for fox 36?, with the 4,5,6" talas adjust feature this will be hot!)
-XM819 wheelset, maybe 719s (what used to be the 519s) if you are lighter and wont be too abusive. The key is not how strong the rim is so much, but how correctly the wheel is built in terms of tension. Even a 519 when built correctly can take a lot of abuse if you used the correct spokes and tensioned correctly. (DT super comps, brass nipples, CK hubs).
Maybe a hope M4 up front, and a mini-mono 6" in the rear, that would save even more weight and would be plenty of power in the rear.
-Thomson stems are not very light. There is a NEW thomson stem comming out soon that saves about 30g, while that might be an option shortly, there's a lot of decent 100mm and 90mm stems that are a good deal lighter than the thomson. The thing is that when you get to shorter lengths, you don't need as "overbuilt" of a stem. Another idea might be to just get both a thomson (for DH and FR) and a light 140g ritchey for XC. I am being a little picky here, but when talking 100mm and less, you don't need as overbuilt of a stem, and the new thomson seems to fit the bill pretty nicely.
-Maxm MX6 bar. It's made for Dhing and freeriding, so if it breaks for some reason, at leaste you can warrenty it, unlike many other carbon bars. They are doing very well in terms of reliability though and strength.
-Sram microadjust front shifter will help you keep your chain on as well.