Joined
·
1,887 Posts
Well, finally got around to getting the Motolite front end converted. The wheel build consisted of: DT Hayes Hugi 20mm disc hub, Sun EQ27 rim, DT Champion spokes, NeoMoto 2.35, running ghetto tubeless using a cut 24" tube rim strip. Since I have enjoyed riding the old RockShox Revelation air u-turn, I picked up the 09 Rev Maxle with the same options.
The wheel built up just fine, aside from my messing up the spoke pattern a couple times. The third time was the charm though, and everything just fell into place and it turned out quite nice requiring just a bit of tuning and dish adjustment. Not having a lot of wheel building experience I was hesitant to do this myself, but I'm glad I did not pawn this off to a shop, it's really not that difficult if you just take your time and go step by step. It's a hellova lot cheaper too
After cutting the rim strip to size and installing, I test fit the NeoMoto onto the rim and it went on so easily, that I was concerned I may have issues running this combo tubeless. I've never had a tire fit this loosely on a rim before. I also test fit a Kenda Nevegal 2.35 and the fit was the same, so it seems that the EQ27 just runs a bit small in diameter. My fears were realized when I was unable to inflate the tire using my standard Walmart compressor, which has never failed to inflate a tubeless tire up until this point. A quick trip to the corner station solved that problem in short order though, and I got that reassuring "pop" when the bead snapped into place. After 4 days or so the pressure has held very strong and little sealant had leaked. I am still concerned about the loose fit causing problems on the trail, but only time will tell.
I left plenty of room on the steerer to make stem adjustments, I am going to initially try it in the same height position it was before, but I've got at least a half inch of drop if necessary. Also, since I'm at about the upper limit of rider size for the Medium frame, I have been looking for a Large frame to swap, which would give me a little more wheelbase and room for adjustment . I think I'll hold off on that until I can get some rides in though, it may turn out that the Medium will work just fine. I do tend to prefer smaller frames with more flickable handling. I also left the fork at the old 125mm setting, may and up dropping that down a bit as well.
Other info: rear tire (still) is a 2.2 Cinder, and my old 26" front was a Rampage 2.35. Everything else on the bike remains the same. I really wish this frame could handle a 650b out back but it's a no-go. I hope to hit some of my favorite local Vegas trails in the next few days and be able to give a ride report. Definitely stoked to go roll over some rocks. Sorry for the crappy garage shots, will try to address that when I'm out on the trail as well...
.
The wheel built up just fine, aside from my messing up the spoke pattern a couple times. The third time was the charm though, and everything just fell into place and it turned out quite nice requiring just a bit of tuning and dish adjustment. Not having a lot of wheel building experience I was hesitant to do this myself, but I'm glad I did not pawn this off to a shop, it's really not that difficult if you just take your time and go step by step. It's a hellova lot cheaper too
After cutting the rim strip to size and installing, I test fit the NeoMoto onto the rim and it went on so easily, that I was concerned I may have issues running this combo tubeless. I've never had a tire fit this loosely on a rim before. I also test fit a Kenda Nevegal 2.35 and the fit was the same, so it seems that the EQ27 just runs a bit small in diameter. My fears were realized when I was unable to inflate the tire using my standard Walmart compressor, which has never failed to inflate a tubeless tire up until this point. A quick trip to the corner station solved that problem in short order though, and I got that reassuring "pop" when the bead snapped into place. After 4 days or so the pressure has held very strong and little sealant had leaked. I am still concerned about the loose fit causing problems on the trail, but only time will tell.
I left plenty of room on the steerer to make stem adjustments, I am going to initially try it in the same height position it was before, but I've got at least a half inch of drop if necessary. Also, since I'm at about the upper limit of rider size for the Medium frame, I have been looking for a Large frame to swap, which would give me a little more wheelbase and room for adjustment . I think I'll hold off on that until I can get some rides in though, it may turn out that the Medium will work just fine. I do tend to prefer smaller frames with more flickable handling. I also left the fork at the old 125mm setting, may and up dropping that down a bit as well.
Other info: rear tire (still) is a 2.2 Cinder, and my old 26" front was a Rampage 2.35. Everything else on the bike remains the same. I really wish this frame could handle a 650b out back but it's a no-go. I hope to hit some of my favorite local Vegas trails in the next few days and be able to give a ride report. Definitely stoked to go roll over some rocks. Sorry for the crappy garage shots, will try to address that when I'm out on the trail as well...
.
