Hey El Salt!!

[SSinGA]

Care to give your impressions of the Hope Moto's and the Talas 36? I'm about to bolt the same stuff up to my bike and just wonder how your trail experiences have been.

Thanks!

[El Salt]

[SIZE=2](Edit - The Subject should read "your" reading glasses - duh!)[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]SS,[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]Sure I'll toss it out there...[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]First off, for everyone's benefit, these items are running on my recent build of a Ventana El Terremoto - 6" travel "AM" ride. If you're interested, click the "Porn" link in my signature.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]Also, you should know that this is my "biggest bike", six incher, and that I'm by no means any type of big time hucker, etc. I'm a long (OMG, over 20 years!!!) time MTBer, starting in the days before anyone thought of anything squishy for a mountain bike. I’m 200 - 205 with gear and ride a few times a week (and in the past 4 years have even begun to ride the road) plus 3 to 4 afternoons on the trainer. So, more than you needed to know? At least you know where I'm coming from...[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]Hope Moto's:[/SIZE]


[SIZE=2]

Well, I’ve had Hope's on two other bikes for more than 5 years and have had no problems (squeaky at times). You can't deny the "bling" factor, and the stopping power of the Moto's is amazing. Way more than you (more than I need) need for the Terremoto, but they are cool. I'm running them with the ventilated disc. This of course adds to the weight, but with this bike, weight was not a real factor. It is currently at 34lbs. I was building it as more of a fun, go over anything, jump small stuff, but still be able to pedal up a hill bike.

[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]The Moto's have been flawless since the first shake down ride. The power really increased after getting 50 or so miles on them, which is to be expected. The modulation is good, but as I said these things are powerful, so you've got to finesse them. If you grab too much, you'll stop (go over the bars?) in a hurry. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]I like the reach adjustment of the lever. I did bring this in ever so slightly. Oh, and the lever has a nice shape to it, nicer than on my older M4 / Mini-Mono lever.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]So, over all I give the a big thumbs up. But, to be honest I can only compare to other brands / models on friends bikes as I've been a Hope man for a long time.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]Talas 36:

Fox... Well, I'd sure like to have the '08 version...! The quick release feature on the 20mm axle sure would be nice. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]I sure debated on the fork for this bike. I was working on the build list for quite some time with this bike. I had time, as we in the Ventana world knew these frames [Terremoto] were coming out, but did not know exactly when we'd be able to get our hands on them. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]I was flip-flopping between the RockShox Lyrik (2 step & Solo Air), the Marz 66 ATA and the Fox TALAS.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]Well, the RockShox Lyrik was new out and some were reporting problems. I hadn't run a RS in a very long time, so while I liked what the fork was supposed to do, I was not convinced. I really wanted to like the Marz (liked all the tune-ability options), but having never run Marz (well, not since about '89) I wasn't sure here either. This plus hearing some of the issues, including the long turn around (not sure if this is still an issue) when and if you encountered a problem.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]Fox - I had been running one form of Fox on bikes for several years, have many of the service tools and am comfortable with them. I currently have a Fox fork on 3 other bikes. So, I guess I went with what I knew, and went 36 TALAS. I wanted something that was adjustable travel, as I said, I wasn't going to go real big with this bike, just wanted something more plush than my 4" trail bike. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]The 36 did take several rides to soften up. That and playing with the settings, etc. I will say I like it, I would like to "feel" the coil version, as I have a feeling that its smoother / more plush. I do however enjoy being able to reach down, flip the lever and loose 60mm to aid climbing.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]So, for me I'm very happy with what I'm running. I know that my riding style (and ability) do not begin to reach the limits of what the bike and its components are capable of, but is sure is fun to ride![/SIZE]

[SIZE=2](man that's a long post - sorry!)[/SIZE]

[SSinGA]

Thanks!

I went with the non-vented rotor to save weight. A lot of my friends ride Hopes and I was just looking to make a change from my old Juicy's - even though they work just fine. I was gooing to do a Moto lever & M4 caliper combo until I got a deal I couldn't refuse on the full moto.

I did get the 08 Talas. I've been on Zocchi's the past few years so this was a scary step. The bottom out is my biggest concern. The Zocchi had the PAR chamber so I could fine tune it myself where the Talas is factory set to the "firm" setting and is not user servicable.

[El Salt]

[FONT=Arial]Good deal on getting the full Moto setup. I’m not sure that the Moto caliper is really any more heavy than the M4 (I’ve got M4 on my El Salt – front wheel), and if it is, it must be only a few grams. The rotor will save weight, no doubt on this one. Again, for me, this bike is sort of “just for fun”. Super squishy, relative to my other bikes, and since I won’t be racing it (even against my friends!), not a big deal.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial]As far as the Talas goes, I know what you mean. You were more familiar with Marz stuff than me, so I feel your concern. I have not bottomed out the 07, but again, I get the feeling I don’t go as big as others (in fact I’m just now cleared to ride my road bike, after breaking my collar bone 5 weeks ago, this weekend – had nothing to do w/ the bike, only the rider and the very soft conditions – stupid mistake). [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial]The PAR and other settings was one reason I was thinking of going Zocchi. I love to tinker, and thought this (the 66) would be a fun fork to learn. But I was hearing about problems with “wind down”, along with other problems that were causing people to have to have work done almost right out of the box. Not that FOX wasn’t having reported problems too. It was the most debated component of my build.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial]And, on the build topic, man I’m itching to at least try a Ti Cane Creek Double Barrel. Everyone’s reviews are great, and the simplicity and tune-ability of this shock sounds amazing. Now, where did I put that spare $800?[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial]I’ll keep an eye out for your future posts, I’ll be curious to hear your thoughts. [/FONT]

[SSinGA]

Originally Posted by El Salt

[FONT=Arial]And, on the build topic, man I’m itching to at least try a Ti Cane Creek Double Barrel. Everyone’s reviews are great, and the simplicity and tune-ability of this shock sounds amazing. Now, where did I put that spare $800?[/FONT]

click the link - call and ask for Mark. Retail on the steel spring version is only $650, but who pays retail . You can get a spring on ebay for under $200.

Talas shakedown ride is this weekend and Motos should be on next week. Thanks for the feedback.

[FoShizzle]

Originally Posted by SSinGA

click the link - call and ask for Mark. Retail on the steel spring version is only $650, but who pays retail . You can get a spring on ebay for under $200.

Talas shakedown ride is this weekend and Motos should be on next week. Thanks for the feedback.

Todd, LOOK AWAY FROM THE CCDB LIGHT! SSINGA is nothing more than a cult leader looking for sheeple.

[SSinGA]

Originally Posted by FoShizzle

Todd, LOOK AWAY FROM THE CCDB LIGHT! SSINGA is nothing more than a cult leader looking for sheeple.

Fo - you know your the one with the sheep fetish

[FoShizzle]

Originally Posted by SSinGA

Fo - you know your the one with the sheep fetish

at least they are female sheep

[El Salt]

Originally Posted by FoShizzle

at least they are female sheep

Ahhh, but sheep none the less!

[FoShizzle]

Originally Posted by El Salt

Ahhh, but sheep none the less!

when you are married for as long as i have been, you take what you can get