Taiwan Show Days 2,3 And 4

[HEYPIP]

whew, i'm knackered. (as this kiwi dude beside me in the bar exclaimed)

the whirlwind that is the taipei bike show is over at last. it seemed like it was a day too long. everyone started taking their booths down at noon because it was so dead. i feel sorry for so many people who spent tons of money to come here to sell their products. i haven't seen the oficial attendance figures but it sure seemed empty in the aisles. because it was so slow, i got a chance to spend some time with a bunch of friends, from all over the world, who otherwise would have been too busy ot hang out.

so here's what i saw:

shimano saint... i've been thinking about this and it scares me. maybe i don't fully understand it yet.
it seems that with the rear derailleur being bolted directly to an aluminum bolt, which doubles as the rear axle, that if you tear the derailleur off then you won't have an axle anymore either and there will be nothing holding the wheel into your dropouts. a hanger has to be a cheaper replacement part than a long 7075 aluminum bolt.
also, i've seen guys shear off solid heat treated 4340 nickel cromoly axles that are 4 times stronger and 3 times stiffer than 7075 aluminum. won't an aluminum axle just shear off everytime a 200lb guy drops 15ft on it?

the saint bb will require all of the chain guide makers to redesign their chain guides, which sucks. it may require a completely new icgs bolt pattern too.

the saint cranks look super burly and waaaaaay overbuild, but who am i to say anything about overbuilt. ha ha ha

truvativ... new isis overdrive bb looks like the total solution for anyone who's had bb bearing life problems. i would suspect that the 42mm bearingswill last at least 10 times longer than standard bb bearings. they're a plain "over the counter" industrial ball bearing that are readily available from any bearing supply for cheap.

new bmx forged alu crank looks really burly. the holzfeller and hussefelt bars and stems look awesome too. (we're testing some back home as i write this) their x/c bars and stems look sweet too, but i won't bore you with x/c stuff.

i can hardly wait to get some samples of the new holzfeller pedals. nothing fancy, just a well thought out design and a really good alloy cromoly axle. they look awesome too but pedals never look pretty for long.

more to follow....

[HEYPIP]

sram... those guys were swamped. i think that 2004 will be their big breakout year for high performance mtn bike parts.

x0, x9, x7 dear derailleurs are all the same platform and work identicly. dh has been testing an x0 for a couple of months and he's raving about it. no titanium pivots on the 9 and 7 but who cares. 9 is priced like shimano xt and 7 like lx.

i talked at length with a couple of sram engineers about freeride rear derailleurs. i suggested a 12-34 6 speed setup with a super fat chain. they said it wouldn't shift as crisp and i countered that bikes with 8-10" of travel don't shift worth shit anyway. at least with the wider sprocket spacing of 6 speed, the chain won't jump sprockets from vibration and mystery shift when you're climbing a skinny. i also suggested using an 800lb spring in the rear derailleur to increase chain tension. ha ha ha

the new trigger shifters kick ass. i was playing with a set for a couple of hours, in the bar last night, before the sram guys took them away so they wouldn't have to hear me clicking. ha ha ha
the ergonomics of the shifting action is awesome and the gear indicator window doesn't stick out where it can get broken.

boxxers are basicially unchanged, i ranted at the rockshox engineer to add a half inch to the stantion tubes so the top crown doesn't hit the top tube.

fsa... the new less expensive dh bars and stems are an amaxing value for what you get. they're almost identicle to the high end but only half the price.

manitou... 5th element stable platform valving is available throughout the line which is gonna be very interesting. i scored a new 7" sherman slider prototype with spv for geoff gullevich to test. we'll see what he has to say in short order.

marzocchi... no one showed up from marzocchi, except bryson, and he went home early. the new triple8 fork looks awesome, 8" travel, 8lb, tons of tire clearance, bolt on crown and dropouts. are the stantions gonna be big enough?

supers and juniors get new bolt on crowns and increased tire clearance for 2.8" tires. they simply machined some metal off the arch to increase tire clearance. i hope it's still stiff and strong enough.

the 6" s/c z1 was on display with a cryofit crown and the same loters as 03. dirt jumpers are basically unchanged from what i could see. the marzocchi girls weren't here, damn!


more to follow....

[Castle]

Damn, Thanks pip,

That Saint stuff sounds like Shimano hahahahahahaha

I was wondering when they'd solve the shorter life bearings of current mtb b.b. sounds like that truvativ set up should help with that problem

Let's hope Sram looks into what you were telling them. That spring would help out alot, I like the 6 spd Idea.
those triggers sound sweet.

I'm glad to hear that zocchi raised there tire clearance (but shaving metal is this good?) and went back to bolt on crowns atleast.

Triple 8, Are the stantions super pinner? That doesn't sound like a good idea? Of coarse neither did shaving the metal to get tire clearance or alot of things they do don't seem right but I'm not a engineer so what do I know?

[JimmyJ]

Originally posted by HEYPIP

the 6" s/c z1 was on display with a cryofit crown and the same loters as 03. dirt jumpers are basically unchanged from what i could see. the marzocchi girls weren't here, damn!


more to follow....

damn a 6" z1? I only hope they beef it up real good.

Good to hear from ya pip thanks for the updates

[HEYPIP]

hayes... boy are they pissed at shimano. the new saint hub/derailleur setup only works with shimano brakes.
minor changes to the lever shapes but otherwise unchanged. if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

avid... new juicy disc brake. looks nice and feels good. we're getting some prototypes to test in a week or so.

scandium....... mmmmmmmmmmm!
i talked to a tube company about making custom scandium rad tubes for banshee. 25% stronger and 10 times the fatigue life! schwing

funn... not a lot of changes, just really solid stuff from a bunch of whacked out brits. they swagged me a really cool hoodie too. thanks marty.

easton... new oversixed scandium bars and a sweet looking stem. i think their pedal spindles must be solid platinum cuz they cost soooo much.

atomlab... sweeeeet new prototype pedal with a "move out of the way" cleat for dh racing. way to go mike.

tubeless tires..... they're still trying.

mavic.... no show, chicken shits. ha ha ha j/k

sun... new rim, i forget the name, really light but major stiff. again, we're gonna test them really soon.

formula hubs.... new 20mm front hub with cutout windows and a carbon center tube. kina like a race face next crank. was anyone complaining that their front hub shell was too flexy?

dt spokes... new 13 guage spokes for freeride. their hubs still look awesome.

some chinese company is making a carbon copy of a santa cruz blur. i asked them about the patent and they immediately forgot how to speak english. ha ha ha

azonic frames were on display at several booths under different names. all built by astro.

i scored a rear hub with a 14mm axle, 135mm spacing, disc brake mount and a single speed freehub, for testing. geoff gullevich should be riding it in a couple of weeks on his dirt jump bike.

how much of what i saw will become reality is your guess.

i saw so much stupid stuff that it's gonna take a whole new thread. i've gotta give prope to the company with a 10" dh bike, not a bad design too, but it had an electric motot built into the rear hub.

it's 5:30am in vancouver and 9:30pm here and my body clock is a mess. i don't know whether to shit or wind my watch so i guess i'll go to bed.

see you all soon.

peace, pip

[eeyun]

cheers for the updates pip! Sounds like you're fighting the good fight for us peons

[pedalhound]

WOW....thanks pip. Sounds like alot of fun.....albeit really tiring. I am such a toy boy I would be in heaven in a bike show....now if they could do a bike/computer show that would rock. Anyways thanks for the updates.....hope you arrive safe and healthy back here.

[Lady Gravity]

Originally posted by HEYPIP
some chinese company is making a carbon copy of a santa cruz blur. i asked them about the patent and they immediately forgot how to speak english. ha ha ha

that's hilarious
sounds more like fun than work
thanks for all the info pip, it's very cool that you're doing this

thanx for the update Pip...that new saint bb is gona suck if i keep sellin guides...but ill prob find a way around it...

thanks for the updates pip!

and anythnig from fox?

[Rusty]

Thanks Pip, your updates are always nice. I am also glad I am not the only one who likes the TruVativ Holzfeller crank and pedals. Have a good trip.

[Demonic]

The new 888 from marz sounds cool. Dont know if ill want to give up my shiver though, but maybe.........

Thanks again for the word from the show!

Damon

[Big_Air_Smite]

Thanks pip, are there ANY changes to the Marz 6" SC because they have been for sale over here, nobodys buying them, but they are for sale

I thought marz couldnt go back to bolt on stuff due to liability... or that was their excuse for the crowns and arches anyways?

Sounds like everyones stepping it up! Thanks again Pip. You rule.

[(oasta|_]

Originally posted by HEYPIP
the new trigger shifters kick ass. i was playing with a set for a couple of hours, in the bar last night, before the sram guys took them away so they wouldn't have to hear me clicking. ha ha ha
the ergonomics of the shifting action is awesome and the gear indicator window doesn't stick out where it can get broken.

manitou... 5th element stable platform valving is available throughout the line which is gonna be very interesting. i scored a new 7" sherman slider prototype with spv for geoff gullevich to test. we'll see what he has to say in short order.

That stuff sounds pimperiffic!

Thanks for the insider news.
Great to hear an opinionated view instead of the usual advertising dribble.

[Del]

Good stuff Pip, so the sc forks arent getting bolt on crowns? Do they have more tire clearance atleast? (dj series etc). That would be so nice!!!!!
Any more info on the marz stuff?

thanks

Matt