© 1997 Hyperactiveman
Features: Loaded with DH equipment, riser bar, saddle level or lower than the handlebar, weight is not much of a problem, set up for trashing, setup to love air.
Saddle- Narrow but again very much a personal choice. SDG is a very popular one as they can take a beating.
Wheels-Strong is the word since it is set up for hard riding and rough landings,.Tires Go for good DH tires, Panaracer Hard Core 2.10in’, Psycho DH, ICR Missile, they should hold more air than XC tires, at least 2.10in’ so this will protect the rim during hard landings and let you have more room for corrections.
Rims like Mavic 217 is a very popular choice, they do good for almost anything but serious Down Hill racing. For a tougher wheel you may want to go for rims like Mavic 121, and if you are really serious about rims then go for the Sun Rhino Lite. Another choice is composite wheels, Spin, Hed makes some nice tough wheels and Sipnergy is not to be left out.
Spokes Straight gauge or double butted spokes are the choice, DT and Wheel Smith offers some of the best around. Straight gauge may be heavier but ,mated to good rims then it makes one hell of a tough wheel. If you are trying to drop weight form the wheels, then go for Union Titanium spokes, Union offers anodized spokes in ti-dye colors, could be the best thing for people looking to add color to their bike, and since they still offer the strength straight gauge steel spokes offer at a lower weight, it would be a good investment to think about.
Hubs While your stock ones should do fine, ( I had mine for 3 years with out a single problem) Mostly it is Shimano in the back and the front range from house brand to some nice tricked stuff. A good set of hubs should be reasonably light, 100-200g for the front and the back about 300-400g range. White Industry Trackers are a popular up grade, Hugi and XTR is also a nice choice if you are looking for the more normal approach. While a more tricked approach is Paul, Nuke Proof, Ringle’, Machine Tech, and King. Look for oversize axle hubs to reduce flex.
Control Center - This area includes the stem, handle bar, bar ends, brake levers, shifters and grips. The control center is a very personal thing, it’s set up for you and mostly only you. For shifters, levers and grips it’s very much up to you, the rider. Stem should be a shorter and higher rise than most XC stem, most popular numbers are 10 degree rise and 85mm to 110mm, while some go as short as 30mm. Most popular stuff right now are Kore, Control Tech, Azonic, Answer. Kore, Azonic and Answer all offers short stems, the Kore offers one as short as 85mm, Azonic shorty comes in 30mm, 75mm, 100mm, all at 10 degree rise and very tricked look and very heavy. When you come to the handle bar most popular is a riser bar, since they are much wider and closer to the rider than it is in a XC setup, which would offers better control. Bar ends is not really needed but you can have it if you want, it does help climbing. Again Onza offers one of the best selections around.
Brakes- Strong! Strong!!! What can I say 96 is the year of the V! V-brakes is the choice, best price to power brakes available. But how can we count out the power master Magures, the top hydraulics brake avalable. But their new Race Line D and Tomac Red, can be really mushy, if they are setup wrong, I have seen a few sets where the rider set the modulation dial too soft, and this cause the lever to stall, a very dangerous thing to happen to your brake, so if you have it, set it up carefully.
Suspension- Now if your bike comes stock with a suspension fork then stay with it. But if the fork’s performance is not very good then check out a higher end fork, Rock Shox Judy, Manitou Mach 5SX, are good choice. Look for forks with minimum 2.5 inch travel, 3 inch is the most popular options, some is getting as far as a 4 inch fork, offered by RST the MOZO 4.5, and a Rissie 4 inch upgrade kit for the Judy fork.
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