Crankbrothers Multi-17 Tool

Crankbrothers Multi-17 Tool This is probably the first tool any cyclist should have. The multi tool is essential. It’s small form factor means it’s portable, so it can be used in the garage for quick adjustments, or out on the road. The Crank Brothers Multi 17 packs quite the arsenal of tools in a relatively light weight package. For the 168 grams, you get 17 tools including a chain tool. If you’re only going to have one multi tool, this is the tool to have.If you’re a weight weenie or are looking to carry the bare minimum of tools to get you by on a ride, Crank Brothers also has a Multi 10 ($20), with no chain tool, and the Multi-5 ($13) with...

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Park Tool Home Mechanic Starter Kit

Park Tool Home Mechanic Starter Kit This kit from Park Tool is a great start to a tool collection. It includes all the essentials to get the novice home mechanic working on basic repairs, cleaning, adjusting, and maintaining their bike. 14 tools in a custom Park Tool toolbox for easy storage.Tools included: - AWS-10 Wrench Set, 2mm to 6mm - CT-5 MiniChain Brute Chain Tool - DCW-1 Double Ended Cone Wrench 13mm & 14mm - DCW-2 Double Ended Cone Wrench 15mm & 16mm - DCW-3 Double Ended Cone Wrench 17mm & 18mm - GSC-1 GearClean Brush - FR-5 Cassette Lockring Remover - HCW-16 Pedal Wrench and Chain Whip - SD-2 Shop Screwdriver #2 Phillips -...

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Specialized Tricross Sport Cyclocross Bike

Specialized Tricross Sport Cyclocross Bike Bike Setup: Swapped the 32c tires for 25c. Threw on some lights and ditched the reflectors. Added a bell to ward off pedestrians. All the little things that make the experience commuting in the city a little better. Otherwise, everything else that is stock is still on.Summary: My first bike since I was 15 (I am 27 now). I am 6’7″, 235 lbs riding on a 61 cm frame. It’s a good overall ride. This bike is my primary source for commuting, but it is also fun to take out on the trails and the open road. The stock tires are great overall and provide ample traction but are slow and tiresome to work with. Recommend...

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Kurt Kinetic Road Machine- My Exhaustive Review

Kurt Kinetic Road Machine- My Exhaustive Review!The Kurt Kinetic Road Machine shines because of magnetic coupling, medical-grade silicone, and an unconditional guarantee. There’s a good reason the Road Machine’s the official trainer of the USA Cycling Team.When Pam from Kurt Kinetic offered to send out a Kurt Kinetic Road Machine for review, I thought it was a great idea…for several reasons.I’ve been pounding out mile after mile on my original Kurt Kinetic Fluid trainer for five winters now, and it’s never let me down. In my obsession to search for the best bike trainers to recommend to my readers, the consensus has been that the Kurt...

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E*thirteen downhill crankset review

The downhill cranks from e*thirteen were designed and developed by their co-company, The Hive, and are constructed from 7050 aluminium which is forged then machined to make these sleek looking beauties.  At their heart sits a heat treated chromoly spindle in either 113 or 123mm lengths depending on your bottom bracket shell width. It’s this 30mm spindle that helps keep things stiff, along with the polygon interface where the non-driveside crank arm attaches. Fitting the e*thirteens is a fairly straightforward process but you’ll need to read the instructions to get things set up perfectly.They do actually provide the tool for the...

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Maxxis Advantage 2.1in mountain bike tyre review

We’ve Put the Advantage tyres through the grinder for a few months now and they’ve thoroughly proved their worth. We tested the 2.1in foldable dual compound LUST but there are also 2.25in and 2.4in versions. The Advantage will suit aggressive cross-country/trail riders.  They corner really well thanks to the big side knobs, which inspire fast riding, and they love getting loose in loamy flat turns. The LUST sidewalls are light and very tough and we’ve had no problems deflecting rocks or losing air running them at low pressures. The central diagonal tread makes for brilliant climbing and braking on everything except really wet rocky...

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Giant Anthem X1 review

Steep-angled 100mm-travel full-suspension bikes are normally great for tearing up between the tapes, but Giant’s Anthem X continues to tear up the rule book. Tweaks to the frame for 2011 make it feel like it spent the whole winter down the gym building muscle exactly where it makes the most difference. The result is a totally ripped all-terrain athlete that’s equally inspirational in terms of ego boosting efficiency and scorching speed on startline or singletrack alike. Add benchmark trail kit and you’ve got an extremely versatile, extreme velocity machine whatever you aim it at. If you're more about GPS and maps than jumping gaps,...

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BOS Vip’R Rear Shock Review

The first air shock from French suspension fanatic BOS is expensive and stiff over the small stuff, but a belter if you’re a big mountain rider. Developed with French DH legend Nico Voullioz, BOS’s Rare coil shock has been a cult item amongst gravity riders.  The Vip’R is relatively heavy for an air shock but the low-speed compression lever makes a difference for climbing. Even at the minimum setting stiction means a chattery ride over smaller bumps, and it’s hard to detect the subtle position sensitive damping changes the rebound dial makes in the car park too, which makes initial tuning difficult.  Start pushing hard on the trail...

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Haro Flightline Comp Review

The long established Haro brand is probably better know for its BMX rigs. The UK distributor doesn’t bring in the complete mountain bike range but the 2011 hardtails look great. As with many of its price rivals, a Flightline Comp can be found for less than its RRP if you’re willing to shop around. That’s a good thing, as it’s up against better-equipped bikes at this price. The Flightline Comp has a great frame and rides well but we expect to find a better fork than a RockShox Dart at this price. It’s hefty and under-equipped for its RRP, but worth considering if you find one for less. Ride & handling: Overall trail feel is goodThere...

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Argon 18 Krypton review

The Krypton frame has been designed around Argon 18’s Horizontal Dual System (HDS) concept: imagine a diagonal line from the top of the head-tube to the rear dropouts – everything below this is designed with maximum rigidity and stiffness for power transfer and handling, while everything above should be more flexible (vertically) to improve comfort.  It also has Argon 18’s 3D head-tube, which replaces standard headset spacers with threaded ones that match the head-tube diameter. rather than adding spacers above the headset’s top-bearing race, you screw them in below, effectively extending the head-tube. It should be better for headset...

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Contour+ helmet camera – First ride review

The Full HD Contour+ has the best picture quality of any helmet cam we've tested but it's let down by poorly designed mounts and it's very expensive. It uses the same sleek brushed-alloy and plastic body as its predescessor, the ContourGPS, but this time with a smart raw finish and a wider angle lens (170 vs 135°).  There's a large sliding 'record' button up top, which is easy to operate with gloved hands, along with a rotating lens so you can mount the camera at different angles. There's no screen but you can connect the Contour+ to your iPhone or Android mobile via Bluetooth and use your phone as a viewfinder, after downloading...

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Mongoose Fireball Review

Like GT, Mongoose are a brand with a deep BMX heritage, which shows in their hardcore MTBs. The Fireball might be low on their jump bike menu, but it still packs an excellent frame and highlighted componentry pack for a confident kick-ass ride on dirt, street or wherever else you take it. Frame You're certainly getting a great frame for your money here as it's the same frame as the top line Hardball. The big square headed main tubes get an embossed Mongoose logo for extra pimp appeal, and there's a neat shallow gusset underneath the thick wall head tube. The flat-topped top tube drops away steeply for maximum crotch clearance, with...

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Mongoose Salvo Sport review

Mongoose’s three bike entry-level Salvo suspension line starts with the Sport here, but the same frame and cockpit are used on the £999 Elite model. It’s these basics that make the Salvo one of the better riding bikes at this price point, despite a slow rear shock and our limited love for the front fork. Ride & handling: Balanced handling for off-road funThe size specific cockpit dimensions are pretty much spot on for cross-country/trail use. It's this combination of reasonable length (rather than over-long) stem and decent width bars, you notice straight away compared to the Salvo's peers. While the angles of the frame itself are...

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Muddy Fox Reflex review

Muddy Fox were one of the first big MTB brands in Britain over 20 years ago, but now they concentrate on the value end of the market. The Reflex is a good-looking bike with more control than most of its peers and some decent gear for its current reduced selling price too.Ride & handling: Suspension is limited and adds little control but is generally clank-freeThe Reflex’s low weight, relative to other budget options, is obvious in the way it picks up speed as well as when you get to any stiles or gates on the trail. It’s simply a lot less effort to propel forward than other similarly priced bikes which leaves a smile on your face for...

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