Lil' Rocket

[squirreldh]

Found the right combination of spacers and bolts after a little trial fitting, now to get the rest of the guide set up!

 

[squirreldh]

But unfortunately it is not setting up well with the guide rollers. They are offset for compensating for different chainlines, but still dont quite line up, and the space between the chainring and outer plate in combination with the roller not quite lining up will creat chain droppage issues, the opposite of what it is supposed to do. Some more tinkering and it should be working soon. Once this is dialled and setup properly it it one of the best chainguides out there, just having issues with the more modern chainring i am using that is intended to be run without a guide and a rear derailleur that has a clutch.

After this little bit of tedious work trial fitting and reassembling the rest of the build should go smoothly! The Shimano Hollowtech 2 crank system makes it so much easier to do this than it used to be

 

[squirreldh]

So, another trip to the parts stash... the MRP rings were only large enough for the 34t chainring i was planning on using. I found a Specialized Gamut ring that is just about large enough to cover the chain when using the larger Zee chainring that came with the cranks.

Lines up better with the rollers

Bonus is the larger ring will be better for DH use, and its a lighter setup, the inner ring i used is actually carbon fiber!

 

[squirreldh]

After the cranks were completely installed i took a break for dinner, and cookies

Then I started on the rear brake. We picked up two new sets of XTR pads, in the sintered metal compound. I feel they grab better than the resin pads.

Was having issues with the rear caliper, one of the pistons was sticking and not moving as freely as the other. A cleaning and lubing of the piston with the same mineral oil used for the brake fluid and i got it moving well again.

New pads installed, spins smooth with no rubbing you can barely see the clearance between the pads and rotor, and the ice tech rotor "sandwich", they are constructed with steel outer braking surface and an aluminum core to help them cool better on long descents.

Now onto chain and shifting...

 

[squirreldh]

Drivetrain is done!

 

[squirreldh]

Got the front brake cleaned and dialled, pads installed and caliper aligned. Thats it for me tonight, going to get a fresh start tomorrow. Still need to install tires/tubes, bleed the brakes with fresh fluids, swap the coil spring, and finish the headset/stem assembly and it will be finished!!

 

[OddJob]

Squirrel, what is your wheel rake again, 26" rear and 20" front? It looks really radical in the stand without the tires on it!

 

[squirreldh]

24" front and 24" rear, should look a little better with tires, on level ground, from the side, that angle does make them look a little funny!

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[squirreldh]

Swapped out the spring on the rear coil for one with a lighter rating. He only weighs 80lbs fully geared up so we had to lighten up the spring rate a little for him. The new spring looks so much smaller compared to the older heavier one next to it.

Brake bleed next i think.

 

[squirreldh]

Ran back up to work to grab some tubes, forgot to pick them up yesterday! Tires are installed, these things look grippy. Triple rubber compound, different durometers in areas to maximize traction. Knobs on the side are softer for cornering traction, center are stiffer for less rolling resistance and helps hold their shape under hard braking. He shouldnt have any traction issues this season!

Topped them off with some skull valve caps, hope he likes them! Now, onto brake bleeding....

 

[squirreldh]

Brake bleed went smoothly. Already being filled with fluid i used the gravity bleed method. Remove pads first! Dont want them being contaminated by brake fluids. I hooked up a catch bottle to the bleed screw, opened up the master cylinder, topped off the cylinder with fluid and opened the bleed screw. This allows fluid to run into the catch bottle, just need to keep an eye on the MC and make sure to keep topping it off as you are doing this, dont want it to go dry and add air into the system. Once fresh clean fluid starts coming out of the hose you have replaced most of the fluid in there, and can close it up by closing the bleed screw and MC. The Shimano brakes use a specially formulated mineral oil that isnt as harsh on paint as other fluids like dot3 or dot4, and it seems to treat all the seals in the brakes better as i have had much luck with them as opposed to those that use dot fluids over time degrading seals.

Bled both fr and rr brakes then went searching for pedals and grips...

 

[squirreldh]

Its done

 

[OddJob]

Looks good! Has he had a chance to jump on it yet?

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

Definitely the coolest bike on the block! [emoji1598]


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[squirreldh]

Nope, he is still in school! He has a finished bike waiting for him when he gets home! May take him to the indoor skatepark with it tonight.

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[squirreldh]

I did pedal it around myself, couldnt help myself it feels balanced front and rear as far as suspension, just kinda guessing with the shock settings until we can get him riding and see how it performs. Also performed the bed-in procedure for the brake pads, they are nice and grippy now, shouldnt have any problems slowing down for the turns!

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[LukeTheJoker]

Great work!
Congrats on finishing it!

 

[squirreldh]

Congrats on finishing it!

Thanks! Now i want to do something a little different...

 

[OddJob]

Thanks! Now i want to do something a little different...

Hey squirreldh, if this bike is truly done, throw that finished pic at the top of a New Thread in the Finished Bikes Thread for the WBO. Add some info about the build, and include a link to this build thread.
It's getting real lonely in the Finished Bikes....

 

[squirreldh]

I did that two days ago okay maybe only one day ago