1992 Sbike 728 - FINISHED : pics p.5

Superb !

wow thats nice bud
came together really well

My LBS has won the battle with the old cassette and fitted a new cassette and chain.
They also installed new brake pads because the old XT ones were about as effective at braking as wet soap.

Now all I need are the correct decals, and then I can take a picture of a 728 in original spec.
After that ... sorry guys, but those tyres are so unsafe and unpleasant to ride that they're going straight in the thrash can.
I have a nice new set of amberwall street tyres (same as on my 503) ready to go on the bike.



Now it'll go in storage until the decals arrive and I can take proper pictures.

sbike

Just brilliant Xavier....!!!

I love to have some good news like this.

Nice build - dedication ... I like that

Raging_Bulls":2nxdjibu said:

Now it'll go in storage until the decals arrive and I can take proper pictures.

Click to expand...

So much for that idea ...

I slapped on the new tyres and took it for a 20 mile shakedown run.

Few small issues still.
- The rear brake has a tendency to squeal under very soft braking. I suspect that'll improve once the pads are broken in.
- My back hurts like hell now. I'm going to have to play around with the saddle position a bit more, hoping that I find a solution.
- The BB bearings are shot.

All in all, the bike felt ok. It was fast in a straight line, with no flex whatsoever in the drivetrain.
It corners like it's on rails, but feels just like any other well-sorted bike. It lacks that front-end flex that defines the way steel Sbikes feel.
Unfortunately that lack of flex also means it doesn't grip as well as the steel ones. So I'm not getting rid of my 503 yet.

As for weight, I was surprised to find that it weighs 26.6 lbs. (12.0 kg)
Where does all that weight come from? The 729 has a claimed weight of 22lbs, and the only real difference between my 728 and a 729 is the M730-735 set on mine vs the M900 set on the 729.
Fabien, could you weigh your 729 the next time you have it on XTR wheels? I'm really curious now. I suspect that the claimed weight was quite inaccurate.

Weight

The weight doesn't surprise me, the XT components are all pretty heavy and items like the tyres and steel skewers/seat qr are all very heavy also.
Ti Allen bolt skewers would lose 80 to 120 grams alone.
These were not the lightest of frames for a hard tail, about as heavy as a modern Full suspension xc frame. The chainset with those larger rings will add a fair chunk too. Has it a Titanium BB?

Nope, just a regular Shimano BB, not even sure which type. I transferred it over from a broken 828 that donated the rest of the groupset.

As for the weight of the frame, Sbike claims that the 729 (same as mine, but with Panaracer Smoke+Dart and M900 XTR kit) weighs less than 10kg (22lbs) in stock trim. So no trick parts, just regular XTR
I have the same frame, fork, rims, saddle, stem, handlebar etc, so that 4.6lbs difference should be purely in the tyres and the XTR parts.

The Schwalbes are 650g a piece, or 1300g total. Smoke+Dart would be 1170g (580+590). That's a 130g (4.6 oz) difference.

Darn, is XT really that heavy?

With original spoked wheels, Deore XT M730 pedals and Flite Evolution saddle, the weigh of my 729 is at 11.0 kg.