Well, my girlfriend has gone out for the day, so I took the opportunity to "mock up" a bit of a build, just to give me an idea on what it might look like when finished.
I have now found out that the older of my Super Deluxe shocks actually works pretty well (rebound and compression seem to actually do something!), so I've fitted that for now in place of the more modern super deluxe which was on there originally. The rebound adjuster has snapped off, but the dial still works with the aid of a flat blade screwdriver. The plan is to get a replacement shock at some point anyway so this isn't a major concern. I've also swapped the travel chips around so that it's in "long travel" mode with a full 130mm at the rear to match the front end nicely.
The forks are set at their full 130mm travel, and the bike is nowhere near as "big" as I thought it might be. The seatpost is inserted to roughly the correct height. It looks very stretched out in the pictures, but I think that's because of the lack of tyres and chain set, which just over-emphasises the gap between the front and rear wheels.
Speaking of wheels, I love them
- They're Hope Pro 3 SP hubs and they've built into an incredibly light set of wheels! I think I might be pleasantly surprised with the end weight of the bike when it's completed. I make no apologies for the "arse up, head down" ride position either - I want this bike to feel like a racy xc mile munching machine, hence the long (by modern standards) stem, flat bars and high saddle position. This is how I remember the original STS when it first came out.
The brakes are plumbed in, but I still need to get the calipers aligned properly with the aid of good old fashioned washers (oh, the joys!). The hoses are too long, especially the rear, but I don't plan on cutting them down just in case I want to use the brakes on another bike in future. Unfortunately, there is no neat solution to running the rear hose along the frame, so I've resorted to cable ties. I have got a pair of hose guides which are supposed to bolt into the cable guides underneath the top tube, but they don't fit. I'm happy enough with how it looks though and perhaps I'll look to find a neater solution once the bike is up and running. I've deliberately run a little bit of excess hose on the rear end (rather than running the hose flush to the seat stay), because it gives a cleaner line to the rear brake caliper without the hose needing to bend at an obscure angle towards the caliper end.
Anyway, here are some pics: