Messages

1

The Lounge / Re: Motorcycle Thread V2.0

« on: April 16, 2015, 04:02:51 PM »

My first motorcycle was actually a 2008 Ducati Monster 696. Fun bike for sure, and it definitely got me fully obsessed with motorcycles.

Here's these deal with slightly older (pre 2013) Ducatis:

If you are a hobbyist mechanic that is not only capable of doing your own maintenance, but enjoys it, get a Ducati by all means. Fun bikes with a ton of soul that are very quirky. They need lots of maintenance. More specifically, they need their valves checked  frequently, and they need their belts changed  at certain mileage intervals, in addition to all the other regular motorcycle maintenance that all bikes need. If you're mechanically inclined, you could probably do this stuff yourself. If not, then be prepared to spend a lot of money at the local Ducati dealership.

I am not mechanically inclined at all and spent way too much in service fees on my Ducati during the 7 months that I owned it.

2

Bike Gallery / Re: SOLID

« on: February 23, 2015, 12:35:26 AM »

Clean build. Black wall tires will look awesome on there.

3

The Bike Shop / Re: Pedal design devolving?

« on: February 21, 2015, 02:56:34 PM »

I think the de-evolution of parts is a symptom of current riding trends. From what I can tell, most of the people on this forum probably remember the 2004-2008ish era where everyone wanted to ride like Mike Aitken. Riding smooth was the name of the game and therefore it didn't seem like a waste of money to buy $100 Ruben pedals or have fancy Profile components with all the expensive Ti shit because being "good" meant not making a sound when you landed. Everyone wanted a "dialed" bike.

Now, all the children are into super abrasive street riding that absolutely trashes your bike. It's all about landing flat from huge heights and grinding everything possible. Thus, disposable cheap parts are a lot more appealing than something fancy and expensive. Additionally, it seems like the primary market for bmx companies is about 3 years younger now than it was 10 years ago, and younger kids inherently have no fucking money.

The only reason I don't have fancy machined sealed pedals is because I love my shoes too much. Im super picky about riding shoes and want them to last for as long as possible. Plastic pedals cause virtually no wear in shoe soles,whereas metal pins start taking chunks out pretty quickly.

4

Bike Gallery / Re: 2014 FBM Angel of Death

« on: February 18, 2015, 06:33:51 PM »

Thanks for all the positive feedback. After a few sessions I can honestly say I love this bike. One thing that's surprising is how light the wheels are with the Birdcage rims. Putting a Tree Ergo Slim seat and US Apes on it as soon as they arrive. I'll try to post up some riding videos eventually.

5

The Lounge / Re: Frame Features /Strength

« on: February 18, 2015, 06:26:43 PM »

One of my friends had a Barcode. I distinctly remember dropping into a quarter pipe on it and being surprised by how much stiffer than my non-wishbone frame it was.

6

Bike Gallery / Re: Sunday Soundwave

« on: February 17, 2015, 12:03:59 AM »

Nice classic setup with modern parts

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Bike Gallery / 2014 FBM Angel of Death

« on: February 15, 2015, 10:53:21 AM »

After recently getting back into riding, I built up a new bike. It's actually my 3rd Fbm. I had the original AOD back in 2004, and after that I had a Capone. I'm loving this thing. Frame is super stiff, overall build is nice and light. Glad fbm is still making awesome stuff.

http://instagram.com/p/zDuPowyREz/?modal=true

frame is a 21" AOD with welded brake mounts

Fork, stem, and seat post are fbm

Hoder high bars

Profile hubs and cranks

Gsport rims

Fit tires

Odyssey brakes

8

The Bike Shop / Re: Alu drivers - they are finally back!

« on: February 07, 2015, 09:57:42 AM »

Gross. This reminds me of the 2006ish era when companies hadn't quite figured out the really good heat treating techniques people tried to save weight with $80 titanium stem bolts and holes drilled in frames. What I think is dumb is that folding tires (which I thought were a good effective way to save a lot of weight) are basically extinct now because people thought they're were too expensive, but here we are re-introducing a dumb, fragile part that will save like 2 ounces.

9

Bike Gallery / Re: Pedal Driven

« on: February 03, 2015, 09:23:49 PM »

Awesome bike. Reminds me of simpler times.

10

Bike Gallery / Re: 2007 T1 Sweet Fu@k All

« on: February 01, 2015, 01:04:17 AM »

I had one of those frames. Loved it. Awesome bike

11

Bike Gallery / Re: S&M Neal Wood

« on: January 11, 2015, 03:47:37 AM »

Looks fast.

12

Bike Gallery / Re: t1sfa

« on: January 11, 2015, 03:46:08 AM »

Black t1 with black rims. Does it get any better?

13

The Bike Shop / Re: Ultimate oilslick 2.0

« on: January 11, 2015, 03:43:26 AM »

Oil slick parts are kind of dumb, but I can at least tolerate them. Gum tires are absolutely hideous though.

14

The Lounge / Re: "NIGEL SYLVESTER ON ADVANCING BMX WITHOUT FITTING IN"

« on: January 04, 2015, 04:24:11 AM »

its all just marketing blurbs to make him seem edgy, i think theyre playin on the fact hes a pro with corporate sponsors, but hes not a ramp rat.

its not really unique though, edwin was on red bull for years but he was totally chill about it. he was in the same situation, street rider from new york who started at the bottom and managed to make it big, and id say without a doubt that edwin has had waaay more influence on bmx style etc than nigel

maybe nigel is just one of those people who takes himself super seriously

Agreed. Edwin straight up invented the "barspinning NY street style" or whatever you want to call it, and transformed bmx into what it is now. Had Edwin not existed, I think the "2 pegs and a straight cable of 2005" would still be the main thing in bmx. I could be way off on this, but in my opinion Edwin basically showed the world how to land flat and not look like shit.

No doubt Nigel has basically taken the Edwin style and progressed it significantly, and I respect what he can do on a bike, but the whole attempted celebrity thing is kind of awkward/ cringe-worthy to watch.

To me, the big difference between what Nigel is doing now and what Dave Mirra did 12 years ago comes down to credibility, and shameless marketing. Circa 2004, Mirra was essentially the king of bmx, simply because he had won a million X games contests, thus the super big corporate sponsors seemed like a pretty natural thing. From what I recall, his main sponsors outside the core bmx companies were Slim Jim, Fox, and Oxy pimple cream. Even though the Oxy zit medicine stuff was kind of lulzy at the time, it's not like Mirra would go on record spouting horseshit like "after an intense training session, I get sweaty as fuck and only the cleansing power of Oxy can restore my complexion to its former mtv glory." Also, even though Mirra did become a celebrity in his own right, it kind of seemed like a natural consequence of being the winningest contest rider in bmx, and it definitely wasn't a result of some bizarre partnership with Eminem.

Meanwhile, it seemed like Nigel went from being some dude from Queens that had like 3 clips in the friends section of an Animal DVD to being that dude trying to be street with all the bogus sponsors. No doubt the nike 6.0 thing was legit, but I can't imagine the Gatorade deal materializing without some kind of professional sports agent working on Nigel's behalf. Also, does anyone know a single bmx kid that has ever purchased a Gshock watch? Regardless, if a dude can secure some big time sponsors that pay him, good for him. What kind of grosses me out though is all of his stupid blurbs about how MLK paved the way for him to ride bmx, or how he tames the concrete jungle of NYC when he rides, etc. It basically seems like he relishes any opportunity to lose credibility in the bmx world in a feeble attempt to increase his "mainstream" celebrity status.  Maybe I'm just out of touch, but this whole thing with Pharell just seems bizarre to me. If you want to become the most famous bmxer of all time, go ahead. Just focus on the bmx and stop trying to turn your bike into some street wear fashion accessory.

15

The Bike Shop / Re: Anyone that remembers Nate Hanson Grips...

« on: January 03, 2015, 03:24:03 PM »

I miss the original Primo logo grips (the ones with the PR1MO style logo).

These were great. I had several pairs before the Edwins came out, and then I just ran those for a while.