Poodle's slow train to nowhere - Transition Scout

pink poodle

気が狂っている男
With a frame purchase receipt from late October 2018, this is the slowest build I have ever had. It all started when some arsehole stole my beloved Pivot m4x, for the second time. They were such fun bikes. This unfortunate event left me needing a versatile bike that would be able to ride street, skate park, dirt jumps, freeride trail, and commute. Or did it? Perhaps I could settle for a cheaper bike to cover the commute and street duties, then use the balance go get a frame and some new parts to go with my collection of spares and form up a sexy new freeride trail bike...

So I purchased an inexpensive slope style bike and got straight back to being able to ride to places, like work...sigh. But that is all a story for a other PYR. This is about the slow grind back to the trails.

I searched the internet for a new frame that would suit my riding style, mostly lazy and heavy. Does that even exist anymore? A short travel freeride Clydesdale would be perfect. This kind of thing doesn't exist anymore. I narrowed the choice down to 2 options, the transition scout or banshee spitfire. I'm sure that either would have suited my needs and they were both the same price at the time. I read reviews, I watched riders on them, I looked at the geometry, and I asked around. I got a heap of really good information from @Ultra Lord as he has both frames!

Frame: transition scout in red rum (2017 model), large.
Shock: rock shox monarch rt3 debonair
Fork: Marzocchi 55cr
Headset: nuke proof bottom cup, brand X top cup (I took a gamble...)
Stem: nuke proof neutron 35mm reach
Bar: nuke proof neutron cut to 750mm
Grip: no idea, found them in a bag in a box
Brakes: Shimano xt with random rotors
Shifter: Shimano Saint 10speed
Post: Thomson elite dropper 125mm
Seat: cube something something from the box
Collar: Skywalker
Crank: Shimano Saint 165mm
Bottom bracket: Shimano Saint
Pedals: nuke proof neutron (Evo)
Chain guide: shovel aluminium ISCG05
Chain ring: FSA DH
Chain ring bolts: race face
Chain: SRAM PG1031
Cassette: Shimano Rishta 10 speed, 11 to 34 teeth
Rear derailleur: Shimano zee, sadly I don't shot gold.
Wheels: spank spike race 33, 26 inch
Tyres: maxis crossmark, 26x2.2
Tubes: damn right I use tubes

I think that's everything. I like the look, it feels great riding to the beach and back. I am very happy to finally have this finished.
 

beeb

Dr. Beebenson, PhD HA, ST, Offset (hons)
It lives! :D ...and looks hot too!

Pleasing but not overdone amount of matchy matchy. Bet it's a fun rig to throw around!
 

fatboyonabike

Captain oblivious
the rear tyre branding in not quite lined up with the rim deacls...just a heads up, so you can rectify before Moorsy has a crack!
sweet looking rig though, I look forward to hearing stories in the FW thread as things break and fall off it from an overly confident owner and his weekly follies :D
Edit: unusual choice of tire!..good for commuting I guess
 

pink poodle

気が狂っている男
It lives! :D ...and looks hot too!

Pleasing but not overdone amount of matchy matchy. Bet it's a fun rig to throw around!
This rises a few things I should mention...

- the grips! The only black grips I had laying around are the ones in there. They have a nice feel, but the clamps are anodised red. I wasn't too keen on that, but it doesn't offend me and doesn't look as bad as green purple blue or pink would have.

- Red decals on the wheels, really? Yeah...they were the last set available. Perhaps even the last set of pre-built 26 inch with my hub sizes available.

- why the fucking white cables? Well I couldn't find any black ones. There was the white (which is purchased for a build many years ago) or neon green (left over from my last pivot). Naturally once I had the cables cut and installed I found a few quite suitable black options.

- why such long cables? Because I'm hardcore and clearly need them.
 

pink poodle

気が狂っている男
the rear tyre branding in not quite lined up with the rim deacls...just a heads up, so you can rectify before Moorsy has a crack!
sweet looking rig though, I look forward to hearing stories in the FW thread as things break and fall off it from an overly confident owner and his weekly follies :D
It's a fluke they line up at all! I'll just hit the decals with the grinder and remove them.

No folly, all confidence! Send for life.
 

Daniel Hale

She fid, he fid, I fidn't
[QUOTE="pink poodle, post: 3314490, member: 77860"
Tyres: maxis crossmark, 26x2.2
Tubes: damn right I use tubes
[/QUOTE]
Crossmark’s on such a sweet build? :oops:
 

Mr Crudley

Glock in your sock
Looks great. Nice work sir.

Don't leave this one parked anywhere in public unless a large and hungry dog is tied to the handlebar.
 

pink poodle

気が狂っている男
Did you whack any rubber bands in the rear shock pre-send?
It will be a little while before I get it on trail. The forks have been in a box for a couple of years and a quick ride through town made it clear they need a trip to the shop.

I'll ride the shock as is and see how it feels before making any fine tunes.

Crossmark’s on such a sweet build? :oops:
They'll serve this bike's purpose just fine. That being the local hard pack surfaced fast open flowing freeride trails and dirt jumps. There's an xc loop there, but...I'm not old enough to ride the shit yet (it's a long ride from here to the trails and I'm not in for 2 bi climbs in a day!).


Looks great. Nice work sir.

Don't leave this one parked anywhere in public unless a large and hungry dog is tied to the handlebar.
This one isn't for riding to/from work/shops/massage parlour


Looks like a fun bike, but you could have at least cleaned the drivetrain pre-photo!
Cleaned? It's brand new...rode about 300m to take photos...not sure how much cleaner it can get? Last photo it's just sitting in a shadow.
 
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pink poodle

気が狂っている男
Well the day finally arrived! The shop had tuned up my forks for me. It was time to collect the bike and hit the dirt! After the arduous tasks of walking to the shop (I hate walking) and riding to Glenrock Lagoon.

So overall I really enjoyed the brief outing. The bike was given a no holds barred trial by combat over the dirt lumps, the big jumps, a small (maybe 50cm a most?) drop, railing through some berms, and even 1 Small brief ride back to the top.

On the dirt lumps is where I found the most annoyance with the bike. I had a similar frustration as I did with the NS Snabb, being that when I attempt to manoeuvre for a whip or table top the seat is trying to fuck me in he arse or pushing into the back of my leg. The seat isnt crazy long, about 270mm, but it is the same seat. I've a few other seats in the garage so will do a little swapping and hopefully get it cleared. By comparison the seat, bars, and stand over are reasonably similar positions to my Nomad on which I do not have this experience. The Nomad also runs a seat that is about 280mm long. This is going to bug me. It was one of the main reasons I decided to sell the Snabb! Fortunately the chainstays on the Scout feel much shorter than the Snabb. Otherwise the Scout rode through the 5 dirt lumps and 1 pimple known as "6 shooter" very nicely. I was fun and easy to pop and direct, and I've enough cable length for tweaking and X up.

There was quote a crowd so I moved on to the bigger jumps of the bottom quarry. A steep roll in, a step up I've posed photos of before, tweak the landing and charge into the big table (it quite long, maybe one day I'll measure it), grab the brakes and slow down for the smaller (still a good length) table. Why the fuck the chief of spades thought that ending the line with a smaller rather than bigger jump was a good idea escaped me on the day we built them and has puzzled me ever since. The bike really delivered on this set, especially the first 2 jumps. It was easy to get up up and away while controlling the bike and lining up the landings. I was really stoked.

Next stop was the drop at the start of of no b-lines. It's only a small one, hit tricky as you very quickly hit a sharp right hand turn and then the trail is a mix of railing berms and jumps. The first jump in particular requires a strong charge out of the preceding corner to clear the (roughly) 6m to lander cleanly and quicky into the "gap of doom" followed by another sharp corner and so on...firstly off the rock the bike was sweet. It was way to get the front and while bike airborne and nose dive into the lander. The feel was smooth. I repeated this a few times. Then got distracted clearing some debris and packing some fresh dirt in the lander. Back on the bike and punched it off the rock through the corners over the jumps off the log and out the bottom end. This bike is very stable through out. Tracking nicely, railing into the corners allowing for powerful fast cornering, and responsive! I really mashed the pedals into the first jump and the bike accelerated just how I needed it to for a smooth send.

Then I pedalled back up the hill on an annoying winding trail popular with grumpy old men that traverses the business end of the free ride type trails. They often meander along blindly seeming to expect riders blasting down the hill over a variety of obstacles (mostly jumps) to give way to them. Anyway I too plodded up this trail and back to the fire road. Not knowing much about pedalling up hill...I guess the bike worked? I got to where I was headed.

Then here was lots of mozzies and I rode home.

Pics of the bike! Seems I have forgotten how to take a photo too.
 

Attachments

pink poodle

気が狂っている男
And I am pretty sure I know the answer to this question, but...@ultralord am I meant to use a zip tie to connect my cables to the widget I've circled in blue?

IMG_20200507_151945963~2.jpg
 

pink poodle

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