Revised Review: 2010 Trek 3900 disc

the review was originally posted 26 June 2015, then updated on March 31, 2019, but I improved the text and added pictures and then updated in 07.02.2021 added more text and more things I discovered, and added more and better pictures.

MORE PICTURES COMING SOON

Original spec, picture from Trek.

The frame:

Temporary solution just as spare bike, with parts taken off fro mother bikes. seat post from the fuel ex, reused wheels i had on 6300, and other parts, new Chris King bb, and a saddle, reused drivetrain from fuel ex, i sold most of these parts.

Trek had a V-brake version of this bike, with same frame parts, so here Trek used adapter on an adapter. the brake adapter is unnecessarily beefy, which also means it’s heavier, but the nice thing is you can replace it if you damage it.

Safety warning

Bottom bracket shell was banged up and painted over.

The paint got some damage where the front derailleur was mounted, which is normal.

for some reason the bike had a kickstand installed on it I took that off eventually, that’s probably not original spec, just something the shop put on along with a bell and reflectors.

The welds were not that bad, but nowhere near as good as Nicolai.

This is the original hanger from the factory, It only needed a slight adjustment. never caused any problems.
To remove and install hanger you need a hex key or bit and a chainring bolt tool

Bad Head tube tolerances

I installed Chris king headset in this frame, it went smoothly, but after removing it for sale, I noticed there was a wall on the right side at the bottom hole, I think this is due to bad tolerances. Chris King Headset has great tolerances. This bike was only used as a spare bike, and ridden only few times with the CK headset in it, Later I built a new bike, and stripped this bike and sold the parts, which will be done with the 6300 too. Which I have same headset model installed, so I will see how it looks like when I remove it.

But the top looked as new.

Also check out Hambini’s video on Trek Domane if you want to see distorted BB shell:

MSRP (new) $529.99

http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/2010/archive/trek/3900disc/#/us/en/archive-model/details?url=us/en/bikes/2010/archive/trek/3900disc

http://www.bikepedia.com/QuickBike/BikeSpecs.aspx?year=2010&brand=Trek&model=3900

this bike is made for commuting I have it in size 18,and in orange

the geometry so, not good for Mtb, for me, but for people with short armed and short back, this is not a bad thing, but I am about 180 cm high and i am average sized  everywhere,so  I get a very upright position, But when I was a teen i was not as big as I am now so it was ok.

which is too small of mountain biking  but for commuting its OK, you will sit upright.

the bike is no real mountain bike, frame is way too short and the handlebar is too short too, this make the bike too responsive.

ignore the sticker that say trek mountain bikes, it just refers to the standard for mountain bike frames. it’s not a mountain bike,but it can be with some upgrades.

Seat post parts look like this:

the frame can withstand mountain biking, but the geometry is horrible for mountain biking.

cons:

• Bad tolerances, banged up BB shell, it should not go out of quality control like this.
• head tube badge was put on skewed:

• max tyre size is 2.3

• Chainsuck from first ride on the way home from the shop riding on asphalt paths
• slack seat tube angle
• steep head tube angle
• horrible wheels, the rear wheel comes with a FH-M475 rear hub which has been troublesome, bending axle, possibly due to bad tolerances, this happen on all of the FH-M475 rear hubs I used.
• Eventually I only used the 3900 as winter bike, plus the front Dérailleur does not work in  below -2 degrees for some reason, maybe due to the wear it had.
• The Shimano Acera M360rear dérailleur is horrible, too soft spring, no clutch. the use of a nut instead of a bolt was a bad choice.

• The handle bar bends in a crash, a simple side fall will bend it.

• The steel handlebar bent on a crash, if I rember it correctly it was in the city centre and bike fell to the side bending the handlebar down. a decent aluminium handlebar won’t do this.
• Steel stem with only two bolts which is also quite heavy & low quality:

You can notice the low quality part I mentioned on the inside of the stem, weird wave pattern instead of a smooth hole, there were no wall there that has been rusted away, it is just made this badly, as you can see there is paint on it,so this means it clearly was like this when new.

• The fork is a SR Suntour SF9 XCT V2, 100mm travel  does not have the promised 100mm travel, but more like 20mm, the fork had play and it got even more play so when i was braking hard i felt like the fork would snap or fall apart. it also lack of adjust ability.
• Nylon Wellgo pedals, which were horrible, the plastic snapped on on side, I don’t remember how that happen, and they were very sketchy, foot coming off was a common issues for me. here is a review from Bikechanic for what seems to be the same or similar pedals:

• The all in one unit Brake & Shifters/triggers: the stock are v brake lever and shifters, shifters are horrible you need to swing the lever way too far to change gear, so changing gear becomes unnecessarily difficult. if you want the shifter to be at a good angle the brake will be at a bad angle and wise versa.

• Brakes: the bike comes with single piston mechanical brakes from Promax.. The mechanical brakes don’t work well you need to press very hard to brake. these brake are so bad that V-brakes actually are better for braking wise,not wear wise of course. so i upgraded  to hydraulic & shifters/triggers.
• Saddle– saddle is way too big for me, it wears out fast because of flex in the saddle the plastic under  it that  have screws in it will flex too so the screws will pop out.
• Overly beefy brake mount, it’s heavy, and wide.

with upgraded brakes, but they failed.

• horrible headset: VP-A68-TK, 1-1/8″ semi-cartridge, with horrible seal, making it a greasy rust water mess.

• The Bontrager LT-3, 26×2.0 tyres got horrible grip in the wet they are a death trap. on wet asphalt they slip and you will crash, there is not enough space between the knobs and the rubber is too hard and not sticky enough to grab on to the asphalt check out the the review by Bikechanic :

• 

Pros:

• replaceable derailleur hanger, which is a must.
• stiff enough for me, I am 86kg fully kitted, no issues with chain stay flex.
• the brake rotors can handle metal pads.

conclusion:

waste of money, unless you need a bike fast and it’s the only bike you can then at the point you are i the store.

Slightly Revised Long term review: Straitline DeFacto pedals

I have revised this one before 14 june, But I added some info about issues with the O-rings. I have also ordered Catalyst pedals, SO I will see how much difference they will make.

Flickr album

Straightline Components flickr group

I was so impressed with grip of these pedals that I ordered more sets so now I got 4 in total.

I run these with all pins, and the grip can’t even compare to normal cheap pedals they are on a whole new level, But They are not perfect, the short standard size platform is rideable but it’s too short for me.

I have jumped and landed with the pedal on the end of a stair end and no damage not bend no play. but they are now on my fuel ex and the left crank arm failed and the left pedal fell off, the threads for the pin failed few days later, which is probably caused by loosened pin, and damage to threads was probably done wheel the pedal fell off,I have Used Loctite 243 all of my pedals,the thread locker on the pins are will no do the job properly, So you have to apply some more.

 

No damage to the threads

 

No I did not overtighten them, it as a bike mechanic in the store that switched the pedals from my trek 6300 to the fuel ex.good they had a spare crank.I have used the pedal with the xt crank arm I got and the pedal did not fall of, so I assume it was just a faulty crank arm that caused this.

After about 2 season of use the metal rings and the locking clips will show sings of wear, I had to bend the clips with pliers to make them tight again, the O rings stretch after few months or weeks, causing the pedal to move from side to side and making knocking & creaking sounds.

But straight line provides spare parts, which can be bought directly from their site, or from online shops.

Winter Use:

After riding few days in freezing conditions& rapid changing conditions, the service intervals changed to servicing them quite often.

I had to use grease instead of lube, and apply so much grease it hindered water from coming on the inside, but the harsh conditions I rode in, still required the pedals to be serviced often. To Prevent Rust This is necessary, This is normal you will have to service any component more often in the winter.

I  did go trough several bushings in a year,about 1- 2 depending on use , as In got got several bikes & ride a lot.

Cons:

• The platform is too short, for my 44 size feet, a longer platform would be nice. But riding with the five ten impact shoes definitely help.
• The o-rings were problematic,f ew times as they stretched in a short time, and in hot weather the stretched O ring slid up from the spindle to the pedal wrench slots,after changing the shims, few times the o-rings start to wear. my experience was that I had to change them after few months or weeks,they cracked and stretched way too much way too fast, So if you got these pedals, toy need to stock these Orings.After having these issues I found on MTBR.com forum that others have the same issues. http://forums.mtbr.com/all-mountain/straitline-all-mountain-amp-pedals-727035.html

Pros:

• Very durable, can take some abuse.
• excellent construction
• excellent grip, the pins amount of pins & the sharp shape provide excellent grip, combined with Five Ten shoes it gives perfect grip.
• easy to replace pins
• easy to service, one of the easiest on the market right now

• The pedal has plastic shim, which allows the pedal to stay in place in the same position when you remove your foot from the pedal.

Conclusion

If it was not for the ”standard” size platform I could recommend these pedals,But for smaller feet these will do the job. but as I have big feet, these feel too short.

IF you decide to get these, you will lave to get better O-rings

DeFfacto are not the lightest pedals with good grip on the market, but if you want to save weight go for the Syntace nine nine titan instead, but the Straightline de facto are much cheaper, But in my opinion a longer platform medal would be better, I don’t care about some tiny weight gains.

I have wanted a longer platform pedals for years, and I wanted to buy some buy never got around to do it, but I think my next pedals will be Pedal innovations catalyst,I think I will buy them to try them out for myself, The Straitline defacto and many other pedals are too short for me, but this does not stop me from using riding well, but I can definitely feel the disadvantages of the standard platform size.

http://www.straitlinecomponents.com/products/defacto-pedals

Kjøp Straightline komponenter i Norge/buying straightline components in Norway:

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/no/en/straitline-defacto-platform-flat-pedal/rp-prod92591

eller: http://www.sykkelbutikken.no/komponenter/pedaler/mtb/straitline-defacto/

https://www.worldwidecyclery.com/pages/search-results?page_num=1&q=straightline

 

 

2 season Review: Bontrager Duster 29 wheelset

This wheelset is a perfect example of why you should know or read long term reviews.

The Bontrager hubs using in this wheelset are manufactured by Formula Hubs.

the type of riding I have done is the most normal trail/enduro/singletrack

The highest I ever jumped with these wheels was 1 meter.

This is the stock wheelset on my 2014 trek fuel ex 29ers.

The front wheel wheels were fine, but the primary bike had a noisy front wheel, its most likely the spokes, or the rings in the rim, on the rear rims many of them were loose.

Brushed & black

Maxis high roller 2 are quite hard to take on and off on this rim, a good tyre lever is needed.

Tiny tent in the left sidewall, I think this if from hitting a stair step edge, I have punctured quite many times and lost air too much air when I was riding down stairs, but this dent can probably by fixed.

The wheels get out of true way too fast.
I managed to make it true sideways but not radially.
after few km on my spare bike, the rear tyre was hitting the inner tube wrapped on the chainstay, I took off the tyre and tried to true the wheel, it was impossible to radially true it.
even at max tension & loosening the and loosening the other spokes above to make it true)the spokes could not pull the rim inwards.
the primary bike had a flat spot, but it also was untrue very fast, and the tyre hit the frame on it too, but it was fixed with truing.
but the flat spot was impossible to fix, I managed to get it better but still was about half cm out of true radially.
this was after few months

the rim had drilling residue after spoke holes.The other had something black inside it, probably drilling residue with black paint-job.

Formula DC-51- The front hub use 3/16 inch bearing

The spoke nipples:

It’s Am not brutal or using the wrong tool for the job, I have never seen so soft spoke nipples, but some worked fine. so this might be faulty nipples, something wrong with the alloy on these spokes.

many of them were inaccurate so the spoke wrench did not fit properly unless forced,
almost half of the spoke nipples got rounded off,t he metal was like chocolate that began to melt, some nipples even cracked,t o take them off I need pliers, some nipples even snapped/cracked.
I used the correct size of a wrench, I will rebuild the wheels with new rims, spokes, and spoke nipples.

I have been puncturing a lot, even I go beefy tyres: Maxxis High roller 2 2.3, and I have been riding down stairs and rough terrain, and lost air pressure, and ridden down stairs until I hear a loud bang, But I did not get any big dents.
So upgrading to tubeless might be a good upgrade.

28 spokes are too few on a 29er trail/xc/enduro bike.these are the Moist flexible wheels I ever rode.

Bigger the wheel is more spokes it needs.

more spokes easier it is to true it, and longer they stay true.

The original rim tape, eventually will twist and bend, when you get punctures.

the freehub on the spare bike had no grease in the freehub bearings.
I had ridden the bike only 60km, at the time, but this resulted in play, and loud noises, I had to repack it with grease.
the front is almost idiot proof.
It’s so easy to service as long as you got the right tools for the job.

rear hub:

the rear bearings did not need any repacking, they have good, blue grease in them.

to take off the freehub you need an 11mm Allen/Umbraco key & an adjustable wrench, and use the long side of the Allen key.

because of the Park tool 11mm, Free-hub retrench is too short for this particular hub.

Verdict:

Horrible wheelset.

Way too flexy get untrue too fast, the only good thing is the easy to service hubs

It’s best to read a lot of reviews, and see what your friends or the rest of the community are riding and what they think is good, before you order a wheelset. that what I am gonna do.

Short term Review: Shimano Deore XT M8000 with Race Face Narrow wide

On 10speed Formula/Bontrager Freehub:

If I use the 42T cog on the cassette the chain will fall off when back-pedalling, but when I shift up to 37T cog the chain stays in place no matter how hard I pack pedal.

On Hope Pro 4 freehub:

the Pro 4 free hub, is 11 speed compatible, which means it’s wider, and comes with a spacer,and with 11speed cassette, the  cassette is closer to the frame/more outwards to the right, which gives a better chain line, so the backpedalling issues is gone,Unless you backpedal at unrealistic speed,then it will fall off,but I have done 180 U turns in 1stgear(42T) and the chain never fell off.

So if your rear hub is compatible with a wider freehub,you should get one.

Huge noise reduction when riding:

The first thing I noticed after I upgraded to 1×11 is that all the slapping ,banging and scraping noises are gone from my bike.

Enter a caption

The narrow wide chain-ring will make more sound than the triple chain-ring,  but when ring in rough terrain or jumping, the noise is a lot less than a conventional triple ring set-up would make.

With this set up i used uncut CN-HG701-11 chain.

Shimano Deore XT M8000 I-Spec B shifter:

There is big  difference in the force needed to press to press the small trigger(up shift),but I got used to it after days ,and it did not feel as hard to press, and I like the shifter feel,I get less accidental shifts this way.

The change in gear is instant like promised.

The possibility to shift by bending you finger and do a finger kick motion,which you can’t do with Sram shifters.

(like this(https://youtu.be/7HvJma35fZA) to push the lever/trigger is gone, as the Shimano Deore 10 Spd had.But for me this is a acceptable compromise.

But there will be no accidental shifts

Down shifting:

• smooth lever-action.
• There is huge difference in the force required to push the triggers between SL-M610 &  M8000 , so if you plan to upgrade a kids bike you might want to let the kid try it out first,but for the youngest I recommend getting SL-M610 or something similar.

• you can shift down 4 gears

The I-Spec B shifter will have rotational play,because of the pin system, it’s not avoidable.

The screw came with a lot of  Blue thread-locker,so needed to try few times until I finally got it tight without loose shifter.

But the adjustment screws did not,so you have to buy thread locker for them, I used Loctite 243.

The rear Derailleur:

11-26T M8000 Cassette  & RD m8000 with original link & trek ABP hanger

 

Pros:

• A lot stiffer Clutch system, which is good.
• Very smooth,fast shifting movement.
• Esy to service, as long as you got magnetic bowl, and are careful with the round seal fo the spring assambly.

 

Enter a caption

 

 

Race Face Narrow wide:

The chain will not fall off no matter how hard I ride, if it falls off you must be crashing really hard.

There is some drag when pedalling but this is not noticeable when riding, the chain still wants to be on the ring for about a half of a second, but this is impossible to avoid with Narrow Wide.

If you want video proof that narrow wide works watch this video by Seth’s Bike Hacks

Me unboxing the 36T chainring

Down 50 degrees stairs test:

set up used in test: 2010 trek 6300 1 x10 36-11T cassette Shimano SLX Shadow Plus, with 36T Race Face Narrow Wide chain ring.The chain dropped when it was in 24 Tooth cog, but when I tried in 21 cog it stayed on. Even on stairs that were not that steep probably 40 degrees,the chain fell off.

Pros of 1×11:

• You get all the gears you need if you just select the right chairing for you.
• a lot quieter drive train
• dropping the chain is rare unless you ride in low gears down steep stairs.
• No front chain rigns to deal with
• easier to clean the drive train,less dirt & mud on the drive train
• if you want to sue a chain guide, you can use a single ring chain guide which will be more secure,and look better
• if you use a wide range cassette with a 9T cog you can get the a pretty high gear as you could with triple rings,but with 11-42 with 36T cassette I get a pretty good range,but once I get on the 1km flat straights I will run out of gears

Cons of 1×11: There are no real cons riding 1×11 it will have faster wearing cassette and chain of course,but that’s not a reason to not upgrade. the 37 and 42 cogs are the fastest wearing cogs, because of the bigger chain angle.

the cassette & chainring wore out at the end of the season like it did with 10×3, maybe few weeks sooner wear. I don’t have to shift as often and skip so many gear so often,so I get less side to side wear on the chain,by using 1×11,so the chain growth will be less.

If i changed the chain,a lot earlier, the cassette and ring would have lasted longer,but I had no spare chains,but I have a stock of chains now.

The Rear derailleur cage will have visible wear, with 1x  setup,because of the chain line the chain will hit the plates,but its not a big deal.

 

I absolutely recommend Both the Xt m8000 drivetrain and the Race Face Narrow Wide single chaining.

If you are not sure which gear ratio you need:http://gears.mtbcrosscountry.com/

Flickr Album: Shimano DeoreXT M8000

Flickr Album: Race Face

Review: Mucky Nutz BUTT FENDER mud guard/saddle mud guard-useless

The Mucky Nutz is is more secure, or getting hit than Ass Savers large ,which will easily fall of when hit or or pulled,but the Mucky Nutz will not fall off unless extreme forces are applied.

Pros:

• Provides pretty good protection a gianst mud from the rear tyre.
• when hit from above or under side it will stay in place.
• it will stay in place without any issues when you ride.

cons:

• does a very bad job at keeping you mud free, unless you only sit on the saddle. just look at this video:
• its hanging down a bit.
• when hit hard from the side it can snap out of place and fall off, if you crash or for example when you are getting on the bike by pulling your leg up, so be careful if you do it this way,this is not really a big issue.
• can be bit tricky to take off,but that depends on the seat post design,i got the 2014 Bontrager seat post on my fuel ex 7.On the 2014
• will not fit every saddle there is, the 2014 Bontrager Evoke 2  saddle the Fender will not stick up like this but will hand about 5 degrees down.
• there will still be dirt coming from the rear tyre but if you got a backpack or jacket on it does not matter, i use a Evoc Fr Enduro Team and the bottom part of it get bit dirty, but for me that’s not a issue,the main reason for this fender is to protect your pants or shorts being muddy.

 

Conclusion:

Useless

I can’t recommend any saddle mounted fenders, its best to have a fender mounted on the seat stays, so it protects the pivots, and the dropper seat post.

Review:BBB BSD-04 Anatomic Race-Black saddle- Uncomfortable

ncathis saddle has more cons than pros, it’s basicly butt torture for me.

the plastic on the sides and the plastic part that hold the rails will be pushed into your buttcheaks and will hurt when sitting on it.

i felt the saddle right where my butt bones/ischial tuberosities.

its very unconfortable saddle, the onyl reason i fot the saddle is because hte bontrager ssr saddle on my 3900 broke.

i now sue a Bontrager race RL wich flexes more and is thinenr btu still cmfortable.

Pros:

• pretty durable
• the front plate under the saddle did not breake
• no screws popped out.
• the grip,but can’t say how long it lasts becuase i got a new saddle as soon as i could

 

Review: 2015 BBB-11 LOUD & CLEAR Bell

 

Pros

• The spring system work very well, and never get stuck
• the plastic will not bend and touch the metal bell it self so it will always stay loud.

 

Cons:

• When wet , you can barely hear it.
• the plastic spacers do not work, so when you have the screw tightened all the way it will slide off the plastic spacers, it did slide of when i was doing some trail riding with my bike,it came off. if you buy this bell you have to mount it in the middle/wide part of the handle bar, witch is very uncomfortable way to use it, or sue some rubber spacers instead, i had some laying around. so i did that and it seems to be secure.
• cant adjust the angle, but the bells you can do that with are usually very bad
• when it was -1 Celsius the bell was not loud
• Bit less loud than the hamburger and Disney bells
• When wet the bell is not loud.

Conclusion:

Not recommended,I later bought Disney Winnie The Pooh Bicycle Bell,which is as lout,but works in rain.

http://bbbcycling.com/accessories/bells/BBB-11

Long term REVIEW: 2015 Bontrager xr1 team issue 26×2.20

I used these tyres more than 5 months. I have done some mountain-biking with these tyres,but since I now use a full suspension-bike i have not recently done any MTB with this tyres. But I have done a lot of commuting.

Pros:

• Excellent cornering grip. the side knobs provide good grip when turning,the closer pattern middle knobs gives you the fast rolling.
• fast rolling well gripping tyre for asphalt and hard-pact trails.
• very easy to put on off the rim,no tyre lever needed.
• low weight
• does pretty well on wet asphalt too,not like the LT 3 that gave no grip on asphalt

Cons:

• I am between 70 and 80 kg and I need to run minimum 40 psi or I will puncture on riding stairs or  of side walks.
• punctures easily on glass,this is cause by how thin the tyre is, it’s a about 3 mm I think.
• bit too loose when putting them on the rim.

 

1 rear tyre got a puncture lost all air,other rear tyre on a other bike exploded in the bike shop, with a loud bang, the hole was pretty big like some one  stabbed the tyre with a knife.and this was with just normal commute riding to stores,but i got them replaced i the store, and  the 6300 bike now got these tyres both on rear and front and they are holding up well as long as i run 40 psi on the rear.2 tyres failed with normal commute use,fut that was probably faulty tyres,

I have used the Bontrager xr1 team issue for a long time, without any issues.

 

Conclusion:

Recommended

Good tyre,not too expensive.

Good lightweight tyre,fast rolling excellent tyre not matter if you use it for commuting or riding on trails

price $69.99

 

 

 

 

 

1 year REVIEW: 2015 Bontrager Evoke RL MTB saddle

gallery here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/mtbboy1993/albums/72157657780474999

the seat grips well, i use craft path shorts.

i have my spare/winter bike that is bit too small, and i have the saddle maxed out to the back, and the rails have been bendt,i do nto know if its caused by my weight or roadbumps pushing the saddle into my bum.

keep the saddle as close to centre as possible. me sitting and riding on ruff road will give this result,but this will happen on most saddles,but I put the saddle in the middle position and the saddle rails straightened out almost straight.

After I adjusted the seat angle to slightly backwards, it improved the comfort a lot.

Pros:

• comfortable,even I like rounder seats better
• the front is not flexing much,I think this saddle will last a while,and not get worn out of flex on the front until it falls part, like some saddles do,but the common issue most of saddles have is that the flex make the screws holding the front in place pop out,but I prefer the method Fabric use,no screws at all.

cons:

• clicking sound from the seat flexing.

http://www.bontrager.com/model/11268