Cruzbike Newbie looking for some tips...

[Postapocalypsia]

Hi folks, I am new to cruzbiking and for the past 6 weeks have been learning to ride a near new condition 26” Quest v2. I am now proficient enough to get around quiet roads and bike trails confidently as well as starting on slight inclines and using one hand for indicating at corners. All great, I love the bike and the way it feels to ride.
Looking forward, I am curious to do a bit of tweaking to make the experience better. Having trawled this forum to see how other folks use their Quests, here are my thoughts...

First up I will swap out the rear shock for the kindshock air option mentioned often in the posts. One question though...I read where someone accidentally bought the 150mm instead of the 125mm, and found that the extra 25mm ride height was preferable. I suspect I would prefer that as well - are there any issues regarding this that I should be aware of?

Secondly, I would like to change the front shock/tyre arrangement. I hear a lot of folks benefit from locking off the front suspension, but the original Maxxis Detonator tyre would do nothing to soak up any bumps. Because I live in a moderately hilly area, I would like to retain my low end gearing and opt for a fatter tyre. I can see a number of options I could take but am not sure which is best...
I was impressed with Castlerobber’s approach of using 24” rims with Schwalbe Kojaks. This way I can retain my original gearing and forks, the only drawback being the expense of a rim rebuild.
Alternately, I am curious to know how big a tyre I can safely put on the original rim, knowing I can file the forks a little if necessary. Having done this, I assume the hill climbing ability would be compromised, so I could swap out the original 9 speed 11-32 cassette for an 11-36. I hope the numbers are right! I am not very technical.
I do not have deep pockets and so must consider any mods with thrift in mind.

The first change I made was to swap the pedals for something with more grip. I had realised that to compensate for torque steer when starting, I should direct my energy slightly away from the crank, to will the momentum forward instead of pushing the front wheel sideways. Now I always bias my effort this way and the new pedals reduce slippage. I was used to wearing cleats on my hybrid DF and maybe one day I will be brave enough to use them on the Q, I am sure this would help.

I have looked at some posts regarding front suspension locking, but as yet have not pulled mine apart to determine the complexity of doing it myself.

Any comment or advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[benphyr]

All looks good. You are on the right track, seems to me.

Not sure how significant the geometry change would be, but increasing the length of the shock will change the head angle, rake, trail and therefore handling to some degree. The new Q45 apparently has a slacker angle than the previous ones including Quest so the trend seems to be the opposite of what you propose. That said, I can ride my conversion kit (in my avatar) which is significantly different from the Q series.

Go for the clipless pedals at least 10% before you dare. You will wish you had made the switch earlier - but you might want to loosen them if you keep them tight on your DF. It seems common consensus that they make it easier to ride.

Welcome to the Tribe - happy riding.

 

[woodguy]

Go for the clipless pedals at least 10% before you dare. You will wish you had made the switch earlier - but you might want to loosen them if you keep them tight on your DF. It seems common consensus that they make it easier to ride.

I agree totally with benphyr. I waited until I had 100 miles on my new Q45 before going clipless, and wished I had done it sooner. I think that is especially true if you have experience using them from your DF.

 

[Gary123]

Easy to lock out fork with worm gear method.

 

[cpml123]

I agree totally with benphyr. I waited until I had 100 miles on my new Q45 before going clipless, and wished I had done it sooner. I think that is especially true if you have experience using them from your DF.

I agree. I peddled around for about an hour after I got the bike in the neighborhood. I then mounted the bike on a trainer and put on clipless pedals. I rode that for a while as the rainy season went on. When I took the bike out on the road recently I realized clipless pedals help smoothing the ride a lot even though I had not ridden outside for a few months. The force on the front end is applied more evenly.

 

[Postapocalypsia]

Thanks for the feedback! I am curious to know some detail on the worm gear method for locking the fork.

 

[Gary123]

Just slip a worm gear clamp under boot on fork slider and tighten. I actually used a short piece of PVC slit on one side. Pried open and pushed over slider then put a couple of zip ties around it and put boot over it. I like quest better without front end bouncing around.

 

[Postapocalypsia]

Thanks for that - just to clarify, your PVC matched the length of spring travel and the zip ties held it snug.
The worm gear clamp as an alternative would sit at the top end of the slider and the tension, when tightened (considerably I would imagine), would prevent any slider travel.
I appreciate your help!

 

[Gary123]

Yes PVC worked fine. Kind of tight spreading to fit around slide but once in place has worked well. Ratz posted worm gear method for Silvio some time back. Good luck

 

[Postapocalypsia]

Had a look under the rubber boot...where I imagine the clamp or PVC goes the metal flange is recessed next to the shaft. At the bottom end there is a rubber ring and a floating split metal ring (see pics). Where does the PVC sit in relation to these? It struck me that if I secure a worm drive clamp at the top it wouldn’t have even contact with the steerer tube assembly. I hope this makes sense as I am not a natural mechanic.

 

[Gary123]

Been quite a while since I did the mod. I can't really pull PVC out to examine but I did take a look under the rubber boots and everything still looks pretty tight and feels solid. Looks like PVC goes into recess and against split ring. I think I used 3/4 schedule 40 but not sure . it was tough to spread and slip over slide but has worked well.

 

[alansills]

I'm interested in getting the Q45 seat to be more upright. Would a switch in the shock potentially help? If so, what model is the kindshock air that has been referred to here? Would it need to be the 150mm shock?

 

[Postapocalypsia]

I am about to order a Kindshock A5-RR1 with 125mm travel, which seems to be the popular choice for older Quests...not sure about new ones. I also am keen to keep my seat relatively upright, at least while I am still learning better riding technique...I seem to wobble less.