Bird Aeris owners thread

PB Forum :: All Mountain, Enduro & Cross-Country

1
...
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
...
191

Author	Message

Pablo16v

Posted: May 15, 2019 at 5:37

Quote

PETESHIPTON wrote:

Anyone running an Aeris AM9 with a 160/170mm fork?

Yes. I spent most of the past year running an Avalanche 160mm Pike and a 160mm 36 RC2, and I’m currently running a 170mm Lyrik RC2. I’d actually ordered a 160 Lyrik but received the 170 by mistake, so now trying to decide if I’m going to leave it as it is or fit a recently purchased 160mm air spring. The official word from Bird is that their warranty only covers 150mm forks, but my AM9 felt great with the 160 forks and although it’s still early days I’ve not noticed any negative handling traits with the Lyrik, so based on my experience so far I would quite happily recommend fitting a 160mm fork to an AM9. Just be mindful of the warranty situation.

Pablo16v

Posted: May 15, 2019 at 5:39

Quote

Pablo16v wrote:

Arierep wrote:

Anyone has an idea how well the stock tune of an off the shelf Marzocchi Bomber CR shock suits the AM9?

I recently ordered one and was hoping to have had it fitted by now but the delivery has been delayed for another couple of weeks

Arierep – my Bomber shock has just turned up so as long as the Nukeproof SLS spring arrive tomorrow as planned I’ll hopefully be out riding it tomorrow evening. Will let you know how I get on.

R-M-R

Posted: May 15, 2019 at 9:10

Quote

PETESHIPTON wrote:

Anyone running an Aeris AM9 with a 160/170mm fork?

Yes. Feels balanced, though the MRP Ribbon at 160 mm isn't as stiff as it should be.

PETESHIPTON

Posted: May 17, 2019 at 10:50

Quote

Pablo16v wrote:

PETESHIPTON wrote:

Anyone running an Aeris AM9 with a 160/170mm fork?

Thanks man, great info to know, its defo something I'm looking into. I am yet to order mine but looking to go ahead within the next week, and thats an upgrade I'd potentially look to make pretty quick.

Has anyone had any trouble with anything on this bike? play in the linkage, cracks etc or any other down sides at all? I've only read good stuff so far.

clamps81

Posted: May 17, 2019 at 12:42	Quote
The chainstay bearings are an absolute nightmare to remove. Other than that no issues after a couple of years of use. I'd like a bit more bottle cage space in the triangle of my medium 145, but it's an acceptable tradeoff.

hookso

Posted: May 17, 2019 at 14:37	Quote
Made this custom bottle cage today. Fits a reasonably large bottle on my large am9 with piggy shock. Not tested it in anger yet but seems pretty solid.

R-M-R

Posted: May 17, 2019 at 14:58

Quote

hookso wrote:

Made this custom bottle cage today. Fits a reasonably large bottle on my large am9 with piggy shock. Not tested it in anger yet but seems pretty solid.

Love it!

What do you think about wedging something under the rear to slow the inevitable fatigue?

rock3gozy

O+

Posted: May 21, 2019 at 2:53	Quote
Anyone got any opinions on the optimum offset for the AM9? Currently on 46, I like steep tech as much as I like fast riding so would a switch to 41 be silly? Just under 5'10 on a ML.. Also intrested in feedback on the MRP Ribbon Coil if anyone runs this, especially for harder riding, drops and jumps.

R-M-R

Posted: May 21, 2019 at 8:10

Quote

rock3gozy wrote:

Anyone got any opinions on the optimum offset for the AM9? Currently on 46, I like steep tech as much as I like fast riding so would a switch to 41 be silly?

Just under 5'10 on a ML..

Also intrested in feedback on the MRP Ribbon Coil if anyone runs this, especially for harder riding, drops and jumps.

6' on Large, Ribbon Coil 160 mm with 46 mm offset.

First, offset gets far more attention than it deserves. It's really not a big deal and you probably won't even notice the difference between 41 mm and 46 mm ... but you do have to choose one, so you might as well base the choice on more than a coin flip.

- The AM9 is already super long, so shortening the front a few millimeters is fine - might even help in technical terrain.
- I like a super stable front end, so the added trail of a shorter offset suits me. Not everyone likes the heavy steering feel. I recently spent some time on a bike with a bit less trail and found the steering annoyingly light and unstable, so I maintain more trail is better.
- Reduced offset helps a fork move smoothly when you're not on the brakes. Increased offset helps when you are on the brakes. Can't suggest a clear winner on that one.

If I had to do it again, I'd go with the 41 mm offset, but I've also heard from folks who have replaced their reduced-offset forks with a 51 mm offset and preferred the lighter steering feel.

Regarding the performance of the Ribbon: I'm not convinced it's better. BikeRadar recently tested ten forks and the Ribbon Air placed dead last. My Ribbon Air was astoundingly harsh; I was running it with half the recommended pressure just to get some compliance out of it and I would visibly fall behind other riders when coasting through rough sections, which did not happen on other forks. The Coil has been far better - enough so that it may be on par with Fox and RockShox, but it's not superior.

First, stiffness is comparable to a Pike or 34; if you want stiffness like a 36 or Lyrik, this isn't your fork - at least not in 29" x 160 mm.

Damping is definitely different from Fox and RockShox. I'm not yet sure exactly what I'm feeling; I suspect there's less separation between HSC and LSC. Sometimes it uses a lot more travel than I expected, particularly on low to medium shaft speed impacts, but adding a considerable amount of LSC reduces comfort on high shaft speed impacts. A high amount of Ramp Control helps with this, but then you lose some compliance on large impacts with high shaft speed. I'm concerned this may be the problem with twin-tube dampers on forks: just too much compression damping at very high shaft speeds. Öhlins is harsh at high speeds, Trust is harsh at high speeds, MRP is harsh at high speeds, Cane Creek claims they abandoned their signature twin-tube for the Helm because it didn't feel right ... there seems to be a pattern. I haven't tried a Fox 36 with Grip2 damper or the latest Lyrik; I suspect I'd trade my Ribbon Coil for either. It's not a terrible fork, like my Ribbon Air was, but it's not superior to the competition.

rock3gozy

O+

Posted: May 21, 2019 at 8:51

Quote

Cheers R-M-R. At the moment I am tied to MRP, I have had the Ribbon Air for eleven months and had several issues but in general it has been a good fork. I had a Yari for a while (when the Ribbon was away under warranty) and the Ribbon is definitely better but that is to be expected. Annoyingly I bought some Lyriks for a great price in the winter but the Ribbons were behaving so they went to pay some bills- I wasn't confident in the resale value on the MRP would be as strong.

Fast forward and the distributor has kindly offered to replace this pair after another problem, hence the choice to be made. 46 offset in coil has a longer lead time at the moment. I guess whatever I get I should look at alternatives as selling a new pair should be easier/more cost effective..

Joemmo

Posted: May 21, 2019 at 8:59	Quote
Nice work on that bottle cage @hookso ! If you could make one that was adjustable fore and aft and on angle then I reckon you could have a viable product. Seems to a common issue for quite a few frames when using a piggyback shock.

nedersotan

O+

Posted: May 22, 2019 at 8:04	Quote
I wish the bottle cage mounting bottle were set lower down. There is still some space below the bottle, but the top hits the piggyback shock.

R-M-R

Posted: May 22, 2019 at 14:36

Quote

nedersotan wrote:

I wish the bottle cage mounting bottle were set lower down. There is still some space below the bottle, but the top hits the piggyback shock.

True. A spacer under the rear mount would allow it to be moved even farther.

I managed to fit a small bottle and a pump under the bottle cage under my EXT Arma, but it took fourteen modifications to the cage and pump bracket.

The basic gear:

- Symmetrical cage that allows the bottle to sit more rearward
- Specialized Big Mouth bottle is shorter than most and the long taper on the bottom works nicely with the shape of my cage
- Planet Bike Ozone pump brackets can have great offset with modification

Hours of bending, filing, and sanding later, I have a pump and bottle on an AM9 with a massive shock.

P.S. Your pump storage solution is super tidy. Nicely done!

Thick-as-a-Brick

O+

Posted: May 25, 2019 at 5:51

Quote

How much sag are you supposed to use on a AM9? I just built up my bike from parts. I weigh around 85 kg/190lb and at 165 psi I get around 25-28% sag on the Rockshox Deluxe RT provided by Bird. I have no idea how many volume spacers they put in there.
Today I made my first test ride, the rear end feels really smooth, perfect for a lazy flatpedal rider like me. When I got home I saw that the shock had used all the travel, although I only made a small huck to flat, about 3 ft high I think. I didn't feel the bottom out.
How much sag should I use? Would you recommend adding some volume spacers? Also, what sag is recommended for the fork?

R-M-R

Posted: May 25, 2019 at 10:25

Quote

Thick-as-a-Brick wrote:

It's fine to occasionally bottom out the suspension. If you don't use all the travel, it might as well not exist!

The AM9 is very progressive, so run more sag than on other bikes and start with zero spacers. I suggest around 30% - 35% sag. This would make the shock less resistant to bottoming than your current set-up, so adjust accordingly.

Vorsprung has the best videos available on suspension set-up. Don't worry about sag as much as things like responsiveness and bottoming. Forks don't move as smoothly as rear suspension, so it's difficult to set them via sag. Definitely less sag on a fork than on the rear, though.

1
...
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
...
191

30 mins ago	Old Riders....But not "Old School"
36 mins ago	Secret billionaire mountain bike trails in Princess Louisa Inlet?
2 hours ago	Mechanics Quick Question Thread [Ask Questions Here]
3 hours ago	Metallic rattling on a PIVOT AM with Bosch CX Race motor, is this normal? XTR brake rattling cause this?
4 hours ago	2020 Trek Roscoe 7 > Upgrades and conversions Help
4 hours ago	Report Scammers on Pinkbike HERE Read 1st Post then contact captainbringdown directly
6 hours ago	Chain lube ?
7 hours ago	Ultimate Kids Enduro Bike Build: Specialized Riprock 24
8 hours ago	100 (or more) days of biking in 2024!
8 hours ago	Where are the Transition relay reviews???
9 hours ago	Pig ugliest AM/Enduro/XC/DH bikes out there if yours is a pig post it!
9 hours ago	Works Component Angleset Replacement Bearings
10 hours ago	New Magura Brake Noise
10 hours ago	Specialized Status
11 hours ago	The Sexiest AM/FR/Enduro Hardtail Thread (Please read the opening post)
11 hours ago	Fox DHX 3/4/5 Coil - Oil and o-ring replacement guide
11 hours ago	Transition bottlerocket or Diamondback mission 2
11 hours ago	Marzocchi 888 RC3 EVO V2 service
11 hours ago	BROMONT RIDERS!
11 hours ago	Home Made Bikes
12 hours ago	Trek Slash 2021 ?
13 hours ago	Garmin Epix Pro Gen 2
13 hours ago	Forbidden Druid
13 hours ago	Stanchion boots (rather lack thereof)
13 hours ago	Customer service and parts