Gus Boots build

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Jacob Byard

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Apr 16, 2023, 8:13:28 PM4/16/23
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Hello All- 


I’ve had enough time on the Gus Boots to have a few opinions. 


Pics- https://imgur.com/a/0l7aA17


The build is as follows-

Frame: Gus Boots XL

Crankset- White Industries M30 with 32 tooth chainring

Bottom bracket- White Industries

Rear derailleur- SRAM GX AXS

Rear cassette- SRAM Eagle 11-50 12 speed

Wheels- Velocity Cliffhanger laced to some cheap Shimano hubs

Brakes- Paul Motolites

Levers- Paul Love Levers

Shifter- SRAM AXS shifter

Handlebar- Simworks Ramble bar

Stem- Industry Nine 50mm

Seatpost- KS Dropper 27.2 sanded to fit 26.8

Dropper lever- Cheap KS lever

Grips- Ergon 

Bar ends- SQ Labs Inner Bar Ends

Saddle- Brooks B17 with cut out

Tires- RH Fleecer Ridge 700x55 in the endurance casing

Front bag support- Swood T-Rack

Front bag- Road Runner Jammer 

Stem pouches- Makeshifter Canvas Works


That covers everything, I think.


I’ve swapped through a few cockpit setups before settling on this one. The Ramble bars work really well for me. Maybe the grip area needs to be a touch longer but I’ve gotten used to it. I still need to wrap the hooks but haven’t gotten around to it. SRAM just released a new AXS shifter and I believe it’s a bit smaller so I might change that out. The dropper lever needs to be changed but I’ll sort that out later. 


I love wireless shifting. Friction and indexing are great and I have other bikes running both. If I had the money all my bikes would be electronic shifting. SRAM AXS is so easy to set up and works wonderfully. 


I turned the 27.2mm dropper post into a 26.8mm dropper post. It works but not it’s not great. I believe the outer wall is too thin now and too much pressure is being applied to the internals of the post. It’s very slow to return. Once I get a little extra cash I plan to buy a seat post reaming tool and convert it to a 27.2mm seat tube. Then I’ll get a new dropper (SRAM makes an AXS wireless model…) and lever. I might even drill a hole in the seat tube to allow for internal routing (unless I go the wireless route). 


I’m not sure how many miles I’ve logged (400-500?) but it’s handled everything well. This weekend I went bikepacking at the FInger Lakes. The bike was heavier but I didn’t notice it. Even down steep hills I felt very comfortable and in control. A few weeks back we went to Asheville and rode all over Bent Creek. That was just perfect. With the RH tires I had plenty of grip. I noticed when I had RH slicks the rear tended to lose traction. I’m attributing this to the long chainstays? After switching to the Fleecer Ridge model that problem went away. My local PA rides have mostly been country roads or rail trails. 


I did try a rack and basket set up but the front wheel flop was annoying. A large Fabio’s Chest  works well. The Road Runner Jammer is perfect for day rides and paired nicely with the panniers for an overnighter. 


All in all I like the bike and would probably purchase it again. The handling is excellent and the ride is nice. The seat tube is annoying and I would like it to be a little shorter. I use a rack for short drives but on longer trips I end up taking the wheels off and put the bike in my car. Rim brakes are kind of annoying too. Fitting a rack is a pain because you have to work around the Motolites. The Tumbleweed T-Rack works fine. One of my Surly racks wouldn’t work. That’s a minor issue though. 


If there’s any questions just let me know. 


Cheers,


Jacob

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Jay Lonner

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Apr 16, 2023, 8:32:11 PM4/16/23
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That looks great. I had a Gus Boots in my cart on the day they were released but ended up deciding to go in a different direction. Rim brakes were one of factors that deterred me. I think my build would have been very close to yours, though.

Not to hijack your thread, but I was very interested to learn about your experience with wireless shifting. I’m in the process of speccing a current generation dual suspension trail bike and the SRAM AXS system is one of the options offered. At first I was like “nah” but now you’ve got me reconsidering. It’s occurred to me as I’ve been demoing bikes that Grant’s mantra “Just Ride” cuts both ways — sure you can do a lot on a Rivendell, but other approaches also have their place. It’s all biking; let a thousand flowers bloom.

Jay Lonner
Bellingham, WA

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On Apr 16, 2023, at 5:13 PM, Jacob Byard <jacob...@gmail.com> wrote:



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Brian Turner

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Apr 16, 2023, 9:10:12 PM4/16/23
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Looks great! Just curious, how have the MotoLites been causing issues with fitting racks? I’ve had two different front racks, and two different rear racks on my Medium Gus - also with MotoLites. The only part that ever came close to the brake was the front rack diving boards, and they still cleared just fine.

I also started with a 32t White chainring and am running an 11-speed cassette (11-51). I eventually swapped to a 34t because I wanted a bit more range on the higher end. The bike was so comfortable and rode really great on pavement, even with big 2.5 Ehlines, so I ended up riding it a lot more around town than I initially thought I would. The ring swap helped me distribute my gear range a bit more for both paved and trail riding.

On Apr 16, 2023, at 8:32 PM, Jay Lonner <jay.l...@gmail.com> wrote:

That looks great. I had a Gus Boots in my cart on the day they were released but ended up deciding to go in a different direction. Rim brakes were one of factors that deterred me. I think my build would have been very close to yours, though.

Jay Lonner

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Apr 16, 2023, 9:25:37 PM4/16/23
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Jacob I have one additional question — when using a large Fabio’s Chest do you use any sort of rack or support such as a Pec Deck? I can’t see one in the photo, but maybe that’s your Jammer?

Jay Lonner
Bellingham, WA

Sent from my Atari 400

On Apr 16, 2023, at 5:13 PM, Jacob Byard <jacob...@gmail.com> wrote:



Hello All- 

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Jacob Byard

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Apr 16, 2023, 9:36:59 PM4/16/23
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The electronic shifting works every time. Yeah you can run out of battery life but they last a long time and a spare is easy to carry. I’ve had di2 and it’s excellent but uses wires so it’s harder to install. With the wireless AXS it’s more or less ready to go out of the box. I’ve got a high level mechanical Eagle groupset on my hardtail and it shifts great so I can’t justify the upgrade but I would spec a new bike with AXS. I broke my hand in a crash and the ease of clicking a button is appreciated. I also hate cables. 

A bike is a bike and whatever makes you want to ride it is cool with me. 

Good luck with the new dual suspension. I’ve thought about one but I’m not wild enough to justify a purchase. 

-Jacob

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On Apr 16, 2023, at 8:32 PM, Jay Lonner <jay.l...@gmail.com> wrote:

That looks great. I had a Gus Boots in my cart on the day they were released but ended up deciding to go in a different direction. Rim brakes were one of factors that deterred me. I think my build would have been very close to yours, though.

Jacob Byard

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Apr 16, 2023, 9:42:33 PM4/16/23
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Hey Brian,

The issue I ran into was the noodle hitting the Surly rack. I think it’s the Surly 8 pack rack? It doesn’t offer a ton of flexibility in mounting. My Bridge Club has more fork eyelets so set up is easy. The Rawland rando rack mounted just fine. I might have tried a Nitto as well. I’ve got a lot of racks…. 

-Jacob


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On Apr 16, 2023, at 9:10 PM, Brian Turner <brok...@gmail.com> wrote:



Jacob Byard

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Apr 16, 2023, 9:45:17 PM4/16/23
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Jay,

I did not use a Pec Deck. There was plenty of clearance. I do use a Swood T-rack to keep the bags off the head tube and provide some stability. Simple and works really well. 


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On Apr 16, 2023, at 9:25 PM, Jay Lonner <jay.l...@gmail.com> wrote:

Jacob I have one additional question — when using a large Fabio’s Chest do you use any sort of rack or support such as a Pec Deck? I can’t see one in the photo, but maybe that’s your Jammer?

Richard Rose

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Apr 17, 2023, 10:35:20 AM4/17/23
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Not to be contrarian ( not my intent at all) but my journey is a bit different. I am a mountain biker at heart. A few years back I graduated to a full suspension bike (Ibis Mojo 3) after a back surgery suggested that might be a good idea. I know the intent of suspension is for traction but it does smooth the ride. I just loved the Ibis and went crazy with upgrades. I got a carbon wheelset (Black Friday deal), and stumbled into a gently used XO1 AXS shifter, rear derailleur along with a Cane Creek ee wing titanium crankset. Also added a carbon riser bar at some point in an effort to get a little more upright and swept back (12 degree) due to worsening hand pain & numbness. Of course the bike had a nice dropper also. Bike was/is a real rocket ship on the trail & the AXS Works fantastically well.
Around this time I got my Clem and discovered the solution to my hand issues. Not only was I comfortable but having grown up with friction shifting, Front Derailleur’s and rim brakes I was really enjoying the “retro” riding experience. My hand issues had rendered my Ibis virtually unrideable. So I decided I needed a Gus. I found a frame & put the Ibis up for sale. No takers. So I sold some of the upgrades. I sold the AXS bits, the carbon bar & the titanium crank as well as a ten year old fatbike that hurt my knees due to very wide Q factor. These sales paid for my Gus frame! I still have the Ibis but with the original parts. It’s still for sale.
I had considered returning the Ibis to original and using the AXS bits & Ti crank on the Gus. But, I was enjoying the retro experience of the Clem so much I set the Gus up the same. I have to say that I do not miss the fancy stuff. Yes, there are less than perfect shifts that occur especially on the trail with constant quick transitions. But it does not detract from the experience of riding the most comfortable mountain bike I’ve ever known. I was really torn between going with a 1x or 2x setup. I was used to 1x on mtb’s. In reality my 2x7 drivetrain is really two 1x setups. On road/gravel rides I’ve yet to use the small ring. And on my most challenging MTB trails I’ve not used the big ring.
All said, the AXS does work flawlessly. But I think I enjoy the manual bike more.

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On Apr 16, 2023, at 8:13 PM, Jacob Byard <jacob...@gmail.com> wrote:



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