TrialsMan Dan

That fills me with a lot of confidence haha! I'm really surprised by that as I have never heard of them snapping. I may have over tightened slightly when first building the bike, so damage may have already been done I guess could be worth replacing them just in case though, it seems to have developed a bit more lately!

Yes. Not sure how that would relate to the bars though.

I haven't, but could give that a shot. Its still very clean with the bike only being 6 months old but i guess it wont do any harm. I definitely feel its through the handlebars though.

Hey all, Im usually pretty clued up on these things but this one has me stumped. I have Inspired Arcade handlebars as fitted stock to my 2020 Hex. I have recently been having issues with a clicking sound coming from the handlebars and can often feel it when riding. I had this issue on my old Hex and solved it by thoroughly cleaning the stem faces and handlebar, applying teflon grease to the bolts then a small amount on the stem faces and then equally torquing bolts up to 5/6nm. I tried the same trick with my new bike and hasn't solved it. I opted to try carbon gripper paste on the handlebar clamp and again carefully equally torquing to 5nm. Still no improvement. There is no movement from the bars as far as I can see, no cracks or stress marks. I've certainly never heard of Inspired handlebars snapping either so I'm pretty confident they are structurally sound. I can flex the bars slightly and get a little click same as I get when riding. Anything to be concerned with? Any advice on what to do next would be appreciated!

Looks really cool! Great job sir!

My thoughts exactly. I think I tried it a very long time ago and just found that any time I put my weight backwards I could no longer reach the lever safely. Always noticed Martyn Ashton ran his almost horizontal (maybe due to his moto trials background). The reason I bring this up is down to potential unwanted pressure that I'm placing on my wrists. I broke my left wrist mountain biking about 12 years ago and although fully healed I do get an occasional irritation from time to time (I mean its probably just my imagination!) and wondered if running my brake levers in a more vertical position might take some pressure off somewhat.

Brake lever position - a completely individual thing and all down to personal preference however I have notice amongst many street riders they tend to run brake levers in a near vertical position. Can anyone explain to me if there are any reasons/advantages to doing so? I think i first noticed this when Mr Macaskill kindly let me have a hop on his brown Fourplay a long time ago, but have noticed this set up among other street riders. Always thought it would make it more difficult to reach the lever particularly for manuals etc. Something to do with where it places your wrists when holding the bars? I tend to run mine at a roughly 45 degree angle and that stems from my mtb background. Weird one to ask about but just wondered what (if any) advantages it gives?

Pretty much anything @Mark W has ever filmed. The Clean series including B-sides gets me itching to dig the bike out every time. More recently, Inspired in the South West with Ali is a banger.

Saw this thread being revived somewhat. Some interesting and quality machines being mentioned here! My pick would be: Danny Mac's Mk1 Inspired Fourplay - early production white one with the Tioga rims and black forks, blue Hope hubs. If i remember rightly he was running Easton carbon bars? The Monkey DH ones? Ali C's prototype Arcade as has been mentioned before with the silver rims from Clean 002. On a similar note, Mark Westlake's stealthy brakeless example from the same video. Also from Ali's bike history - the British Racing Green Hex he rode brakeless. This one (not a very good representation of the colour rightly enough!) Also looks like he drilled an old Mavic rim on this? Next up Hans Rey's GT Zaskar trials - I remember seeing this in an old MBUK feature and aside from the sketchy looking bar and stem set up, I always thought this was one sweet looking bike and I'm not sure it ever appeared all that much. Finally a couple from Mr Ashton - some prototypes that didnt make it to production. A real shame as the Licence frame looks like the perfect all round play bike. These are some scans from old MBUK's not long after I got into riding about '06/'07. This one is some kind of prototype Orange (weren't Orange making the Ashton frames around then?) The all black Justice someone mentioned as ridden by Rowan Johns is a pretty good shout too! Notice a theme here? I like my bikes looking pretty simple yet looking effective at their intended purposes. Nothing fussy or overly designed.

Thanks Adam, might give this a go!

I never really went away to be fair. I was done with SRAM/Avid a long time ago...

Hey folks, recently acquired a 2020 Inspired Hex...loving it!! One minor thing has been causing a bit of trouble though and that is brake pad movement in the front brake calliper. After the first few rides I contacted Tarty for some advice and they kindly explained that this can settle in as the brakes bed in. The rear brake as settled in now and isn't quite as bad now to the point it is hardly noticeable. Both front and rear disc rotor bolts are all torqued to 6nm, front possibly a bit higher as I cannot get any more safe torque without potentially rounding off the bolts (i'm so careful about this!). Does anyone have any advice on how to sort this as it is making the bike feel like the headset is loose but clearly the movement is coming from the braking area. Calliper bolts all tight. I remember a trick that could be done with the split pins on Shimano's by wrapping them in a thin layer of tape but this doesn't seem possible with Hope brakes, the retaining pin is tight to the holes in the pads. Any other solutions? Cheers Dan

Right, just adding some more info/context to this since I am a returning forum user. Recently got one of the last 2020 Hex's and straightaway found that the stock set up with tubes and Conti Racekings were super easy to squash through unless inflated to at least 40psi. Although the bike felt very light and responsive I knew I wanted to swap out the tyres with something with a bit more support on the sidewalls. Taking Ali's recommendation of the Crossmark II's I decided to go with that plus switching to tubeless with the Muc-Off kit. I also decided to get some Rimpact inserts but only fit to the rear. After a few calculations I worked out I wouldn't be adding much weight (if any). The proof would be in the pudding through. After fitting the tyres and the insert on the rear - a struggle admittedly but I watched Ali's video on the Cushcore set up and got it that way. First ride - a bit of a disappointment I must say. The bike felt much heavier than stock and gone was the nippy, responsive feel. With the insert the bike felt so dead on the rear wheel, harder to gap etc. Next day that was ripped right out and tyre refitted, topped up with the remaining sealant. I then took a few hops to settle everything and get tyre pressures feeling right. 25-28psi front, 35-38psi rear. Perfect. Bike feels nice and responsive again (slightly heavier than stock but then again the tyres are slightly heavier to start with - although feel tougher and less likely to puncture, more material on the top and sides compared to the Race kings it seems - those Conti's are whippet tyres for sure - must be amazing on an XC bike they are intended for!) I'm finding I don't rim out quite so much, maybe on sharp edges but overall feel is much more solid. So yeah the takeaway from this? Unless you are a bit of a basher then take inserts at the expense of potentially making your bike feeling rather wooden...

Hey all, been a very long time since last posting on the forum but still riding regularly. I'm off on holiday to North Yorkshire next week and was contemplating taking my Hex with me. Staying in the village of Askrigg but figured the closest decent street would be about an hour away in Skipton - or could travel an hour the other way and arrive in Kendal. Anybody in the area up for a hop between the 10th-14th or suggest anywhere to ride? Cheers

Is the question really necessary? At the bare bones trials is manoeuvring your bike over obstacles so by whatever means necessary.

Nice post Ross, keep them coming. I pretty much stopped buying MBUK when it got it's facelift and removed anything to do with trials. I remember a good article where Martyn Ashton and Grant Fielder swapped roles but adapted their own bikes to suit (Martyn going dirt jumping, Grant doing trials). Pretty sure there's an issue which featured an interview with a young Mr Travis...

Not trying to put Inspired on a downer here, I mean I think its great that they are thinking of younger/smaller riders but im not sure the Flow will be a big seller. They have certainly created this for a very niche market, there is nothing else out there like it. Il be wrong, no doubt, but its what im thinking.

I dont really understand what it is you are exactly asking here, since you have gave an example at the bottom of your post. You either know what you're talking about or you dont. If you dont know what effect each change will make you are probably not experienced enough in the sense that you have maybe only ridden one bike. I think you need to try riding some fellow trials riders bikes to get a grasp of how geometry affects the bike's handling. I take it you are looking for a custom frame next?

Hashtagg Raging is what I do when im angry.

Take it you've moved to the city now Ross? Im beginning to make an appearance back a bike again, will be checking the forum a bit more often now just let me know of any rides coming up. Usually working at weekends but I have a couple Saturdays off in December if anythings organised.

I never saw that, il go hunt the post, quite excited about some new stuff being available

Got a Saint M810 on the front for mine recently, its mega! Using a 180mm Hope Trial rotor and not having any issues though I have to say they definitely dont feel as strong as a Shimano or Avid rotor. I also find the Saint pads tend to move about slightly, say id bunnyhop or just do a couple moves, id hear the pad scraping slightly afterwards, recified by tapping the lever slightly a couple times to reset the pistons. Might actually try pressing the lever with no rotor in for as slightly better bite point.

Just spent the last half hour reading through this thread, kept me entertained to say the least! I stopped using the forum because of such heated debates but came back about a year or so later to see nothing has changed. Anyway, loving the looks of the Arcade im now tempted to go back to 24, but im just not riding often enough now to justify any new bike. Still, im interested in some if the new Inspired parts which could make welcome appearances on my Hex. Are the Arcade 'bars definitely on their way too? Also quite curious to know which grade of steel the Arcade actually is.

Funnily enough, we have a local lad who we call 'Beaver' or 'Beav'. Thats mainly due to his beaver-esque front teeth arrangement. Must be about 15/16 and used to ride on a bashed up X-Rated bike, gears were all knackered up and so ripped the front and rear mechs off and ran 'singlespeed'. Used to come to our local skatepark and jump everthing and rode the bowls too. His speciality were ETs, something he grasped in an afternoon (beats my learning curve by half a year). Last time I saw him he was on some Apollo thing, so the jump bike has clearly gave up the ghost. It's been a while since I last rode our skatepark on a busy day and haven't seen sight of him since last year at least...hope he's still out riding though, was certainly an entertainer!

For me, I just go and ride my bike. My style is definetely streety, I prefer to ride things with a bit of speed and be more flowy and creative, however I dont purposefully classify myself as a 'Street' or 'TGS' rider when on my Inspired, I just go and ride. With the Hex, Inspired have created a bike that feels good no matter what you do with it/how you ride, I rarely even think of it as a trials bike now...its just a bike. Without stirring up too much bitching, how 'TGS' riders can say that 'Street' isnt proper trials or is BMXy is beyond my belief, if you look back to old videos with the likes of Ryan Leech, Jeff Lenosky, Martyn Ashton, Chris Akrigg, heck even old Danny Mac videos, what they were/are doing is simply riding trials. Theres nothing new in what is perseved to be new riding styles, only pushing the boundaries. I'd go as far as saying that the TGS style of riding is newer fad than 'Street'. Having drifted away from the forum, its nice to see this topic and think its business as usual here......