Sheep-Dog Bites 2.0
Clone Parts

"2% of riders, destroy 98% of the parts"

That's what a shop owner tells me, and I have heard it before. Are you one of those 2%? Am I?

I don't consider myself to be. Most others don't either. I ride smooth, and I don't chuck my bike.

Yet, in the last year I have gone through (not counting what I am using);

7 brakes, (broken! 4 due to manufacturing defect, one due to modification, sadly it was a Shimano, 2 were upgraded )
2 rear hubs, (one temp, other changed for change and to preserve its integrity, I may be about to go through another one )
20 pairs of brake pads, (everything but worn)
3 chain tensioners, (icepicks, stress)
2 sprockets, (one temp, one used as hatchet on a tree, don't ask)
2 chains, (wear)
6 headsets, (broke, wobbled, you name it)
1 stems, (pinched first day)
4 tires, (worn)
2 pairs of grips, (worn and torn)
4 pairs of pedals, (all bent, one too concave)
1 bar, (too little sweep)
1 front hub, (temp)
2 set of rear spokes, (one destroyed, one set was temp)
1 set of front spokes, Changed with temp hub)
1 set of bar ends, (Bad pair of Kink, a bitch to tighten)
1 gyro, (broke due to modification for King)
1 seat clamp (pinched)
7 sets of cranks, (one killed, rest just trying experimenting)
Bundles of brake cables and housings (experimenting and changing before they break or they kinked)


Damn, I never really added all that up until now. Granted some was changed do to not liking them. Like the primo pedals. Too concave for me. 1 set of hubs were only temporary until I got my Profile hubs, same for the spokes and sprocket. Some parts just wear out, like grips and tires.

Others though.. Like brake pads, brakes, stems, pedals, chains, etc.. Just plain bent. broke, tweaked, self destructed, etc.. If you eliminate the parts worn,. Or changed for sake of change, it still leaves a hell of a long list of parts. You don't even want to see the list from the year before. Its even longer.

Even after looking at it, I still do not consider myself a thrasher. Many are crap parts, or just don't work for me.


What about other people.
One guy I know went through:
12 bars (3in one week)
2 cranks,
4 seats,
4 wheels
3 hubs
2 freewheels
5 forks
couple sprockets and chains
several stems (he actually bent them!)
scores of tires, tubes, and grips

Untold amounts of others. These are just what I know of. Most of these were done in only 6 months.

Slow year for him.. REALLY!
He never has a straight handle bar for more than a week.

How? He is a dirt jumper.. and a damn smooth one at that.

He chucks his bike..
He literally scrounges for parts constantly because of it.

When I got back into riding I was told by him (he worked at the shop I did for a while) what parts were good, and what were bad. I was told by others as well. He was considered a good person to ask about parts quality because of how many he went though. I was not aware of HOW he went through so many.

As time went on, he started putting together a bike that actually somewhat held up. Truth is, it was just him controlling his temper some, I think.

The one part that I saw actually survive him, he took off after 4 months and claimed it sucked. I was in awe. Why take it off if it worked. It made no sense. Anyhow, the rim was sold, and a buddy bought it. It was a rear rim that had actually survived Jerry Bagley as well as this guy. S&M Trail Rider actually has it now. It was a 36h prototype RBJ-1.

How the rim held up to both of them amazed me, yet whenever I asked about the rim, everyone claimed it was a piece of shit. I started asking other shops and people, and after I started working at the shop started asking more questions. Seemed that my shop was the only one really disliking the rim. Some people did because Schwinn used it, thought it had to be junk, and others thought it was too expensive, but most shop workers loved it.

So why was my shop so against it? It was because the one guy had said it sucked. He had to true it a few times, but for the most part it held up to everything his Alex had.

I honestly think he hated the rim for the fact that IT DID SURVIVE. Some people actually think if you do not break parts, you are not riding hard enough or there is something wrong with you. I had a guy tell me that the other night when he commented about his bike running like crap, and I said I had not really touched mine in a while. "If you're not breaking stuff, your not riding hard enough"

He claimed to be half joking, but the truth is, many people actually believe that. If they don't break it riding, then they often will by chucking it, after claiming they are not riding up to their level. Blame the bike, chuck it, go home, then claim to be the badass who broke the new trendy frame. I am not proud to break that many parts. I do like to experiment though, but I actually try not to break things. I would go through 3 times as much if I did not have to worry about parts at all.

Shops hate those people. So do manufacturers. They make them money, but they also give good companies a bad reputation.

After I got my RBJ-1's, 2 other locals got them after seeing the luck I had with them. One was totally impressed. The other was mildly. He flat spotted one after tagging (hard) on a concrete ledge from 5 feet up and over a 12-foot gap at the local park. Like I told him.. Only an Alex would survive that. For a long time he blamed the rim.

There is also the opposite case. Where a lightweight, non-destructive rider says a frame works great for him, yet a heavier rider like myself will destroy it in a matter of days.

Point is, be careful about who you listen to for advice on parts. I try to give you facts on what it can and cannot handle, but even I make mistakes on recommendations. For others and me. Just because a part is trendy, or light or whatever, does not mean it will work for you. Some frames and parts are designed for less stress and/or people who replace them often.

Don't go for the hype in this industry. It's bad and will cost you a lot of hard earned money.