[davemchine]

I hope all of my non-macintosh questions are ok in the lounge area. If not please let me know.

I've taken up mountain biking after several years of inactivity due to a back injury. I'm riding a 14 year old Giant Boulder. The only upgrade is a Cane Thudbuster seat shock absorber to take some of the larger bumps away from my back. I'm looking at what upgrade would give me the most bang for my buck, brakes vs front shock absorber. I'm big and fat so issues of component weight are non-issues. I just need the bike to work well and be as easy on my body as possible.

So it's brakes vs front shock. What I've noticed is that my old style brake pads stop my bike just fine but they squeal enough to drive me nuts. I don't know if switching to newer brakes would fix this or not. I've also noticed that my front shock absorber bottoms out if I get up a bit of speed and go through a rough patch of rocks.

So what are your thoughts? Brakes or front shock? Sorry if I'm rambling. It's pretty late.

Dave

[OreoCookie]

I'm assuming you have this bike. This bike has a steel frame and steel forks. Steel frames and forks flex much more than aluminum does.

I'm not sure whether your frame can actually take modern brakes, e. g. hydraulic disc brakes need special mounts and the frame needs to be able to take the extra stress they exert on the frame (the frame of my old bike was rated to take only small 160 mm disc brakes for the rear wheel). Replacing one set of V-brakes with another is probably not very useful. Instead, I would try and save for a new bicycle. Similarly, I am not sure whether investing in a suspension fork makes financial sense: a decent fork costs €200 and up. The difference is not just weight, but performance.

Honestly, I think you're much better served investing in a new bike.

[Thorzdad]

I've also noticed that my front shock absorber bottoms out if I get up a bit of speed and go through a rough patch of rocks.

If your Boulder has a front shock, it's a lot newer than 14 years old. Unless you had an aftermarket shock fork installed at some time over those years.

If the shock fork is bottoming out, either the internal components are shot or the adjustments have gone off. Play with the adjusting knobs (if any) and see if that doesn't improve the ride. If not, I'd have a bike shop take a look and see if you can get by with new internals or if the shock is completely toast.

If your brakes are squealing, then the pads are likely worn (or the rims are glazed). Since your frame has conventional mount points, you should be able to upgrade the brakes using older, pre-disc-system components. Personally, I'd clean the rims and get new pads first. That's dirt cheap.

[ghporter]

All the high end bikes I know of that have shocks on the fork also have adjusters to select how much give the shocks should have; I can tweak my Specialized Rockhopper's fork for anything from "cushy" to "locked."

[knifecarrier2]

I ****ing hate this format.