Post your UBER V !!!!!!!!!!!

[rw420]

It's about time we had a thread specifically for the UBER. So here's the first one.

This is a Super V Police edition frame front with an '04 Jekyll swingarm. The shock mount tabs have been cut and drilled for the longer stroke shock. It gets a full 150 mm rear-wheel travel from a Progressive 5th element air shock and 130 mm from the Marzocchi Z1 FR SL. Weighs 29 pounds complete.

[rw420]

This was a '99 Super V frame front. It used to be a yellow-green fade. Here's what it used to look like. I had it bead-blasted and powder coated in blue. The swingarm is from an '03 Jekyll. 150 mm rear wheel travel from the 5th element and 125 mm Fox Talas RLC. 28.5 pounds complete.

[MendonCycleSmith]

Here's mine, pics a bit old, but the only changes are El Caminos with an 8" in front, and a VRO stem for on the fly adjustability. Swing arm's from an '02 Jekyll, 97/8 SV500 front tri, chopped and drilled for the same results as RW's. Sweet deep travel=

[jdcamb]

Here is mine. 28lb. trail bike with 150mm rear wheel travel and 130mm front. It f'n rocks! Best bike I have ever owned. jdcamb

[ajm]

Here's mine.
'00 Super V Frame, cut to fit the big shock
150 mm in back courtesy of the DHX Air 5.0.
130 up front from the Bomber Z1 FR SL.
29.75 pounds...
Nice!!!!!

[Heals120]

Originally Posted by MendonCycleSmith

Here's mine, pics a bit old, but the only changes are El Caminos with an 8" in front, and a VRO stem for on the fly adjustability. Swing arm's from an '02 Jekyll, 97/8 SV500 front tri, chopped and drilled for the same results as RW's. Sweet deep travel=

I love your UV Mendon, if I had the money I would definately buy it off you in an instant. Thanks for the little test ride in the lot yesterday. I wonder if Sean will pull through with the swap over from his prophet. I know he's been wanting to buy his old one back from his neighbor for a while.

[MendonCycleSmith]

Originally Posted by Heals120

I love your UV Mendon, if I had the money I would definately buy it off you in an instant. Thanks for the little test ride in the lot yesterday. I wonder if Sean will pull through with the swap over from his prophet. I know he's been wanting to buy his old one back from his neighbor for a while.

Glad you got a chance to ride it! Sean should bug her about it (gently), you never know what might happen=

[psyber_0ptix]

does anyone have any formal "how-to" writup to build an uberV. i forgot in many pages of the superV thread that a hole must be drilled one centimeter in. however how does this make it ok to run a shock 1" longer eye to eye? otherwise, whats stopping anyone from running a .5" longer shock e-e on a "normal" frame. its still going to be slightly beyond stock geometry isnt it?

in any case, i was just curious. i just put the bonded arm of death on (however i dont think i ride hard enough yet to break it) but after i'm back into biking again, hopefully i'll have a later model jekyll arm in my hands ready for swap. i can already feel how shakey this new swingarm feels, its not stiff at all. i was tempted to put my old active 80 triangle back on, however i have a broken brake boss, so thats a negatory.

[rw420]

Originally Posted by psyber_0ptix

does anyone have any formal "how-to" writup to build an uberV. i forgot in many pages of the superV thread that a hole must be drilled one centimeter in. however how does this make it ok to run a shock 1" longer eye to eye? otherwise, whats stopping anyone from running a .5" longer shock e-e on a "normal" frame. its still going to be slightly beyond stock geometry isnt it?

in any case, i was just curious. i just put the bonded arm of death on (however i dont think i ride hard enough yet to break it) but after i'm back into biking again, hopefully i'll have a later model jekyll arm in my hands ready for swap. i can already feel how shakey this new swingarm feels, its not stiff at all. i was tempted to put my old active 80 triangle back on, however i have a broken brake boss, so thats a negatory.

It depends on what model year your V is, which fork/headset combination you want to use and what headtube angle you want to achieve. If you provide these details, I can give you more precise tab-modification recommendations. There are three types of V frames that we have identified: '97/'98, '99 and '00/'01/'02. The shock mount tabs on each are different and require slightly different treatment depending on your target headtube angle.

For example: My '99 required no modification and provided a headtube angle of about 69 degrees when used with the 5" Fox Talas, gemini headtube adapters and king headset. The same bike would have a headtube angle of about 68 degrees with a Marzocchi 130mm fork and nearly 70 degrees with a Lefty Max. Personally, I prefer a the 69 degree HT. You can also achieve a steeper HT by using a 7.875 i2i rather than the 7.5 i2i rear shock. So many options...

Another example: My '02 police frame was drilled about 7/8" forward and gets about a 68.5 degree HT angle with the Marzocchi Fork, gemini headtube adapters, and chris king headset.

Another important thing that we've learned is that to get the best performance out of the Ubers, you should set up your handlebar an inch or two higher than your saddle. It may seem odd, but they climb extremely well that way. Unfortunately, that's difficult to achieve with a Lefty fork unless you find a very tall stem.

[psyber_0ptix]

hum....

i believe mines a 97 model superV 700

i just recently swapped to a bonded type swingarm for upgrade/fixing the problem with brake boss.

heres an old pick before the swingarm swap:

currently using a fox vanilla rc 6.5 e-e x 1.55 for shock though

as of current, i'm not sure what kind of fork i'll be using, i guess this is something i'll have to decide before doing this mod, but i was thinking stepping up to a 120mm travel from my current 100.


for all intents and purposes, this is a medium frame

but for now, i think my bike is ok, just prepping ideas for maybe end of summer.

[jdcamb]

Best bike evah! -

[jdcamb]

Even Cannondale knows!!


Proof:

Ha ha!

[laxin1]

If you don't already have one you should stop looking and save yourself the trouble...get yourself an enduro or somthing.

The Uber V rides like a Cheetah/Mountain Goat hybrid on Adderall.

[kithawk]

I'm building an uberV on a budget and have a reducer cup (headset adapter) issue exacerbated by the use of a double crown fork.

By calling every cannondale dealer within 100 miles of LA, I found a store with some older, slightly used super v reducer cups lying about in their shop. I immediately bought all they had -two pair- and had them sent to me sight unseen.

The 1", riser, bottom cup went in like butter- perfect fit, perfect insertion depth. Yet, the top, short cups don't seem to match. It isn't the insertion depth, however- it's the diameter. the top cups sent to me are too wide for my '97 superV 500 comp head tube by maybe a millimeter or two. Placed end to end with the cup that fits, I can see a slight difference in the diameter of the inserted portion of the the cup.

Ever heard of this? The different insertion depth appears several times in this thread, but no one mentions a variation in the super V head tube diamter.

budget uber using some of my old parts:

97 super V 500 comp frame
99 130mm marzocchi jr t triple clamp fork
2006 jekyll V brake swingarm
2006 fox DHX 7.5x2
sram x.0 carbon componentry, 9 speed
velocity cliffhanger wheelset with xtr hubs and v brakes

I'll save some cash by sticking with the v brakes and rims. The double crown fork has the advantage of being able to reposition the lower crown, but, conversely, the top headset race has to be under the top crown- as near to the frame as possible. I can then use spacers above the crown to raise my stem as desired.

I need the top reducer cup with the 1mm rise, as low and as flush as the ones posted here so many times, and I'm in the odd situation of only needing the top while having an extra super V bottom cup- the 1"/25mm riser adapter. Anyone want to trade? You can have my bottom if you send me your top.

My current top reducer cups add a 13mm rise to the stack height and appear to have a 50mm insertion diameter- though they don't fit into my headtube by about one millimeter of excess diameter.

If I order the gemini cups from cannondale, or some aftermarket reducer cups, will I still have this diameter issue? The milling down of the gemini cups is insertion height, not diameter, right?

Then again, I need my headtube rig to be short on top, with the riser cup at the bottom. What stops me from mixing the top half of one headset with the bottom half of another? For example, a cane creek doubleXC short above the headtube, and then a regular 1-1/8 headset in the riser reducer cup at the bottom? They both centrally suspend a 1-1/8" steerer, right? The idea makes me cringe a bit, but what's wrong with it?

I can, of course, just go with a reducer headset discarding the reducer cups. I can just slide my crowns to the desired geometery, but, structurally, I didn't like the idea of sliding the lower crown too high.

[bbbr]

Been there, done that, had a set of reducers custom made

The two short ones look like problem solver head tube reducers and they are meant to fit into the Cannondale bearing cup that is pressed into the head tube (they come standard on headshock equipped bikes). All of these parts raises the overall length of the head tube, not want you want.

My solution was to have a set custom made using the OD of the C'dale bearing cups and the ID of the Problem solver cups. This drawing is one of my early ones, can't seem to find the final version with the correct dimensions on it (the drawing is correct, dimensions are not as was still learning solidworks when i drew this up).

Accurately measure the various parts, dimension the drawing to your needs and talk to a good machine shop. What i did was to go 0.1" shorter than full press depth (as shown on the drawing it's 0.1" deeper than possible). I had two cups made from a piece of 7075 aluminum i got from McMaster Carr because my local shop didn't have on hand in the correct size. This was not the cheapest route (a little over $80 for materials and machining costs) but it works perfectly. You could probably get away cheaper as you only need one cup.



Final product:

[ryguy79]

looks like i'll be going uber soon...should have a swingarm on the way soon courtesy of kithawk.

thanks kithawk!

[EliM]

Here's mine- 6" travel rear, and a little over 5" in the front.
Recently added the shock (Zocchi roco R air) and the swingarm, which is off an old Jekyll.

[ryguy79]

got a jekyll swingarm now, so i just need a shock, forks, and i guess a reducer and headset, but i need to reread all that stuff in the super v thread again.

[1975volker]

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?p=306637&page=5

It´s a shame it was very good thread. I´m also trying to upgrade my Cannondale Supver V 700 SX.

Volker

[Kia Kaha]

Call me stupid but could someone explain to me why do you have to have a Jekyll swingarm, what's the difference between that and the original super V swingarm?

[MendonCycleSmith]

Originally Posted by Kia Kaha

Call me stupid but could someone explain to me why do you have to have a Jekyll swingarm, what's the difference between that and the original super V swingarm?

The SV arms mount the shock ahead of the front derailleur mount tube, the Jekyll styles mount rearward. The extra space allows for a longer shock, thus more travel.

[Kia Kaha]

Thanks for your reply Mendon

I guess the reason I'm a bit confused is that my Super V seems to have a different swingarm to every other one in this thread? I bought this bike on ebay about 4 years ago and I believe it's an '01 or '02 model.

IMGP1802.jpg

IMGP1803.jpg

You can see the shock mount is set a bit higher up and further back than it is on the older Super V swingarms. Do you think I could get away with using the bigger shock by just drilling the tabs on the frame and using that swingarm?

[bbbr]

you can modify the frame to get more travel but that swingarm may crack as it's one of the dreaded "bonded" ones. Here's a thread on the topic: http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.ph...onded+swingarm

[rw420]

Originally Posted by Kia Kaha

Do you think I could get away with using the bigger shock by just drilling the tabs on the frame and using that swingarm?

As noted by bbbr, you could turn it into an Uber but it may be more than the bonded swingarm could bear. Also keep in mind that you could dramatically improve the performance of your bike with no frame modification just by upgrading to a modern 6.5"x1.5" platform shock like the Fox RP23. But you still probably want to try to find a Jekyll swingarm for peace of mind (and body).

[ryguy79]

Originally Posted by 1975volker

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?p=306637&page=5

It´s a shame it was very good thread. I´m also trying to upgrade my Cannondale Supver V 700 SX.

Volker

you can still view it when you're logged out, which is good for me since i need to do a lot of re-reading in that thread before i finish my uber build.

[1975volker]

Hello, I just wondered is this really a Jekyll Swingarm ?

http://cgi.ebay.de/Cannondale-Jekyll...ayphotohosting

Is this swingarm really lighter than the bone one ?

Thank you Volker

[Kia Kaha]

Thanks for your help guys, I'm thinking if I have to go buy expensive platform shocks I might as well do it once do it properly and get a 7.5" one, guess I'll have to start prowling ebay for Jekyll swingarms like everyone else then

At the front end, what do you guys think of a Manitou Stance Blunt fork with 170 mm (6.5") travel and a 1.5" steering tube? - I know a guy who's selling one dead cheap at the moment. Is that total overkill and if so, is it possible to modify the travel to a more reasonable 130ish? Will it slot right into the frame with that 1.5" steerer or is there more tricky Cannondale proprietary stuff that I need to be aware of?

[rw420]

Originally Posted by 1975volker

Hello, I just wondered is this really a Jekyll Swingarm ?

http://cgi.ebay.de/Cannondale-Jekyll...ayphotohosting

Is this swingarm really lighter than the bone one ?

Thank you Volker

Yes - that's a Jekyll swingarm. These are not the lightest swingarms that C'dale made, but they are the strongest.

[1975volker]

Which is the lightest swingarm for a Super V 700 from 2000 ? Weight does matter !

Thank you for your answer.

Volker

[rw420]

Originally Posted by 1975volker

Which is the lightest swingarm for a Super V 700 from 2000 ? Weight does matter !

The lightest swingarm is the CAAD4 which was originally designed for the Raven II. You will never notice the weight difference of a swingarm while riding since the additional weight is directly under your center of gravity. And you may also experience tire clearance issues witht the CAAD4. But at least you'll be able to tell your friends that yours is lighter...

[MendonCycleSmith]

I've seen so many of those break, it's kinda scary. Not saying it's going to blow up today, but I'd source a better arm, if you plan to use that bike long term.

[1975volker]

How long is the distance between the wholes of the brake braket of the Jeckyll swingarm ?

I don`t know whether my Magura Louise does fit.

Thanks Volker

[jeffj]

It's not the distance of the holes from each other, it's the offset difference from the inside of the rear dropouts to the inside of the rear disc tabs and 2000 and later should be fine.

[1975volker]

Thank you, for your advice. I`such an Cannondale geek. I just can`t sell my Super V.

Regards Volker

[BigToe]

This is my current Uber...

'98 front with cut tabs, 5th Element Air, '04 Jekyll Rear, Maverick DUC32, Mavic 823, Avid Juicy Carbons, Saint crank with SRAM X.0 drivetrain... lots of misc goodies. It's rockin' 150mm of travel front and rear, 68.5 degree head angle and comes in at about 30lbs even... and that's with the fat tires, a stout AM wheelset and the burly Saint crank. There have been minor changes since this photo was taken, but nothing noteworthy.

It's funny how many odd reactions I get on the trail... I get a lot of comments from people thinking that it's a heavy "freeride" bike. HAHA!! I laugh at that one every time I'm motoring up a hill like a goat, or blasting a descent like a banshee! This bike is so good at everything, so balanced, so comfortable, so perfect, it's like having an unfair advantage, I almost feel like like I'm cheating.

Since deploying the Uber this season, I've made hobby out of going into dealers, riding their "best" offerings, then walking out, shaking my head, and feeling sorry for the Uber-less population, which is usually followed shortly by uncontrollable maniacal laughter

Bike 040b.jpg

[rw420]

Originally Posted by BigToe

This bike is so good at everything, so balanced, so comfortable, so perfect, it's like having an unfair advantage, I almost feel like like I'm cheating.

So funny - that's exactly what we always say! It really does feel like cheating... especially when you pass them on the climbs. Sweet Rig!

[ryguy79]

I've been doing a lot of thinking about shocks and forks for my uber build. I've never been a fan of air shocks. I'm sure the feel of air has come a long way since the last time I rode a bike with air shock and forks (like 2001 or so), but I've always liked the feel of coils. Despite higher weight, I'm considering going coil front and rear. I'm not a big fan of maintenance and like to have as little necessary as possible. I don't want to have to worry about the pressure in my shock and forks. Coming from riding mx bikes as a kid, i'm more comfortable with coils. I just want to ride the damn thing, i don't want to have to pump it.

I was going to post this in the suspension forum, but since this is specific to building an uber v, i decided to post it here. figured asking the 'uber-v experts' would be my best bet...

I'm strongly considering a Fox Vanilla fork (unsure exactly which model vanilla, depends on budget) and Vanilla R Pro Pedal shock. The lower price of coils is also very attractive at this point in my life. I've yet to read reviews of these specific products. I know, bad me, its just been on my mind all morning and I wanted to post this while its fresh in my head.

So, other than extra weight, does anyone know of any drawbacks of such a setup on a uber-v?

Thanks.

[jdcamb]

Originally Posted by BigToe

This is my current Uber...

'98 front with cut tabs, 5th Element Air, '04 Jekyll Rear, Maverick DUC32, Mavic 823, Avid Juicy Carbons, Saint crank with SRAM X.0 drivetrain... lots of misc goodies. It's rockin' 150mm of travel front and rear, 68.5 degree head angle and comes in at about 30lbs even... and that's with the fat tires, a stout AM wheelset and the burly Saint crank. There have been minor changes since this photo was taken, but nothing noteworthy.

It's funny how many odd reactions I get on the trail... I get a lot of comments from people thinking that it's a heavy "freeride" bike. HAHA!! I laugh at that one every time I'm motoring up a hill like a goat, or blasting a descent like a banshee! This bike is so good at everything, so balanced, so comfortable, so perfect, it's like having an unfair advantage, I almost feel like like I'm cheating.

Since deploying the Uber this season, I've made hobby out of going into dealers, riding their "best" offerings, then walking out, shaking my head, and feeling sorry for the Uber-less population, which is usually followed shortly by uncontrollable maniacal laughter

Attachment 275795

Pretty sweet Uber there Big Toe!

Most folks I run into can't believe I still ride a Super V. Not around here so much as when I ride in other places. They usually can't believe it rides as well as it does either.

[carbon700]

please ignore my post

[carbon700]

I still need to work out a rear shock solution, but the rest is good to go. Enjoy

[lwstrick]

OK, I've looked around the site and I give up. What's a Uber V, some Exotic German Sport car? Or just a modified Super V? I've got a 96 Super V 700 carbon and a 98 Super V 400 with the active SL swing arm. Neither have disc mounts and I'm looking for options.
It appears that the Jekyll swing arm fits. Anyone have details or leads on a new swing arm?

Thanks

[Kia Kaha]

Cool - got me a Jekyll swing arm (sorry 1975volker if that was you bidding on that one on German ebay - looks like I only outbid somebody by 1 euro! )

lwstrick THIS is the uber V reference thread. Basically as I understand it, it's a super V that's been modified by putting modern long travel front forks and a 7.5" platform damped rear shock on it (a procedure which requires a Jekyll swingarm and potentially some frame surgery). The greatest bike since sliced bread if you believe what these guys are saying, I'm very much looking forward to finding out in the next few days

[1975volker]

Yes that was me :-). How much is the shipping to the USA ?

But I own a pbone one, which also works. But the Jeckyll Swingarm is about 237g lighter and as rumors say - stronger.

I just bought a 7,5 Fox Vanilla R. Hopefully the platform damping is working.

Volker

[ryguy79]

Originally Posted by ryguy79

I've been doing a lot of thinking about shocks and forks for my uber build. I've never been a fan of air shocks. I'm sure the feel of air has come a long way since the last time I rode a bike with air shock and forks (like 2001 or so), but I've always liked the feel of coils. Despite higher weight, I'm considering going coil front and rear. I'm not a big fan of maintenance and like to have as little necessary as possible. I don't want to have to worry about the pressure in my shock and forks. Coming from riding mx bikes as a kid, i'm more comfortable with coils. I just want to ride the damn thing, i don't want to have to pump it.

I was going to post this in the suspension forum, but since this is specific to building an uber v, i decided to post it here. figured asking the 'uber-v experts' would be my best bet...

I'm strongly considering a Fox Vanilla fork (unsure exactly which model vanilla, depends on budget) and Vanilla R Pro Pedal shock. The lower price of coils is also very attractive at this point in my life. I've yet to read reviews of these specific products. I know, bad me, its just been on my mind all morning and I wanted to post this while its fresh in my head.

So, other than extra weight, does anyone know of any drawbacks of such a setup on a uber-v?

Thanks.

so i've read all the reviews on this site for those forks and shock and i'm pretty sure this is the route i'll be taking. now, just have to find a new job since i just relocated due to my fiancee's job.

or get her to pay???

[rw420]

Originally Posted by ryguy79

I was going to post this in the suspension forum, but since this is specific to building an uber v, i decided to post it here. figured asking the 'uber-v experts' would be my best bet...

I'm strongly considering a Fox Vanilla fork (unsure exactly which model vanilla, depends on budget) and Vanilla R Pro Pedal shock. The lower price of coils is also very attractive at this point in my life.

So, other than extra weight, does anyone know of any drawbacks of such a setup on a uber-v?

I've always used air shocks and forks but I am sure of one thing: You just can't go wrong with Fox Racing Shox

[Kia Kaha]

Yes that was me :-). How much is the shipping to the USA ?

I'm in England not USA, so shipping was normal Europe.

I'm bloody nervous about drilling this frame though, I think I might take it up to an engineering workshop and get them to do the job properly.

Can you uber-V gurus do me a big favour and definitively confirm the distance forward the hole needs to be drilled (frame is that blue one in my earlier post). I read the other thread again and there seems to be some debate over half an inch or 7/8 inch or something in between? Why is it not just a straight inch, if you're going from a 6 1/2" to 7 1/2" travel shock?

[rw420]

Originally Posted by Kia Kaha

Can you uber-V gurus do me a big favour and definitively confirm the distance forward the hole needs to be drilled (frame is that blue one in my earlier post). I read the other thread again and there seems to be some debate over half an inch or 7/8 inch or something in between? Why is it not just a straight inch, if you're going from a 6 1/2" to 7 1/2" travel shock?

We use 7/8". The main reason that we don't drill a full inch forward is because of sag. The longer shock has an additional 1/2" of stroke. Assuming 25% sag, this results in 1/8" additional sag over the original shock. So under load, the longer shock is only 7/8" longer. We've also found that there are clearance problems around the end of the shock if we drill further forward than 7/8". It is especially tight for medium size frames. I've never tried to modify a small frame but I doubt if you can even drill 7/8" forward of the original holes given the small size of the tabs. But if you can find a '99 frame, you don't have to drill at all!

[bbbr]

My Uber light (haven't decided on one way or the other on trimming the tabs down)

Finally go around to taking a picture of her. It's a 97 SV 2000 frame, 2001 Jekyll swingarm and a mishmash of parts spanning the last decade. Absolute blast to ride and easily capable of keeping up with more modern designs.

[ryguy79]

Well, i've got almost everything ordered. Fox Vanilla RLC fork, DHX coil shock, reducer cups, and headset. All I need now (i think) is a new stem, but I decided to hold off on that until everything is together. The LBS I'm working with is being very cool about this build (Old Town Bike Shop, Colorado Springs). The main mechanic and I talked about the build for a while and we decided that I'm going to take them the parts, they'll put it together, then once everything is nearly done, I'm going back to the shop and we'll try to get the most comfortable combo of stems and spacers.

Its just waiting in the closet with jekyll swingarm on it now, awaiting new its new toys.

[ajm]

You guys (you know who) gotta stop the GAY smiley guy with the thumbs up. It's like a bunch of high school girls texting...HAHA...