GUY’S MERIDA ONE SIXTY 800 £3,150

It’s all change for the One-Sixty, with a new fork, post and rubber combo

One of the few forks from our recent grouptest ( MBUK 353) that was smooth and supportive enough to match the Merida’s back end, no matter how hard we pushed it, was Cane Creek’s Helm Air, so that’s stayed on. My only gripe is the proprietary ‘D-Loc’ axle system, which relies on a rotating collar to lock the wheel in place. That’s fine when it’s clean and new, but at this time of year it’s often a real fight to get it to release. There’s some wear already clear on the keyed axle end too, so I’m going to keep running the fork for a bit longer to see if the situation stabilises.

On the subject of grouptests,

I’ve also replaced the original KS LEV Integra dropper. Not because there was anything wrong with it, but because we’ve had loads of experience with KS posts and need to get time on some different gear before our upcoming seatpost test. That means there’s now a BikeYoke REVIVE installed. Since sorting the set-up (a blissfully easy process once you read the instructions), it’s been great.

That’s left me free to play around with tyres and wheels. After killing my legs – and sense of humour – trying to plough 2.5in Maxxis Shorty 3C MaxxGrip tyres round a 30km urban XC loop, I’ve switched to a 2.6in Schwalbe Magic Mary/ Nobby Nic combo for a bit more float and speed. www.merida-bikes.com