Santa Cruz Vala

[prolix2]

Well shit. 5 mile ride had it backing out. Just as the weather is clearing. Time to see how fast I can get some new bushings.

Thanks for this. I'm gonna check mine first thing

 

[Dax]

Well shit. 5 mile ride had it backing out. Just as the weather is clearing. Time to see how fast I can get some new bushings.

How are these bushes supposed to attach? Friction onto the frame?

 

[mtbrdan]

How are these bushes supposed to attach? Friction onto the frame?

Looks like it.

 

[Shark58]

How are these bushes supposed to attach? Friction onto the frame?

One can buy a tool from Cyclus Tools to mount or remove these bushings.

Cyclus Tools Press-in & press-out tool for Bosch frame sleeves

The Cyclus Tool press-in & press-out tool for Bosch frame sleeves is a special tool for pressing in and pressing out frame sleeves on the Bosch…

www.ebike24.com

The above shop also sells the mounting bolts for the Bosch gen5 motor (BDU38xx)

Bosch Performance Line CX Gen5 screw set. motor

This Bosch screw set is used to fix the Performance Line CX Gen.5 motor to the frame. The CX Gen5. Drive has two different mounting types -…

www.ebike24.com

… and the bushings, although they are described as meant for the Bosch SX motor, but look identical (send them an email to make sure)

Bosch frame sleeve set for motor mount

You need the Bosch frame sleeve set to mount your eBike motor in the frame. The mounting sleeves are made of durable plastic . The diameter is 13…

www.ebike24.com

 

[mtbrdan]

How much is that in freedom bucks?! Appreciate it, got a claim in with SC Bikes but with the holidays....ordered a set just to have.

 

[SimonDee]

Am I right in assuming that the C frame has internal cable routing for transmission? All the images I can find are the higher end CC builds which look like they tie you to wireless with no routing.

Edit: Flow's review states it is so. C frames have cable routing for transmission.

 

[Lee Dove]

Am I right in assuming that the C frame has internal cable routing for transmission? All the images I can find are the higher end CC builds which look like they tie you to wireless with no routing.

Edit: Flow's review states it is so. C frames have cable routing for transmission.

I can confirm that, my bike has cable gears.

 

[Snoggin]

I have CC on my heckler SL I have routing for a cable but its plugged of course

 

[mtbrdan]

Following up on my previous. Ordered some new bushings from Euroland ( thanks for the tip Shark58! ) that arrived today. Same day as Sc Bikes has one available due to the holiday break. New vs old.

Hard to say why it happened. The inner lip locks into the frame and maybe it was damaged from the factory? Took no chances and ordered 6 of them!

 

[Dax]

The old bush looks like it has the remains of adhesive or something on it?

 

[mtbrdan]

Nope. Just squished and deformed.

 

[Jor4s]

Finally got my hands on a Vala

Picking it up tomorrow.

I purchased an S kit build. Looking at making a few changes.

Can someone tell me their opinion on the stock Maven Bronze… are they up to the task or should I swap them out.

 

[Mario Antony]

I find it generally funny that engineers have spent hours to work perfect geometry and suspension kinematics and then avarge joe buys the bike and just adds 10-20mm suspension travel both ends and says it’s much better that way and those guys who designed the whole thing in the first place don’t know what they are doing . I understand that if you are big or light you might have to special tune the suspension, but adding travel ain’t it…

Design Engineers are limited by product manager/marketing.

You can adapt the bike for your needs, doesn't mean it's for everyone liking

 

[FastFR]

Went for the 1st service on my Vala on Tuesday. So I had the opportunity to have my bike weigthed by the shop for the first time. It's the X0 AXS version in size Large. Result is 22.18kg in riding configuration (including tires liquid, pedals HT T2, Topeak Ninja mini tool, etc.). Even taking off the Topeak multi-tools off th bike I'm reaching 21.9X Kgs.

Anyone of you have already tried different setting on the Bosch motor ? I have now properly setup my bike (position, suspensions, etc.) but I'm not 100% happy with the Bosch motor settings. For me, I never use Eco (will try moving by +3), Tour is fine, don't like EMTB (will try to replace by Sport) and Turbo is ok.

 

[irie]

Design Engineers are limited by product manager/marketing.

You can adapt the bike for your needs, doesn't mean it's for everyone liking

The marketing/sales need for products to have showroom appeal drives the practice of cutting steerer tubes really short. So seat height can be adjusted to suit the owner of the new bike but not handlebar height! An unbelievably stupid practice.

 

[Bndit]

The marketing/sales need for products to have showroom appeal drives the practice of cutting steerer tubes really short. So seat height can be adjusted to suit the owner of the new bike but not handlebar height! An unbelievably stupid practice.

Not with Santa Cruz or Specialized, they have "long" steerer tubes. At least I have had on my Large bikes.

 

[Gaba83]

Finally got my hands on a Vala

Picking it up tomorrow.

I purchased an S kit build. Looking at making a few changes.

Can someone tell me their opinion on the stock Maven Bronze… are they up to the task or should I swap them out.

I also own the S-kit. So far, I have only upgraded the GX to AXS Transmission. The brakes work great, sometimes even too strong for the rear wheel (maybe the rotor is too big?). Mine came without Fillmore valves and with the rear brake caliper not fitted correctly. Apart from that, I am really happy with it. I am considering upgrading the fork to an X2 damper in the future, but I am not sure if the investment is worth it for my riding level.

 

[Jor4s]

I also own the S-kit. So far, I have only upgraded the GX to AXS Transmission. The brakes work great, sometimes even too strong for the rear wheel (maybe the rotor is too big?). Mine came without Fillmore valves and with the rear brake caliper not fitted correctly. Apart from that, I am really happy with it. I am considering upgrading the fork to an X2 damper in the future, but I am not sure if the investment is worth it for my riding level.

I picked up the Vala yesterday… the Maven callipers are huge! They look up to the task. Only tried them on my drive way but initial thoughts are to give them a go.

 

[Gaba83]

I picked up the Vala yesterday… the Maven callipers are huge! They look up to the task. Only tried them on my drive way but initial thoughts are to give them a go. View attachment 153349

Yeas, they really are

My rear brake caliper had a loose screw, and I only noticed it after four rides. The brake was working intermittently because the rotor was bending during braking. Make sure to check if the screws are properly tightened. Just out of curiosity, did yours come with Fillmore tubeless valves?

 

[Dax]

Make sure to check if the screws are properly tightened.

This applies to every bolt on your bike. Every new bike I’ve bought has needed a nut and bolt check after the first ride. I assume bike shops don’t know how to use a torque wrench

 

[Lightme]

I picked up the Vala yesterday… the Maven callipers are huge! They look up to the task. Only tried them on my drive way but initial thoughts are to give them a go. View attachment 153349

Your initial thoughts on trying DH World Cup podium brakes on your driveway is that they’re worthy of giving them a go?

 

[Jor4s]

Your initial thoughts on trying DH World Cup podium brakes on your driveway is that they’re worthy of giving them a go?

My driveways -10% in places and quite long. So Maybe not the average driveway your thinking for testing brakes@Lightme

I didn’t want to try them on the trails because if I didn’t like the power/feel and they were “used” I wouldn’t get as much for them resale.

Also I’m pretty sure the Maven Bronze haven’t been on any DH podiums… the ultimate version yes.

I think you get my point.

 

[cykelk]

Also I’m pretty sure the Maven Bronze haven’t been on any DH podiums… the ultimate version yes.

I think you get my point.

The biggest thing the Bronze lack is contact adjust, the importance of which will be up to ease of setup for your brake feel preferences. The power is plenty.

 

[cykelk]

Weighed ride-ready Heckler SL (46.74lbs) and Vala (47.84lbs) today, inclusive of pedals, dirt, bike computer mount, etc... Those numbers kind of blew my mind. I'm now on a mission to see how close in ride feel I can get the Vala, because my impression so far has been that the HSL rides way more like a normal bike than the Vala.

 

[Lee Dove]

Weighed ride-ready Heckler SL (46.74lbs) and Vala (47.84lbs) today, inclusive of pedals, dirt, bike computer mount, etc... Those numbers kind of blew my mind. I'm now on a mission to see how close in ride feel I can get the Vala, because my impression so far has been that the HSL rides way more like a normal bike than the Vala.

The Vala is longer and slacker so it will not ride the same even if they were the same weight. What is your definition of "normal" ? It all depends on what "non ebike" you are comparing it to.

 

[cykelk]

The Vala is longer and slacker so it will not ride the same even if they were the same weight. What is your definition of "normal" ? It all depends on what "non ebike" you are comparing it to.

It's very slightly longer and slacker, but that's splitting hairs here IMO. We're definitely talking about bikes of this same class. My comparison to non-ebikes is based on riding a lot of different bikes in the Trail to Enduro class over many years, not one single bike.

 

[Suns_PSD]

It's very slightly longer and slacker, but that's splitting hairs here IMO. We're definitely talking about bikes of this same class. My comparison to non-ebikes is based on riding a lot of different bikes in the Trail to Enduro class over many years, not one single bike.

Wow, that is interesting.

Ya know in MX bikes, a 250F vs a 450F might only weigh 12#s difference, but they feel radically different. It's mostly down to engine inertia, in that case.

Also, your Heckler SL seems a bit heavy (my XL Relay with dual coils and ready to ride weighs 45#s) and your Vala is the lightest I've seen yet.

 

[cykelk]

Wow, that is interesting.

Ya know in MX bikes, a 250F vs a 450F might only weigh 12#s difference, but they feel radically different. It's mostly down to engine inertia, in that case.

Also, your Heckler SL seems a bit heavy (my XL Relay with dual coils and ready to ride weighs 45#s) and your Vala is the lightest I've seen yet.

The HSL weighed in heavier than I expected, for sure. It hit that zone on two different scales though so I think it's right. I should knock as much dirt off as I can and see what that contributes I do have pretty fresh Schwalbe radials in gravity casing on it.

The Vala is one spec level up so lighter components sprinkled about the bike and the lighter CC frame. It'll be fun doing some back to back experimentation.

Edit: ok I knocked dirt off of both and re-weighed each by the saddle nose this morning. HSL was close (46.1 lbs) but Vala was underweight (49.1 lbs). These numbers make way more sense to me, not sure how I botched the Vala measurement last night.

 

[Suns_PSD]

Well, 5#s is the weight difference between a mid power and full power ime. So a heavier cassette and 2 gravity tires could certainly get that down to 3#s.

It's getting tricky, I don't need a full power, but the darn weights are getting so close that I'll almost certainly end up on one for my next bike.

 

[irie]

A lot matters where the extra weight is, up front and high up is the worst (imo).