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New little GUY added to our family today...

t1maglio

Monkey
Oct 29, 2001
855
0
southern wisconsin
After 4 months of waiting I finally recieved a little box from UPS. I had to go bike shopping with one of my buddies, but upon return I hid in my basement and brought the little GUY to life.

Lets just call this a sneak preview, I'll get some good daylight photos up in the next couple days.

 

Cru Jones

Turbo Monkey
Sep 2, 2006
3,025
2
Hell Track
Sick!! That's actually a pretty bad ass photo. That thing looks so smooth... I think I might even like it better without the curved stays.
 

v-digit

Turbo Monkey
Apr 3, 2006
1,218
0
Brooklyn, NY
oooooooooh sick! mmmmmmmm
looks so clean.
stoked - u got one of them fancy finishes, right?
do i give up the curved seatstays or not... hmmmmmm
 

t1maglio

Monkey
Oct 29, 2001
855
0
southern wisconsin
... so here are the details (and less mysterious pics)


For those of you that don't know this is a mint green 08 Tonic Fallguy. I was originally looking for a MTB that handled like my BMX bike and I kept running into hitches. My BLK MRKT Mob is an awesome bike, but hitting my butt on the tire, not to mention my foot on the front wheel when I turned the bars frustrated me. Disk brakes just aren't always a good thing on street, and most bikes seemed to manual like buses.


So then I discovered the Fall Guy, and it has been a while waiting to finally get it, but I'm not disappointed. Just some details. The back end as it sits, not totally buried, is 14.25ish. My T1 barcode is currently set a 14, so thats a tight backend (my MOB buried is 15.5, to put things in perspective). The bike sits lower and the butt issue is taken care of, the foot, well, there is a little rub, but not inches of overlap like I experienced on the 22" mob (the Fall Guy also has a 22" TT). I was always wondering how the bikes measured up to each other, so here is a frame of reference. I have yet to get riding pics, but this bike is tight (ie small in a good way).


Parts wise, here is my list
Fall Guy frame
Pike 454 coil, slammed to about 2" with a duke spring
Profile no disk ft hub laced to an Arrow FRX
Profile mini rr hub, hollow cro-mo axle, 11t laced to an Atomlab Pimp lite (both rims are 36h and use DT double butted black spokes).
Profile cranks, mid bbrkt, and seat clamp
Tree splined 26t sprocket
Odyssey Cilenski (sp?) pedals and Aitken seat
Primo dirtmonster rr tire
Schwalbe TT ft tire
Thomson post and stem
Animal linear brake cable
Shimano XTR brake and lever (the best feeling thing out there)
Shadow black halflink chain
Fit grips


The only real problem I ran into was the clearanc of the fork knobs. I already removed the U-turn knob and floodgate dial, now I need to either hack off the end of the lockout or remove it as well. The frame because it is so tight lends itself to forks with out a lot of clutter on top. I really dig the Pike, but it might not be a permanent feature on the bike.


Otherwise, I really can't say how it rides because the extent of my ride was around the block last night (I took the pics while I let the dog out at lunch time). Maybe I can get to the park tomorrow and go from there, otherwise maybe over the weekend. I can't totally vouch for how nice the bike is yet, but from what I have felt I don't think I will be disappointed. Just throwing a 180 felt as smooth if not smoother then on my T1, and manualing felt good as well (though I have to get used to the grabby brake).

Just as one last photo I thought I would show my pair of pretty pastel bikes, a little late for Easter, but just in time for spring!


Hopefully this helped, I was at a loss for ordering a lot of the parts, but I think it worked out well. It weighs in at 26lbs, btw, which with a conservative, bombproof build, I feel good about. There might be some little tweaks that will bring it down to 25lbs, but I'm super psyched on where it stands.

Anyway, enjoy, I plan to as well!
 

Landon

Monkey
Oct 20, 2004
274
0
Yowza!

Some folks lament the lack double bend stays on the new bike, and they where hard to give-up. The new bike's got something else going for it though. Wait untill you ride one.


-L
 

A Grove

Monkey
Nov 20, 2007
497
0
State College, PA
Are you running the xfirm duke? how did it install? Did you have to do anything other than swap the topcaps and drop it in? Sorry.. my knowledge of pikes is very, very vague - but I just picked one up used and am looking at getting a duke spring for her.
 

pHeller

Monkey
Nov 5, 2007
106
0
4 months? They have that much of a wait time? Sheesh... I understand they are custom and everything, but still.

I'm getting jealous, I really want to try a FallGuy, but I'm not sure I want to dish out for 24" wheel and a $650 frame.
 

t1maglio

Monkey
Oct 29, 2001
855
0
southern wisconsin
pHeller,

Yes, 4 months was a bit much for me as well, but ya have to put it in perspective. The Tonic guys all had day jobs and its kinda rough to have to work on stuff as just a side job and get it done in a timely manner. Landon and I had many discussions on the time factor, but I was lucky to be doing the project over the winter.

Also, I believe the frame cost that you are putting out there is for a Howie. I think mine was a bit less, but maybe my memory serves me wrong.

The wheels, ya, that was a weird cost thing. You can do it for much cheaper then I did, and Landon will help you out with hubs (a little) if you go with Profiles. The thing is there are a lot of cheap bmx hubs out there, not to mention the marmoset can be used for a ft hub. I agree, that was by far the priciest part of the build, but I'm really happy with how they came out and I have a lot of confidence in them holding up.

BTW, for everyone else. I went for a quick ride last night and was super happy. The bike manis like my 20", no lie, and I do lots of manuals. Hopping up stairs to manuals and dropping them, it just balances awesome. My goal is to get to the skatepark tonight and see how that fairs.

Oh, and the XTR brakes, ya know how hard it is to find a set? I actually bought mine off a guy in Canada, that was an huge effort in itself. Atomlab didn't have rims either, I had to get the rr off a fellow monkey, same with spokes (thanks to Dave and Greg). Not to mention the spring for the fork. I am used to builds that go much smoother, but it took a few months just to gather all of the parts.

Whatever, we don't have a couple feet of snow on the ground, hopefully it will thaw soon, I can start digging and riding this new bike, and everything will be awesome.
 

v-digit

Turbo Monkey
Apr 3, 2006
1,218
0
Brooklyn, NY
4 months? They have that much of a wait time? Sheesh... I understand they are custom and everything, but still.

I'm getting jealous, I really want to try a FallGuy, but I'm not sure I want to dish out for 24" wheel and a $650 frame.
you can get my used fallguy frame for 400 - once i get my new one ;)
 

Boxxer

Monkey
Jul 18, 2005
856
2
Dirty South
Sweet. I loved my 1st gen FG and I get my new mint green frame this week. Still tossing around the idea of ordering another in the PC clear once the color is sorted out. Ill post up pics when I get her in once piece.
 

Stoked

Turbo Monkey
Nov 28, 2004
1,809
1
LI, NY
4 months? They have that much of a wait time? Sheesh... I understand they are custom and everything, but still.

I'm getting jealous, I really want to try a FallGuy, but I'm not sure I want to dish out for 24" wheel and a $650 frame.
well that's the way it is. 2 guys, other jobs, life, etc...for what you get, it's truly worth it. i got my frame yesterday and its seriously out of hand. drop outs got tiny, fit and finish is amazing, the chainstay yoke is dialed! it was a great little surprise seeing the new machining and cut outs. omg the weight, its S3 status. mine is 4#11oz.

amazing build t1.
 

v-digit

Turbo Monkey
Apr 3, 2006
1,218
0
Brooklyn, NY
well that's the way it is. 2 guys, other jobs, life, etc...for what you get, it's truly worth it. i got my frame yesterday and its seriously out of hand. drop outs got tiny, fit and finish is amazing, the chainstay yoke is dialed! it was a great little surprise seeing the new machining and cut outs. omg the weight, its S3 status. mine is 4#11oz.

amazing build t1.
.
ENOUGH TALK - show up close up pics of the new FINISH!!!
 

GMDesigns

Chimp
Sep 27, 2006
94
0
OH
WOW....just WOW!...

Trying to find something eloquent to say...but too busy staring at the photos.


Landon has scrutinized every square centimeter of this new frame and it shows. As much as I still love the curved stays, that minimalist rear end is killer!


So nice. Great job T1.


GM
 

Landon

Monkey
Oct 20, 2004
274
0
4 months? They have that much of a wait time? Sheesh... I understand they are custom and everything, but still.

I'm getting jealous, I really want to try a FallGuy, but I'm not sure I want to dish out for 24" wheel and a $650 frame.
I think this is a fair criticism.

About the lead-time. I shouldn't have taken Jon's $$ untill much later. This would have reduced the "lead-time."

Jon's bike, as well as this run of Howies are the final "nights and week-end frames." When you do something in your free-time, life has a way of interfering, and something like a production schedule can be hard to maintain. Which is fine, but not when other people's $$ is concerned. These bikes took longer than I anticipated to finish.

Does doing this full time mean you can get any Tonic frame anytime of the year? Maybe to probably not. Tonic's aren't "made to order" like a frame from a local custom frame builder.

Our focus is building small runs of really nice frames. When a production run is sold-out, and we are working on something else, it's just not at all practical to produce a single frame of a different model.

As for price. When Jon was asking about the Fall Guy, I wasn't sure what the new bikes where going to cost.

Both the Howie and Fall Guy are $700. I think this a very fair price, but ulimately the market will decide.




-L
 

Landon

Monkey
Oct 20, 2004
274
0
WOW....just WOW!...

Trying to find something eloquent to say...but too busy staring at the photos.


Landon has scrutinized every square centimeter of this new frame and it shows. As much as I still love the curved stays, that minimalist rear end is killer!


So nice. Great job T1.


GM
Thanks Greg! Your stamp of approval is means a lot to me.

-L
 

Landon

Monkey
Oct 20, 2004
274
0
Landon, are the chainstays the same thickness as before? Are they "grindable" or would that be madness?
I'm certain that if grinding on very abrasive surfaces is part someone's daily routine, they should avoid a Fall Guy.

If you ride a lot of park, and like to slide along plastic or metal copings, the Fall Guy should be fine. Probably dented, and scratched-up but fine.

-L
 

Bulldog

Turbo Monkey
Sep 11, 2001
1,009
0
Wisconsin
Whatever, we don't have a couple feet of snow on the ground, hopefully it will thaw soon, I can start digging and riding this new bike, and everything will be awesome.

61 and sunny on Saturday! Don't tell me you have to work on the "honey-do" list!
 

Bulldog

Turbo Monkey
Sep 11, 2001
1,009
0
Wisconsin
I'm certain that if grinding on very abrasive surfaces is part someone's daily routine, they should avoid a Fall Guy.

If you ride a lot of park, and like to slide along plastic or metal copings, the Fall Guy should be fine. Probably dented, and scratched-up but fine.

-L

Can that dropout even fit a peg? That would be a requirement for me. Maybe pedal grinds only huh? Boohoo, I'm not that good.
 

t1maglio

Monkey
Oct 29, 2001
855
0
southern wisconsin
V-digit, good question. I was thinking about avoiding hopping on stuff, but I'll see how she fairs tonight stalling on coping.

Tony, I have a class this weekend from 8-4ish. I will be down for riding as soon as I step out that door, keep your bike prepped and cell phone handy (and poo-poo that pedal grinds are hard, they are easier then using pegs. Ya always know where your foot is, it takes a bit more to remember about the back axle).
 

v-digit

Turbo Monkey
Apr 3, 2006
1,218
0
Brooklyn, NY
pedal grinds rule - if only i knew how to do them well :)
i know for a fact that older fallguys hold up to grinding ez.... hopefully new ones do too....
 

pHeller

Monkey
Nov 5, 2007
106
0
I think this is a fair criticism.

About the lead-time. I shouldn't have taken Jon's $$ untill much later. This would have reduced the "lead-time."

These bikes took longer than I anticipated to finish.

Does doing this full time mean you can get any Tonic frame anytime of the year? Maybe to probably not. Tonic's aren't "made to order" like a frame from a local custom frame builder.

Our focus is building small runs of really nice frames. When a production run is sold-out, and we are working on something else, it's just not at all practical to produce a single frame of a different model.
-L
I'm not criticizing your business practices, you guys aren't known are for super speedy service, your known for the best built 24" frames on the market.

If I had enough money to drop on a $700 frame, I'm sure the wait wouldn't bother me much, but I would agree with your idea, being able to place an order and allow a few months to save up cash would be cool.

Coming from a newb of MTBMX, what seperates the geometry on specific frames like Tonic Fab, that get nothing but praises, and those on DMR, NS, Blk Mrkt, Nem Pro, etc?

Could a 26 ever be a perfect DJ/Park bike?
 

t1maglio

Monkey
Oct 29, 2001
855
0
southern wisconsin
Could a 26 ever be a perfect DJ/Park bike?
Not for me. I have a MOB, and for what I'm used to riding it just struggles to work. In order to do an X-up I would have to take my foot of the pedal, thats ok, but not ideal. I bottom out when I land (my body), so I need the tire room, 26" wheels have proven to be painful. The Tonic basically answered everything I needed as a bmxer crossing over. Its the first time out of the box that I felt this good on a MTB.

That being said, if you just ride trails, or if you do more MTBing, then maybe something with 26" would be better. It just comes down to personal riding style and what you like to do. For me, this is a fit.
 

ebrider510

Monkey
Dec 7, 2006
410
0
Bay Area, CA
I'm not criticizing your business practices, you guys aren't known are for super speedy service, your known for the best built 24" frames on the market.

If I had enough money to drop on a $700 frame, I'm sure the wait wouldn't bother me much, but I would agree with your idea, being able to place an order and allow a few months to save up cash would be cool.

Coming from a newb of MTBMX, what seperates the geometry on specific frames like Tonic Fab, that get nothing but praises, and those on DMR, NS, Blk Mrkt, Nem Pro, etc?

Could a 26 ever be a perfect DJ/Park bike?

first of amazing build on the bike T1!

to answer this question...the way i look at the fall guy is that it is the perfect medium between a BMX and an MTB, and it is pretty much the perfect bike for this type of riding. super short rear end, spanish BB, BMX spacing etc..while still allowing a suspension fork and the perfect wheel size. i haven't ridden one but it sounds good to me. although i'm sure the cost and the waiting period is well worth it for one of these things, it sucks because no one else has really picked up on the idea of a bike like this except DMR with the Transition and the Drone, so if you can't pay the price you have to compromise. this is why i never got one of these, but i'm happy enough on my 20" and feel completely comfortable on it.

as for a 26" ever being the perfect bike, if you can ride it well it probably could be. if you can handle the bigger wheels and longer frame then it will work. there is always a compromise though unless you are really willing to pay the price. you can get a BMX and have a bike really good for all the tech stuff, but mite have issues feeling comfortable on the big stuff, or you can get a 26" and have a bike that is super stable but will have more trouble throwing it around especially out on the street.

or you can get a tonic or something, and have the best of both.