16 Bike Upgrades For Cross Country Riding | MTB Tech Tips

A world cup cross country mountain bike racer's bike setup can be quite different to a complete setup most people can buy off the shelf. In this video, we look at all areas to upgrade your bike for XC riding.

⏱ Timestamps 👇
00:00 - Intro
00:53 - Grips
01:31 - Saddles
02:09 - Grip Shift
02:47 - Brake Rotors
03:49 - Dropper Seat Posts
05:02 - Stripping The Paint
05:34 - Seat Post Clamps
06:10 - One Piece Cockpit
07:27 - Handlebar Width
08:22 - Rear Tyre Insert
08:59 - Tyre Choice
10:05 - Power Meters
10:51 - Electronic Suspension
11:55 - Ceramic Coatings
12:42 - Ceramic Bearings
13:23 - Chain Wax

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Have you made any changes to your bike to get it lighter or better for cross-country riding? let us know 👇

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[gmbn]

Have you made any changes to your bike to get it lighter or better for cross-country riding? let us know 👇

[VK__]

Chain waxing is incredible! It just goes on and on without dirt sticking to the chain and making a grinding paste as it does with lubes.

[MrMartinSchou]

I'm 100+ lbs overweight. My time, money and effort are better spent on making myself lighter than my bike. I can eat less, save money AND make the total weight of me and my bike lighter - no upgrades can compete with that weight to cost benefit.

[jehjay]

I don't XC, but have been waxing chains for 3 decades -- with PTFE and florinated wax no less --- I save the shavings from when I wax my skis and snowboards all winter and that goes on my bike chains early Spring and it seems to work for about 6 months... I re-wax my chain before early winter mud season.

[johnnyrocket]

MORE XC CONTENT !!!
Preferably AFFORDABLE XC 😆

[nateisright]

I changed aluminum wheels for carbon wheels and lowered the weight of my rig by 600g. Feels more lively too.

[xavierhulbert]

Making your bike as light as possible doesn’t compensate anywhere near as much as making yourself as light as possible does. Losing weight and gaining fitness are the more reliable options, but there are other more extreme items like ears and pinkies that not only add weight, but also increase drag. Lopping them off can really be a weight savings!

[CatManDoSocial]

Finally, some accurate information about chain waxing. Keep it up.

[brianmagee]

You kinda skipped over the things other than yourself that are usually the heaviest. Crankset, wheels, cassette, and fork. Saving 200g on a cassette or cranks can be a bargain as $/g when you compare it to the price of silly Ti bolts and seatpost binders.

I would love to see a video working up the $/g efficiency of upgrades say SLX/GX to affordable light options like E13 HelixR cassette or NextR cranks.

[kathleendo]

Great vid, what’s with the intense transition music tho? It’s a tech video 😂

[verdi]

Finally going back to xc bike from the overhyped gravel bikes...

[thevapingpolisher]

The bontrager drop lock is an all in one it cleans up cockpit right up and puts the leavers in the proper spot .

[jamesdiston]

Anything which is going to add durability to the drive train is worth a look. Thank you 👍

[charleswinston]

Unless you are at peak fitness, I'd save my money and work on myself rather than my bike. Of all the things mentioned, I'd get a power meter. Since I got my Quarq spider meter it has transformed my rides in terms of understanding how and where I'm putting down power, where I can / should do more, etc. As a data junky it has had more impact on my fitness and riding speed than any number of Ti bolts.

[Lanz]

Buy a kitchen scale.
Start measuring your daily calorie intake.
Drop excess body weight.
You're welcome.

[cegalleta]

Not a pro or anything close, but if I were to get ceramic bearings, I'd prioritize freehub bearings over irrelevant and expensive oversized jockey wheels and stuff like that. Changing the bearings in my freehub to higher quality steel ones wasn't just a gimmick, it was definitely noticeable, specially on the descents.

[RyanPerrella]

@GMBN Great Video Presentation on Upgrades. Most videos are focused on weight savings only, and the same products end up getting mentioned, I like how your list was broken into 3rds with only 1/3’d relating to weight savings. The bike is used for more things than just racing, i came back to a mountain bike as a capable go anywhere form or transportation, an accessory to a Camper, something better than walking but less involved than a car, i love your suggestions of the inner liner for the rear tires, i love that you mention the Barzo tires which come on BMC bikes for their capabilities where everyone else just suggests putting the lightest thing possible. I also really love what you mention about ceramic bearings and the loss of friction, and the chain wax which can limit the collection of dust and crap which always gets on my clothes. I have been away from the mountain bike since I got my drivers license and no longer needed the bike to get to school, thank you for such a well rounded upgrade list and for your wholeness of the topic at hand, to make suggestions on varied aspects of the XCountry Bicycle, a most impressive human creation. 🩵👍

[Azoth]

Most people could easily lose a few kgs off their bodies before spending big $$$ to save a few hundred grams. Always makes me cringe to see overweight people on super expensive, ultralight bikes.

[montyswoodworkscrafts]

Swapped the tires out for Vittoria’s, grips changed for lighter ones, rental carbon bars, hope stem, new lighter forks and lighter saddle. Just need to ditch the shimano wheels and hubs for something lighter.

[jeskli]

Now, be honest, can you measure any of the weight saving on the course? To my eye (and I'm now in my 10th season of XC racing) those let's say 200 grams saved make noticible difference only in your wallet 😅 – if it really made a big difference, why would pretty much everyone in the World Cup field race on full-sus instead of 1.5kg lighter hardtails?