scalpel SE has tons of traction, more than any of the other XC bikes with a little extra suspension (norco fluid, transition spur not included). i was a huge fan of the one I had and if I had fun trails locally I would get one again. importantly, price on the base Scalpel SE has stayed the same since 2020 without any parts changes.
idk if you’ll be happy on it but I think its def a cool bike. best of luck in your search
Wait you have two stooges?
$6150 is a lot for a bike, any bike. Bummer.
sell your two stooges and two mashaframas. boom. new bike day AND no regrets.
The scalpel se 2 with 12 speed deore is $4050.
Trance 29 would give you last year’s geometry and pricing, today
Gnar
Was stoked to show this to one of our hucking BMX mechanics who just got the Spec Kenevo with the boxxer. Since he regularly rides the big sends at woodward and such, I figured he would appreciate this. He was also stoked on just seeing Brage himself, as he isn’t your normal slender mtb bro, just like himself.
I got some rapha mountain bike shorts and when they get sweaty they squeak on my fabric saddle.
Otherwise they are smartly made and nice.
The squeaky buttsweat issue isn’t a dealbreaker and I would buy them again.
Also I have a big bruise right above where my knee guards stop. Which that’s neat.
Speaking of pants:
The rockbros ones fit fine but have a lot of smart reflective accents that kind of put me off. Fabric is on the thin side.
FORBEMK are pretty great. Narrow leg holes at the bottom tho. Love the Velcro waist adjustment. Fabric appropriately thick.
Endura Humvee fit weird and baggy. I literally preferred the Amazon pants.
Endura MT500 win because they are equal to the FORBEMK in fabric and fit but would be much harder to return. They were also the same price or cheaper purchased from some euro site.
would any of these double as xc ski pants? you know my climate
having not worn those pants I’m guessing not, they are probably too hot. cycling pants also tend to go too high up the back of your waist.
under armour actually makes the best pants for cross country skiing but I can’t find them on the website to link to you.
make sure whatever you buy has all zippered pockets, which rules out a lot of options.
Rockbros are like wearing nothing at all, nothing at all… so those would prolly work. They also have an insulated Rockbros if you’re xcing in like the single digits or whatever. I definitely defer to @BEEutiful_Wednesday_DDS here as I’ve done most of my xc skiing in outlier dungarees.
They should have a weird fit on the legs too. Baggy at the knees, with a big taper to the ankle + a short inseam which makes them funky for other activities…
Though, The patagonia MTB rain pants I have are the nicest rain pants I have ever worn and I commute and hike in them. I would mountaineer in them too but that would eat them up in a season.
Literal tire slayer. That huck at 2:28 is 
.
What is the inseam length on the MT500 vs the FORBEMK? I don’t mind narrow cuffs if they go down far enough.
They both seem to have an identical 31-31.5 inseam measured from the crotch down (size 32 amazon, size M Endura). Not ideal for me as I’m a 33-34 inseam but I basically only wear high top flat pedal shoes so it’ll do.
Thing is these are available and ship Fedex 2-day: Endura MT500 Burner trouser LordGun online bike store
Though honestly if the FORBEMK didn’t say FORBEMK on them I might actually prefer them. Price ends up being equal since shipping costs more from Europe.
Who’s BEMK?
My favorite interpretation is FORBE MK
That’s a third of what MSRP is here. Consumed.