Norco Atomik Mechanical Advice

spaceship

1 W
Joined
Mar 21, 2022
Messages
62
Location
Vancouver Island, BC
Norco Atomix.jpg

This bike is up on my local buy and sell for $400 (cad). Is it a good deal, and would it be a good frame for a 2000w+ build? Would be cool to build something that can handle some rugged off road terrain and I would like to do something in an enduro ebike/stealth bomber style. This seems like it could be a good deal for a complete bike for about the same price I could get just the stealth bomber style frame for.

Only thing I'm unsure about is where to put the battery, because I would want it to have decent power and range. I did some searching and saw some builds with this frame where they cut out the downtube and weld in a custom batterybox. I don't weld myself (would like to get the gear and learn) but I do work with some very skilled welders who like DIY projects and are willing to do side work.

So is this a good deal with some diy and paying for welding work, or would buying a purpose built ebike frame make more sense?
 
The answer depends on how much battery you want.

I managed to fit a 52v 21AH Samsung battery, 60A continuous, 120A peak (I suspect it was a 30Q battery) in the build I had. If this is sufficient, then it is a great frame.

If you want more than this, you will need to look at a Futr Alpha/ one of the Stealth clones/ another frame with really big battery space

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=104301
 
PRW said:
The answer depends on how much battery you want.

I managed to fit a 52v 21AH Samsung battery, 60A continuous, 120A peak (I suspect it was a 30Q battery) in the build I had. If this is sufficient, then it is a great frame.

If you want more than this, you will need to look at a Futr Alpha/ one of the Stealth clones/ another frame with really big battery space

https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=104301

Your build is one of the few that I found. Do you still have the bike, what are you overall opinions of the frame and how it turned out? It looks like you welded the battery box on there, does it open on the sides? Do you think the downtube could be cut out without additional welding and hold together with just that beefy box of a top tube?
 
Here are further details of how Samd did it
https://www.endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=81130

I don't have the bike anyone - much as I enjoyed it, and it was a great frame, I found that I was taking the Phasor on longer trips, due to the added battery capacity.

The opening is underneath, as per the pictures in the link. I would think it must be welded - the cutting would substantially affect the structural integrity of the frame
 
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I ended up picking up the norco atomik for $350. Its a very beefy bike and seems well built. Its clear that it has been ridden hard and lived through it, I think it will make a nice build that can handle some off road terrain well. I know basic bicycle mechanics but have no experience with full suspension or any bike like this. It has very different geometry and feel than what I am used to.

I have no reference from which to evaluate the suspension but the fork feels pretty soft and I can bottom out the fork by pumping and putting all my weight down, and I assume this is not ideal. Is it possible to adjust or rebuild the fork to improve this, or is it just worn out? Its a Rock Shox Boxxer fork.

There are some knicks in the fork tube - is this a major problem or are these forks still serviceable?

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It looks almost like the Norco B-Line, I was looking at a Norco A-Line which is DH and tons of suspension travel.
 
By the time a suspension bike is up for resale, it has likely sacked and plundered its suspension pivots. So, at least for e-bike purposes, the fewer pivots the better. Single pivot bikes have major drawbacks for pedal only operation, but not so much for e-bike applications.

That bike in the picture is wallowing in pivots. Rebuilding them all will be the equivalent of a huge herpes sore right where you least want it, and it will take longer to heal.
 
Chalo said:
By the time a suspension bike is up for resale, it has likely sacked and plundered its suspension pivots. So, at least for e-bike purposes, the fewer pivots the better. Single pivot bikes have major drawbacks for pedal only operation, but not so much for e-bike applications.

That bike in the picture is wallowing in pivots. Rebuilding them all will be the equivalent of a huge herpes sore right where you least want it, and it will take longer to heal.

Well the back end doesnt feel loose or anything id I try to move it around. How would I determine if I need to rebuild a pivot? I wont be riding it nearly as hard as it was designed for
 
calab said:
It looks almost like the Norco B-Line, I was looking at a Norco A-Line which is DH and tons of suspension travel.

Yup this is definately a DH bike. I moved the rear shock from the 7" to the 6" position and I like the way it sits better now. I think this is bike pretty similar to the Norco A-Line
 
Do you need to rebuild pivots? Well, no, until something breaks. Lol. then you weld or throw the bike away.

You can measure for wear. get better bearing, replace them all preemptively. This will tighten up an old bike, but it is hard to say whether it is "needed" or " not" .

pivot points at the rear axle is no good for a hub motor. A single piece swingarm will always be stronger, but it is not a real problem unless teh points are VERY worn and you have binding.

Remove the shock, articulate the suspension, and feel for " play" in the pivot points. Replace any damaged component or out of spec.

spaceship said:
I have no reference from which to evaluate the suspension but the fork feels pretty soft and I can bottom out the fork by pumping and putting all my weight down, and I assume this is not ideal. Is it possible to adjust or rebuild the fork to improve this, or is it just worn out? Its a Rock Shox Boxxer fork.

There are some knicks in the fork tube - is this a major problem or are these forks still serviceable?

The "Boxxer"is a single side sprung fork, and the hydrolic driving side is the other side. One side sits a (real) spring, the other sits the damper. Refreshing is simple, a oil change ( two different weights of oil needed)... and seals. Bushings rarely go out. A good bike shop can do its best to rebuild it easily.. but the nicks int eh tubes are never good. Aluminum tubes that are plated, ( like DLC or Nikasil, Alusil) and the tubes cannot be replated easily. Nicks and damage must be replaced if you want your seals running smoothly and no stiction. However, it is a good fork, and people like it. They made a steel tube version of the same fork and called it a " Domain".

Much better than an "Air-Charged" fork. Air forks leak, and do not last long upon these heavy loads. Coils are reliable.

Parts certainly are available. Seals, oil, spring, moco dampers, all available. It is a 35mm fork diameter and the fork can be upgraded with oil choices and spring rates. There is also high end custom tuners of this fork, that throw allthe Rockshox stuff out the window and revalve the fork with custom fitting. ...Also, they sell four springs for this fork: A soft, a med, a hard, and a extra hard. TYhey are color coded. I have an " Extra hard" on my bike but I still can compress teh spring to the max with my 100lb laden bike. If I could, I would use an "Extra Extra hard spring" because I like road racing and you need strong front end feedback for roadracing. YOu dont want to dive into the turn, you want to retain suspension articulation. An off road application this changes: you want ample travel. A compression damper/ rebound damper is on the Boxxers, the Domain only has a rebound damper. Chromed steel Domain tubes WILL fit int eh Boxxer and wor k with the internals. Rebound shim stacks in the lower fork are easily replaced for simple Rebound tuning, but the MoCo dampers are kinda silly, and could use some real suspension shims in the design for the use in racing competitively.

Ok. That is all I know.
 
spaceship said:
Well the back end doesnt feel loose or anything id I try to move it around. How would I determine if I need to rebuild a pivot? I wont be riding it nearly as hard as it was designed for

Go ride it around a little to see if it feel solid. It's not really a bargain if you have to start dumping money into it. I see full suspension bikes on Craigslist in my area that are both cheap in in near pristine condition, so it may vary depending on where you're located. $350 is a, I need to clear out some stuff in my garage kind of price. I barely see any surface rust, a little on one of the pivot bolts, so it looks like it was stored inside, and he threw on some random tires to put it up for sale. There are no major dings or missing paint that I can see, so it probably didn't lead a really hard life.

If it feels sloppy, then you could probably sell it for $500 with some patience.
 
DogDipstick said:
Ok. That is all I know.

WOW, thanks that helps a lot! I will locate the serial number to determine the year of these forks and look for a rebuild kit and maybe research a stiffer spring. I do want to take this bike off road though. I would like to service the fork myself unless there is some reason not to. I have a seal puller somewhere as I have resealed my motorcycle spring forks (1978 Goldwing) years ago. Are there any other special tools needed for servicing the front & rear suspension on a bicycle?

As for the knicks in the fork tubes, would filling them in with some JB weld epoxy and sand down smooth be a serviceable repair?

I'll be back for questions about the rear shock later.
 
spaceship said:
As for the knicks in the fork tubes, would filling them in with some JB weld epoxy and sand down smooth be a serviceable repair?

I'll be back for questions about the rear shock later.

No special tools. Theya re kinda the same thing. it is easy, hardest part is decinding ont eh seals to use.. One thing of note: they have two seals per leg, one is the real oil seal and one is the dust seal.

YES! that will help tremendously for the longevity of the seals. It is a hack fix, but you can make a good repair with some jbweld and sanding upwards of 600 grit blocked flat on oil seal locations ( I have done many times on cars and trucks that wear grooves into the shafts where teh old seal was, when replacing. )
 
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