Mountain Biking - Need Advice on Rebuilding a late 90's Trek

Hi,

I have a 1998-99 Trek 970. It has a Judy XC that is totally blown. I need to also change my brakes, since they are not the V brakes. I also would like to add a little height to the front such as new riser bars etc.

I want a fork with a good amount a travel since I like bombing and hard riding (and I weigh 225+ lbs too). The rest of my bike seems plenty solid, any suggestions for what would be best in the $300 - $400 range?
Can my bike be retrofit for disc brakes or am I limited to V brakes?

Thanks for your advice....

Honestly. Save your money. That bike would make a good candidate for a revival as a commuter bike, but for $500 you could have a completely new bike that would outperform your current one. See the $500 MTB thread for deas on models to look at.

new bar? no problem. find whatever width/rise is comfy.

brakes? no problem, but you'll probably need new levers as well. v-brakes use a different amount of cable pull. you could use your old brake levers, but they'd suck with the v's.

fork? easy. anything new is going to have disc mounts. your frame is new enough i'll assume it has a 1-1/8" headtube. and a threadless steerer/stem/headset setup. that'd run a bit more to convert all that.

disc? pretty much front, unless you want a whole lot of complication/money. if you'r frame isn't setup with disc mounts, you can get adapters, but they are not always the easiest way. for the cost of new wheels (need to be IS disc mount compatable), front and rear disc brakes/levers, whatever frame adapter you may need, and a new fork, bar, etc. it'd be easier to save for a new bike.

yeah, i'm at work tonight, and i'm bored, so here ya go.

try this: all this gets you a decent set of what you're looking for, for $372.97 plus shipping........

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=2693&category=349

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=2700&category=37

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=79&category=19

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=575&category=516

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=4112

http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=68&category=8

if you wanted to go full front/rear discs, and needed new headset/stem stuff to run a new fork, i'd say save for a new ride. but if not, this'll get you rolling with minimal cash outlay, and minimal headache.

I agree with most that economically it'd be better to just save for a new bike.

A decent (middle range) fork will run you about $200.
New brakes, levers, cables $50 to $100.
If you go discs, make that $200. (since you need new levers anyways)
If you go discs, you'll need a new set of wheels, figure another $125 to $175.

Now, the Trek is still a good bike, don't get me wrong.

It just might cost you as much as a new bike to turn it into what you want.

I'm not too familiar with Trek's line-up. Where did the 970 fall. Was it mid-level or more upper-end.

If more upper-end, then a fork upgrade makes more sense.

Also, although I use disc brakes, the majority of people don't "need" them for the type of riding they do. Sure, the can easily justify them, but honestly, they don't "NEED" them they just "want" them.

I'm guessing you'd be fine with sticking to Vee's.

I say this because I know that TREK doesn't generally have disc tabs welded to their frames. They have a special adapter that is a disc mount. This may be hard to find for your frame.

Thanks for all the advice and the links etc... My Trek was one of the best in Cro-moly frames at the time. The only one better (in cro-moly) was the 990. My componenets are all lx or xt, and I am happy with them. I will probably convert it into a road/commuter bike and look for a new off road bike.

I have been looking at the various Kona models, looks like there are a few good finds on ebay and elsewhere. Seems like Kona is leading the field in aggressive style downhill and freestyle bikes. thanks again for the advice, I think you saved me a headache or two