UncleWillie

Has anyone ever upgraded components on this bike? What recommendations would your offer?

fietsbob

Other than the frame Itself, it's regular MTB components .. use what ever you want.


have an unlimited budget? XTR is top of the market .. new is an electronic shifting .



I dont own one but as a Shop Mechanic, any shop can do the work for you .


so what do you want that is not there? ... Bling? carbon fiber ?

cuzzinit

Electronic shifting ?

fietsbob

Di2 its all the rage in the race bike pro level. they turned it all up to 11 ..

https://velonews.competitor.com/2014/...nic-xtr_330061

bargainguy

I took a '91 Schwinn Montague and upgraded as follows:

--New alloy wheelset to replace the original steelies
--Nitto mustache bars and Technomic stem to replace the flat bars & MTB stem
--Shimano bar-end shifters to replace the original trigger shifters
--Shimano aero brake levers to replace the original MTB brake levers
--Upgraded the RD to XT series (not shown in these pix, that was later)
--Synthetic leather saddle & bar tape to complete the look
--Pedals are platform one side, SPD on the other, to replace the original MTB pedals

As a folding bomber, it works great, and shaved quite a few pounds off the original.

cplager

That's a pretty sweet bike.

zavandija

This is a great reply. I own a Montague BiFrame very similar to this one, I’ve rode it for about 6 years but I upgraded to newer and faster bikes for long distance and endurance, but I’m very fond of this bike. Just rode it again after a year and it feels as good as ever. I was thinking about upgrading components to make it more responsive to my needs and this is just the encouragement I was looking for. Here’s to hoping I keep riding my Montague for more years.

Russ Roth

In all seriousness, is that mark on the stem an old wear line or the minimum insertion line? Saw how far your stem seemed to be out and thought it looked sketchy, saw the line on it and worry that's what it is. I've seen stems not inserted far enough that were ripped out of the steerer tube.


OP, you ask a bit of an ephemeral question which is why most of the replies aren't very helpful. We've got not idea of intent, budget, desires, goals or what you think you will accomplish.
If I were to upgrade one of these, and I've thought of it so I had something to toss in the trunk of my car, I'd start with the wheels. Typically the hubs will be very heavy, the rims overweight and none of it really strong though often not bad for general use. Its an older 26 wheel size with rim brakes which has gone out of fashion for mtbing but which was the only real size for a long time. So there are some good bargains to be had on ebay for this wheel size if you're willing to spend the money. I'd look for something with shimano LX or XT hubs, they don't command the top dollar that xtr will but aren't usually built with cheap or heavy rims. That'll give you a nice, strong cassette hub with a decent build, bonus if it mentions butted spokes, but expect to pay 200.00 for the set.

Assuming you've got a 7sp wheel which is typical to these, you'll need a cassette to go with it so expect another 35.00. Tires matter for ride quality, and factory tires even on high end bikes isn't worth bothering with many time, on cheaper bikes I can be left scratching my head on how they manage to make them that heavy. Figure out the kind of riding you expect to do and spend 50.00 per tire on something that fits that goal, I suspect you'll be looking for a gravel bike style tread with a smoother center, and slight treads to either side. If this is only for roads and rail trail you could even go smoother and narrower, you need to decide. The above will shave several pounds, roll smoother and faster, and be stronger, how much you want to spend from there will decide where you want to go or not.

bargainguy

That stem mark is the old wear line, not the minimum insertion line. This was an extra long Technomic stem, plenty left in the steerer.

I sold this bike a decade ago, and the new owner promptly took it overseas, where it will spend the rest of it's natural life. Didn't think I'd still be fielding questions on it.

50PlusCycling

I found a fairly late model Paratrooper, and liked the design. I especially like how easy it is to upgrade, I was able to reduce the weight quite a lot with lighter wheels, a better fork, cassette, bottom bracket, crankset, and seat post. Next on the list are the stem and bar. The Paratrooper is a great bike, here in Japan I can put it in a bag and take it on a bus or train, and ride it where I like.