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Group opinion desired on a 'new' build

Old 02-15-10, 04:24 PM
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Group opinion desired on a 'new' build

I've been around, spend most of my time in classic & vintage, and am a die hard roadie. The garage is about 2:1 vintage to modern. Just the same, I do some mountain biking. My current ride is a Gary Fisher Gitchee Gummee (no suspension anywhere) generally updated to 7-speed Deore LX. Don't ride a lot, but as I've got about a mile of trails cut through the 10 acres of woods that is my yard, when I do ride I have a good time.

Decided a while back that it might be nice to start nosing into the 21st century, and build something that has front suspension and disc brakes. Besides, having never worked with either before, I could use the learning situation. (The last time I bought a bike ready to ride from a bike shop was 1972 - I build all my rides.)

At the swap meet this past Sunday I found a nice '02 Fuji Mt. Fuji frame in my size (when I'm venturing into something I don't know well, Fuji has always been one of my automatic fallbacks since I sold and wrenched for the local dealer back in '73), a pair of Shimano hub wheels with SRAM 9-speed cassette, and a couple of Rock Shox forks (a swap got me a box of them). Will pick up a headset locally this week, pin the basics together, And add seat and bars to get the general fit sorted out.

Here's where I need the opinions. I don't follow mtb components anywhere near as closely as road, and I'm open to a few suggestion on what to hang on the frame. Restrictions include: 1. Most likely will be buying used (will be hitting swap meets, eBay, and the local re-cycle shops for my parts), and 2. I don't see myself doing any competition, just 3-4 times a week on my private trail after I get home from work, plus occasional serious Sundays at some of the regional trail areas.

Appreciate the opinions.
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Old 02-15-10, 05:48 PM
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Sounds like a kick to me. I've always gone Shimano, but I'm boring. What's the budget?
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Old 02-15-10, 06:18 PM
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Generally for bars, stems, posts...Easton is excellent. Raceface makes some good quality tubes.

I prefer Easton EA70 for bang-fer-buck...cost-to-weight...yada.

I'm a huge fan of Shimano outboard bearing cranksets. Even at the straight up Deore level (m4XX) as long as it's the Hollowtech II design...they're excellent. The Deore LX group is the blue-collar hero! Brand new LX stuff is becoming more of a hybrid affair, but swap meet LX will still be MTB equipment. SLX is replacing the MTB side of LX.

Still a die-hard Shimano driveline fan except for chains. Love SRAM chains. I've had issues with SRAM cassettes and rear derailleurs regarding inconsistancy and poor durability.

My two cents for now...gotta go.

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Old 02-15-10, 06:22 PM
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Originally Posted by Daspydyr
Sounds like a kick to me. I've always gone Shimano, but I'm boring. What's the budget?
I never set a budget when I design a bike. No sense in frustrating myself ahead of time. What I'll probably do is decide on a level of derailleurs and crank, then fit the rest together as funds allow. Obviously, I'm not on a tight schedule. A lot will be determined by how many bikes I can fix and flip in the next couple of months.

Or, I could take the easy way out. Just build a few fixies for the local college students.
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Old 02-15-10, 06:30 PM
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Oh yeah, forgot one other question:

When picking components for a modern road bike, I usually start by shopping the brifters first, as they're the most expensive component, then slotting in the other drivetrain components according to compatibility and what I can afford. Which means I've got a lot of experience with Shimano, although by no means am I wedded to the brand. And, as I come from the (very) old school, I tend to gravitate towards complete gruppos. Here again, that's not absolute by any means.

Is this approach equally valid to mtb's? Or am I looking at it wrong?
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Old 02-15-10, 09:45 PM
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Shimano and SRAM can play well together. You MUST match shifters to rear derailleurs. SRAM shifters are 1:1 Shimano is 2:1.

SRAM chains work wonderfully with XT / LX cassettes. Both work well with either front derailleur. As I said though...I prefer Shimano.
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