thanks. It was a fun project, I would love the opportunity to do another - preferably with somebody elses money! I am yet to ride it, except for a couple of minutes on the trainer to test gears. Not sure on the homegrown detail, when I bought it new, it was nice looking and affordable. It's tough, I used to abuse the hell out of it in trails and creek beds and it took it like a champion. I hate to think what the total weight of the bike is, it has to be close to 30 lbs, if not more. I lost interest riding off road so I put commuter tires on it (Michelin City) and plan to get front & rear racks for it. Looking forward to doing a couple of weekenders this summer with it.