Tessek461

I don't know much about bicycles beyond basic riding. I am building a bike up from a 1997 Gary Fischer Marlin frame as a learning project. I have a few basic questions:

(1) According to this site, the frame I have comes in large, medium, small, xlarge, & xsmall. I'm assuming these sizes are important in relation to the size of the rider? How do I find out which size my frame is?


(2) I'm willing to spend some money on this project, but I don't want to go overboard. Which components is it most important to spend more on to get quality stuff? Which components can I buy lower-end stuff for?


(3) Should I be overly concerned about buying components that are specialized to a certain kind of bike riding (i.e. road, mountain, etc.)? I'd being using this bike mostly for commuting to school, though I'd like for it to be useable for beginner mountain biking.


(4) What are the best internet shops to buy components?


Thank you for your time.

FastJake

The sizes (small, medium, etc.) are arbitrary and mostly useless. To find out what size the bike is just measure the seat tube and top tube center-to-center and that'll give you the size. Look up bike sizing or bike fit to find out if that frame even fits you BEFORE you buy anything else. Road and MTB fit is different. I'm 5' 9" and feel best on an 18" MTB frame, or a 22" road frame.

Learning is good but this will be an expensive project and at the end you'll still be left with an entry level frame. To build it up with cheap new components will likely cost $200-$300. Do you have a bike co-op near you? That would probably be the best way to learn and build the bike up with less expensive used components.

Bianchigirll 

as for what components, more expensive always means better quality. you can skimp on things like chains and tires because they wear. headset and BB should be midlevel at best for longevity.

you have Mountain bike frame but most parts are interchangeable. the cantilever style brakes that will fit your frame could also be used on some models of road, touring and cyclocross bikes.

as for where to buy... everyone will tell you something different. I have a few good places I deal with but they may not be the cheapest.

the forsale threads here, like the one in the Classic and Vintage section and Ebay are great places.

what you really need first is a good cycling friend to help you buy parts and assembel the bike.

are you doing the work? if you have to pay someone to assemble your parts you may be better off buying a complete bike.

jimc101

The Marlin was an entery level bike back in 1997, not really worth re-building unless you already have parts for it; the cost of even low level components soon add up.

If you don't know the size even more reason not to, it will be cheaper in the long run to buy a complete bike, say a Motobecane from Bikes Direct.

HillRider

Absolutely true but, as others have mentioned, this is an entry-level frame and there is no reason to put expensive components on it. It's a silk purse-sow's ear problem. Hopefully, the OP won't sink too much money into it and will learn a lot in the process and, sooner or later, better sooner, will move on to a better starting point.

wrk101

[QUOTE=Tessek461;13656763
(4) What are the best internet shops to buy components?


Thank you for your time.[/QUOTE]

Except for consumables, you should not be looking to the internet for components. Instead, find a donor bike (a complete MTB with all the parts you need). I bought a donor MTB last week, one that had been neglected for a long time, for $7. This bike will supply me a good saddle, pedals, crankset, and wheels.

LesterOfPuppets

Measure the seat tube from the center of the bottom bracket to the top of the seat tube. Unfortunately the catalog scan I found was done at too low a resolution to see the charts so you'll have to kinda ballpark it. Rough guidelines for size to seattube length correlation - measurements in inches.

13-14 XS
15-16 s
17-18 m
19-20 L
21-23 XL

Here's the Trek 9xx series seattube stats from 1995. Might not relate to 97 GF at all but still a reference point.

13, 16.5, 18, 19.5, 21

And yeah, like said before, if you're going a la carte parts for a build up from bare frame you'll be quite lucky to come in under $400. Frame/Fork/Headset makes it a little easier but still tough.

ThermionicScott 

+1. Volunteering in a bike co-op is good karma anyway.