neo_pop_71

I've been in your situation a few times, each time I've had success by giving the top of the seat tube a soaking of Kroil. It's also proven helpful to flip the bike over, remove a water bottle braze on bolt from the seat tube and spray some Kroil in the hole. I allow it to sit for an hour and really penetrate the corrosion, flip the bike right side up, and start working that seatpost free. It almost always comes out but I have had to repeat the process and even had to let it soak overnight. I'm sure you'll have success with Kroil, it's great stuff... Thrifty Bill (wrk101) gets a dozen posts a year free with Kroil... do a thread search for wrk101 and Kroil, Bill knows his stuff and he has posted plenty of useful tips and ideas for freeing seatposts and stems.

Good luck!

-D-

BluesDaddy

This has been hanging in my various bike caves since the mid-90s at least. I love the time capsule it is: Rock Shox RS-1 modified for long travel, Onza Porcupine tire, GT team kit, etc. This was clipped from Mountain Bike magazine, I'm pretty sure. That was the one I subscribed to the longest. I also got Dirt Rag for a year. Tonight for fun I pulled it out of the frame to see what was on the back and got a great list of tips on on hot-rodding my bike!

frantik

^ i like how they talk about using front suspension is great and then go on to talk about only wusses use it

I saw this Fisher tandem in a thread.. had to post it

LesterOfPuppets

You were searching for BioPace???

That Fisher is HOT!

BluesDaddy

In the work stand for some tinkering tonight:



SunTour AG (Alpine Gear) derailleur and freewheel. It's a 5-speed 14-38 freewheel! (14/18/24/30/38)
Since the cogs are so widely spaced, it is possible to use a single chainring to go fast as well as climb hills. However, with 48/42 rings, I get a nice half-step, 10-speed ATB!

frantik

38t!

frantik

hah, yeah the only 170mm crank arm i have to replace the riveted on that come on my tandem is a shimano 600 crank with biopace rings.. i was just wondering if anyone had ridden a tandem with biopace and if it had any benefits

inkandsilver

I've seen some conversation on this thread about the very early history of ATBs. I ran across this and thought some of you might find it interesting. Apologies if this has been posted before.

Neo-klunkers: https://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=218...unker&ad_cid=1
www.transitionbikes.com/2013/Bikes_Klunker.cfm

"The all new Klunker is proud to represent a giant leap backwards in mountain bike technology. The Klunker pays homage to the original pioneers of mountain biking by bringing back the true spirit of the sport. Klunking is a new way to explore your local trails, have fun with friends or just rally downtown to grab a cold one. Packed with old and new school features like a full 31" moto handlebar, 3 piece chromoly cranks, coaster brake rear wheel, DH Nevegal tires and a sturdy BMX inspired fork. The Klunker is ready to rip trails right out of the box with no upgrades required."

Bikedued

That's the same reason I've always wanted a Trek/Fisher Sawyer. Old school frame design in a 29er wheel size.,,,,BD

https://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/colle...sawyer/sawyer/

cyclotoine

The retro rigid MTBs are cool, but something else has changed since then. The trails. Those bikes can still be run riding down and old forest service road on horse track, but try riding a modern MTB trail on a full rigid bike. It ain't fun or fast compared to full squish.

LesterOfPuppets

I like full rigid on gnarly trails with rock gardens, ledges and the like. Still fun and challenging, just not as fast as on a double boinger.

And those trails were there back in the 80s, they didn't just appear all of a sudden.

blilrat

+1 - I love shredding some gnar on a rigid bike, but there is no mistaking it for a suspended bike - I feel it the next day if the trail is rough.

BluesDaddy

The chief architect of the new trails in my area (a good riding buddy, too) goes like a goat and rides a 1X9 Cannondale Prophet... and builds trails for his riding style. Even my late-90s Giant ATX full-suspension bike with it's now-small 3" rear travel feels inadequate.

cyclotoine

thank-you. That is my point. Not that you can't do it, but it is inherently less fun and I would guess that most of the trails getting hard traffic on new mountain bikes in NA today are not the same trails that were being ridden 20 years ago, or that have been altered to a degree such they they might as well be different.

blilrat

I wouldn't say it's less fun - just not as fast and has to be approached that way. The fun part is the challenge to ride a fully rigid bike on those trails.

And while I say that, they are building jumps out here I don't even feel comfortable on with a 4" travel bike, but that's a whole different story.

LesterOfPuppets

Yeah, altered landscape trails and MTB parks are a whole 'nother beast than pure, natural singletrack. Plenty of rough singletrack around here that isn't really great on a 32 lb mid-80s MTB OR a 32 lb full suspension. If it's not shuttle-able you really don't wanna pedal either beast out that far.

Totally fun day can be had on a 24 lb rigid rig, though. If you have a 26 lb current full sus XC rig then you're really loving it on the trails I'm thinking of.

curbtender

Rode my MB-2 for years with no suspension. Hitting dry creek beds at the bottom of hills made me put it away. It was fun while it lasted..

jefeprimo

I was very fortunate to buy a pro rider only Nytex ATC Sioux frame, made of thermoplastic - this was when Carbon was not available on the market, off an old friend at the time. He sold it to me and I had Reed's bicycle shop, now closed but formerly located in San Jose, CA, build up this sweet ride at the time. I kick myself for not buying a better front shock at the time (but the parts alone excluding the frame was rich). Lots of red anodize which perfectly matched the beautiful Paul rear derailleur.

Frame: Nytex Sioux
Headset: Chris King NoThreadSet
Stem: Specialized S-Works Titanium 6AL-4V
Bar: Specialized S-Works thermoplast flat bar
Brakes: Avid, red ano
Shifters: SRAM Gripshift
Grips: Specialized S-Works (sad, can't find replacements)
Bar Ends (current): Easton EC90s
Brakes: Avid
Front fork: Rock Shox Indy SL
Crank: Specialized S-Works
Rims: Mavic SUP217 Ceramic
Spokes: Marwi Ti-Dye - rainbow anodized
Hubs: DT Hugi
Front Derailleur (modern): Shimano XTR
Rear Derailleur: Paul Components
Quick Releases: Specialized S-Works Ti
Pedals: Shimano XT
Tires: WTB Velociraptor 2.1s
Seatpost: Thomson Elite Aluminum
Rear Cassette: XT
Seat: Selle Italia
Pump: Scott Carbon
Cables: Gore
Bottom Bracket: you got me but red anodized for good measure

Very old school and rare, tipped the scales at 21 pounds back in the day even with the relatively heavy Indy SL. The bike does very well even with my Clydesdale body.

redcaymatt

My 92' Fat Chance Yo Eddy. The fork was just made this year by the great NYC builder Seth Rosko. I ride this just about anywhere.

IthaDan 

Way cool, but why the hell is that fork on that bike? Nevermind the RD, the brake levers would have cost more than it.

whatwolf

That's awesome. Well done.

OTS 

Originally Posted by redcaymatt
My 92' Fat Chance Yo Eddy. The fork was just made this year by the great NYC builder Seth Rosko. I ride this just about anywhere.

That's awesome. Well done.

+1

BenVoiles

Outstanding photography.

neo_pop_71

(+1) I couldn't agree more! Trail design has become a specific art and your bike must be suited to the trail or you're likely going to shake the teeth out of head, bend your fork, or break your frame. When my nephew headed to college in B'ham, WA I gave him my '99 Psycle Werks WildHare, 24 pound XTR full suspension racer with 3.5" travel up front and an adjustable 3.5"/4.5" travel rear. That bike handled all racing I could throw at it when it was new, the trail designs around 2000 were easily managed on that set up. That bike was out of its league when he started riding the trails up on Galbraith. He has since moved on with the low 30 pound huge suspension with lockout racer that's ideal for the racer demands of modern trails. Last year I bought my brother's old '97 Psycle Werks Wildhare, I built it up with mostly 8 speed XTR/XT, same suspension as my old one with Bomber Z1 air up front and Fox Vanilla rear, the bike weighs 26 pounds and is a total blast for most of the SoCal trails today. However, there are some that I won't venture with friends, it's just not fun trying to hang with modern full suspension rigs. The trails I prefer, those trails that I imagine LesterOfPuppets was thinking about, are a blast on my rigid MB-1 but those same trails on my Wildhare are handled in 5 to 10 minute less time (depending on trail traffic). What's funny is dumping onto the trail I love, there are a couple steep climbs just as you round corners... those 35 pound modern FS bikes die and are "Granny gearing" as they are pogo sticking it up the climbs. It's kind of silly but some guys really seem to hate it when a rigid bike sails past them. I read an interview years ago with Tom Ritchey and he made the point that it's not who could get down the mountain fastest for him, as we all can get down the mountain, but it's more about how fast he could get his butt up the mountain. Using that same logic, why shouldn't my MB-1 that weighs 12 or 13 pounds less handle that climb with ease? I see no need to own anything modern, my rigid frames coupled with my 15 year outdated suspension can handle all that I care to tackle.

Bikedued

Most of the decent modern full suspension 29er bikes I worked on lately were under 28 pounds? Most also have "pro pedal" rear suspension, or a brain that doesn't engage unless it hits a heavy drop so no pogo action. My Hard Rock Sport 29er is 28.03 with tubeless tires, Reba fork, and Thomson seatpost. It climbs like a monkey, and disregards roots like they're not even there. Just saying.,,,,BD