dOOBER

Here is my brand new to me 1990's Alpine Lugged Tange 5 MTB. I got it today off craigslist and here is exactly how she looked new


and after my maiden voyage today



This is my first MTB and I love it. I like the uniqueness of it and the color. My plans are to get a second set of wheels/tires and fenders, racks, and panniers and commute to work on it.

-doober

YoKev

I'm really loving that Alpine! What a nice catch

bradtx

Thanks for the compliments, frankly I'm a bit astonished! That Alpine looks like it'll be a killer commuter.

Brad

Sirrus Rider

If it had been a 16" frame it would have been mine. I'd been Jonesing after that bike since it first showed up on Craigslist. I have an '88 Alpine Monitor Pass; however, I want a '89 or later that isn't saddled with a U-brake that I can do an Xtra-Cycle conversion.

dOOBER

thanks for all the replies, and nice to see a fellow Houstonian

-doober

Smokinapankake

How long are the chainstays on that Monitor Pass, Sirrus? They look to be very long. Nice bikes by the way, I've never heard of Alpine before!

Sirrus Rider

From the Center of the bottom bracket to rear Axle is 44.45cm or 17.5." Chain stay from Center of the bottom bracket until the start of the dropout is 16". Also, at the time of this Pic I had some very narrow tires on it...26X1.5

I've found Alpine to not to be all that common. I have yet to come across another Monitor Pass. Doober's is the first Alpine in the same color as mine that I've seen in the wild in 23 years! Other than his I've seen only one other Alpine via this board that one was a lesser model in HiVis Yellow.

Sirrus Rider

There's a couple of us on here..

Sixty Fiver

Just posted this elsewhere... '85 Kuwahara Siera Grande that I passed along to a friend as it was just a touch small for me.





This was the last year for friction derailleurs and that Deore group was some beautifully made kit... especially the cold forged Deore cranks.

36/4 cross wheels with Sansin hubs and Araya RM20 rims... so nice.

WNG

^ Man, that's a gorgeous classic mtb.

Sixty Fiver

One more... this was a dual branded model (Kuwahara is the maker) and they dropped the Apollo name by '87.

bradtx

65r, Very classy, I really like those hubs.

Brad

dOOBER

so 65er its kind of like a Datsun and Nissan branded Datsun/Nissan when they were in between switching names lol, another nice bike none the less.


-doober

4funbikes

1985 Schwinn High Sierra budget build.
Rides like a dream.
Red grips throw it off, but they where half the cost of the same grip in black.

Cool Tool!

LesterOfPuppets

Red grips match the headbadge. Perfect!

mparker326

I scored this Raleigh Crested Butte Mountain Tour last week. It is in my size 23" and is in very good condition. It appears to have only been made in 1986 and was Raleigh's top of the line offering. Made from the mysterious Raleigh 575 triple butted tubing. I left the pie plate on for the time being because even it was in very good condition.

Components:
Deore XT Deerhead derailers, shifters, & cantis
SR sealed bearing high flange hubs (these are the smoothest spinning hubs I've ever felt). They are bolt on since quick releases weren't considered strong enough back then.
Bullmoose bars
Araya RM 25 rims
Suntour XC Pedals
Sakae crank

Bridgestones

damn, this is one of my favorites on here.

That color is so cool.

Browza

Super rare 97' Nuke Proof Reactor mountain bike, complete with front fork assembly.

Equipped with: XT V brakes, XTR brake levers, LX 8sp shifters, XT rear derailure, LX crank, Mavic 217 SUP wheel set, WTB VelociRaptor frt & rear tires, XTR seatpost, and enormous head-tube is a RockShox Coupe Deluxe coilover shocker.

Sixty Fiver

Feel that in the 80's few companies built a better bike and suspect the Schwinn High Sierra was also made by Kuwahara as they have so many similarities and because Kuwahara built for Schwinn... the triple butted Raleigh may also be a Kuwahara built bike and has pretty much the same set up as the Siera Grande.

Most folks use these bikes as urban vehicles these days since they really do have a classic frame geometry with slack angles and long wheelbases that makes them a joy to ride but when my Cascade was original I spent a lot of time taking it off road. Always felt that riding a rigid off road really honed one's skills and taught you how to ride light.

Now my Cascade has been turned into a full on expedition tourer and has been configured like this for quite some time... these bikes also take to this conversion quite well as with drops, road levers (to go with the cantis) and bar ends you can have one hell of a solid touring bike and can solve some fit issues for smaller riders.

The quad butted Ishiwata frame on this bike is one of the stiffest steel frames I have ever ridden but with a touring load it is like riding on a cloud with a rocket booster as the bike is also surprisingly fast.



My friend has a 1986 Kuwahara Shasta in near mint condition that we are turning into a touring bike for his better half... she is very petite and the small frame fits her like a glove.

Sixty Fiver

Browza - That is a seriously sweet ride.

rdjohannes

Here's my latest find, a Giant Rincon. I'm guessing it's a 1990, since the license sticker is still on it from 1991. Found it on CL. Bought it for $25 from a young woman who said it was her father's bike. Since she looked about as old as my daughter, I thought immediately that it's found a good home. Looks like it's been stored in the garage for all its life. Everything was perfectly adjusted, just needed some lubrication. I updated with a new saddle and new wheels and tires. I took it for the first ride today, in spite of the snow, and it fits perfectly. It will join my other favorite ride, a mid-90's Trek.

imabeliever1

Not sure if this one makes the cut as far as vintage. Just finished setting it up with drop bars and Suntour shifters. Seven speed with Shimano hubs front and rear. Bike is a little heavy but sturdy as a hammer.

Cletis

Vintage? It's got a U brake, so does it qualify?

Here is one that I never figured out. Unbranded frame, it used to have chrome stays and red paint but the previous owner stripped the paint, leaving only tiny traces of it here and there. I was told that the components were original. I changed the saddle and tires to make it an urban bomber (which it worked well for, although a bit too small for me). I swapped this bike for a trek 1200 that fit, but I still miss it.

Bianchigirll 

great looking MTB!

Crazydad

My 97 Homegrown, the last new bike I purchased . Not sure if it is vintage, but it is a classic (at least to me )