Zinger

Well here it is again for this thread. My only bike since 1987. An '86 Trek 500 Tri Series. Bought it off the showroom as a "last year's" model at a close out price. Mostly original parts except for Matrix touring rims that I laced up to the original hubs running some pretty worn down Continental Super Sports. Also a Nitto stem and mountain bike seatpost because it's a centimeter or two short for me. It's got some miles behind it except for an 11 tear hiatus until this year.

neo_pop_71

Frame / Size / Year:
1992 Trek 950 True Temper OX II double butted lugged

Handlebars / Stem:
Modolo Q Race & 3TTT

Fork / Headset:
Tange lugged triple butted "Big Fork" & Tange Levin

Front Wheel / Hub / Rim / Tire:
Custom: Surly & Salsa Delgado & Swiss DT spokes & Ritchey "Tom Slick"

Rear Wheel / Hub / Rim / Tire:
Custom: Surly flip flop & Salsa Delgado & Swiss DT & Ritchey "Tom Slick"

Crankset / Bottom Bracket:
Shimano Deore XT M-730 & Shimano Deore XT

Saddle / Seat Post:
SDG "Slim Jim" & Easton EA50

Pedals / Chain:
DK "Iron Cross" platforms & "Z" chain

Shifters / Derailers:
Shimano Dura Ace bar end shifter & Shimano LX front derailleur

Brakes / Brake Levers:
Shimano XT v-brakes & World Class V-Dapter & Modolo "Race Pro" levers

Gearing / Chainring / Misc.:
White Industries 20T freewheel & Sugino 48/38/28 chainrings & PAUL Melvin tensioner



This is my 1992 U.S.A. made, lugged double butted True Temper OX II with triple butted Tange "Big Fork" that I picked up for 10 bucks. There were good reasons the bike was so cheap, it was missing some parts (front wheel, seatpost, and seat) and it was so filthy that I had to take a fingernail to scrape grime away to know what I had. I knew it would be a project but the price was certainly right! The inspiration for this build came from Michael Doleman's "Tringle" (custom Surly Cross Check found at his site https://mdoleman.blogspot.com/2011/05/tringle.html), after hunting through my part bins I had all the parts needed to build up a 3x1 drop bar bike. Many of the parts like the PAUL Melvin, White Industries 20T freewheel, Surly(hubs)/Salsa(hoops) singlespeed wheelset, XT v-brakes, and Shimano M-730 XT crank (I installed a set of 48/38/28 Sugino chainrings) came from my old singlespeed. The gear ratios in this set up are great... 48/20 (2.4:1), 38/20 (1.9:1), and 28/20 (1.4:1), a very forgiving drivetrain for street or trail riding! The Modolo handlebar and brake levers as well as the 3TTT stem were spares from an Italian road bike that went away a few years back. The Dura Ace triple bar end shifter was left over from the from the 1x9 96'er I built last year (the 96'er is pictured with a write up, just click my name to see it and my other bikes too), I figured I'd never find a use for that shifter!
I know v-brakes are not very classic nor vintage, some C&V purists are not going to forgive me for running v-brakes, however I was striving for 100% recycled components on this build. When I found the unopened World Class V-Dapter from the 90's, I knew my brake issues were resolved. I don't have any nice canti brake sets left. I ran a drop bar and would need compatible drop bar levers but the idea of spending 25 dollars on some new Tektro road to v-brake levers really bugged me since I only spent 10 bucks on the bike! I broke down and spent an additional 10 dollars at my LBS today for new housing and cables... c'mon man I can splurge on something!
-D-

The Golden Boy 

One of the cooler $30 bikes I've ever seen.

sirclicksalot

Well, this *was* my ride until 3/12 of this year

87 400T, with *almost full campy victory group (minus seatpost, everything else matched). I had the campy hubs as well, but they were laced to tubular matrix rims, so I ended up using the Mavic 3D laced to specialized generic cartridge hubs. However, after getting left-hooked and that frame acquiring a 3-5 degree bend in both top/downtube right behind the headtube lugs, I decided to go hunting for the legendary 47cm chainstays, and found this guy:

85 620, Deore front/rear w/indexed DT shifters, everything else is stock. *edit* actually, eggbeaters weren't stock in '85

Zinger

Ditto. Very useful machine right there.

Zinger

Sad death. Such a pretty blue one.

that_guy_zach

What Im spending my Summer on. I think its a early 6 series.

Was a fixe turned parts bin build with QBP/ LX 650Bs with Fatty Rumpkins, RSX shifters and rear mech, Some kind of BMX sidepulls etc. Gonna add another chainring and change the front mech at some point.

sirclicksalot

Yeah, I really liked it. The funny thing about it is that aside from a slightly larger headtube and an extra 5cm on the chainstays, it's geometry was identical to my 620. The 620 has 531cs throughout, whereas the 400T had 531 on the main tubes and 501 in the stays and fork. And 27" rims instead of 700c. So I'm basically stuck with basically 4 tires to choose from.

Barrettscv 

I'm a cyclist with an assortment of current and vintage bikes. I've had five vintage bikes over the years, including a 1974 Schwinn Paramount and a 1985ish Trek 400. These bikes were sold in 2010, the Paramount was too small and the Trek found a new home and a new life as a commuter bike.

During the last 6 months I've purchased one complete 1978 Trek TX900, a 1983 Trek 970 frameset and a 1985ish Serotta Nova Special X frameset. The 1983 Trek 970 is now road worthy and will see several events this year, including the Dairyland Dare in Wisconsin and E'roica in Italy.

Of all the vintage Trek models, the 1983 970 is the best combination of materials and geometry. The geometry is perfect for me with a 63cm C-to-T seat-tube and a 59 C-to-C toptube. This size 970 is built with Columbus SP while the smaller frames were built from Columbus SL. SP has thicker wall thickness and the tubeset is about 20% heavier than SL, adding about a half-pound. I'm a Clydesdale, and really like the stiffness of these frames.

The bike will be used for century events and credit-card touring. I'm using a rebuilt 36 spoke wheelset featuring Campy Record high-flange hubs and new Sun CR18 rims. The rear wheel was rebuilt with an offset and a NOS Suntour Winner seven-speed 13-24 freewheel was installed. The Crankset is a Apex SR with 52, 40 & 28 chainrings. The derailleurs are Shimano XT. The Brakes are Dura Ace and the levers are NOS Shimano 600. Currently I'm using new 700x28 Vittoria Rubino Pro Tech tires. The cables and guides are new. The headset is a new Tange Levin and the BB is rebuilt Shimano.

The bike has a just-right blend of stiffness and dampness, the tires are kept below 100 psi to keep the ride plush. I'll install 700x27 Challenge Paris-Roubaix tires for events.

The bike is a my first high performance vintage bike that both fits well and is properly built for events. It should see some special days.

neo_pop_71

Thanks Golden Boy and Zinger for the kindness, it's always nice to get the approval of other cyclists! I've built and enjoyed so many different single speeds for road and dirt in the past 15 years but I've been caught out a number of times wishing I had a different set up for a particular trail or stretch of road. This 3x1 set up pretty much solved that issue and the bike has proven to be very versatile for everything. If you happen onto a used PAUL Melvin for a good price, snag it and build a 3-speeder, I think you'll be pleased!

Thanks again!

-D-

Zinger

Barrettscv, as I said in the 50s forum, that 970 is such a beauty!
I hope you're never foolish enough to sell yours like I sold mine.

cobrabyte

Went for a ride this afternoon. Wrapping the bars this evening & some other final touches.

Laddy38

1984 Trek 460, minus cages.

Bianchigirll 

Did I miss something in regards to Trek? skimming through this thread again I see lots of great looking bikes with lots of character and style. For some reason when I first really became acquainted with trek in say '92 when we started selling them they seems cheap and real cookie cutterish. I think one of my old bosses used the term homogenized in reference to treks. Was there a big design philosophy changed in '90/91? Did they switch from making great bikes to only caring about the bottom line and shareholders?

oddjob2

I think by the early 1990's Schwinn was on the ropes and Trek wanted market dominance. Lugged frames became a thing of the past by 1993 for the most part and frame building went overseas.

Here is a 1988 Trek 360, a single year model, I just put on the road yesterday. Taxicab yellow, the blue seat/bartape is richer than it shows in the photo. TruTemper butted main frame. Upgraded original Suntour GPX to parts I had on hand; Shimano 105 brakes, derailleurs, and new Tektro levers. I changed out a well worn Weinmann concave wheelset for some Mavic MA40's on Shimano 600 tricolor hubs. The gearing is a little tall for me, but it was the only road cassette I had lying around. It is a stiff ride, even on 28mm tires, relative to a 1989 Centurion Ironman Expert that I have been putting a few miles on. But it is fun!

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dgodave

Wow. So elegant.
.

dgodave

I dont think I put this one into this thread.
.
1983 Trek 970. Campy SR, except for the wheels. Bought it in '85.
.

Zoku620

The Golden Boy 

Entirely subjectively here...

To me- the stylistic changes started in 1988. The bold Trek graphic with the new headbadge. From that point on, it just didn't seem as "graceful." Not saying they're bad bikes or ugly by any means- IMO- the 1986/87 Trek downtube logo is the best looking of the bunch- Understated and with the little gold "go fast" lines behind the letters.

The Golden Boy 

I always look forward to your builds.

Long Tom

Great thread.

Here's my wife's '83 620. I'm bringing it back to life after 20+ years hanging in our barn. It did store well. So far I've just given it new rubber and grease. It's going to get bar-end shifters and bar tape (instead of the foam on it now), and the saddle isn't making her butt happy so we'll address that too.

It's just as it was when she bought it new in '84 as a "last year's model". Suntour Cyclone derailleur and mixed parts. It's been fun to realize how beloved this era of Trek bikes are- my wife did good, back in '84, at age 19.

otg 

Yes she did, reat looking bike!

The Golden Boy 

Sweet bikes!

First of all- they're both pretty fantastical bikes. I've got an 86 400 and an 85 620:





I greatly favor the 620- It's just a much more comfortable bike- but I actually think the 400 is better looking- more vibrant color, cooler graphics. I just did an overhaul of my 400 with brakes, levers, shifters and derailleurs- a new crankset is being put on right now. I'll post pix of that when I get it back. My 620 now sports 6 speed Suntour Command Shifters and an XC Pro rear derailleur (and the original Sachs/Huret Pilot FD).

Secondly- the 1986 and 1987 400 Elance are indeed 531 in the main frame- but Tange cro-moly in the fork and stays. (not that it makes a whole lot of difference). The 1985 Trek 620 is made from 531CS. The 531CS thing is a sort of topic of debate among some people. According to Reynolds- there's no debate. Reynolds 531CS is a tubeset- with butted 531 in the main frame and Reynolds cro-moly in the fork and stays. Pretty much the same thing as the 400 Elance. (minus the Tange vs. Reynolds cro-moly thing)

Take a look at the Reynolds transfer guide- 531CS is #30:




"... A cycle bearing this transfer has top seat and downtube BUTTED in REYNOLDS 531 and head tube, BUTTED steerer, TAPER GAUGE forks seatstays and chainstays manufactured from specially cold worked chrome Molybdenum tubing."


To me, that makes the 620 (and thus the 400 Elance) a really cool bike- the strength/lightness/ride properties of the 531 and the stoutness of the cro-moly where it needed the extra strength. I've "read" of people talking about how flexy and springy the 531C 720 is- that it gives too much; the 620 is designed NOT to do that, but it weighs a little more. Also notice that in the Trek timeline- the 400 Elance appears in 1986 and the entire 600 series disappears... because effectively, the 600 series became redundant.

Thirdly (or fourthly or whatever), regarding the wheels/tires... Although I'm actually pretty happy and settled on 27 x 1 1/4- I've read of people both having problems adjusting the cantilevers to suit 700C, but more importantly- I've read of one spectacular success:

https://nihonmaru.blogspot.com/2011/0...0-alights.html



Good luck- you've got a seriously awesome bike!

cobrabyte

All done, for now

sloar

one of my favorites. love that color combo..