Jarrett2

I was looking at some of my old posts today and came across this thread. I can answer my own question now.

Steel is real

MikeOK

I'm 54 yo and I don't understand why anyone would buy a vintage bike, I cheered tha loudest when they got rid of down tube shifters. I can kind of understand if you ride a bike that you have had since it was new but I'll never understand why someone would actually pay for a vintage bike, let alone ride one. I ordered a new bike that has electronic shifters that's supposed to be here today and I can't wait.

daviddavieboy

HOLY OLD POST BATMAN !!

I had two broken ribs last summer and 2 more in the fall. I had to stop riding my CF bike, I found it too uncomfortable this spring and sold it. I have an old steel bike that I found comfy right away and has only been better as I dialed in the fit. This year I have been putting anywhere between 150 and 300 km a week and have never felt stronger. I do not have the same pace that I used to but I sure am putting on more miles and feel fresher.

daviddavieboy

I like the uniqueness of it, it seems these days they all look the same.

The only time I didn't like downtube shifters was during a hard climb, as such the old bike I have now has STI shifters and newer wheels(far superior)

Not being sarcastic but I really don't know, but what is the benefit to electronic shifting.

MikeOK

I'll let you know in a day or two after my new bike comes in. The main advantage is that you can shift under load like in climbing. Plus it's just a tap of the fingers to shift, makes the front derailleur edpecially easy to shift. The fact that this bike has electronic shifters is not the only reason I bought it, it was the total package. What I am wondering mainly is do the shifters add significant weight. I wanted a very light bike, as opposed to the old Trek that I put 40,000 miles on and it weighed 26 lb's.

MikeOK

Broken ribs are brutal! I had a wreck riding my dirt bike and broke 3 ribs and my collarbone. Had to get back on it and ride about 5 miles home. I have had lots of broken parts in me over the years but I think that hurt worse than any other.

rgconner

Is that a Shimano limitation?

Campy shifts just fine under load, even multi-cog shifts.

MikeOK

It probably is a Shimano thing. You can shift the manuals under load but it's far from smooth.

daviddavieboy

I run 105 and Ultegra and have no issues shifting while "PUTTING THE HAMMER DOWN" LOL . That being said, no more than one cog at a time and NOT the front chainring. I did that once and the chain skipped, I nearly became a eunuch.

My Pina is 18lbs with a full waterbottle. The Trek might have been heavy but I doubt the ride quality of the new bike bill be as good.

Chukbacca

I have three reasons for riding an old bike...

1-my theory is the uglier the bike, the less likely it's going to get swiped.
2-I just enjoy riding my bike, I don't need speed.
3 - if my wife caught me putting some serious coin down on a bike, I think she'd throttle me.

I think the third is probably the biggest factor.

MikeOK

I had to beg for permission. She didn't fall for "it will pay for itself by not going to the doc" line. It probably doesn't help having 5 bike frames in storage that I've robbed parts off all these years.

MikeOK

18 lb's that's awesome. My old Trek was aluminum, you can't possibly have a harsher ride than aluminum.

A eunuch LOL

philbob57

My bike (1973 frame) fits me and is a better ride than I'll ever be a rider. I certainly need to take pounds off, but I can lose 5 pounds from my body faster than I can save the $ for a new bike. Given the lack of hills around here, I could ride a single-speed even at my age.

What benefit does the new technology offer me?

daviddavieboy

Advertised weight of the frame is 2.9 lbs. It is one of those pinas with the carbon seat stays and carbon fork. I find the ride very smooth. I had to make a collar from some pipe to change the 1"steer tube to 1 1/8" so I could run a modern stem/bar + shifters.

Jarrett2

I should have clarified my response. I'm now riding new, old technology.

My bike was made in 2016, but its made of steel and has a steel fork. It also has an 11-speed groupset on it and a power meter. So sort of a mix of old and new.

It rides better than any carbon fiber, titanium or aluminum bike I've ever owned or ridden. That's why I am riding it instead of one of the newer tech bikes.

Now it makes sense to me why I see people riding steel bikes so often, when it didn't back in 2014 when I started the thread.

southpier

I would flip the list and put the "F" word first

mackgoo

For me Bikes are not just utilitarian. I also appreciate the subjective beauty. The Ti Megatube has a beauty with that foil down tube and in my mind pretty cool.
The X4 again, in my mind, is just beautiful and cool in it's own right.

The ladies adjusted.jpg

Crown.jpg

Head Badge.jpg

Celeste is the best adjusted.jpg

Bianchi.jpg

Bridge.jpg

daviddavieboy

Like the saying goes 'it is easier to ask forgiveness than permission'

trailangel

Jarrett, good for bringing it alive again.
I was riding a 631 frame sport frame with a carbon fork. Replaced the carbon fork with steel. Added some weight so bike is now 21 lbs on the nose with tires and pedals on.
Just bothered me somewhat when I got up to about 40 mph and hit rough road, I started to think about the plastic fork I was riding on.
Steel flexes a bit more. Smoothed out the ride.
Oh ya, I'm on 8 speed SIS DT shifters. Using a brake lever to shift a gear doesn't compute in my brain.

Jarrett2

I was riding steel with a carbon fork, but also swapped for similar reasons. I spoke with a couple of people that had their carbon forks break and I decided it was time to switch.

Adding 1.5 lbs to the bike and a lot of peace of mind seemed like a good deal to me.

corwin1968

I wanted something very specific that is hard to find in a modern bike, I'm fascinated by the history of the MTB and I wanted something somewhat unique and with a "cool" factor. A Surly Long Haul Trucker frameset with 26" wheels would have gotten me pretty close, functionally, but it wouldn't be part of MTB history and it wouldn't be cool or unique.

I'm not a big fan of vintage components and as soon as I can get a rear wheel built, I'll add a modern drivetrain to it.

[IMG][/IMG]

mwalsh5757

Definitely. Bikes with slanted top tubes are for girls. That's the way it was for me as a youngster, the way it was for my father, and for his father before him. A bike without a straight top tube just doesn't look right, and certainly isn't something I want to be riding.

I mostly ignored MTBs (or any bikes for that matter) in the 1990s and 2000s, but really love the old school GTs I bought cheap on CL.

Drew Eckhardt 

Some vintage bikes came with brake/shift levers, with Shimano introducing STI in 1990 (27 years ago) and Campagnolo Ergo in 1992 (25).

Many have been retrofitted.

Zurichman2

I think it brings them the feeling of going back to their youth or back when they first started riding. I have a 1990's something Specialized Allez down in my basement that was put out of service by a deer kill. The drive train on it is still good and I have thoughts of getting a LBS to build up an old bike that has shot components with mine.

Zman

Harhir

My daily driver is a 94 Trekking/Touring/City bike from a small manufacturer in Germany (Fahrrad Manufaktur). It has a unique Sachs 3x7 shifter system with 7 speed derailleur and 3 speed internal hub. The predecessor of the SRAM Dual Drive. Perfect for stop and go in city driving. Plus it allows for a full chain guard keeping the pants clean. It has a very rigid Oria Hi-Tension steel frame and double wall Alesa rims for my heavy weight and the heavy panniers I am carrying. Modern Trekking bikes aren't really any better or designed much differently. Most of them still use steel frames. E.g. Surely Long Haul Trucker. The only two more modern features I miss on mine: Front dynamo hub and hydraulic rim brakes like Fahrrad Manufaktur and Utopia are using on their current Trekking bikes.
So long story short: I don't see the advantage of riding a new Trekking bike.