I am planning to buy a old Specialized Hard Rock mtb from nineties and make commuter of it ,but I am worried about spare parts like derailleurs ,headset and bb ...
Is this parts compatibile with new parts or what changes I need to make so they fit.
There must be people with similar bikes out there who are willing to help ,and I will appreciate your help.
My regards

Tomislav

Perfect! Parts are readily accessible and quite cheap.

Živjeli.

Yeah, that will make a fine commuter. I commute on a super lightweight 7005 alluminum hardtail 26in, and it serves me well. I think all the parts you might need would be all standard and available. Is it a hardtail? Front suspension would be ok but certainly no full suspension for commuting. Rigid fork would be best for covering longer distances like 15+ miles one way if the roads are reasonable smooth.

Spare parts should be easy. Nearly everything on that bike fits a standard that is commonly available. The old odd part I found on my '89 Specialized RockHopper was the seat post. Even that is available, but it wasn't a common size.

This make me laugh thanks. Google is great.
Lebewohl.


Bike is all rigid. It is one off the reasons I put an eye on it , another is crmo frame I hope it is more comfortable than al.


Thank you all wery much for such a fast reply

I've used one of those for commuting (and anything else I wanted to do on 2 wheels) for many years, and haven't had any trouble finding parts over here. They make great commuters, welcome to the club!

Here are some pics of my 90's model low end steel frame trek mtn bike. Sorry about the view from the non drive side. I took them in a hurry to share w/ droy during a recent suspension fork conversion thread.
I use this rig to commute, pull my trailers, leave locked up downtown, ride w/ my kids, throw in the bike rack at the library, grocery, schools, loaner bike, etc....
I also use it for many trail/single track rides in dry conditions.
I am running 28-38-48 touring triple with an 11-30 rear cassette. Schwalbe Big Apples, higher end model for lighter weight. Over time everything changed out other than frame itself. Always upgrade components when you wear something out.
Extremely versatile, smooth, fast ride for commuting.

An old Hard Rock is ideal for a commuter. I found one at a yard sale to pull the kids' chariot when they were toddlers and I still have it. I commute, run errands, etc. I even take it to the BMX park with my son for fun.

Yes, it will ride better than alluminum. The cro mo is the most comfortable and forgiving, also the strongest, just a little heavier.

The older Hard rock is IMO probably one of these best bikes to be a commuter.
Parts are no problem at all, everything on that is pretty standard and it lends it self well to mish mashing used stuff.
Make sure you get some road style tyres though if you're going to be on paved roads.

The Loose Ball BB has been replaced by the likes of UN 26 cartridge BBs.. but that makes less maintainence
as it's good, or its discarded.

I use a 1990 Trek 7000 fixed MTB as my commuter, with slicks, a rack, lights, and now fenders added. I think it is the perfect commuter bike.

The aluminum frame Trek is perfect for the salted roads in winter.

I've picked all the parts off a medium Specialized Rockhopper to mount on a large Rockhopper Comp. Cost of bike before 1.6" road tires, tubes, and new cables is only $45. Parts bike was $10 after frame sale, and large RH Comp frame was $35. Should be done tomorrow.

The frame on my commuter is an 80's Specialized. If you are buying one in mostly-stock condition, here are some things/components to know about.

Rear derailleur will be old, but many other old derailleurs are out there, and will be replaceable. You can still find new versions if you look hard. Chains and cassettes are readily available.

Bottom bracket is square-taper and non-cartridge. However, the threads will fit nearly any new bottom bracket you wish. Mine has been upgraded to a square-taper raceface BB that is still available new from raceface if you wish.

Steerer _may_ be one-inch. This is one of my biggest obstacles, because I can't upgrade the fork without a lot of looking. If you buy in the mid-to-late 90s, it will probably be 1 1/8, and will be easily upgradeable.

Identify other parts. My bike's rear brake is a U-brake style that is tough to replace and can't be upgraded/changed. It's also mounted to the chainstay, which happens to be the worst palce you could put a brake for a single-speed conversion. And my bike has been converted.

But, overall, it's an excellent vintage of bike, and should be easy to find parts for/maintain.

There was always some question about the longevity of the bonded aluminum Treks from the early 90s, but I have 2 of them now with no problems with either. My 8000 is near mint as I'm the original owner, the 7000 I bought on eBay for $125 when my son took the 8000 to school, but now I have it back. The 7000 is a little beat up, but that's what makes it a great bike for NYC.

Another example of an MTB repurposed as a commuter bike. This is a 1995 Mongoose IBOC. Road tires, drop handlebars, and rack/basket combination for my stuff. Sicne you are in Croatia: Mongoose was a widely respected manufacturer of BMX bicycles back in the 1970s-1990s. They also may some nice MTB towards the end of their existance. The 'Mongoose' brand still exists, but its now on cheap department store bicycles.

Spare parts will not be an issue. I have a 1990 Bianchi Nyla I literally pulled from the neighbors garbage about a dozen years ago. Most of the parts have been replaced, but that was a process of attrition over the years as stuff wore out as I acquired hand me down and close out parts.

I did eventually switch from the Suntour rear derailleur to a Shimano for compatibility with shimano cassettes. The old Suntour front is still going strong though. I have three mt bikes and one road bike, all running 8 spd hyperglide. It is nice to be able to order a couple of chains to have on hand and use them on any bike as needed.

Derailleurs and rear wheel/cassette would be your biggest potential issue. If they are suntour, and still work, I'd ride them until they wear out, and in the mean time look for a good deal on (non-suntour) replacements.

My two wheel pickup truck:

They make great commuters and ride really nice. I even still use my '91 mountain bike as my mountain bike

Hello again
I am just reporting that I bought the bike yesterday. Guy that sell the bike to me is bike mehanic and he made service to it. After i seen that it is working nice payed 150$ , and I must tell you I am amazed about nice handling and comfortable vibration dumping frame.
I am planing to make nice commuter and maybe a tourer also.
My only concern is that stem is to long and moving center of gravity forward so I am thinking getting shorter one so I can put bullhorn bar on it.
Diameter of the stem at the place that goes in the steerer is 25 mm. Is this standar size?
I will upgrade other components as they break.
Thank you all for your sugestion and comments.

It is likely a 1" steerer tube. Is it a quill stem or threadless? (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stem_%28bicycle_part%29). If it is threadless, the conversion is very easy, buy any modern (1 1/8") stem from your LBS, and they can add a shim that will fit. If it is a quill stem, you will need to find another quill stem. If you are still working out what position it should be, you might consider an adjustable one.

Heck a modified old hardrock is still my commute/utility/light touring bike. The frame tough and the gearing is low enough to carry me an a load up Atlanta's hills. I use trekking bars as they offer a lot of hand positions and a big dashboard to mount things.

It sound like you did fine, ride it like it is for a while and upgrade stuff as it wears out or you break it learning how to do your own repairs.

Your steerer appears to be threaded. If you pulled the stem out, you have a quill type stem. These are still very good and you can get an adjustable one that is shorter like in the 80 - 100mm length that will make that bike feel just great. The old one piece quills had a fairly long stem angled up maybe 30 deg or so and that was fine for the smaller frames but if it feels uncomfortable for you as it is now, look into getting one of those shorter adjustable ones.

It's probably 25.4mm, which is one of several standards (the others being 26.0 and 31.8). For flat bars or bullhorns, sticking with 25.4 is the way to go. It might seem like 26 is close enough to 25.4 to be interchangeable, but it isn't.

Raising the bars can have a similar effect to a shorter stem, but be sure to look for the 'minimum insertion' point on the stem and not go higher than that. (I'm assuming you have a quill-type stem.)