ViperZ

I have finally got the Refit of my 1989 Trek 5000 to the point where I can ride it again. Some of you may remember I pulled it down from the rafters just to show it, when i was bit by the upgrade bug after seeing all the nice bikes around here.

I use to be hardcore into Road and MTB cycling, and commuted to work, rain winter & shine, until my job and kids required more time that I had, as such my cycling fell by the way side. I have always been in to bicycles since I was a kid, and hanging around this forum has renewed my love for them again.

After seeing all the hot bikes around here, I really wanted to build a new bike, however I want to be sure I'm deserving of one and that I will ride the ones I currently have, enough to reward myself with one


Anyway, this is my 1989 Trek 5000. It was built by Graphite Technology for Trek. Trek only made this bike for 1 year. It has details like internal cables, internal clamp seat post and a monocoque construction. It was equipped with a Full Dura Ace Gruppo, with US made Matrix Aero rims on DA hubs, Modolo Anatomic Bars, Modolo Stem and a Turbo Saddle. I had upgraded the saddle with a Selle Italia Ti Flite, about a year after I got it.

I was going to leave the bike as classic, and build a new bike, however I really felt I should try and update this bike just so it did not feel so lonely, if and when I do build a new bike. Besides, I had to prove to myself I was going to Road Ride again, and I really wanted the STI system for this bike ever since it came out. Plus having the bike updated would only further my enjoyment of riding the Trek 5000, thus helping me achieve my goal towards a new bike.


So enough rambling, here are the updates:

-Dura Ace 7700 Levers
-12-23 Dura Ace Cassette
-Sram PC99 Hollow Pin Chain
-American Classic 420 Rims (no recall)
-Michelin Prorace 2 700x23C tires. I have ordered a set of Continental Attack/Force as well
-Continental 40mm Valve Presta tubes
-120mm Modolo Stem, I always wanted to be a bit more stretched out on the bike
-Aztec Power Lines Shifter Cables
-Shimano 6502 Wireless Flight Deck CPU
-Cinelli Solidia Bar 44
-Cinelli Cork tape
-Dura Ace 7800 Rear Derailleur (ordered)















Intitally I was going to go 10 speed, however the price of the 9 speed parts was something that made the upgrade painless and not as significant as a 10 speed system.

I took it for a hour ride today and is it ever fast! The new wheels seem to accelerate nicely, and a the ride is not as harsh as I though it would be coming from 32 spoke 3 cross wheels. The wheels are 20spoke front and 24 spoke rears with DT bladed spokes. I was able to get a slight brake rub on the right side of the front wheel while sprinting, however it was nothing significant, and my brakes are set very tight right now. The 7402 DA Rear Derailleur shifts adequately with the 7700 levers, however not as precise as it should be, as some times one click up-shifts does not move the chain, so I have ordered a 7800 DA rear derailleur to fix that. The longer stem feels a lot nicer to my 5'11 frame.

The Aztec Power lines ...Meh... I'm not so sure I'm sold on those. They may offer slightly better performance, however they can be a bit of a hassle to set up initially with all those individual links, and they really lay where ever they feel on the frame. They are very pliable and not as stiff as the Stock DA cables. You can also tell they are a bit lighter than the Stock cables. When installing them you have to cut the thin outer jacket, and place a cap on the end to hold all the links together. If not, all those tiny links will fall on the floor, making you crawl on your hands and knees to find the buggars (Did I say that happened to me?? ) The links are also directional and its important to ensure they are all seated to each other and the jackets and inner liners are cut shorter than the links. I suppose they are kinda cool, however I think I may switch them some time to the stock cables.

So that's about it for now, I'll ride this old friend for now while I research what my new bike will be, inspired by all of you here.

Thanks for looking and Reading

nomo4me

I wish the decals on my '04 Trek were that restrained. I think it looks pretty nice.

With the bars that low, are you built like Rasmussen?

Grasschopper

I like it...looks very nice.

bsyptak

OK, is that a steel fork? Tubes look too small compared to the frame tubes. Maybe a black carbon fork is next. Otherwise, looks good to me.

Wonder how it feels compared to today's CF bikes?

ViperZ

Thank you I was beginning to feel I threw a party and nobody came

No, I'm not built like Ras, I'm 5'11, 200 lbs and in my middle ages. It actually feels very comfortable on the hoods. The Drops are more a TT tuck I guess I've always been use to riding low like this as even my MTB's have long and low stems.

The fork is an Aluminum fork. I was thinking of upgrading the fork, however I think I have reached the point where further cash thrown at it doesn't make economical sense. It is an old bike, and as such I think it's pretty much done. Now I need to update and build/buy a bike from this Century

That said, I have been watching forks on ebay and around the net

I did take a Ultegra 5.2 Madone out for a test ride, and functionally, there was not a lot of quantifiable differences in ride feel that I could discern. The biggest thing I noticed was the drive train, which basically I'm almost at par with now. It certainly did feel like a different bike, however that was neither better nor worse.

crosscut

That is a sweet ride.

Just one question.....Why didn't you wrap the Aztec's in the bar tape?

ViperZ

Thanks! You know I was thinking about doing just that. During the test fitting of it, the loops coming out of the STI Levers and back into the bar tape kinda looked goofy, almost pointless. A voice inside started telling me to just run them as normal.

Thats the one thing I can't believe Shimano hasn't done anything about.... My next Groupo is going to be Campagnolo just for the cleaner cable managment, and the non moving brake lever.

In fact, had I known I was going to change as much on my bike, I would have jumped ship to the Campy side. At first I was going to just rebuild my hub/cassette and do the STI on the cheap. As things go, you get in deeper than you had initially planned.

cuda2k

I like the frame - and this coming from a guy who hasn't seen a CF frame that he's really fell in love with yet. When they make a lugged Carbon Fiber bike with chrome lugs and natural CF finish on the tubes - I may change my mind. That being said - it is a unquie look from most roadies I've seen and a good look it is. A nice carbon fork in place of the Al one and you might just have a bike to keep around for years go come yet.

=M=

WOW!!

Your bike is absolutely amazing!! I too am considering refitting my 1997 Trek 5000. Are there any particular part or problems that I should be looking at ? What problems have you encountered ? Did you used the original hubs ? I am currently running a Shimano 600 8 spd hub, but plans to install a 9 spd cassette. The paint job on your bike is just stunning, did you had it repainted ? The paint on my Trek has deteriorated to a point where the whole TREK logo on the right side fell off. I have also tried to obtain the Aztec Powerlines, but since Delta does not have a dealer in Canada, the only way to obtain them are through online purchase. What is your opinion on the Aztec ?

I thank you for any advice you can provide

SSC

That rear wheel comes awfully close to the bike frame. Other than that, very nice bike.

rickkko

Beautiful job. Sounds like it was a fun project.

..rickko..

neet

looks hot. Visual simplicity is rare and pleasing; I like the after shots a lot more than the before. nice job!

ViperZ

Thanks for your comments

A carbon Fork may be a nice addition, I'll keep a watch out for one.


I did not use the original DA hubs, and just bought new Wheels. They are American Classic 420 with most of the decals removed. I was originally was going to replace the Uni Glide freehub with a Hyper Glide that would allow me to use a 9 speed cassette. However I felt it best to just buy new wheels.



The Paint is original, and still looks wet after 16 years. It could use a wax job I bough my Aztecs from Bike Nashbar. They are fiddly to install and set up, however seem to work ok. Its hard to determine until I get my new derailleur. It's important to cut the inner Teflon liner and out jacket shorter than the connected links. Even though I did do this, I can see the outer jacket buckling slightly. I suspect this is because the links are bedding in with each other. What is kinda neat is the cables seem to sit in place along side the lower head set cup. This prevents rubbing of the paint on the head-tube area, and I will not need to put protective tape there. I may still do that regardless. They definately are lighter than the stock cables as the links are aluminum.


This is one feature I really love about this bike. The seat tube is sculpted to have the tire fit right in there. There is still lots of room between them. It's about 6mm distance.




Thanks again everyone

psuaero

Wow, awesome rebuild and I'm sure any of us would be proud to ride that bike. The frame paint/color is in amazing shape after 15 years.

Great ride!

krazyderek

Man, that frame was so ahead of it's time, with the clean seat post lines, hidden cables, and sculped/aero seat tube. I like your frame better then my 2004 Why didn't trek keep some of these great features ********** probably the standard marketing "find something that's awsome, sell it for a year, then take it away after everyone wants one, and bring it back at a later date and call it "special" (madone) and charge twice as much"

how deep are those rims? 25mm 30mm?

hans josso

Yup, a comment! The bike looks fabulous, I love classics & how much better have composite frames really become the last 15 years? If I would come across one that looks this good, I probably couldn't help myself wanting it.... badly!
(in all relativity, in view of my existing collection, of course)

jstream

Man! That is one seriously pretty beast!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

crosscut

Yeah I bet it did look odd but I would love the look. I have looked at ordering a set of Aztecs and doing the same.

For Shimano, I guess no one has yelled loud enough, so they won't change what is not broken (in their eyes).

I keep drooling over your bike. I love how clean it looks. No radical lines just good stuff.
Reading about your re-build makes me want to hurry and find a old school steel frame and start building. (Campagnolo of course)

cydewaze

DAMN! Wanna trade?

I just like the way that frame looks SO much better than the new style ones. Maybe it's just the way the tire is tucked in close to the seat tube.

DROOL!

ViperZ

Thanks, It's not to shab, I actually haven't waxed it yet


Thanks for saying that. It was ahead of it's time. I remember when I first got it how many looks it drew, for the only othe rbike like it was a Kestrel 4000. The dealer that originally sold it to me always states "They broke the mold after making that one" As much as I like mine, a Madone is still pretty special too The Rims are 34mm deep.


I think they have refined the construction techniques and learned how to make frames lighter and stronger, using less material. That said, I test rode a Madone 3 weeks ago and it was not like there was any real significant difference. Functionally it felt different with the new drive train, however ride quality and stiffness seemed simular considering wheels and tires can effect that as well.


You know, maybe I should have left it like that for a bit and pondered it some more... It was slightly cleaner looking...




Erik Zabel's Bike

Now you're talking with the Old School bike I so badly want to build an old Italian with Campy C Record, however I badly want a New Bike so much more. I either could be done on the cheap....


cydewaze, I love that tucked look as well


Thanks for everyone's comments!


Here are some slightly Higher Res Photos at different angles, enjoy!





Be sure to click in the image once the new image window has opened.

cuda2k

Met a guy riding another early Trek CF bike this past weekend at the LBS's weekend rides. Forget the model now, but it had an AL rear triangle (polished bare metal) and nude CF tubes for the main triangle. Was a very nice looking ride and he had done some drive train upgrades to it since new. Was very cool to see.

ViperZ

That sounds like it was a nicely modified Bike. It may be a 1500 or a 2500. One of my old riding buddies has a 2500 and it had the nude carbon tubes and white painted lugs(headtube, rear triangle...etc). Its a good looking bike stock, however that one you mention sounds like it would look very sweet!


I just came back from a 40km ride and the new components are breaking in nicely. The shifting is working a lot better now and not fooling the Flight Deck indicator as much. I think the new deraileur will solve that. The Wheels seems extremely fast and roll along with a lot of feel and direction stability. I really noticed the bike will surge ahead with each peadal stroke if the slightest amount of pressure is applied. Even in a big gear from a standing stop the bike just seems to accelerate so much easier, quicker as if being in a big gear isn't a handicap at all. I headed out against a cross/head wind and did not notice the wheels getting blown around, if anything it was me that was getting blown around. The tailwind ride on the way back was pure ZEN as the bike was singing to me, but with a new song. I was in the zone!

I had my new Sidi Dominator 5 shoes on and they felt nice and solid, they felt as if they had been my old riding buddies since forever

The longer stem was very comfortable and I actually wanted to keep riding longer, however I knew I would be running out of body fuel if I continued as I had only planned on a short ride.

condor63

That Trek has Great lines, is it for Sale!!!

ViperZ

Thanks! Sorry, it's not for sale, I love it too much

cuda2k

I can't seem to find a pic of the Trek 2500 through google, but that sounds very fimilar. Maybe I"ll catch up to the fellow again next week.

Good to hear your new parts are working out well for you on the bike. New derailleurs do make for a nice upgrade. Went from Shimano 400 / FE (early 80s) to mid 90's 105 on my roadie. Shifting is much smoother, quieter and more responsive.