A friend of mine had this exact model and color when I was in college in the late 90's - early 00's. It got stolen within a week, and he built a klunker which he rode and never locked up for the rest of his college career. I was seriously in love with his Hard Rock, even though I was riding a black and purple Rockhopper at the time, and I almost felt as heartbroken as he did when his got stolen. My extra precaution kept mine from getting stolen for another year (Arizona State bike thieves are relentless) and I rode a light pink and blue Takara road bike (which would be a highly-sought prize in today's vintage market. Thank god my Dad still owns it so I can visit it from time to time) for the rest of my college career, and the thieves never thought it worth their time. Anyway, sorry for the long comment, but this very bike brings back some strong bike-related memories.
I had the same bike in 1994, unfortunately it was stolen in Amsterdam. Today I have the Specialiced Hard Rock XT Comp 2009. great video. Well done. Best regards from old Germany/Mannheim 😊
Nice one! Orange constructor specialized! I also got a stumpjumper sworks that i got and restored a few years ago, love the frame. Very light. Keeping it as close as original possible, its my 26 roadie. Has a small issue with the headset lower fork bearing race, does not "match" it, need to find a tighter one to fix that. Besides that, awesome bike.
Btw Gary! I was looking for alternatives for avoporust, cuz it's not available in my country. So I found a thread where a guy suggested it is Edetate disodium (C10H14N2Na2O8). I tried it and I've been using it all the time. It is supercheap, safe for use as it is not toxic doesnt smell and easily available (ordering online). The regulation may vary from area to area though. You need to warm a water to 60C add this powder and a soap and mix it. Just drop the rust parts for 24 hours and the rust will be eaten away like a magic. You can use it multiple times. But capacity of the mix is limited. It works like one molecule of Edetate disodium is connecting with one molecule of rust and go away together as one
Hey Gary, i would like to call it Bumble Bee…comes out pretty shiny and technical well renewed😎the chosen spots and sounds are great! Thanks for sharing your passion🌟🙂
I appreciate that you're keeping it as original as possible and it's a good looking frame/fork but that chains gotta go imo, brillo pad or steel wool works great on raw alloy rims and spokes, big results less effort. Nice work man!
I strongly recommend getting a vice. They're not that expensive and don't take up much room. I got one recently and I'm using it all the time in my bike builds.
@@garysprojects Me neither, I have just mounted it on my "table" which is a 18 mm sheet of plywood. It's one of my best purchases and I should have gotten one long time ago! Love the bike BTW!
Nice retro specialized build!!! Love those Motocross style handle-bar! 😎👍 Love these vintage specialized bikes... Last 2 weeks ago, i almost got a vintage specialized rockhopper fsr full suspension bike, w/all orig parts and a manitou fork, in very very pristine condition, original decals, color. White frame and black swing arm... Saw it on fb marketplace, very low price, too bad someone buy it before i could messege the seller... 😅😅😅
As an owner of 84' Koga Miyata rat bike I often watch these restoration videos, but let's be honest, the biggest benefit of owning a rat bike is because it looks like a trash, and with friction shifters most thieves probably won't be able to drive it away even if you leave it unchained. Keep it simple and low cost. Spend your money and effort on your dream bike you keep at home, safe from elements and criminals. ;)
Paraparaumu On Yer Bike!!!! That was my local bike shop growing up.... I bought my first ever bike from there as a kid. Such a cool find haha. I hope you dont get rid of the sticker!!
@@garysprojectsSuch a small world! It’s crazy that the bike made it over to Australia from New Zealand lol. Probably went over with the hoards of people jumping across the ditch lol. I’d commented right as you’d mentioned the sticker at the start of the vid… Not gonna lie, I was gutted to see you remove it 😂. In your defence, it was pretty unsightly lol. Either way, rad build bro!
sick as usual! do you flip/sell most builds? i have 9-10 bikes that i’ve built up (i can’t stop picking up frames). it doesn’t really seem profitable or even possible to break even on these builds, but i also come from a place with no bike scene at all. what’s your model to keep bikes moving?
Cheers mate I sell them on , for me, I put a lot into my bikes so I think that helps with selling. Obviously my bikes aren’t for everyone but for the ppl that value my work they appreciate it. Hope that helps Good luck!
Gary how do you find breaks and shifters that fit a thicker moto bar? I’ve got some sick moto bars that are 1” diameter and I can’t find good grips or anything that fits them
i bought a bmx stem for my bike to get that retro cruiser type handlebars but the only ones i can find are moto bars are they worth buying or i should stick to bicycle bars
I had a bike for several years that had grip shifters. They were.... fine. They weren't anything special, but they worked fine. I never really understood why they get so much hate. Are they, like "dork disks" just viewed as uncool?
I like gripshift but those are awful and not OEM specialized had their own branded units that are awesome. Rm40 is Alivio for sure. I have the darker wheel version of those on a purple GT Timberline Betting that came with the MC-12 cranks. The recall alivio cranks.. also on my GT.. Which would be confirmed with the front hub being a MC-12.. Usually that would have been a 21 speed with -12 so perhaps it was -16
@garysprojects they are much easier to swap cables and clean. I have a 94 Rockhopper on my IG post. The rear Mech look like mc-16 so the cranks would be the same.. so that's an upgrade rear wheel and shifters
Another great looking build, thanks for sharing 👍
wow!! thank you very much for the support Glenn I appreciate that !!
A friend of mine had this exact model and color when I was in college in the late 90's - early 00's. It got stolen within a week, and he built a klunker which he rode and never locked up for the rest of his college career. I was seriously in love with his Hard Rock, even though I was riding a black and purple Rockhopper at the time, and I almost felt as heartbroken as he did when his got stolen. My extra precaution kept mine from getting stolen for another year (Arizona State bike thieves are relentless) and I rode a light pink and blue Takara road bike (which would be a highly-sought prize in today's vintage market. Thank god my Dad still owns it so I can visit it from time to time) for the rest of my college career, and the thieves never thought it worth their time. Anyway, sorry for the long comment, but this very bike brings back some strong bike-related memories.
That’s awesome sounds like some go of memories. Glad your dad still has his ! Sounds cool !
as you usually say: "overall, nice bike!!"
hahah cheers mate! pretty good !
Good to see your good old-fashioned refurbs again!
thank you my dude !
Appreciate the demonstration of the limiter screws on the mechs
cheers mate glad it was helpful
@@garysprojects u helped me fix this girls bike I got a crush on lol
@@garysprojects w that very tip
@@CryptJeeper damn!!! Hope she appreciates it 😂💕💕
I thought the bit showing manually adding tension to the front derailleur cable to find the correct limit was especially helpful. Thanks!
I had the same bike in 1994, unfortunately it was stolen in Amsterdam. Today I have the Specialiced Hard Rock XT Comp 2009. great video. Well done. Best regards from old Germany/Mannheim 😊
ahh that's a bummer ! your current bike sounds great though! cheers from Australia !
Great video! I've been locked in from the start. It's therapeutic.
Thank you very much ! It’s therapeutic for me too working on bikes
What a gorgeous colour and great bike, looks comfy!
color is so nice ! cheers mate i appreciate it
Nice one! Orange constructor specialized!
I also got a stumpjumper sworks that i got and restored a few years ago, love the frame. Very light. Keeping it as close as original possible, its my 26 roadie.
Has a small issue with the headset lower fork bearing race, does not "match" it, need to find a tighter one to fix that. Besides that, awesome bike.
Thank you ! wow awesome that's quite a nice bike. glad you can keep it going ! cheers
That Pedro bottom bracket tool is a game-changer. Need to find one.
@@biosfearmag it’s a good one ! Super helpful I got mine from
Beautbike.com.au
@@garysprojects shipping might cost more than the part to Portland, Oregon. :) I'll check local bike shops. Thanks for another good nugget.
@biosfearmag I think Pedro’s is an American company anyways 😂 they should have it somewhere, cheers mate !
Nice build! I really enjoy your vids. I just finished refreshing a 2000 Rockhopper. Late 90s to late 2000s were some of the best bikes.
Thank you my dude I appreciate that! yes, they made some great bikes during that period and also cool paint jobs too!
Impressive what you can do with a balcony workshop! Nice bike
hahaha cheers I appreciate that!
Btw Gary! I was looking for alternatives for avoporust, cuz it's not available in my country. So I found a thread where a guy suggested it is Edetate disodium (C10H14N2Na2O8). I tried it and I've been using it all the time. It is supercheap, safe for use as it is not toxic doesnt smell and easily available (ordering online). The regulation may vary from area to area though.
You need to warm a water to 60C add this powder and a soap and mix it.
Just drop the rust parts for 24 hours and the rust will be eaten away like a magic.
You can use it multiple times. But capacity of the mix is limited. It works like one molecule of Edetate disodium is connecting with one molecule of rust and go away together as one
Wow! that is awesome glad you were able to find a solution. sounds great!
Absolutely epic build mate ..... Good to see a refurb .... Keep up the good work brother
Cheers mate I appreciate that! will do my best thank you
Yes the deep yellows are so much better looking then bright yellow
Agreed !
Build looks great. Thanks again for sharing!
cheers I appreciate that! thanks for watching
Hey Gary, i would like to call it Bumble Bee…comes out pretty shiny and technical well renewed😎the chosen spots and sounds are great! Thanks for sharing your passion🌟🙂
That’s a great name ! Haha good explanation. Thank you my dude thanks for watching 🙏😊
@@garysprojects You’re welcome😎
From Jerry to GARY GOOD JOB
@@jeromeGrzelak thank you JERRY
I appreciate that you're keeping it as original as possible and it's a good looking frame/fork but that chains gotta go imo, brillo pad or steel wool works great on raw alloy rims and spokes, big results less effort. Nice work man!
cheers mate I appreciate that! thanks for the tips
Sweet resto! I've been thinking of putting some BMX style handlebars on my old Rockhopper.
hell ya do it up! will be fun
Hey Gary nice bike, like your use of 2nd hand parts, excellent results, seeing a lot of these style of bikes around Melbourne now😊😊
Cheers mate ! I appreciate that. Yep use what I can if it’s not broke haha. Oh yes ! I’ve seen more around too, great to see people enjoying bikes 😊
yeah overall pretty cool bike
Cheers mate
Great bike resto!!! Cool ride,, especially love the bars.
thank you very much I appreciate that!
I strongly recommend getting a vice. They're not that expensive and don't take up much room. I got one recently and I'm using it all the time in my bike builds.
@@astral_brain would love one haha, but I don’t have a work bench to put it on 😅
@@garysprojects Me neither, I have just mounted it on my "table" which is a 18 mm sheet of plywood. It's one of my best purchases and I should have gotten one long time ago! Love the bike BTW!
@astral_brain dang ! That works? Nice I gotta try that thanks for the tip!! Cheers mate i appreciate that 🙏
😭so good!!! I would ride this bike every single day
cheers mate ! super fun bike to cruise around for sure
Gary is that guy who spreads wd40 on his bread when he runs out of butter😂
Haha the youtube magic at the end was amazing😂 everyone using that corny trick getting calmly roasted by Gary 😂
hahahah thank you mate, glad you enjoyed cheers!
Evaporust great on pancakes
@@hamadysack3157 need to try 😂
Nice retro specialized build!!! Love those Motocross style handle-bar! 😎👍 Love these vintage specialized bikes... Last 2 weeks ago, i almost got a vintage specialized rockhopper fsr full suspension bike, w/all orig parts and a manitou fork, in very very pristine condition, original decals, color. White frame and black swing arm... Saw it on fb marketplace, very low price, too bad someone buy it before i could messege the seller... 😅😅😅
Thank you mate they are pretty comfy! ooo ya that sounds like a cool bike. hahah sometimes that happens, happy hunting ! Cheers
@@garysprojects yup, regret that i didnt messege the seller asap... Hahahaha. Anyways, keep up those bike build videos! 😊👍👍👍 Have a nice day. 😎
nice job gary! nice ride!
cheers my dude i appreciate that !
Just bought a 2001 hardrock comp and it had the original tires on it lol
haha nice
i would have resprayed it but you did a good job 👍
@@martinwild8424 thank you mate
As an owner of 84' Koga Miyata rat bike I often watch these restoration videos, but let's be honest, the biggest benefit of owning a rat bike is because it looks like a trash, and with friction shifters most thieves probably won't be able to drive it away even if you leave it unchained.
Keep it simple and low cost. Spend your money and effort on your dream bike you keep at home, safe from elements and criminals. ;)
What if I lock up my rat bike inside 😂😂😂
thanks Gary, my kind of machine, great stuff
Cheers Reece I appreciate that !
Nice, I had one of these in 1999, I think the colour was called electric mango
Nice!!! That’s a perfect name 👍
always keep quil stem with removable face, great content as always 😁
@@loose.spokes yes will keep it for another project ! Thank you very much 😊
learned a few new things. thx for that.
one question:
why dont you clean and lubricate the pulleys? same for hubs?
@@mikelelgemann820 sometimes i do , you can check my other vids, for this bike i didnt think jt was necessary so i didn’t. cheers!
Very nice dude and i have loads of retro bikes which might have to be rat builds 👍😀
cheers mate!
Paraparaumu On Yer Bike!!!! That was my local bike shop growing up.... I bought my first ever bike from there as a kid. Such a cool find haha.
I hope you dont get rid of the sticker!!
@Aitchy_ hhaha wow!! thats cool. small world ay !
guess you will have to watch the video to find out 🤣
@@garysprojectsSuch a small world! It’s crazy that the bike made it over to Australia from New Zealand lol. Probably went over with the hoards of people jumping across the ditch lol.
I’d commented right as you’d mentioned the sticker at the start of the vid… Not gonna lie, I was gutted to see you remove it 😂. In your defence, it was pretty unsightly lol. Either way, rad build bro!
Gary, what kind of bars are the ones tou used on this build? I just got a GT Palomar and want to build it with this bars. Thank you inspiring content!
@@Aitchy_ cheers mate !
@@juancecchinelli8405 mx bars from mxstore.com.au the cheapest ones on their website
beautiful.
Thank you! Cheers!
You should of build it into a bmx cruiser with a 44t in front and a 16t in the rear it would of looked awesome
@@willasomavich haha almost there
Every ratmobile NEEDS a front rack!
Hahah luckily I still have my diy one
I do like me a BMX'ish little mountain bike on a sunny day!
any cheers mate, a fun ride !
Awesome build! What are the bars you used?
cheers mate they are : www.mxstore.com.au/p/Extreme-Racing-Mini-Black-Steel-Handlebars/17-HB3-02
sick as usual!
do you flip/sell most builds? i have 9-10 bikes that i’ve built up (i can’t stop picking up frames). it doesn’t really seem profitable or even possible to break even on these builds, but i also come from a place with no bike scene at all. what’s your model to keep bikes moving?
Cheers mate I sell them on , for me, I put a lot into my bikes so I think that helps with selling. Obviously my bikes aren’t for everyone but for the ppl that value my work they appreciate it. Hope that helps
Good luck!
I'd whip out the cone spanners, that rust and crap doesn't bode well for the state of bearing grease.
Edit:
Good job, looks like a "super nice" ride.
Cheers mate maybe I’ll have a peak in there soon
Keeping it 3x and reusing lots of parts. Overall, nice bike.
that's it - if it aint broke , no need to replace. cheers mate!
Hey I forgot this guy builds bikes as well!! 😆 haha! Sweet build by the way 🍻
Dang roasted !! 🤣🤣🤣
Cheers mate !
Kerja yang bagus...
Salam satu pedal dari Indonesia ☕🙏
Thank you very much 🙏🙏🙏💕
Gary how do you find breaks and shifters that fit a thicker moto bar? I’ve got some sick moto bars that are 1” diameter and I can’t find good grips or anything that fits them
@@braycattle yeah thats hard, these are 7/8 pit bars so they fit. ive seen some ppl use plastic levers and melt them to stretch out for 1inch tho
Where do you get these moto bars, Gary?? Love this build 🤙
cheers mate , extreme racing bars from mxstore.com.au
Have you ever put evaporust inside a frame to deal with internal rust? If not that, what's your preferred way of dealing with internal frame rust?
I haven't but I would probably spray wd-40 and try to clean it out - some people use linseed oil to protect it
Bg saddle is body geometry (specialized brand)
Ahh right on
What's the liquid sandpaper you use ?
@@nicolasmunoz1309 T-Cut colour restorer
@@garysprojects awesome! And the vapo rust? I just finished the video, the bike look good as hell🔥
@@nicolasmunoz1309 cheers mate I appreciate that ! It’s called “evapo rust”
Très chouette 😎
cheers my dude !
wheeere did you geet the moto bars frommm
i bought a bmx stem for my bike to get that retro cruiser type handlebars but the only ones i can find are moto bars are they worth buying or i should stick to bicycle bars
@@ok-ff6pp i got them from mxstore.com.au
Where do you get those moto bars? They always look sick!
Cheers man I got them off mxstore.com.au
Yellow Velo Gang 🤘
hell yaw!
Sticker idea Gary:
Gary roasted my bike 🔥
🤣🤣🤣🤣
are you doing all of this on an apartment balcony?
Do you work on bikes one at a time? And what about tool storage?
@@mungus530 yes to all, hahah its a tight space but I make it work
@garys.projects hi friend!) What camera and micro do you use? maybe some kind of tripod? Tell us more about your video setup please)
@@Роман-ф1р4б I just use iPhone XS Max for everything and quadlock tripod. Cheers !
@@garysprojects Thank you - you create amazing videos - I realy apreciate it!
No worries thank you very much !
I have a moral issue with replacing quill stem with an adapter
sometimes you gotta
YEEELLLLOOOOOOWWW
we did it !
How many bikes do you have now Gary? A stable check would be nice
@mechatakoyakisan I just sold one but I got quite a few 😅😅😅 hahah ya maybe if I can get em all out at once would be cool
I respect the rat build, but I think I would have spraypainted the headset black, because you have to know it's just going to rust again.
thank you g
This bike’s from New Zealand sold just north of Wellington
Ayyy nice ! Someone must have shipped it here
@@garysprojects honestly, I’d guess a third of people in Melbourne are kiwis 😅😂
@@zanecatterall6783 🤣🤣🤣 could be, could be
was really hoping you gonna lose dem front derailleur and go one by...
Not this time
I had a bike for several years that had grip shifters. They were.... fine. They weren't anything special, but they worked fine. I never really understood why they get so much hate. Are they, like "dork disks" just viewed as uncool?
I think just general preference, I personally don’t like them because they can shift when riding etc , if they work for u keep em 👍
yo how much do you sell these for and are you in SA
not in SA sorry
@@garysprojects no sweat, sick builds btw
@KenmeriCaptain cheers mate i appreciate that 👍
자전거 이뻐요
Thank you very much !
At this point your astroturf must have enough chemicals in it to kill a horse with one touch
@@SquaredCircle777 🤣🤣🤣 luckily I have no horses on my balcony
Dude you didn’t polish the seatpost they look-sweet when there polished
@@willasomavich good question, I wanted it to match the rest of the bike
I like gripshift but those are awful and not OEM specialized had their own branded units that are awesome.
Rm40 is Alivio for sure. I have the darker wheel version of those on a purple GT Timberline
Betting that came with the MC-12 cranks. The recall alivio cranks.. also on my GT..
Which would be confirmed with the front hub being a MC-12..
Usually that would have been a 21 speed with -12 so perhaps it was -16
@@the_nondrive_side oh cool I didn’t know specialized had their own ones! That’s cool, I wanna see how different they are
@garysprojects they are much easier to swap cables and clean. I have a 94 Rockhopper on my IG post.
The rear Mech look like mc-16 so the cranks would be the same.. so that's an upgrade rear wheel and shifters
What makes it a rat bike
@@sweatcap2131 ratty parts
@@garysprojects ok cool, I just picked up a 93' Giant Rincon from a scrap yard
yeeee buddy
Anyone else have that thing where as soon as they see foil your teeth feel weird?
I definitely don’t
@@garysprojects you're a foil scrunching machine
😂 true that
is your voice different?
@@音姫soundprincess ?? Not sure
You are sitting too high!
Get rid of the 2x at the front as this is old tech and go 1x
try 3x u might like it