Bikes of the 90's are more capable than people think. Yes, the newer designs with better suspension definitely make riding easier/safer overall, but the older bikes just took a bit more skill to ride the same trails. I started mtn biking in 1991 and bought my first full suspension in 1993. It was a GT RTS 2 that I would end up taking to Moab in 1994. If I remember correctly, it had only 3" of rear travel and the Rockshox Mag 21 I had upgraded to had just under 3". I rode Porcupine Rim and the Portal on that bike w/o any issues.
A mag 21 with 3" of travel was probably pretty noodly. Modern geo helps a LOT. There was an obstacle on my local ride I found terrifying...until I put in a 1.5 degree angleset. Then it was no big deal.
I think a lot of skill is almost taken away with some modern bikes, I train on my enduro bike but it’s almost boring to go ride and spin. Riding a bike like this made me actually choose lines better and utilize the bike differently and made the ride much more exciting. Not to mention it was so solid!
@EVO1CYCLING This is why I went back to a simple 27.5+ hardtail with just 120mm travel fork. Plus I just don't ride jumplines or flow trails, I prefer good old handcut tech.
$40 is unbelievable! My first GT was a 91 Avalanche. Their 26" inch hardtails are still the best looking hardtails ever in my opinion. They just look fast sitting there😅
Not going to lie, I kinda like them! I can see not wanting them in certain scenarios but to be able to move your hands around and not be locked into one position for grip…. They might stay on the rebuild and go on the wider bars!
Would love to see it modernized, fat knobby tires, 1x drivetrain, 27.5 front wheel (with a 27.5 air fork), and a hydraulic front brake. Then taken on some rough trails.
Nice to try it out in original form, though I highly doubt that those tires were original. My rigid 1992 Giant Sedona climbed pretty damn well with the original tires. There were definitely some gimmick tires back then, though. FWIW, I rode that old Sedona down some long flights of stairs without issue. I wonder of the old tech suspension fork was actually a liability in that context.
My mountain bike I bought before graduate school in 1991 still is missed by me. The classic hard tail mountain bikes are better than the current overbuilt mountain bikes with excess features.
@@theEVO1VEDMechanicOne of my comments disappeared. I mentioned that three guys pedaled Unbound on Walmart brand beach cruisers and did pretty well. It was in Velo magazine and GCN. Classic simple bikes can still do amazing things.
I have an early 90s Trek Mountain Track rigid 26” that is 100% bone stock that I picked up for $20 last weekend, trying to find a sister bike and do a bike packing challenge with a friend for a video. It’s insane how good the old bikes are, no frills or things to break, just solid and built like tanks!
My first mountain bike was a 1992 GT Tequesta it was absolutely too big for me but I loved that thing. Still I managed to bend the forks and eventually the whole bike ...😂
@@theEVO1VEDMechanic I still have a couple of bikes I raced XC on including my totally original delaminated 1995 dealer preview Mongoose team sx (it's on a wall) and my beloved 1997 yellow Cannondale F7000 it's not original tho. I had still my 1993 cadex CFM-1 but it was in very poor shape since 1995, I sold it for $500 to a r/xbiking utopian... 😂
I have an old gt. I got an old mongoose bike from a friend that had rock shox on it I said I’ll use them part I took the forks and stem added it to my gt. Found some old magura rim brakes I bought for 50. I might add them but got an old trek y bike I want them for.
@@theEVO1VEDMechanic yeah me as well but I slimmed down my parts bin now just little parts bin left over years of fixing bikes. Over stock to limited parts bin.
I just paid $25.00 for a 1998 DBR with an aluminum unpainted frame. Needed inner tubes and has a frozen fork. Some people still said that I overpaid.??? I love the retro look.
When I first got into freeriding and DH late 98' did huck to flat with a roached up 1997 GT tempest I bought for 100$ out of my employer who got it on a trade for a hybrid, had all sorts of HD componentry including a judy XL up front, the heatube cracked after a month, had much more success with the 99 Kona explosif I got to replace it.
Back in the 1990's I ate so much wheels I started building them, Chris King hubs with oem Araya rims cuz they were cheap. The stench of rancid linseed oil still haunts my dreams.
It looked like a weinmann 519 which are a crappy single wall rim. They're kinda notorious for having bad joints. At least a weinmann zac19 if not a legitimate double wall rim such as a sun ryno lite. Nice rim brake compatible rims in 26" are getting harder to find.
Those are not bull bars, and those old bikes can be ridden down stairs an indefinite amount of times. That bike is like 2 or 3 sizes too small for you.
Bikes of the 90's are more capable than people think. Yes, the newer designs with better suspension definitely make riding easier/safer overall, but the older bikes just took a bit more skill to ride the same trails. I started mtn biking in 1991 and bought my first full suspension in 1993. It was a GT RTS 2 that I would end up taking to Moab in 1994. If I remember correctly, it had only 3" of rear travel and the Rockshox Mag 21 I had upgraded to had just under 3". I rode Porcupine Rim and the Portal on that bike w/o any issues.
A mag 21 with 3" of travel was probably pretty noodly. Modern geo helps a LOT. There was an obstacle on my local ride I found terrifying...until I put in a 1.5 degree angleset. Then it was no big deal.
I think a lot of skill is almost taken away with some modern bikes, I train on my enduro bike but it’s almost boring to go ride and spin. Riding a bike like this made me actually choose lines better and utilize the bike differently and made the ride much more exciting. Not to mention it was so solid!
@EVO1CYCLING This is why I went back to a simple 27.5+ hardtail with just 120mm travel fork. Plus I just don't ride jumplines or flow trails, I prefer good old handcut tech.
$40 is unbelievable! My first GT was a 91 Avalanche. Their 26" inch hardtails are still the best looking hardtails ever in my opinion. They just look fast sitting there😅
The “Triple Triangle” is so pleasing to look at!
That 180 LMAO wasn't expecting that
It was a very last min decision 😂
I kinda miss bar ends. I actually ran stubbies until about 4 years ago when they broke
Not going to lie, I kinda like them! I can see not wanting them in certain scenarios but to be able to move your hands around and not be locked into one position for grip…. They might stay on the rebuild and go on the wider bars!
So cool. I had a GT back in the day. Loved it and ride the hell out of it. Can't wait to see the upgrades.
Can't wait!
Would love to see it modernized, fat knobby tires, 1x drivetrain, 27.5 front wheel (with a 27.5 air fork), and a hydraulic front brake. Then taken on some rough trails.
Same! I wanna see just how good this thing can be!
Had amazing adventures (and scars to remember them by) with my ‘98 Aggressor. Rear deraileur hanger was the Achilles’ heel of that era.
Good to know! I did bend the wheel up into the rear derailleur so I’ll double check it during the rebuild
Nice to try it out in original form, though I highly doubt that those tires were original. My rigid 1992 Giant Sedona climbed pretty damn well with the original tires. There were definitely some gimmick tires back then, though.
FWIW, I rode that old Sedona down some long flights of stairs without issue. I wonder of the old tech suspension fork was actually a liability in that context.
I love the older steel lugged frames. They easily convert to a great touring bike.
I even got a newer gt aggressor pro. I’m updating. As well
Totally agree!
Yes!!!
My mountain bike I bought before graduate school in 1991 still is missed by me. The classic hard tail mountain bikes are better than the current overbuilt mountain bikes with excess features.
I honestly love this thing, filming the upgrade/update video this week and it’s going to be awesome! I appreciate you watching!
@@theEVO1VEDMechanicOne of my comments disappeared. I mentioned that three guys pedaled Unbound on Walmart brand beach cruisers and did pretty well. It was in Velo magazine and GCN. Classic simple bikes can still do amazing things.
I have an early 90s Trek Mountain Track rigid 26” that is 100% bone stock that I picked up for $20 last weekend, trying to find a sister bike and do a bike packing challenge with a friend for a video. It’s insane how good the old bikes are, no frills or things to break, just solid and built like tanks!
My first mountain bike was a 1992 GT Tequesta it was absolutely too big for me but I loved that thing. Still I managed to bend the forks and eventually the whole bike ...😂
@@theEVO1VEDMechanic I still have a couple of bikes I raced XC on including my totally original delaminated 1995 dealer preview Mongoose team sx (it's on a wall) and my beloved 1997 yellow Cannondale F7000 it's not original tho. I had still my 1993 cadex CFM-1 but it was in very poor shape since 1995, I sold it for $500 to a r/xbiking utopian... 😂
I have an old gt. I got an old mongoose bike from a friend that had rock shox on it I said I’ll use them part I took the forks and stem added it to my gt. Found some old magura rim brakes I bought for 50. I might add them but got an old trek y bike I want them for.
It’s amazing how interchangeable these old bikes are, I have a stockpile of take offs from other bikes to do a full build series on this one
@@theEVO1VEDMechanic yeah me as well but I slimmed down my parts bin now just little parts bin left over years of fixing bikes. Over stock to limited parts bin.
I just paid $25.00 for a 1998 DBR with an aluminum unpainted frame. Needed inner tubes and has a frozen fork. Some people still said that I overpaid.??? I love the retro look.
I’ve still have my old Gary Fisher Ziggurat with XTR components and such.
I had a buddy with one and remember how good that bike was!
When I first got into freeriding and DH late 98' did huck to flat with a roached up 1997 GT tempest I bought for 100$ out of my employer who got it on a trade for a hybrid, had all sorts of HD componentry including a judy XL up front, the heatube cracked after a month, had much more success with the 99 Kona explosif I got to replace it.
I almost hucked this thing a few times 😂 I kept reminding myself that I want to do a build on it and had to ride it home LOL
Hey , nice explanation 😊
I bought a gt avalanche 1997 for 80, and i wanted to resell it after cleaning and tuning, but my father stopped me cuz he liked it too much😂
These old bikes are great for gravel (fun) and commuting. I buy them cheap. Fix them up and sell them cheap.
That was design flaw of the hoops ,, not the bike please try again with stronger hoops and maybe better tires lol!
For sure! I’ve broken a few of the lower end wheelsets of this era doing the same thing, I have a good set of Mavics going on it
Back in the 1990's I ate so much wheels I started building them, Chris King hubs with oem Araya rims cuz they were cheap.
The stench of rancid linseed oil still haunts my dreams.
It looked like a weinmann 519 which are a crappy single wall rim. They're kinda notorious for having bad joints. At least a weinmann zac19 if not a legitimate double wall rim such as a sun ryno lite. Nice rim brake compatible rims in 26" are getting harder to find.
Those are not bull bars, and those old bikes can be ridden down stairs an indefinite amount of times. That bike is like 2 or 3 sizes too small for you.
i just bought that bike for $75
Still a steal at $75!
I have my first full suspension bike from the late 90s still. I restored it. But I can’t ride it. It is just awful compared to the new stuff.
Quick answer: a few, yes. Most, not.