I did this to a Ridley CX bike not too long ago. Did a SRAM 1X drivetrain, kept the Avid Shorty canti’s and the Fulcrum Racing 7’s. Put a Fizik saddle, Ritchey carbon seat post, a C3 stem and PRO handlebars on her and she is a beast in the gravel and so much fun to ride. Highlighted her with red anodized hardware and wheel skewers and she’s a conversation piece at every ride I show up to. It was a Pawn Shop find and a fun build. I ride her frequently and it never fails at grinding gravel amazingly well.
Yea anodized parts are pretty snazzy. Sounds like you went pretty full in on the mods. I will ride the bike with current parts and pieces until they are done before changing anything. Unless it is something that is really limiting my riding like maybe the brakes. Gravel has really opened up these older bikes to what they can do well in stock form.
I am totally with you about the ride quality of old bikes. I like to rebuild old Schwinn road bikes and cruisers. Update the wheel sets, modern brakes (Tektro side pulls) and new indexing drivetrains (7 or 8 speeds in back). Vintage style and modern dependability. And steel just feels good to ride. Forgive me for gushing.
Sounds great man. My usual rule is that I don’t upgrade it unless it is actually broken. I will ride the wheels that it has and the tires until. They are shot. I think that bikes maybe were built better back in the day. Especially steel. Made in the USA is nice. Thanks for the comments. I like bikes that are 7 speed and up. What about you? What is the perfect number of speeds for longevity?
Hmmm. Good question. Depends on what your expectations are. When I build single speed cruisers for easy going in the neighborhood, I like a 36 or 39 tooth chainring up front. Nice easy starts, but admittedly no top end speed. With multispeeds, it is a matter of do you prioritize speed or climbing? Here in upstate NY, it can get pretty hilly. I like a 28 or 35 cog in the rear. To get the ratios I want, i will often (but not always) convert the one piece crank BB to a sealed cartridge square taper. This gives me more options with less maintenance.
Built better in the past? Maybe. Depends on what you mean by "better". Most old bikes built "back in the day (post war - 1980's)" were constructed of heaver materials. Quality meant longevity. The old joke was that you could toss an old Schwinn out a second story window, realign the handlebars and ride off. The modern definition of quality (1980's - present) is overly focused on light weight. No expectation of long (more than 5 years) ownership.
Nice bike. I would convert it to a 1x and put bigger tires on it. And switch to V-brakes. I hate cantilevers. A bmx stem and mx bars would made it perfect imo
Thank you for comment. Yes this was a customers bike. V brakes are cool but I like the look of cantilever. Is it true that modulation is better with cantilever thank vbrake? See you out there on trails.
90a chromoly steel mountain bike is my EDR (Every Day Ride). I put on new tires, seat, peddles, bottle holder,, a bell, and kept the straight handlebar (no drop bars - I'm too old now for that kind of speed). Kept the cantilever brakes with new pads. Why don't I feel like I'm missing out? : )
@@friendlybikerepair3958 I ride everything! My ride to work is 8 miles in, I like to ride by the Mississippi river which is a combo of dirt and gravel and paved paths. I was a BMX rider who grew up also riding road bikes. Put em together! Gravel all day! My modern gravel grinder is a 2022 BMC unrestricted with redshift stem and seatpost systems. That bike rides like a dream
@@friendlybikerepair3958 my BMC is aluminum so should stand the test of time. I'm weird about carbon. I have a trek 5500 oclv that I love that's built like a tank. But not all carbon bikes are built as strong.
Did you ever try and convert one of those 90ties 26" MTBs to 28"? Those look even better than 26" with those skinny tyres. Roll better, too. You can fit the wheels no problem. The only difficulty is the brakes. I have an actual 28" fork up front and a adapter plate for the brake in the rear. I absolutely agree on you assumption that you can get a very good deal on really really good and light steel frames like that. Same goes for the brakes. If you're not content with cantilevers or v-brakes, I'd suggest you use an old set of hydraulic Maguras. Those sell for very cheap, are rock solid and perform significantly better than canties. Then, about the brake you were talking about on your Stumpjumper: Ditch the shimano cable hanger and use an adjustable one. Move it way closer to the tyre. And also remember to not mix cantilever brakes with V-brake levers or vice versa. They have different cable pull ratios.
Thanks for comment. Are you saying I need to switch out the front fork or just the wheel? I like to keep it original if possible to a degree I feel it helps the value appreciate better. Thoughts? Magura hydraulic disc or rim brakes ? Sounds fun. Although I love something about simplicity of cable.
Thats a nice bike. I would ride the crap out of it. I have a solid fork 90's GT Tequesta 26er in pink. I love riding it. Only thing is it does kind of get uncomfortable after riding it for a bit because the handle bar is very forward and aggressive like on this bike you're showing here.
Wow that's cool. Have you done any upgrades or updates? Thank you for comments Do you have any pics? Are you on Instagram you can find me on there to share pics. Friendlybikerepair is my instagram too.
edit tldr/clarification: With a limited budget for a reliable touring steel bike am i better off buying a modern steel bike or upgrading an old one considering i have limited knowledge on how to match parts and identify what is good. Im in europe and the first bike i bought was a vintage mercier road bike, he was awesome but the derailleur holder of the frame broke. Then i buyed a quite retro decathlon road bike but it doesnt have rack support and i messed up some parts, and its a tad small for me. Last year i bought a Giant stonebreaker, renovated it and stuff, i wanted to make it a travel bike. but this thing is a tank and i don't like the flat handlebars, it hurt my wrist so much. I take no pleasure riding it, wich is not cool. So im now looking to buy a new bike and im torn deciding what to do, do i go retro again or treat myself to a shiny modern bike (used). Your video and especially the bike you showed inspire me to try to build or better, find a retro with quality components but im scared to regret it either ways.
I think retro is way to go or newer bike but used. Although I like rigid because you don't have to worry about suspension stuff breaking or upkeep. It is a more raw bike and more efficient. Disc brakes I don't think you need unless you don't mind the maintenance and extra cost. See what you can find used maybe. Parts can be cheap and upgrade is easy and fun. Depends on type of riding your gonna do to. Thank you for interest. Take care.
That Yokota is sleek - what is the model? Also - what year is your Rockhopper - I have the very same bike, aluminum frame, same color and decal graphics, same grip shifters. Except I have front shocks. I got it 2nd hand so do not know the year.
Thank you man much appreciated. Gotta love these bikes. I have done a bunch of upgrades to the Rockhopper since that video. My rockhopper is a 1995 or 1997 maybe not sure.
Hello, Yes you could do the handle bars or even just leave them. The point is that many older MTBs from that era already are gravel bikes. You can lower the bars on there by slamming stem and going for it. The drop bars are optional if you are really serious. On the red bike it already has bar ends and knobby tires. Thank you
Yes I have tried that but then the modulation is way off. For some reason and the squeak comes back. Thank you for interest. What bikes do you roll? Thanks
I did this to a Ridley CX bike not too long ago. Did a SRAM 1X drivetrain, kept the Avid Shorty canti’s and the Fulcrum Racing 7’s. Put a Fizik saddle, Ritchey carbon seat post, a C3 stem and PRO handlebars on her and she is a beast in the gravel and so much fun to ride. Highlighted her with red anodized hardware and wheel skewers and she’s a conversation piece at every ride I show up to. It was a Pawn Shop find and a fun build. I ride her frequently and it never fails at grinding gravel amazingly well.
Yea anodized parts are pretty snazzy. Sounds like you went pretty full in on the mods. I will ride the bike with current parts and pieces until they are done before changing anything. Unless it is something that is really limiting my riding like maybe the brakes. Gravel has really opened up these older bikes to what they can do well in stock form.
Nice clean lines, lovely paintwork and quality components...I would not change anything on this bike ..It's perfect as is !
Wow finally someone who agrees with me fully haha. Thank you. Sometimes things don’t need to be modded. Just enjoyed
I am totally with you about the ride quality of old bikes. I like to rebuild old Schwinn road bikes and cruisers. Update the wheel sets, modern brakes (Tektro side pulls) and new indexing drivetrains (7 or 8 speeds in back). Vintage style and modern dependability. And steel just feels good to ride. Forgive me for gushing.
Sounds great man. My usual rule is that I don’t upgrade it unless it is actually broken. I will ride the wheels that it has and the tires until. They are shot. I think that bikes maybe were built better back in the day. Especially steel. Made in the USA is nice. Thanks for the comments. I like bikes that are 7 speed and up. What about you? What is the perfect number of speeds for longevity?
Hmmm. Good question. Depends on what your expectations are. When I build single speed cruisers for easy going in the neighborhood, I like a 36 or 39 tooth chainring up front. Nice easy starts, but admittedly no top end speed. With multispeeds, it is a matter of do you prioritize speed or climbing? Here in upstate NY, it can get pretty hilly. I like a 28 or 35 cog in the rear. To get the ratios I want, i will often (but not always) convert the one piece crank BB to a sealed cartridge square taper. This gives me more options with less maintenance.
Built better in the past? Maybe. Depends on what you mean by "better". Most old bikes built "back in the day (post war - 1980's)" were constructed of heaver materials. Quality meant longevity. The old joke was that you could toss an old Schwinn out a second story window, realign the handlebars and ride off. The modern definition of quality (1980's - present) is overly focused on light weight. No expectation of long (more than 5 years) ownership.
For me like post 1990. You still get 7 speed gears indexing and decent to great brakes. The weight wasn’t super heavy either on some.
I enjoyed your posting, good luck with your new channel.
Nice bike. I would convert it to a 1x and put bigger tires on it. And switch to V-brakes. I hate cantilevers. A bmx stem and mx bars would made it perfect imo
Thank you for comment. Yes this was a customers bike. V brakes are cool but I like the look of cantilever. Is it true that modulation is better with cantilever thank vbrake? See you out there on trails.
Ill take cantis over any other type of brake.
90a chromoly steel mountain bike is my EDR (Every Day Ride). I put on new tires, seat, peddles, bottle holder,, a bell, and kept the straight handlebar (no drop bars - I'm too old now for that kind of speed). Kept the cantilever brakes with new pads. Why don't I feel like I'm missing out? : )
Do you think you could slay running to the corner grocery store on the Yosemite?😉
You know it. Too bad it's not mine.
I converted my 96 stumpjumper to a gravel bike. It's a beast. I got a video I made of it on my page. My stems short. And 17 degree angle
That's perfect man. What type of trails do you ride flat, wide open tight twisty? Thank you for interest. Ride on man.
@@friendlybikerepair3958 I ride everything! My ride to work is 8 miles in, I like to ride by the Mississippi river which is a combo of dirt and gravel and paved paths. I was a BMX rider who grew up also riding road bikes. Put em together! Gravel all day! My modern gravel grinder is a 2022 BMC unrestricted with redshift stem and seatpost systems. That bike rides like a dream
@@christiankeim That's great to hear yes that BMC looks fancy man. I wonder how the longevity will be is all. Mississippi sounds nice.
@@friendlybikerepair3958 my BMC is aluminum so should stand the test of time. I'm weird about carbon. I have a trek 5500 oclv that I love that's built like a tank. But not all carbon bikes are built as strong.
Do a video 📷 on that red rock hopper
You got it man. It’s already done. Will post it next week. Thanks for message. Do you ride a older bike ?
@@friendlybikerepair3958 1998 rock hopper
Is that the year you are saying ? Thanks
@@friendlybikerepair3958 yeah it's a 1998
Beautiful bike
Cheers mate
Did you ever try and convert one of those 90ties 26" MTBs to 28"? Those look even better than 26" with those skinny tyres. Roll better, too. You can fit the wheels no problem. The only difficulty is the brakes. I have an actual 28" fork up front and a adapter plate for the brake in the rear.
I absolutely agree on you assumption that you can get a very good deal on really really good and light steel frames like that.
Same goes for the brakes. If you're not content with cantilevers or v-brakes, I'd suggest you use an old set of hydraulic Maguras. Those sell for very cheap, are rock solid and perform significantly better than canties.
Then, about the brake you were talking about on your Stumpjumper: Ditch the shimano cable hanger and use an adjustable one. Move it way closer to the tyre. And also remember to not mix cantilever brakes with V-brake levers or vice versa. They have different cable pull ratios.
Thanks for comment. Are you saying I need to switch out the front fork or just the wheel? I like to keep it original if possible to a degree I feel it helps the value appreciate better. Thoughts? Magura hydraulic disc or rim brakes ? Sounds fun. Although I love something about simplicity of cable.
I was talking about the rim brake version like the HS 22 or race line.
The fork is an option if you bought a bare 90ties frame.
Thats a nice bike. I would ride the crap out of it. I have a solid fork 90's GT Tequesta 26er in pink. I love riding it. Only thing is it does kind of get uncomfortable after riding it for a bit because the handle bar is very forward and aggressive like on this bike you're showing here.
Wow that's cool. Have you done any upgrades or updates? Thank you for comments Do you have any pics? Are you on Instagram you can find me on there to share pics. Friendlybikerepair is my instagram too.
edit tldr/clarification: With a limited budget for a reliable touring steel bike am i better off buying a modern steel bike or upgrading an old one considering i have limited knowledge on how to match parts and identify what is good.
Im in europe and the first bike i bought was a vintage mercier road bike, he was awesome but the derailleur holder of the frame broke.
Then i buyed a quite retro decathlon road bike but it doesnt have rack support and i messed up some parts, and its a tad small for me.
Last year i bought a Giant stonebreaker, renovated it and stuff, i wanted to make it a travel bike. but this thing is a tank and i don't like the flat handlebars, it hurt my wrist so much. I take no pleasure riding it, wich is not cool.
So im now looking to buy a new bike and im torn deciding what to do, do i go retro again or treat myself to a shiny modern bike (used).
Your video and especially the bike you showed inspire me to try to build or better, find a retro with quality components but im scared to regret it either ways.
I think retro is way to go or newer bike but used. Although I like rigid because you don't have to worry about suspension stuff breaking or upkeep. It is a more raw bike and more efficient. Disc brakes I don't think you need unless you don't mind the maintenance and extra cost. See what you can find used maybe. Parts can be cheap and upgrade is easy and fun. Depends on type of riding your gonna do to. Thank you for interest. Take care.
That Yokota is sleek - what is the model? Also - what year is your Rockhopper - I have the very same bike, aluminum frame, same color and decal graphics, same grip shifters. Except I have front shocks. I got it 2nd hand so do not know the year.
Thank you man much appreciated. Gotta love these bikes. I have done a bunch of upgrades to the Rockhopper since that video. My rockhopper is a 1995 or 1997 maybe not sure.
VINTAGE MARIN LARKSPURS FIT THE BILL PERFECTLY
nice 👍 good for you. send me a photo if you like bryceventura@gmail.com
would be nice to see it. cheers
to convert a bike like that one would it not be simple to just put a set of drop handle bars on and maybe a wider set of more aggressive tires
Hello, Yes you could do the handle bars or even just leave them. The point is that many older MTBs from that era already are gravel bikes. You can lower the bars on there by slamming stem and going for it. The drop bars are optional if you are really serious. On the red bike it already has bar ends and knobby tires. Thank you
Tops
What do you roll? Are you a fan of rigid bikes ?
Slay
yes sir slay they do. What bike do you got? thanks
plastic break levers are just junk. they need the stiffness of metal
I hear you man. I did just upgrade to metal will be giving update soon. thank you.
Toe in your brake pads to stop the squeak 😀🦶
Yes I have tried that but then the modulation is way off. For some reason and the squeak comes back. Thank you for interest. What bikes do you roll? Thanks
👍
Thank you for your support.
What bikes do you have?
That’s a hybrid bike.
@@barrymullen5242 why do you think so ?