Modifying a Vintage MTB For Modern Riding - THIS BIKE IS INSANE!
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
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The goal with this bike was to create a single track ripper for my local trails that didn't have suspension; thanks to my recent love affair with vintage steel mountain bikes this Fisher presented itself as the perfect candidate. It was in all original condition & is a full 4130 Chromoly frame & fork constructed out of True Temper tubing. I picked the bike up from the original owner who shared some stories about riding it which was an incredible experience, especially knowing that this bike was about to get a second life out on the trails.
I dug through my parts bins & sourced some new bits to bring this build to life & the final product was exactly what I had dreamt of - an all out ripper of a bike!
This series is going to be a whole lot of fun as we'll be doing more resto-mods alongside full on restorations of vintage, forgotten bikes...in fact we have nearly a dozen sitting in our shop at the moment ready for some love!
Any bikes or builds you'd like to see featured in this series? Let me know in the comments. Thanks SO much for riding with me!
-Mike
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Mike Murfitt: / mikemurfitt
Just stumbled up your channel, and like your style. Love this bike, It looks fun as heck to ride! Extra points for being a fellow Coloradan. Subbed.
@@eliksc dude!!! Stoked you’re here ⚡️🖤
I can’t wait to actually get to ride this thing on some dirt, it parties pretty good in the snow!
Ah hell yea!! Where are you located in CO?
@JoyOfBike
Pueblo. I like to ride and commute on my projects along our beautiful River Walk 👍!
@@elikscnice!! That river walk rules.
We come down there a bit in the winter to ride the trails at the state park & the ride the skatepark. Such a cool area & only getting more rad!
For sure, as long as you know where to look, I am in California and bikes are so plentiful here it's amazing the stuff that we find hanging up in garages at garage sales and flea markets people who go to all the garage sales and Goodwills and bring them to the flea market to sell them because they know that myself and a few other people will buy every one of them, it's bikes like those that make us become bike addicts years ago
I bet there's SO much goodness floating around out there. Pretty similar here - my wife loves thrifting & is always on the lookout for bikes at different shops haha.
I think the fact that bikes like these are what started the movement is what gets me SO stoked on them. They're so pure & to be honest, it's INSANE to me that people rode these bikes on some of the terrain that they did - beyond inspiring & makes me thankful to have the bikes, terrain, & access we do today. But now that I've begun to fall in love with the 'vintage' stuff, I want to revisit that style of riding!
I am sure you guys over there in Co. Find some amazing stuff too ! I am near the Specialized headquarters so we see alot of that stuff ....I really dig finding the early trek stuff 😅 but seems few and far between anymore..... Have you seen the OLD Crested Butte to Aspen videos? One of the videos has a young Gary Fisher....you can see him in wild looking a Mt. Tam. Jersey.....I have been checking out your vids ...some great stuff !
Ah man, I love the Specialized fade paint jobs - those RULE. The Trek's from the early days are so epic too - I have my eyes on a yellow '87 800 that's in pretty clean shape. I have a small Trek 800 in blue, USA built at our roastery for a build right now.
YES!!!! I was just saying I want to ride one of my vintage rigs up & over the pass...maybe this summer! I think it'd be a cool way to pay homage to the greats that paved the way for the riding we get to do now.
Thanks for the love!
I have a red Gary fisher paragon from late ninety’s and absolutely love riding it on gravel trails it’s an alloy frame with tumbleweed bars to give more upright position. Cool vid and great to see another fisher rescued
Ah hell yea!!! Sounds like a dope rig. ⚡️🖤
Great episode dude! Happy to see you thriving, picking up sponsors and putting out great content!
Thx amigo!!! Means the world. Hope all is kick ass in your world. Cheers!
Smooth as butter. Love all your setup choices. Great fun.
Stoked to hear you liked the build, Thanks for watching!
Awesome video, and sweet bike. (only suggestion would be adding a parts list in the description) Turned out great!
Those derailleur hanger extenders are the unsung heroes of modernising older frames. I usually keep a little handful of them around, current pub bike is from 1988 and I’m rocking a 1x10 drivetrain from 2nd hand Sram parts and some off brand ali express cassette. 26’ still rips!
Right?!? I need to get some more for my chest.
That’s bad ass!! What kind of bike is it?! I’m beyond stoked on these builds lately - it’s all I can think about haha.
@ its a 1988 Clubman Sports Club, dont know much about the brand bar its seems like collab between a US BMX company and an Aussie framebuilder. Somehow ended up in my hands after like 4 owners. Looking forward to seeing more my dude!
Kindred spirits.
I raced BMX '80 to '86. Rode BMX bikes before that (the whole "On Any Sunday" thing. Was there for the freestyle boom of the '80s. Watched it "die." Rode mountain bikes from the mid-'80s on and off.
Got my bro's '96 Gary Fisher Mamba about ten years ago and did the resto mod thing. 1x drivetrain, low SE BMX bars, Maxxis Holy Roller tires. Big, geared BMX/MTB. Been loving it ever since. 60 years old going on 20... at least in my mind!
Love the channel... keep it up
P.S. Looking forward to the trail riding video with this bike once the trails clear up. SoCal for me... I'm fortunate!
Amazing!!! I love that - I bet you have some incredible stories, that era of BMX & MTB looks to have been beyond special.
Really cool to hear about that resto build & age is just a mindset my friend, keep shredding & you'll be forever young!!
It's been in the 60's here the last few days, better than the -10* we were experiencing, but stuff is melting fast so that video is coming soon!! I'm so envious; I love SoCal, where exactly are ya??
Sending big love!!
@@JoyOfBike Southern San Joaquin Valley, Bakersfield. About two hours north of LA.
@ amazing!!! I know that area well, I used to spend some time in Tehachapi at Woodward west.
@@JoyOfBike Bingo! I lived in Tehachapi briefly as a kid then moved to The Kern River Valley, specifically Lake Isabella and Bodfish Canyon... great riding areas for dirtbikes and bicycles.
man, how cool! I bet that was a kick ass area to grow up. I need to get back out that way.
Can't wait to see a summer rip on dat whip on the Golden Ponds singletrack!
That’s the way to do it, I love the colors.
I acquired the same? bike 6 months ago but have just started using it as a daily. Stage 1 is Surly sunrise bars, a KS dropper, new tyres, grips and brake pads. Next is a conversion to hydraulic disc brakes and 1x11.
No kidding?!? Same color too? That’s so dang dope.
Sounds like a killer build - if you are doin 1x11 w/ stock wheels I’m happy to share how I did it, if interested!
@ Yeah same colour and frame size. I’m in Australia.
Keen to know how you fit the 11spd cassette
That's amazing!!
the stock hub on that bike is a FH-HG50, there's a shimano freehub body, Shimano FH-C201, that bolts right on & will allow you to mount the 11sp w/ no issues!
This video reminds me of my first MTB, got it in Winter, picked up from the store and rode it back home in snow, it was OG '90s bike, also red but nowhere near as nice as this, great build :)
@@kamikazee5000 dudes that’s so dang rad!!! Love those kind of moments. What do you ride that days?!
Thx for the love & stoke amigo!!
Excellent job. So great seeing someone refurbish a great old bike.
Thx yo!!! It was an absolute blast - stoked to do more!
The bmx crank set is so killer. I never even thought of that
I was honestly a bit nervous about spacing but it’s pretty damn perfect!! And this bike has a 135mm rear end too
@@JoyOfBike What is the crank?
Initially I put on 175mm profile BMX cranks I had laying around - after pedaling it around the shop I realized they were bent & ended up getting a pair of 175mm Shadow Rant cranks in chrome as well!
@@JoyOfBike thanks!
no doubt amigo!
Nice build, just saw your channel and I'm in Colorado and a bike nerd.I can't wait to watch more.
Stoked you found the channel, welcome to the family amigo!!! I have a TON more coming for this series I’m stoked to share. Talking about maybe hosting a bike show/swap meet at our Roastery some time this summer!!
Dope Build and Video Mike..
@@jasonstella74 thx homie!! Hope all is great!!!
Amazing build! Great choice of colors!
Appreciate it!!! I have an ‘87 Raleigh in yellow & the factory colors are pink, so I figured doing the inverse of that & having opposites would be pretty fun!!
Such a cool bike!
Thanks amigo!!! ⚡️🖤
Watching this for inspiration for my barn-find 94 Kona AA. Torn between a gravel-esque build or trying to make old school character with modern comfort and reliability.
Yes!!!! I love to hear it & those Kona’s are so freakin rad!!
It’s such a toss up! Flip a coin & keep your eye out for another rig to build up whatever you don’t build out of this one 😉 that’s what makes these bikes so dang nice - you can pick ‘em up so cheap or even free sometimes!
I like these mod bike builds , something genuinely beautiful about them , looking for that frame myself to build , new subscriber , more vids please for ideas
Thanks yo!! I couldn’t agree more - the idea of giving something new life especially in a time of throw away items is pretty cool, too.
Stoked to hear what you pick up!! We have more coming!
Did you really just cut off those vintage Ritchy grips!?! OMG best grips ever. :(
I know it…I wanted to save them but they were basically GLUED on to the bars. I tried air & WD40 but the ends were stuck 😵💫
I have a swell 1991 Red 20.5 " rocky mountain hammer that i feel the same about . all i did was swap the stem and plop a riser bar on it.
Bad ass!!! It's crazy what that little modification does to the ride quality.
Reminds me of my 1991 Schwinn Highplains. Heavy, twitchy, rode like a brick, barely stopped, and over-geared.
Yea, those long stems have never made sense to me - makes the front end WAY too snappy & some of those cantilever brakes just didn’t cut it. The factory brakes on this bike were actually surprisingly good, but I needed more!
The tubeset on this bike is true temper so it’s relatively light, thankfully! I need to weigh the final product.
@@JoyOfBike Yeah, but they were necessary until recently because the top tubes were so short. I think the twitchyness was mostly the head angle
@@JoyOfBikethey make sense for trial 😂
@@PedroLima-lr5tphahaha funny you say that because I kept telling my friends this bike felt like a trials bike before haha
@@blurglidehead angle for sure makes up for a lot of it - I need to see the degree of this bikes, compared to my BMX
Love that you found a way to jam a 12 on that bike. What's with the spaghetti bowl, all those tools and no housing cutter?
Ended up w/ an 11 cassette - the rear end is 135mm, I thiiiiink I could’ve squeezed a 12 but didn’t think I’d need for the riding I’m doing!
I actually went back through w/ my housing cutter & shortened everything after the fact! Haha. Because it was a LOT of cable. 😂
@@JoyOfBike Did the 11 speed fit on the original 7 speed freewheel body? I've been rockin' 1x7 on all my builds this whole time...
It did not, I had to upgrade the FH body. This stock hub is a FH-HG50 & I found that the Shimano FH-C201 Freehub body is compatible.
Awesome build Mike! Dude, watching those loose bearings go in gave me PTSD flashbacks to the old skateboarding days when we had to use those effers and theyd spill out all over the road. Thoughts on modernizing to different wheels, disc brakes, suspension fork? Or just keeping the old school tech?
Great stuff and glad we finally warmed up enough to get out.
Thanks amigo!!!
Haha there’s nothing worse than bearings going everywhere like that!!! Reminds me of being a kid too, trying to work on my bike & ruining them because I’d lose all the bearings 😂😂
I need to get a truing stand & then I’ll probably upgrade the wheels to something more stout; my fear is tweaking the frame beyond repair though if the wheels are too stout. I’ll probably keep it rigid just because of the riding I’m planning to do on it but may do a suspension fork on one down the road!! As for disc…I actually have a ‘87 rock hopper frame that needs some REAL love, so I’ll probably refinish it & see if my friends over at REEB cycles can weld or braze some disc mounts on.
Nice build. I assumed you swapped out the freehub body to accommodate the 11-speed cassette? I’ve owned several early 90s mountain bikes, and you are correct. The long stem, low stack height of that era made for an uncomfortable ride.
Yep!! Swapped it out to use the original wheels.
It’s kinda crazy the guys back in the day were shredding these bikes SO hard. Props to them!
Can you install the 11 speed cassette on the 7 speed freehub without any problems? I’ve been considering a drivetrain switch like that on my 92 Cannondale M700, but have been hesitant because I wasn’t sure it would work.
Cool build you’ve done on that Fisher….love it!
You have to put a new freehub body on, this hub is a FH-HG50 & I found the shimano FH-C201 was compatible with it, it’s a few mm longer to account for more cogs. I’m gonna do a full video detailing the process in coming weeks!!
Thanks so much!!
@ Awesome! I just stumbled onto your video today. I was impressed with your work and presentation. You just got a new sub! 😊
@ you’re a legend!!! stoked you’re part of the family. 🫶🏻
smart tire choice! I would keep the 3x
Thanks!!! The holy rollers took me back to my younger days racing BMX.
I definitely contemplated it, I think if it were friction shifting I would have - the early index shifters just feel too clunky in my opinion.
Love this, great video!
@@gstag100 thanks so much!! We have another 8 bikes ready to start working on, stoked to share more!!
Love the riding footage. You shred
Thanks so much!!! That means a ton. 🫶🏻
Really stoked to actually ride this thing for a video soon - I can tell it’s gonna party.
Wow....that thing looks new old stock, nice job !
Right?! I couldn’t believe it when I found it. Definitely a special find. It’s crazy how much is out there in this condition too now that I’m looking for it. I’ve developed a problem; I think I have close to a dozen of these bikes now 😆
Yea the gloss on the neck, bars and headset is amazing on that thing ! !
I dig your nice clean shop ! For years I would pick them up everywhere I go, a few years ago I had a guy come over from a Berkeley used shop come over and pick up 150 of them, it took him three trips of 50 bikes each trip to get them all....high sierras, DB ascents, univegas...miyatas...rock hoppers, yokotas....ect.....I think I am back up to at least a hundred again 😂....new bikes are so expensive and these old ones are WAAAAY better and not so cookie cutter like all the new bikes
Thanks man!! Very grateful to have the support of Pedro's tools & to have the space at our coffee roastery to make this all happen!
No freakn' way!!! That is freaking amazing dude. I'd love to see all the rigs you have haha. At this rate I'll be near 100 myself in no time.
Couldn't agree more, plus the colors & graphics on the new bikes are just so damn boring!!
They have this exact bike for sale in my local co-op right now. beauty of a frame. I would bite if it was my size for sure.
No kidding?! That's so rad. I'm genuinely impressed with the geometry after switching up the stem/bars. If you see one in your size SNAG IT!!
Been missing you guys.
@@justinmiller1535 missed you too! 🫶🏻 we have a long queue of content from fall we’ll start rolling out, more of this style of video, tutorials, & vlogs on the horizon. Stoked you’re part of the family. ⚡️🖤
Were you able to get on some of the trails this last week its been 40/50s in Cheyenne so ive been hitting some single track on thr way to work wondering how it is just down the street?
Nice!!! It’s been SO warm here but everything still has a bit of snow or is soggy at the moment…we got hammered in the last storm. Hoping mid week I can get out though!!
Rad build!
@@distortohio thx yo!! I’m really excited to actually run it through its paces here soon. More builds coming too!
Can you build Ozark Trail full suspension
How did you squeeze an 11 speed cassette on an old 7 speed hg freehub? They're usually smaller than an hg freehub for 8-12 speed cassettes
If I had to guess, he might’ve replaced the 7 speed freehub body with an 8-10 speed one(which also can do 11 and 12 speed with certain cassettes). Just have to readjust the axle spacing when you do that.
great question; sorry I just breezed over it! It took quite a bit of digging around paired w/ Trial & error before I filmed this, but stoked it worked out.
The stock hub on this bike is a Shimano FH-HG50, I found a freehub body that mated with this hub for 8-10 speed, after a bit more reading - turns out that means 11sp works too! The model number of the body i went with is: Shimano FH-C201
Are you using a grip shifter if so what brand?. Nice build and first ride. 🚲
Nvm mind about the shifter. Lol
Thx mate!!! Stoked to really ride it here soon 🤞 snow is melting quick this week!
I really should have a bike mechanic friend to have this level of restoration. 😅
If you live in Colorado, I’ll help ya out 😎
what kind of body did you install on the wheels?
The stock hub on this bike is the shimano FH-HG50, after some trial & error I found the Shimano FH-C201 freehub body was compatible & everything bolted up without issue. Thankfully the rear end of this bike is already 135mm which makes the 1x11 possible without rubbing or stretching the frame apart.
Shredding it :)
Thx yo!! can't wait to really run it through the paces. :)
How come you chosed to have a half naked brake wire on top tube. Why not just do solid housing all the way?
That’s how the routing on the frame itself is! Honestly not sure why brands did it; perhaps for less cable drag/friction?
@@JoyOfBike I never understood that. I’m not a fan.
I get it for the fact of function, especially when brakes weren't as powerful - removing some of the housing means more pull, increasing stopping power. One other upside, in my opinion, was that it doesn't rub the paint off like a traditional cable does in spots.
Parts list or a little info on what your putting on would be highly appreciated! Solid vid otherwise! 🎉
New sub!
Thanks for the feedback; I'll incorporate a parts list into the description for this one - I actually built a spreadsheet so I can track costs so I may just link that! & in future videos I'll be sure to chat over stuff a bit more.
Cheers!
Are you Fisher bikes from Gary Fisher? This is the second bike I’ve seen in last couple weeks branded Fisher
Yea, to my knowledge the Fisher brand was what Gary originally started, then in ‘93 when Trek bought it they renamed the brand to Gary Fisher, in part to a lawsuit from a fishing company.
Were cassettes a thing 30 years ag0😅
Yep!! However some bikes in that era also had freewheels instead of the cassette
How did you fit an 11 speed on that hub?
@@pmb9944 haha great question; short answer lots of trail & error paired with research. Ultimately I found a driver body that paired with this hub that worked!!
I am happy to share the full specs to save ya the headache if you’d like? I’m out & about right now but can circle back
I came here with the same question. I was confused why he just breezed past that, because that could send a lot of people down a really frustrating path, thinking they could just swap from a 7 to an 11.
I'm rebuilding a '97 Marin right now and using the original 7 spd hubs. Took off the freehub and put a new one on that accommodates an 11 spd cassette. Its about 2-3mm longer than the 7spd so put a narrow spacer on the axle on both sides to push the dropouts away slightly without needing to get the wheel re-dished. Was lucky that the nominal 135mm rear dropout spacing was nearer 137mm. Works great.
I used the stock hub, a shimano FH-HG50 & figured out the Shimano FH-C201 freehub body, which supports 8-11sp cassettes was compatible! Just be mindful of the frame/hub spacing, if it's 135mm you're all good - if it's 130mm you'll either need to stretch the frame & add a spacer to the axle, which could cause crank rub or frame fatigue, so in that case I'd go 1x10.
Nice build. What threaded->threadless adapter are you using there? Is for a 1 1/8 quill stem?
@@slinlee thanks!!! So I bought this bike without realizing it was oversized, so 1 1/4 threaded, so this one steps it down to 1 1/8” threadless.
I had to go with the Nitto mt adapter!
I like old mtb. I don't understand why you changed cantilever for v-brakes (and 1x too). When i do something similar i prefer 3x8, 9, or 10, maybe 2x10, and double wall rims and '90/'00 components.
I wanted as much stopping power as I could get with one finger braking, which is why I went that route - I have a few other vintage rigs that will always keep their canti brakes but I really want to ride this one hard! As for drivetrain - I’m just not the biggest fan of front derailleurs; less moving pieces = less to maintain or break & less weight.
I hate that 90s is vintage now! I have a similar bike from '95 that I will never get rid of.
I'm sayin'!!! When I was doing the intro for this video I realized this bike was only a year older than me - that made me feel old as I was calling it vintage. haha.
I didn't realize it until I moved back to the east coast, but being overbiked is really not fun.
It can be really frustrating!
What brand of bars?
@@scottzeck4308 they’re the Velo Orange Klunker bars - but the clamp diameter is 25.4” so you either need an oversized BMX stem or a shim to use a MTB stem, which is the route I went! I didn’t realize that when I ordered them however. 😵💫
On every brake lever there is a reach screw. 99.9% of bike mechanics are unaware of this. Unless you are a gorilla the lever needs to be brought in for human hands.
I love long throw on my brakes, so I rarely ever bring them in.
Poser build. Quill stems and 2 byes are more functional
I built this bike to fit my needs; I have 2 other vintage rigs with quill stems & the original 3x7 drivetrains that I love equally! I wanted less moving parts on this built plus a stem with a ton of clamp strength because it’s going be ridden HARD. That’s the fun thing about life - everything is subjective! Cheers. 🫶🏻
Dude, why do you and most, cut the grips off. Why not use air to remove and then give to others for re-use.
I usually try to do that, however I believe these were the stock grips & were basically glued on. 🙁
@@JoyOfBike they looked like Ritcheys though :D
Crippled... 🥺😢😥
What do you mean?
isnt insane!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’ve ridden A LOT of bikes, I mean a lot. The way this 33 year old bike rides after these modifications; it’s insane. Although, I understand that statement is subjective! 🤷🏻♂️
Where are you in Colorado? Just moved from Houston to Boulder!
kick ass!! We're in Longmont, so just 15 minutes north of you. We have our coffee biz, Traction Coffee, in the heart of downtown Longmont & that's where this was filmed as well!
-Mike