Show your Bicycle !
- Thread starter SX550
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USA Soccer
Well-Known Member
Rocky Mountains are sweet
marqueemoon
Gimme indie rock!
Here's the newest addition to the family - a mid-90's Bontrager B29 24" BMX cruiser. Such a fun bike to goof around on when out with my kid. The only change I plan to make is get rid of the weird disc brake adapter and put a V brake on it for ease of maintenance, shedding a little weight, and period correctness. At 42 I am not going to be hitting any big stuff on this, so a V will be fine.
...and here's my "A" cyclocross race bike, an On-One Il Pompino with Easton EC90X fork. I assembled it before last season using a mishmash of closeout and used parts. It's a good balance of light, strong, and cheap. Really fun bike.
...and here's my "A" cyclocross race bike, an On-One Il Pompino with Easton EC90X fork. I assembled it before last season using a mishmash of closeout and used parts. It's a good balance of light, strong, and cheap. Really fun bike.
A quick snapshot of one of my bicycles moments before I gave it to a sixteen years old refugee from Afghanistan in my hometown last week, which made that day obviously one of the happiest in his life. No replies with political content please. I just wanted to report the glance of this boy when he touched the bicycle, which made me happy as well...
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70chevelle
Active Member
Bought my Cannondale M500 new in 1995 along with my wifes M400. Added an Amp F3 XC suspension fork, since it was originally rigid. Lightest suspension fork on the market at the time, but a crazy design. Used to ride it on everything, but not as adventurous today, so it's been relegated to rails/trails and street duty. Still gets lots of miles and is just a touch over 20#.
A year later (1996) I found this bike on closeout. Retail on it was $2,100 at the time, and I think I paid $1,100. (WTH was I thinking??) It's a Scott Vertigo LSD Team full suspension bike. After research, I found that Scott had some issues in the USA at that time and most of their sales were in Europe, so not a lot of info on the USA version of this bike. Still my goto when I know it's going to be rough terrain. Had to rebuild the RS Judy with speed springs a few years ago. The elastomers were shot. The rear shock needed replaced and was upgraded to a newer Fox Vanilla with rebound and preload. Fun bike to ride.
The last is my newest. A Windsor Cliff 29er with a RS Tora air (very nice) and Avid Juicy 5 hydraulic disks, (nice but finicky). Lots of fun in the woods. Its a heavy bike, compared to the other 2, but rides light in the woods. Got bit by the 29er bug and bought this from Bikesdirect.
A year later (1996) I found this bike on closeout. Retail on it was $2,100 at the time, and I think I paid $1,100. (WTH was I thinking??) It's a Scott Vertigo LSD Team full suspension bike. After research, I found that Scott had some issues in the USA at that time and most of their sales were in Europe, so not a lot of info on the USA version of this bike. Still my goto when I know it's going to be rough terrain. Had to rebuild the RS Judy with speed springs a few years ago. The elastomers were shot. The rear shock needed replaced and was upgraded to a newer Fox Vanilla with rebound and preload. Fun bike to ride.
The last is my newest. A Windsor Cliff 29er with a RS Tora air (very nice) and Avid Juicy 5 hydraulic disks, (nice but finicky). Lots of fun in the woods. Its a heavy bike, compared to the other 2, but rides light in the woods. Got bit by the 29er bug and bought this from Bikesdirect.
We bought new bikes a couple of weeks ago; my wife wanted a new one and she insisted I get a new one too. So she got a Specialized comfort bike and I got a 3G beach cruiser.
I love the 3G, damned thing is like a Cadillac.
I love the 3G, damned thing is like a Cadillac.
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marqueemoon
Gimme indie rock!
That's fantastic. Sounds like it found a good home.
I ride a Specialized myself. 2015 Crosstrail Disc, and I've put on nearly 1,400 miles since July 1. Still had mud on it from an encounter with one of the singletrack trails near Bloomer Park in Rochester. Normally I ride the rail trails and Metroparks. Roads are too hostile in the area to do any type of riding on the streets or sidewalks here. This photo is one of the few that nearly captures the color--it's a satin-finish "Spruce" that is like a faint green color. This was at Lake St. Clair Metropark, facing south
towards Canada, this past Sunday.Nothing special in upgrades. Ergon GP1 grips, Selle SMP TRK seat (after going through three others that were total crap), CatEye Micro computer. I have a Philips Shoqbox bluetooth speaker on the front handlebar, and carry an old smartphone with SD card slot for tunes. Not mounted on this short ride, but for longer rides I put on my Topeak MTX beam rack and trunk bag.
We also have a Giant Sedona step-through(circa 2003 or 2004) in the fleet. Has a couple of nicks from being moved a few times, but I just ditched the crap Kenda knobby tires for some Vittoria Street Runner tires so the bike is more road-friendly. Since my other half has carpal tunnel issues, I am going to ditch the lousy grip shifters (they are very wide, wider than normal grip shifters) for trigger shifters, and install the Ergon grips on that bike as well.
I partially restored a very lightly used, but slightly rusty/dirty Specialized Crossroads Sport for my daughter back in early August, so now she has something better to ride than the crap "big box store" bikes her mother picks up at garage sales. It looks great, and being a small frame, fits her properly. It dates back to the mid to late '90s (far as my dealer can tell), but aside from minor surface rust on a couple of hardware items, the frame has nothing other than one tiny nick on it. All the hardware has been cleaned up, and the frame rubbed out with some Meguiars rubbing compound.
The tires were practically like new (they were the original Specialized Nimbus tires), other than being dry-rotted. I put on some Bontrager street tires. I say "partially" restored since other than the cantilever brakes (which I disassembled, cleaned and lubed), I did not disassemble anything else to repack with new grease, or clean the cables, or even clean the chain beyond giving the bike a washdown. That'll be my winter project, as opposed to paying the shop $120 to tear it down and do the same. But everything turns smoothly, and the wheels are true.
Beyond the dry-rotted tires, the only other part I needed to replace was the handlebar stem--Specialized made one with a plastic bushing to absorb shock, but the plastic dried out and no parts are available to fix it. I also need to replace the seat--it is springy and way too soft. Can't complain though. For the minimal amount I paid, this bike was a steal. A new Crossroads Sport retails for $510, new.
Unless the frame is set up for disc brakes, I was told it usually isn't possible to safely convert it. The stress on the frame from a retrofitted disc brake system is something the frame was not designed for. It would also require new wheels, and they likely won't fit the frame without modification since they are wider to accommodate the rotors.
I considered it briefly for the other bikes in the house but realized it wouldn't work...
Redtide
Super Member
Ya that's what a local bike shop recently told me. They said they had some grippier brake pads that they could sell me for the rainy weather but I haven't bought them yet.
Interesting. Thanks! I should look into those for the other bikes we have. I know the pads on the Crossroads are likely original and might be 15-20 years old, and the Giant's I know for certain are 12 years old. A grippy brake pad would be good choice for these, once I figure out what fits.
mr_fred
Veloist
Waterford T-14 custom frame -- mostly Ultegra (but canti brakes, and the brifters went when I wrecked on the 19th of May this year, and to save money, the shop replaced them with Tiagras -- so far, so good). Terry Men's Liberator saddle -- got a prostate? Try that saddle. British Racing Green. At present, the mudguards and rear rack are not on the bike. This is the one I ride the most. I have longer-than-average arms -- hence the frame geometry. The photo setting is Champaign County, Illinois with iconic corn and soybeans, and the bike is resting against a post embedded in the fertile soil to mark the corners of these two adjacent fields (I'm standing on the edge of a county road to take this photo).
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mr_fred
Veloist
... and at the other end of the spectrum, one I ride rarely but like a lot -- it's heaps of fun: This is a 1970s era Raleigh Twenty folder. It's photographed by one of the elements of Taft's "Fountain of Creation" on the University of Illinois at U-C campus, which is where I used to work.http://chicago-outdoor-sculptures.blogspot.com/2012/07/uiuc-fragment-from-unfinished-fountain.html. The bike has been modified by several owners. Two owners ago (i.e., not the guy I bought it from) replaced the stock wheels with BMX alloy rim wheels, which was a great idea, except that s/he got the valves in the wrong spot (per spoke angles) and it's a hassle getting a pump head in there. I fixed up and reinstalled the fenders, put on the Brooks sprung saddle, changed to a longer stem (my long arms again), and did some other minor tune-ups. I had a shop overhaul the bottom bracket. You can learn more about Raleigh Twentys here: http://raleightwenty.webs.com/
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mr_fred
Veloist
Covered with cobwebs, sitting on top of the bathroom in the warehouse - my yellow 1970 Schwinn Continental I bought new when I started college, and the Schwinn Varsity I bought for my then-girlfriend-now-wife in the mid 70s after hers got stolen out of their garage.
Once this place sells and we move, I plan on doing a restore job on both.
cool -- after you fix them up, re-write your will and decide which grandkid will get those bikes; that's how long those frames will last -- they are absolutely indestructible.
lightcapture
Super Member
Uptown Chicago
MaxxVolume
Lunatic Member
1974 Raliegh Professional
marqueemoon
Gimme indie rock!
Man, that thing is in time capsule condition.
Donkey Face
New Member
WOw! Finally a Topic on this forum I actually know something about. I Spent many years working in Bike shops.
MaxxVolume, nice to finally see a nice Campy equipped steed. I put many miles on A Raleigh pro with Nuevo Record. 2526 I miss Bridgestone,, I love the Orange. I unfortunately parted ways with my MB zip years ago. I've always enjoyed bike guys and Gals. Emonda,,,sweet! Waterford...Classy and sweet, even though you said 'brifters'..
. Amp fork, I love it, I had a Lawell Leader, works like an upside down amp fork, it was the Bomb(in 1991).
I might have to dust off ony of my fleet and go on a quick Thanksgiving Day ride. Cheers!
MaxxVolume, nice to finally see a nice Campy equipped steed. I put many miles on A Raleigh pro with Nuevo Record. 2526 I miss Bridgestone,, I love the Orange. I unfortunately parted ways with my MB zip years ago. I've always enjoyed bike guys and Gals. Emonda,,,sweet! Waterford...Classy and sweet, even though you said 'brifters'..
. Amp fork, I love it, I had a Lawell Leader, works like an upside down amp fork, it was the Bomb(in 1991).I might have to dust off ony of my fleet and go on a quick Thanksgiving Day ride. Cheers!