Trekathlete

I need/want to either upgrade my existing mountain bike or get a new one. The bike in question is a 1998 Stumpjumper M2 Pro hard tail. The Stumpy is a size to big for me and the fork/shock is too narrow and requires deflation of the front tire to remove it, which I need to do each time we put it on the vehicle to go biking (a major hassle in my opinion). To keep this bike I need/want to get a new frame ( one my size) and a new fork ( which uses V-Brakes). Or I can sell the old bike and use the money I was going to use to buy a new frame and fork to invest in a newer bike, preferably a 29er and something that is comparable in performance/weight as my old bike. Either way it will feel like a new bike to me, fit me and I think I would enjoy mountain biking more.

I just want to hear your thoughts and maybe ideas on a comparable new bike. I really like the OPEN bikes but that may have to wait for me to graduate college and re-join the working class.

Daspydyr 

I suffered with the same issues in my money challenged days. What kind of budget are you thinking? If you make a purchase, make one good enough to justify the expense and make it last for a while. My thinking anyway.

Trekathlete

I agree with you Daspydyr.

To reiterate my long post above I need/want to either upgrade my existing mountain bike or get a new one. The old one is a size to big for me and the fork/shock is too narrow and requires deflation of the front tire to remove it (a major hassle in my opinion). To keep this bike I need to get a new frame ( one my size) and a new fork ( which uses V-Brakes). Or I can sell the old bike and use the money I was going to use to buy a new frame and fork to invest in a newer bike, preferably a 29er and something that is comparable in performance/weight as my old bike.

I just want to hear your thoughts and maybe ideas on a comparable new bike. I really like the OPEN bikes but that may have to wait for me to graduate college and re-join the working class.

dminor 

Wait a minute - - is it the stock Manitou SX? Looks something like this:



Those brake studs should be plenty far apart to remove even a 2.4 tire easily. Crown pitch and brake stud width has not changed that much over the years really.

Nevertheless, DO NOT waste any upgrade money on a bike that does not fit you.

Trekathlete

It is that exact same fork. I actually measured the posts and they are 3.25" same as my wife's bike which operates just fine. So since that wasn't the problem I then found that its the actual brake pads that aren't allowing for the breaks to open up wide enough for the tire. They are longer than my wife's brake pads. The brakes themselves are XT v-brakes. Same on the back too except there is enough clearance for the pads to open up and let the tire out fine but not on the fork. The tire is a size 2.10 kenda small block 8's.

I wouldn't buy anything more for this bike unless I got a comparable frame first.

dminor 

^^ Sounds like maybe too many spacers on the inboard side of the pads. Try removing enough to at least let the tire squeeze through but not so much where the arms contact the tire on hard braking pull. Just a guess.

Since you're on a limited budget right now, maybe a WTT ad on your local CL for comparable-but-smaller frame may be in order. Never know.

Trekathlete

I'll try messing with the spacers see if I can't come up with a solution to that problem at least.

The bike is a 19" frame and I need a 17"-18" frame. I can stand over the bike on flat ground but its right at my crouch with little to no space flat footed. The stem is also like a 120mm stem that I would like shorter because I have to put the seat all the way forward on the rails to make it fit semi comfortably.

I will try and post a WTT ad on CL and see what happens. So many bikes out there though and I really like the components on this one. Maybe I can find someone though willing to swap frames. Part of me just doesn't want to part with the cool orange color of my bike .

dminor 

My bad, that's what I meant actually was just a WTT on frame-only so you could keep your components.

Trekathlete

I tried fiddling with the brake pad spacing but there is no difference. The brake pads can only go the same distance before hitting the fork which doesn't make enough room to squeeze the tire out without rubbing significantly.

dminor 

Try Kool-Stop pads. They're a bit lower profile than many plus they work better than most too.

Trekathlete

Ok I'll try the kool-aid pads. I doubt it will give much more space but it's worth a shot. My next bike will definitely be disc and I will have no problems.

Zero7

Typically a new bike (vs. frame and components) will give you more upgrades for the money. With the new tech out there, I'd go with the new bike. If you're tight with cash, check your local Craigslist - sometimes a gem will pop up.

Good luck!

Cheers

Trekathlete

I kind of like to think my bike is a little bit of a gem. My wife's bike is newer by at least 8 years but the components aren't as good as mine and the bike is heavier than mine. Although her front wheel does come off with ease . I actually got my bike for around 160 and then put about 160 into it with new tires, tubes, grips, brake pads, and chain guard. I think it has been a pretty good deal so far but unfortunately the frame turned out to be to large for me. I have found a frame that might work as a replacement for around 115. So I think I am going to go this route until I graduate from school and can afford all the carbon I want!

I would also like to take the largest chain ring off and make it an alloy chainring protector then tune that gear out of the shifters. That will be a project for later this summer when I am riding more and more of a preference than necessity.

Thanks for the replies everyone!