zachleft

Just purchased my first road bike! Super excited to ride it but also quite excited to customize it a bit more to my liking. It's a 1990 Trek 1420 in great condition.

I've already made some purchases. It came with clip in pedals (don't have shoes) so I purchased some Shimano M324 hybrid pedals. I also ordered a triangle bag that fits under the crossbar to replace the saddle bag since it's a bit small.

Anyways, I'm quite satisfied with the gear set (Shimano 105) so this is more about the tires (Michelin Dynamic Sport) which are rather thin at 23mm (came from factory with 25mm), and saddle (Wilderness Trail Bikes Speed V) which is old and does not suit my butt well.

I'd like to get some 28mm for a cushier ride and potentially commuting. I'll probably use the Michelin until they fail me, but I've been toying with the idea of getting some tires with yellow or skin sidewalls.

As for the saddle, I'm probably going to purchase a Fabric Scoop Shallow as soon as I decide on black or white. If any white saddle owners could chime in on their experiences that'd be great

As you can see below the frame has a very 90s paint job, which I do love, but leaves me pretty limited in the customization department unlike your white/grey/black bikes.

Here's some ideas I've been kicking around. Current bike has red side walls, others are photoshopped:

Piff 

The straight black tires, or the darker tan-walls would be my choice. The bright yellow will become faded and dirty quickly, anyways.

Also, are you completely sure it can fit 28mm tires?

And, this is out of the blue, but in my mind's eye I can see burnt orange bar tape on that bike...especially if you were to choose all black tires

Oh, almost forgot, nice bike!

zachleft

I...don't actually know. Which part do I measure, and how much clearance is typically necessary?
Now that would certainly be interesting

diphthong

i'd be more tempted to leave the saddle, tires and hoods black and do a red bartape to match the "trek/1420/aluminum/usa" graphics red coloring on the tubes.
i can take or leave the red sidewalls but they seem to be a darker red than the red graphics on the assorted tubes so that could be impossible getting the exact red bartape.

SurferRosa

I've always thought c&v bikes with cool looking dark rims deserved gumwalls. I'd deanodize and polish the seatpost (or use another polished one). I like a sexy black stem here if I could find one. And a black saddle. After all that, it still might call for white tape. If not, then black.

RiddleOfSteel

Sweet Trek - Love the colors. So of their era, but it is to be celebrated, IMO!

Generally I play matchy-matchy with saddle + bar tape, and stem + seat post. Every bike is different, and depending on the era, it was either normal to have saddle and bar tape not match (older bikes) or have them match (newer bikes). The colorways of the late '80s and '90s bikes (and newer) took some subtlety away and replaced it with bolder themes. So that's the 'sandbox' to play in.

Of the combinations you've posted (isn't Photoshop the best for speculative modification? Nice work), I really like the tan wall tires with the black stem + seat post, and white saddle + bar tape. There is something special about 'doing it wrong' with a gloss black stem and seat post (as opposed to silver/polished), and then going for immediate and full dynamic contrast with the white saddle and bar tape. Black and silver elements are sprinkled throughout the composition, and the tan walls add some needed visual 'rest' from the bold black, white, blue, and red. I will say that the option with the yellow wall tires (same other stuff as mentioned above) would also look good. The blue paint and very red text/graphics want to play, and I think they need more friends to do so.

I do like polished stems and seat posts, but in this case, with the blue and the red being 'medium' values (if changed to greyscale), the polished bits clash with the paint in a battle for middle values. If the paint is yellow? No problem. A deeper blue? Good. A dark crazy purple? Yup. With this blue and bold red, that visual theme is fairly established from the get-go. The polished bits add in a calm and a class that to me seems to run a bit against the bold visual theme set forth by the paint (and wheels, etc).

For tire size, I understand. Everybody's "23" or "25" or "28" are different, which can be frustrating on bikes like these Treks where they built them with tight clearances. Why, I do not know. A nice tire and wheel combo can help the ride a lot. As can a comfortable saddle. So you'll have to do some looking and measuring to see what tire size you can get away with.

zachleft

Not too shabby. And a quick google turned up this tape, which is pretty darn close, so it certainly could be done

https://www.jensonusa.com/Specialize...p-Roubaix-Tape

zachleft

Yeah it's certainly an interesting look. I found a photo of what I assume are the factory stem and post, and I definitely prefer the black in comparison. Gives it a more modern feel. Though polished silver could look slick as well.

zachleft

What would deanodizing do?

And what did you mean by "I like a sexy black stem here if I could find one" if the stem is black already?

SurferRosa

Strip the finish to allow polishing.

I prefer traditional, quill stems (Cinelli, 3ttt, etc.) and think a black one would look appropriate.

zachleft

What type of stem do I have on there now?

2cam16

I've had a white Charge Spoon(made by Fabric) on my Trek for two years now and still love it. Dirt-wise it's pretty easy to clean. It hasn't really stained with any.

RiddleOfSteel

You have a quill stem on their now. The stem is whatever company and model it says, but it's not a "traditional" quill stem in the looks-like-a-7 sense. Look up Cinelli 1A, 1E, Nitto Pearl, Technomic, the list goes on. The fact that your (3TTT X Tenos?) black stem is not "sexy" by @SurferRosa 's standards is because it doesn't look like a 7, he just wasn't giving you that extra bit of information (that you needed to connect the dots). Your current stem is MTB or hybrid spec with its positive rise. Traditional quill stems are 72° or 73° (-18° and -17° respectively) and were made for road and touring bikes for decades. MTBs saw the rise of different stems. Other stems obviously can work, they just won't have that look or will muck up a road bike's overall look. People choose different stems for different reasons. Tall stems allow less leaning over and thus more comfort. They generally don't look as becoming on a road bike, but it's what the rider wants.

Looking at other images of Trek 1420s, it appears that stem was standard. Yeah, the '90s and '00s were a time of transition, and stem experimentation was one of them.

Here's a red 1420 with a black "traditional" quill stem. Black stems like that are out there, they just take some looking, if that's what you're after.

Piff 

I vote keep the current stem, there's no reason to start him down the dark path of fetishizing components so soon.

noobinsf 

I like the current red tires, and here's a suggestion -- black perforated faux leather bar tape (like Fizik) with a thin layer of bright red cellophane or cotton underneath, so the color is visible through the holes. Black saddle, bonus points for red thread or embroidery.

zachleft

Thanks for the clarification. I'm still trying to learn the parts so this was helpful.

zachleft

It may be too late for me. I've already begun playing around with the idea of silver components...


This sounds interesting. Do you have any pics with tape done this way?

RiddleOfSteel

No problem. It's a lot to take in. Sheldon Brown's website and just looking at a bike parts diagram to get the basics down is a big help. I essentially knew nothing when I started on this path.

homelessjoe

I think your Trek is beautiful as is.....you could maybe add a rack to carry beer and groceries ....but .....you gotta have a seat pack or handle bar bag or both....so you can carry your lock ...pump ...spare tube... tools ...your lunch ...snacks ...sling shot....gps ...phone .....earbuds..and sun screen and a million other things you might need on the road............think about a good head light .....i love riding at night.....at least a red blinky so people can see you....

Russ Roth

I like challenge with their tan sidewalls but I don't think I ever had nice tires from that time that had tan walls, only the cheaper ones seemed to that I was offered. There were some interesting color options that popped up like green but I think most tires I ended up with were all black.
I've never matched seat and tape but if you want to go more old school and have fun look for some blue, red, white camo or speckle style tape, can't remember if there was just red/blue but I loved through college in the mid to late 90s putting blue/white or blue/black speckle or swirl tape on my road bike, still have the bike and still keep it that style. Currently has 8sp ultegra/600 with blue/black. Harder to find with the newer fancier tapes but def. a retro look.

Hobbiano 

Can you make the rims polished aluminum?

SJX426 

@zachleft - nice bike!
Your asked about white saddles. I thought they would be cool until I had the first one. It is OK as a saddle but it has a few k miles on it. It was on the Pinarello when purchased a few years ago.
P1040810, on Flickr

I've tried to "restore" it in several ways including white shoe polish and stain without much impact. Did a bunch of research without any solution other than replacement. That is $$$.

zachleft

Certainly has some character! Beat saddles actually look kinda neat to me when the frame is in nice condition. A contrast thing I suppose.