ramzilla

I got this bike recently. It's a carbon fiber lugged frame. My best guess is it's 1993 vintage. The PO converted it to a single speed. (I refurbished it to a new 8 speed drive train. All new STI levers, chain, cogs, cables, bar wrap, bottom bracket, rim tape & tubes). Weighs in at 22.5lb on my luggage scale. It's a magnificent riding bike. Very smooth. Quiet. Good chainline. Nice. It still had the original 8 speed Ultegra STI levers on it when I got it. But, all the other original equipment had been removed. It's got Tektro caliper brakes. "Micro new" 8 speed shifters. Sora FD & Acera RD. All good. What a beast. Rides like a dream. What are your thoughts about vintage CF bikes?








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merziac

At least its vintage carbon, these have a good rep in general and many are fans of them.

Looks good from here and if it works good for you, then its all good.

What pedals are those plz?

ramzilla

XLC platform pedals. My last pair. Haven't been able to find them for a couple years. So, gonna hafta spend the big bucks and pay for MKS pedals from now on.

merziac

Yep, at least MKS will go the distance and they are still a pretty good deal, best Campy copies and one of the best values in all of cycling, imo.

jonny7

This version of the Epic is IMO the coolest looking one. Good catch!

SwimmerMike 

I had one of those for 20+ years. I upgrading it to Dura-Ace 9 speed for the last 10+ years. It was a great bike. I retired it when I found some areas where the carbon was delamininating.

masonv45

I had the same era bike for a couple years.

Great bike!

Chombi1 

I much prefer the earlier version with the contrasting silver lugs, cause what's the point in having the fancy lug point design if you cannot really see them when painted over.

francophile 

I picked up one of these last year just before the pandemic lockdowns started, same color, probably the same year (I think I traced it back to '91, but hell if I remember).

Wasn't bad. Light. Way too small for me. Had a great group on it, so I ended up taking most of the parts off and donating the complete frameset with a new sealed BB to the local bike coop. Figured it'd be a nice surprise, compared the typical Huffy/Free Spirit crap most people donate.

T-Mar

The serial number appear s to be GL11122. I can't tell if there is another number after that but it's irrelevant. The 1st three characters indicate a fame manufactured by Giant of Taiwan during the 12th fortnight (i.e. weeks 23-24) of 1991. That's very early to be a 1992 model but the graphics are for the 1992 model year. I've seen other cases of carbon fibre frames being manufactured mid calendar year for the upcoming model year. I suspect bicycle inventory build-up took a lot longer with carbon fibre frames due to the time consuming tube manufacturing process.

francophile 

Aha! Found mine. Here's the one I donated to the coop last January.

dddd

I found my Epic to be a spirited rider, upright geometry and not noodly at all.

Tire clearance is quite limited and I never went upwards of a true 23mm wide tire.

ElCani

Pretty sure those XLC pedals are the same as the VP 365 pedals available from Asia. I've bought a few pairs and they're fine as long as you adjust the bearings first. Cheap as anything in the UK ($15), but the only ones I could find on US eBay are twice that (although they come with toe clips and straps). Worth investigating, anyway.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/VP-365-Vint...0AAOSwyQtVpM7F

francophile 

Not seeing a ton of difference between those and the MKS Sylvan Touring.

ElCani

Indeed, at those prices I’d definitely go for the MKSs. In the UK the price difference is far greater.

ramzilla

GL11122 is correct. My guess about 1993 was based on the silver color Ultegra 8 speed STI shift levers that were still on it when I got it. The PO had removed the shift cables and, was only using the brake function of the levers. When I looked it up on Google the only year the Epic was equipped with these STI levers was 1993. I've examined these Ultegra 8 speed STI levers and, I don't think they're broken. They look like somebody sprayed some kind of white grease inside them. And, they're probably just all gummed up. I'll drop them into a plastic tub of diesel fuel sometime soon and they'll probably spring right back to life. In the meantime, the cheap as hell "Micro new" 8 speed shift levers work like a charm. I'm blown away by all the advances in bike component technology. I think I paid somewhere around $60 w/free shipping for this pair of levers. Wow. I'll take a picture of the old Ultegra 8 speed levers and post it soon.

ramzilla

I've got the bike all dialed in now. Made the final adjustments to FD & RD. Took it for a 15 mile test ride. Shifts perfectly and has a very quiet drivetrain. Too bad it's a tad small for me. So, all it needs now is a good home. Speaking of drivetrain, I pulled the old 8 speed shifters out and took a good close look at them. Turns out they're not Ultegra. Little bitty sticker on one says Shimano 600. I had no idea that Shimano ever made any STI stuff under the old 600 brand name. What year do you think these were made? I think with a little soaking in diesel fuel I could get them working again. Too bad one of them is missing a paddle piece.

ramzilla

Ah ah ah ah ......... Stayin alive ahhhhhhhhhhhh....................................................

ramzilla

The MKS pedals are obviously a better deal.