Sbeduckman

Hello,

Stumbled upon this clean 89 Rock Hopper this week. Story is it was ridden for two weeks, and stored for 30 years in a shed. It cleaned up pretty darn well, and rides nice. Geometry is different than what I'm used to, but I'm comfy on it, whether it looks that way or not.

I was looking for a rigid bike to pull the kids' trailer with, as my plus tire MTB doesn't do the job real well. This one will do. It's 100% original, down to tubes and tires, and I intend to keep it that way.

Glad I found this place, as I'm sure I'll have questions on this one as I go...but it doesn't seem to need anything to make it rideable right now. I'll post pics as soon as I'm able (10 post min).

seedsbelize 

Welcome to the forums.

OTS 

Welcome aboard

Get your post count up so you can post pics.

We have a saying around here that goes, "Pics or it didn't happen"

.................and all the better if they are from the drive side.

CO_Hoya 

Pic assist:

Sbeduckman

Thanks for the pic assist!

Sbeduckman

Bike looks so funny. That's a 19.5" frame, and it seems like the seat is sooooo high compared to the bars. I don't feel cramped on it though, bit it's not a very upright ride. I'm going to explore raising the bars a bit...any advice on that simple adjustment?

dddd

Raising the bars on your bike is complicated by the front brake cable needing to have to tension released, and even then that stem might come up only 3/4" before the limit line is exposed.

Getting the bars higher might involve longer cables/housings at some point as well.

MTB's from that era generally were configured for a sporting posture suitable for racing, where hard pedaling efforts held the rider from tending to fall forward with too much weight on the bars. "Riser" type handlebars didn't become popular for another ten years other than on casual and hybrid bikes, which is where some of us serious and/or longer-legged riders sourced our riser bars in those days.

Older MTB's from the early eighties didn't have this problem, since their slacker seat tube angle stole several cm out of the top tube's forward reach, meaning that the riders tended to fit well on taller bikes that needed less rise from the handlebar and stem.

As late as the 1987 models, longer-legged riders like me could get a proper fit on bikes with their standard handlebar and stem.
Notice how comparatively tall that the headtube appears on this good-fitting 1987 Jamis Dakar that I ride today (and I'm only 5'9"!):

Sbeduckman

Thanks for the reply .Only other immediate issue is I think my rear dropouts aren't perfectly alligned. If I seat the skewer all the way back in both dropouts, the wheel is canted to the right, to where it rubs on the frame. I can center it, and crank it tight, but the drive side of the skewer isn't seated real well, and has popped out of the dropout under hard pedaling. I THINK I can see where the drive side tab is bent a bit . I'm checking on this today . I haven't removed the rear wheel completely yet to check the axle either.

qcpmsame 

@Sbeduckman,
Sweet looking 'Hopper, welcome to the C&V. We have yet another one in our sphere of influence, resistance is futile.

Bill

2cam16

Welcome and that's a nice Rockhopper! Good find.
Seatpost looks a bit almost at max extension though. Frame might be a bit small for your size.

Sbeduckman

I could probably ride a bigger frame, but this one doesn't feel terrible...looks funny though, agreed .it's certainly on the high side.

dddd

You want to check on a few things here, firstly that the conical springs are both in good shape with the narrow ends pointing inward.

Then that the AXLE ends protrude the same ~5mm from each side's locknut face. The Skewer is not your problem here unless it is not adjusted to grip the frame with plenty of resistance to the lever being closed.

Also that the rear wheel is dished symmetrically (rim properly centered by means of correct spoke tensioning). You can reverse the wheel and install it backwards to check for this possibility.

And, if the rear wheel has a freewheel-hub, a bent axle will cause the rim to be out of plane with the centerline plane/axis of the frame.

Lastly, if the frame'sdropout(s) and/or rear derailer are seen to bend or tilt as the quick-release lever is closed, that means that your dropouts are bent out of parallel and need straightening, usually followed by truing/aligning of the derailer hanger tab.