VaBeachTennis

Does anyone have an idea what this model is? I picked it up yesterday from a guy who was selling a bunch of miscellaneous parts for $20. He told me that it was a 700c single speed. It has no fork and I am trying to find out what type of fork I need to make this bike ready for the road. Here's a photo:

SCK

There is no photo here.

VaBeachTennis

Yeah, I am having one heck of a time uploading it!!! It keeps saying invalid file.

JeremyLC

Try uploading it to imgur.com and then linking it from there.

SCK

You need to host it somewhere else. After that you should have no issue placing it.

JeremyLC

VaBeachTennis

Thank you!

VaBeachTennis

Thanks for the help!!! I only put it on the other site so I could post the photo here. I kind of blindsided myself when I made the original post. I thought I could post the photos here with no problem.

Regulatori

Thread title got me a little worried...he's getting up there. Glad it's not the case.

Regulatori

What is the bike's bottom bracket serial number? You don't have to list the whole number...sometimes you can figure out when a frame was made by the first few letters or numbers. Like EJXXXXXX or 98XXXXXX

I've been able to date all of my bikes using this way.

I've been searching through Fisher catalogs for the last 15 minutes and it's not easy trying to date a frame. He uses about 3-5 different "Gary Fisher" fonts/styles each year. A lot of companies will put the exact same logo style on all of their models so you can instantly date the bike knowing when specific fonts were used.
You can try looking through some catalog scans.
Trek, Fisher, Klein, Lemond bike catalogs, bicycle brochures

If you find your frame, the last few pages of the catalog will usually have the specific options on your model...so you can figure out head tube size, bb details, etc..

VaBeachTennis

Thank you, if that catalogue is the same one, I am down to 1999 and still can't find it. One of the reasons I want to know, it to find out what type of I can/should use for the bike. I want to make it more of a road bike, so I want to put a larger sprocket on the front of it. It looks like a lot of the "29ers" come with 32 on the front.
My serial number is: WTU345C1690

krusty

Looks like derailleur cable guides on the rh chain stay. It looks to me like any other Gary Fisher hardtail MTB frame from the 90s.

VaBeachTennis

Thank you for looking, I am adding a couple of more photos. I don't see where the rear derailleur would hook up as there is no hanger. Please don't laugh at my mismatched tires and and fork. I just wanted to get an idea of what it will look like when I assemble it.

https://i.imgur.com/A5GgHws.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/cbsftjX.jpg

Imgur: The most awesome images on the Internet

krusty

Some derailleurs did not bolt on to a hanger. They had an integrated hanger that mirrored the dropout. Old school, and low end. Your photo does not show the dropout.

More likely, in that case, it is a frame intended for an internally geared hub, which were just starting to become popular again in that era.

Regulatori

Yeah, sorry, not much help on the serial. I believe there is another set of numbers too (besides the WTU set).

Normally you could contact Gary Fisher with your info/pictures and they could date the bike/give you the exact model....but since they're now owned by Trek, that might be more difficult.

You could always contact Trek and see what they can do....they might be willing to help.
Contact Us Page | Trek Bikes
On the drop down they have a "technical help" that includes "historical information"....use that one.

Specifically ask, "If you can't help me, please let me who I can contact for this information since this is important to me."
That sometimes helps with avoiding a canned response and might get the customer service person to ask around instead of blowing you off.
Good luck.

VaBeachTennis

Thanks for your help. I will say that the frame itself is very light but I am used to steel and heavier low end aluminum frames. I initially thought that it carbon. I will post better photos of the drop out tomorrow.

VaBeachTennis

Thanks a lot, I really appreciate your help. I just want to get the information on the bike so I can find out the proper measurements.

wesmamyke

It's a Fisher simple city, probably 2012. It was sold as a internally geared commuter/townie bike, 700c wheels, huge front basket/rack option and fenders. Might have been two models, one single speed and one internal gear.

That headtube extension and painjob are a dead giveaway. All the accessories matched that cream color in the decals. It also came in a light teal color for the Women's model IIRC.

VaBeachTennis

Wow! Thank you very much! I guess it's not technically a single speed but I wonder if it can be made into a single speed?

wesmamyke

Shouldn't be an issue. It has some adjustment in the semi horizontal dropouts and even a place for a coaster brake torque arm.

Edit: Blerg

VaBeachTennis

Thanks for the information, do you know what type of fork and headset this bike is supposed to have? I was thinking of these two items below, is this the right way to go?


https://www.amazon.com/Fixie-Single-Speed-Track-Threaded/dp/B00811UCJ4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_3&smid=A1C9T7ACO5T769

Amazon.com : 1" Threaded Fixie Track Road Bike Headset : Bike Headsets And Accessories : Sports & Outdoors

Wendell F

I would look for a fork with a rack/fender eyelets. The frame has em so you may as well take advantage of that option.

Regarding the headset, there is no such thing as a fixie-specific headset. Generally things other than frames and hubs labeled "fixie" on Amazon and eBay tend to be crappy parts that someone's trying to move cheap.

wesmamyke

While that fork would probably work it's not going to have the fender and tire clearance the frame has. That frame is essentially a city/hybrid bike for very upright riding.

Between my memory of building them up and looking at google image search for " Gary Fisher Simple City" the stock fork is longer with a long or maybe extra-long reach brake to clear the fender. You might end up with an odd bike with a really low bottom bracket. Although in that picture you posted with the chrome fork it doesn't look half bad.

VaBeachTennis

Thanks. I tossed the fenders when I picked the frame and other miscellaneous parts up for $20. That chrome fork I put on there was for show, it has a stuck stem in it and the diameter of the steerer tube is too small for the frame. The fork that you saw is for a 27 inch frame and the tire was 27 inches as well. I wonder if a 27 inch for with the correct steerer tube diameter is the way to go? My vision for this bike is to make it a single speed and have a set of bullhorns on it.

wesmamyke

I'm curious what is the rear end spacing? It had an internal gear hub so it could be pretty much anything.