Bikerider007

Such a cool ride. I would put on RetroBike as well.

2cam16

Thanks! I'll have to check out that forum.

frantik

i'd say 86-88 were the peak years.. with some early ones in 85 and some hold overs in 89

curbtender

Finally dug it out. Still in as found condition... Trailblazer, originally sold in Maine.

2cam16

Cool! Time for a build!

domb84

Great thread! My dad has one of these in the loft and a bunch of old parts I'm going to clean up and build it back to near stock. Cheers for the reference pictures so I know what parts lived on it!

Quick question, what did you use to shine up the components like that? They look immaculate.

Cheers!

madpogue 

Bike is almost a time capsule. Yellow seems to be a color especially susceptible to fading. Yuh that's some serious branding. I half-expect to see a paw print on each spoke head....

I remember when these came out. Juli Furtado's appearance on the "Introduction" page of the catalog, and in the Bicycling magazine ads, caused a bit of a stir.

Oh man, the helmets and shorts on those cops.......

2cam16

Thanks! Just the usual polishing compound.

domb84

Any recommendations for polishing compound products? I used to just dump the lot in white vinegar to get the muck and the rust off, then give it a once over with a cloth. Never normally polish it with compound but seeing your work it looks well worth it!

2cam16

I was lucky with this bike as the silver was in pretty good condition so it was easy. Some of my other bikes are a different story. Pretty much any brand is good but right now I'm going through a bottle of Turtle Wax chrome polish.

domb84

Started on mine this weekend. Its actually as slightly different model and in worse condition but I'll pop it up anyway. Not sure if its earlier or later.

2cam16

Any pics,domb84?

domb84

The forum won't let me post any!

mijome07

I got the same brakes and did a 3 stage cleaning. I then polished them to a mirror shine. You can see the difference between both arms. I did the same for the hardware as well.

domb84

Looks great. I was going to get the frame powder coated but in the end I've just cleaned it up and given it a clear coat. Loads of damage over it though.

gyleshawkins

That was Jacquie Phelan, not Juli

gyleshawkins

I worked for Muddy Fox back in '88-'90 I think. First day in the office was in their original office over Cycological, their bike shop in Central London, then they moved out to Wembley where they had a new office/warehouse.

From memory, the early bikes were assembled in Japan by Araya, frames by Sugu, but that's a distant memory phonetically rendered. But definitely assembled by Arya. Great quality, built like tanks, all lugged frames if I recall correctly.

From '88 onwards production shifted to Taiwan. TIG welded frames. Same level as quality as Giant at that time for a given price... in fact, it may have been Giant who made them, but I can't remember

That looks like an '87 Explorer and I'd buy one if I saw it in a heartbeat. Brilliant work!

2cam16

Thanks and thanks for the added info,Gyles!

Fat Tire Trader 

I was the first, or at least one of the first Muddy Fox dealers on the west coast.

I first saw their bikes at IFMA in Cologne in 86. I think it was my visit to their booth that motivated them to open a distributing office in America. I don't remember exactly where it was, but it was close to you in the south bay peninsula.

Did your bike come with a shop sticker, or did the previous owner tell you where he bought it?

I think I still have some Muddy Fox catalogs and some stickers and a flag somewhere.

chris ioakimedes
The Fat Tire Trading Post

2cam16

That's pretty cool info! I'm assuming these bikes didn't sell well here?
Sadly no bike shop sticker. The previous owner said he bought it from a bike shop that had just opened at that time. It was somewhere in Redwood City or Mountain View. He told me the shop owner had just started selling them.
If you ever come across your Muddy Fox memorabilia, please let me know.
Thanks!