cynergy

Hi Folks,

I have an old Trek 800 that I bought in the early 90's. over the years I upgraded the wheels, cranks and front derailleur, but otherwise the bike is close to its original factory shape.

I've been using the bike as a commuter but the ride position is less comfortable for me for the longer part of my commute. I wanted to replace the stem to provide me with a more upright riding position.

This old bike has a threaded headset. Is it easy to get brand new components that I could use to replace the factory headset and change the handlebar geometry for my bike? do they even sell threaded headset parts?

Or do you think it's better to buy a new frame and start from scratch.

There's an additional requirement, the bike has been converted to an electric assist bike. several years ago i bought a bionx conversion kit and installed the rear wheel motor (which replaces the normal rear wheel). I'd like to keep the electric assist feature and would need a bike frame that fits a 26" MTB wheel.

Would it be easier to just buy a new frame and the components and work from scratch? I realize that this would be an expensive route, but I could reuse some of the components from the existing bike to save a little time and money.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions!

bakerjw

For the threaded headset, they make quills that have the same profile as modern steer tubes. That way you can change out the stem as you see fit rather than getting a quill with a fixed stem length and angle.

dsbrantjr

Something like this: https://velo-orange.com/products/vo-...s-stem-adaptor will allow you to use threadless stems on your quill headset. No point in starting over if your bike is in near-factory condition.

JohnDThompson 

Threaded headsets are still in production and readily available. Tange has several high quality, affordable models. Tall quill type stems to raise handlebars are also available (e.g. the Nitto "Technomic" series), as are threadless adapters that allow you to use modern, threadless style riser stems with a threaded headset.

BobFishell

What he said. I would add that you can purchase threadless stems in a variety of lengths and rise angles.

2old

+1 with above; those old Trek frames are fine, and parts are readily available. Look at Rivendell; you can even get "Bullmoose" stem/bar combos.

davidad

Nitto makes a stem that will raise your bars. https://www.rivbike.com/cart

davidad

Chris King still makes a 1" threaded headset, but it costs 150 dollars. This is a good one. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Shimano-105...oAAOSwK9lbu-NF I have two 19 year old Herons and I use this type of shimano headset. Mine are Ultegras.

Retro Grouch 

My first thought too. Relatively cheap and good looking. Period correct too so your bike won't look goofy. How much additional handlebar height do you think that you need?

Doc_Wui

I bought a cheap 1" threaded suspension fork for my Trek 800, but needed about 4 cm more threads to fit the frame. I couldn't cut the plated steel, so I converted to a 1" threadless mount, as I had plenty of unthreaded tube on that fork. Goodbye to the quill and handlebars, but they were steel. Fork might be cheap, but works well for me on pavement.

I kept the rim brakes, although I had changed from center pull to cantilever. The new fork could accept a disk caliper, but I've found rim brakes to work as well as mechanical disks in dry weather.

I also had an inexpensive 500W motor kit in the back. Used on low pedal assist, it still has the elliptical crank and pedals pretty nice by my standards.