cooperryder

dphilips

That's a great looking ride.
Nicely done. The brushed aluminum and silver bits really make it pop!

My 1994 Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo has the threadless headset and once I added a headset stem extender to get the bars up it's become one of my favorite rides.

clarkbre

I was able to complete the 1993 Trek Antelope 830 this morning. It's been converted to a 1x9 drivetrain, Bontrager Satellite Trekking handlebars, 26x2.3 tires. My first impressions is that it's a very comfortable and relaxed bike.

clarkbre

Looks great! My friend just handed down his '97 Hoo Koo E Koo and I'm deciding on what to do with it. They certainly are solid, well equipped bikes.

capnjonny 

Found this Diamond Back Accent at the bike exchange tagged for donation and just had to put my hands on it. Swapped out the bars and stem, added white cables, Shimano index thumbies, and put some baloon white walls on it. Usually we would sell something like this but we are pushing to increase our donations to meet our yearly goal so someone is going to receive a beautiful christmas present this year.

Korina

Nice Ascent! Particularly love the mid-fork braze-on. Someone is definitely getting an excellent prezzie; good job.

Trav1s

This is an amazing thread! I love the creative reinterpretation of the MTB theme. I have picked up two bikes on FB Marketplace and I've been thinking about what to do with them. The first snag for $30 is a 2001 Trek 800 Sport Mixte 13". Frame is in decent condition, wheel set is solid, and the drivetrain is in need of replacement. I upgraded some items on my wife's Verve 3 so this will receive the old saddle, pedals, and brakes to make a nice around town cruiser. Pretty sure those were the original Kenda tires and tubes...

I suspect my daughter will claim this as her next bike. If so, I can see a color change in the future.




Second FB Marketplace score is a $10 1999 Trek 820 in dragonfly green. I could not resist it and plan to make it my around town bike with upgrades like so many in the thread. Solid bike that has been ridden with a few upgrades over time. I love the Trek Madison Wisconsin sticker on the seatpost. I think one size larger might be better for me but I'll work with it and watch for other projects.

cooperryder

Today I finished the build up of my 1988 Schwinn Cimarron.

I did a thread on it here .

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...l#post23074604


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cooperryder

I got rid of the zip ties on the top tube and installed two clamps for the rear brake cables/housing.

It's working well.

Fun bike!

I'm overall pleased with how this project turned out.

The original black paint was very very rough.

ShannonM

Those pedals are the business!!

What are they?

--Shannon

cooperryder

I got them off Amazon...
Link here...https://t.ly/O4NB2


Better shot of pedals.

Greg C.

I love those vintage Trek frames. Nice work on that one. 👍

gladhandbart

How do the Cimmarons compare to other bicycles from this era? I'd love to try onesome day. I got an 84 Miyata Terra Runner that I love and plan on tweaking a bit in the vein of this thread. It's a very well-built machine. I often wonder how different bicycles from this era compare because all the reviews I've found were from the lens of using as ATB / MTBs.

cooperryder

Thank you.

I would guess your Terra Runner is a terrific bike.

I've had a couple dozen or more of the vintage rigid mtb's over the years that I converted to more upright riding with swept back bars, taller stem and quality street tires. Mine were mid 80s to mid 90's models.

I currently have 4 :
-the yellow 1988. Cimarron pictured in previous post
1990 Miele MTB
1990 Bridgestone CB0
1994 Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo

I've found if you find one that fits you well and set it up as I mentioned above you can enjoy it a lot whatever brand.

That said I always go for one with decent quality butted tubing , not some cheap Mart type of disposal bike with junk components.

Of the 4 I have I enjoy them all.

I think longer wheelbases and more relaxed geometry contribute to what I like in my riding.

I really try to dial in the seat height , the stem height and the reach between the seat and the middle of the handlebar that makes it comfortable for me.

I've had two 1990 Trek 950's I was very pleased with as well as a 1990 Specialized Rockhopper.

Of the 4 I have now I like the Cimarron a lot but give the edge to that Gary Fisher.

Everything time I ride it I just think what a great bike!
There's something special about it that just synch's up with me. Maybe it's the tubing, the fit or something else.

I do still enjoy riding the others as well.
It's fun for me to mix it up and appreciate each one.

I hope my ramblings helped.

It may take some experimenting but I even enjoy that part of the process myself.

Safe riding!


My 1994 Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo...




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gladhandbart

Thanks for your input! I definitely have an appreciation for bikes with nice tubing! I've a goal to own or at least ride bikes with tubing from each of the major manufacturers... Your GF and Cimmaron look like fantastic rigs! It looks like you like tall stems, so do you use newer forks to give the extra height? Or do you reuse old ones from taller bikes? Does anyone know if any ATBs were made with Ishiwata tubing by chance?

eom 

Here is a Ross Mt St Helens

Smokinapankake

My 1985 Peugeot Canyon Express was made with Ishiwata MTB double butted tubing.

gladhandbart

Thanks for sharing! I'm not sure why, but Ishiwata tubing seems to fly under the radar compared to other manufacturers. And, at least on paper, they seem to have as good or better tube sets than any of the others. I've read good things about the Canyon Express, but I haven't heard of the Ross cycle. That's cool!

romperrr 

Cimmaron was Schwinn's top of the line mtb, it's a great bike. I particularly love that that it is both lugged at fillet brazed. I seem to recall its geometry is nearly the same the Surly LHT save for its higher bb. It makes a great frame for an upright conversion.

cooperryder

My next project... finished stripping the rough white paint off today.

Frame is a 1987 Schwinn LeTour.

Build up coming soon.

No paint does give one an idea of the frame builder's brazing skills.

plumberroy

I've switched over to the extra wide pedals on all the bikes that I ride much. I've had 2 surgeries on my right foot and they want to operate on my left. Balls of my feet are tender and wide pedals spread out the pressure over more area . It's made a difference on my ability to ride

Clyde1820

The Grand Cru Sabot pedals from Velo-Orange are what I use, which are similar to those. 100x100mm platform, rounded-end pins, even with reflectors if you want to install them. Pretty nice, having a big wide platform for the feet, for an around-town bike.

https://velo-orange.com/collections/...nt=50649149319

George Abitbol

All these bikes are very beautiful. Mine :


This is a 1990 Peugeot Mojave Desert first made for the american market by the french brand but sold in France.
CrMo 4130, LX Deore. I added wtb Thickslick tyres, vintage Huret thumbshifters, Ergotec bar, BLB front rack and chinese copies of silicone Esi Grips.

daywood 

I like that look at the frame joints, too. I recently stripped my ‘78 Free Spirit frame to repaint it. I think it was made by Murray and it is not a thing of beauty. I filed off many globs of brazing metal near the joints and there was a rivet installed on the bottom side of a couple of the joints—maybe to hold the pieces in place for brazing? It has sentimental value or it probably wouldn’t have been worth the time to clean it up. With some filing, some Bondo, and new paint, it at least no longer looks like it rolled off the same production line as tricycles.

I’ve lately found myself wandering the local craigslist for lugged Schwinn projects of similar vintage to the one you’re working on, so I look forward to seeing what you have in mind for yours. Another part of the fun of that is asking my wife things like, “Do you think Seattle is too far to drive for this used bike?” Priceless.

cooperryder

That is funny daywood.

I started the build of the LeTour yesterday afternoon and just kept going today until I finished it early this afternoon and then went for a 6 mile test ride.

I like how it rides and how the raw finish looks.

It's the 3rd time I've built up a bike with a raw finish.

I found you can minimize rust by spraying the frame and fork thoroughly with wd-40 every 6 weeks or so.

There are a few tweaks I'll do to it soon but overall the ride feels very good.
I'll go with thumb shifters most likely.

These Letours of this era accept a decent size tire.
The front is a 700x35 but the back has a 700x42 now but it barely squeezes in there.

I'll probably go with a 38.

I measured the chainstays at 45cm with the wheel all the way back in the slot and the wheelbase at 106cm.

​​​​​​That's not far off to what some dedicated tourers of this era measure.

I didn't have to buy anything for this build.

I have a pretty deep parts stash with mostly mid range stuff .. nothing fancy or high end but decent and serviceable stuff.

​​​If I decide I really want to keep it I might have it powdercoated but then again that raw finish is cool I think.

Bikes are fun!

daywood 

Yes they are! I thought you were going to repaint it but I really like what you did with the raw finish look. Interesting idea to oil it to stave off rust. And dang. I was looking for a lugged frame to try a new two-tone paint scheme on, but now I may have to find a second one to try the raw look on . . .