countalmaviva 

I got over $600 from selling the original parts from my Cimarron. So it's possible you could make money on this purchase. Mine was older and included the valuable Suntour "Beartrap" pedals.

On the other hand, it would cost well over $500 to acquire these parts in good condition.

Cheers,
Oliver H.

countalmaviva 

Wait a minute. Are we to understand that you are in possession of a New In Box '89 Cimarron?!

My '86 is a 26.6mm seatpost. Come to find out, they're pretty uncommon, especially if you want a long one that's not $$$. I sanded a 26.8 to fit.

- Oliver H.

gravelinmygears 

Yup. It’s new in the box. I can’t believe it.

I ended up finding a 26.6 nitto post for not too much. What size is the stem?

countalmaviva 

Ooo. I'd love to see that post. Is it from the 80's? I'm not aware that Nitto makes any that size currently....

The stem on my Cimarron, which is one of the few original parts I kept is a Suntour XC. Aluminum extension and steel quill shaft. It's for a 1" steerer tube -- quill shaft is 22.2mm, pretty sure.

- Oliver H.

gravelinmygears 

It’s my understanding that Nitto will make any size post these days if a vendor orders 50 of them. That’s what Rivendell does for their bikes.

Because of the chrome fork, I’ll probably do a black stem and bar. I scrolled back a bit and saw that the bike came with a 130mm stem.

thumpism 

I've never been a fan of stripping a bike in order to sell its parts. My own Cimarron was built up from a frameset with parts I already had and wanted on it. If I wanted original parts then buying the red one might be the way but I'm not interested. I was just putting it out there for those in the throes of Cimalust.

countalmaviva 

thumpism , I feel the same way about stripping a frame, actually. I took delivery of my Cimarron in Feb, intending to keep the parts. Then our household income fell to zero when the pandemic set in (we're both singers). So, in this case, selling the parts, which were in excellent condition, made the most sense. The part I most regretted selling was the original XT crank. Mint condition, and the aluminum Biopace rings had next to no wear!

Cheers,
Oliver H.

thumpism 

Sorry for your situation. Did not mean to imply that parts strippers are the moral equivalent of puppy kickers or the like. We've been extremely fortunate to have very little discomfort or inconvenience during the pandemic and we do not condemn someone for doing what must be done to survive in such conditions. Good luck!

countalmaviva 

No worries, thumpism . I'm aware that parting out a bike is not going to be popular, especially on a thread about a vintage bike! I wanted to share my experience for informational purposes. I was surprised to discover how much the parts were worth from my old Cimarron. Some parts I don't miss were those clunky old first gen XT levers, though!

BTW, have you posted photos of your bikes anywhere? I'd love to see your Paramount and Nishiki!

- Oliver H.

dweenk

I like that, but I must confess to be guilty of Cimalust. When I got my Cim only the stem needed to be replaced, and I found that here on BF, but it was missing the little SunTour button. I think I got it from Mountain Dave; but a few weeks later he found the button and sent it to me. Rejoice!

But the seat post was missing some hardware and I had to cobble together a fix. It works and it looks fine until you take a close look under the seat - it is a cludge. I would love to find either the hardware or a decent replacement.

thumpism 

The Paramount is in a couple and the Nishiki in a couple more, but I'll post two quick ones here for you.

gravelinmygears 

What is the rear spacing on the 89? My frame doesn't arrive until tomorrow but I have an opportunity to get some wheels today.

countalmaviva 

My '86 was 130mm, but that was smack in the era of the transition to 135mm. I wouldn't be surprised if your '89 is 135mm. If the wheels are 135mm and you really like them, I wouldn't hesitate.

- Oliver H.

gravelinmygears 

It is most definitely 130mm. The 135 just couldn’t get in there.

For those who were witness to the auction, the frame is definitely not “new in box.” There was a crank and rear derailleur installed at one point that took off paint. There are nicks in the paint throughout and they shipped the frame with the fork taped to it. It ground into the rear dropout and shaved off some paint.

And it turns out that it has a 22” seat tube. Not a 20.

Korina

Crap, I think that's my size. The ad, at least, is still up. I'm very glad it's on the wrong end of the continent, because I do. not. need. another bike.

gravelinmygears 

If anyone’s following the story, the smoky red cimarron that was won on eBay has been returned to the seller. So if you’re looking for a 22” Cimarron frame, I imagine it will be up for sale this coming week.

mainstreetexile 

Why did you end up returning it? Hadn't checked into this thread for a bit, but I was watching the auctions for that and the paramountain.

gravelinmygears 

The ad said it had a 20” seat tube and that it was new in box. It turned out that it was a 22” and had obviously been built before.

orloved

I figured I should chime in and say the frame is on its road to recovery! New seat stays getting brazed on, and the rear hub spacing is going up to 135mm, too for a more modern hub! Not really necessary as 48-38-28 x 14-32 is all the gears I'd need, but it's a fun chance to build a new wheelset for the first time! Got some rim brake Stans 355s from a buddy and may be nabbing some XTR M950 hubs this weekend. Very jazzed.

https://jalopnik.com/heres-how-an-ex...ibl-1845103584

Also getting mounts for a lowrider rack for the front (my fork has no eyelets, as I've seen on a few Cimarrons) so I'll be able to do some touring on it!

daverup 

I'm looking forward to pictures when you get it back together again.
Have fun with the wheel building. I've just finished my first wheel set build for a road bike. Sheldon Brown wheel building pages were a big help. For me the hardest part was making sure I got the spoke lengths calculated correctly. I don't have any real options besides ordering spokes, and was happy that I didn't foul that up.
Dave

countalmaviva 

orloved I ended up adding the same repair on my Cimarron. My original problem was a cracked BB shell. The only frame builder I found to agree to the repair was Jack Trumbull of Franklin Frames in Ohio. In the process, he found that the seat stays were not well-attached at the seat junction, just like yours!

The new repairs are immaculate. I highly recommend Jack if other folks want to pursue a difficult repair.


Cheers,
Oliver H.

LBCwanabe 

I think this is the very same frame that I just purchased. It has some shelf wear for sure, but it is my size.the small chips don’t bother me too much. The fork/steerer tube was a tight fit...

I think I have all the parts in the bin to build it out except the seatpost. I think it is 26.8mm but my micrometer broke so I can’t tell for sure.

orloved

if you're curious, my seatpost is a 26.6, as are all the other things I've seen about Cimarrons! I'd be surprised if it changed.

countalmaviva 

The name of the road is Cimarron, but there was no street sign. This is in Westchester County, NY.

LBCwanabe 

Built