Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Touring
Reload this Page >

Which one should I keep?

Notices
Touring Have a dream to ride a bike across your state, across the country, or around the world? Self-contained or fully supported? Trade ideas, adventures, and more in our bicycle touring forum.

Which one should I keep?

Old 07-15-20, 08:44 PM
  #1  
gsulit@shaw.ca
Newbie
Thread Starter
 
gsulit@shaw.ca's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Edmonton, Alberta Canada
Posts: 54

Bikes: Bianchi Cielo, Miyata 1000, Marinoni Special

Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 14 Post(s)
Liked 12 Times in 7 Posts
Which one should I keep?

I have a 1989 Miyata 618GT with original Suntour XCM components 3x6 speed with 11/25 cassette and bar end shifters in excellent condition and my size of 51cm. I also have a Trek 520 ( fairly new I do not know exactly what year ) at officially 53.5 cm but the seat tube is 51cm. The Trek 520 is 9 speed bar end shifters as well but has the nicer components, Deore LX derailleurs, Shimano Ultegra triple crank and Dura Ace shifters, and 11/32 cassette. The Trek is slightly heavier than the Miyata and slightly larger but fits me both well. I feel that the Miyata is faster and the size is textbook for me but theTrek is not bad and has better componenents and fits me well as well although not according to textbook. My vintage heart loves the Miyata but the Trek is the right one as far as technology and better components which will lasts longer and easily replaceable. One possibility is to swap the components and keep the Miyata. I guess I can keep both but for arguments sake, which one should I keep if I have to only have one. Thanks so much.


Last edited by gsulit@shaw.ca; 07-19-20 at 09:37 PM.
gsulit@shaw.ca is offline  
Old 07-15-20, 09:06 PM
  #2  
tgot 
Full Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: SF Peninsula
Posts: 443

Bikes: 1986 Centurion Ironman, 1997 Trek 2120, Trek T1000

Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 137 Post(s)
Liked 203 Times in 116 Posts
Easy answer!

Keep both of those.

Sell the *third* bike in Canada that wasn't even worth mentioning.
tgot is offline  
Old 07-15-20, 11:10 PM
  #3  
saddlesores
Senior Member
 
saddlesores's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Thailand..........Nakhon Nowhere
Posts: 3,652

Bikes: inferior steel....and....noodly aluminium

Mentioned: 24 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1053 Post(s)
Liked 339 Times in 228 Posts
switch components? you'll wind up cutting
and pasting two vintage bikes into two frankenbikes.
3*6 and 3*9 will have different rear spacing.
quill vs threadless, different bar diameters.
keep the one that fits/rides the bestest.
sounds like the trek since it has the newer tech
that you can replace as needed.
saddlesores is offline  
Old 07-22-20, 09:44 PM
  #4  
greatscott
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2019
Location: Indiana
Posts: 592

Bikes: 1984 Fuji Club, Suntour ARX; 2013 Lynskey Peloton, mostly 105 with Ultegra rear derailleur, Enve 2.0 fork; 2020 Masi Giramondo 700c, full Deore with TRP dual piston mech disk brakes

Mentioned: 5 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 324 Post(s)
Liked 81 Times in 71 Posts
NO NO NO, do not switch components around, keep them stock.

Man, I would hate to have that decision.

You say the Miyata fits you better? Then that's the one to keep, your comfort is more important then newer technology. Besides that older Suntour stuff was bulletproof, more so than than the newer crap they make today. I would keep the Miyata, if the Accushift thing turns out to be a hassle simply go on EBay and buy a long cage Suntour Cyclone Mark II GT, or Mountech II GTL derailleur and swap the two out but keep the Accushift. With the Mountech you do have to keep the derailleur clean and not let dirt get into the pulleys, but it will reward you with the fastest shifting derailleur in the world in it's era for mountain bikes or touring bikes.
greatscott is offline  
Likes For greatscott:
Old 07-22-20, 10:16 PM
  #5  
MarcusT
Senior Member
 
MarcusT's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2017
Location: NE Italy
Posts: 1,617
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 760 Post(s)
Liked 600 Times in 340 Posts
I would look at the type of touring you intend. If you're doing weekend trips, the Miyata would be fine. Longer stints where you might use a front rack, the Trek would be a better choice.
But in the end: Fit and comfort. Which bike is the one you can ride all day?
MarcusT is offline  
Old 07-23-20, 12:51 AM
  #6  
robow
Senior Member
 
robow's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,861
Mentioned: 14 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 595 Post(s)
Liked 278 Times in 189 Posts
Originally Posted by greatscott

You say the Miyata fits you better? Then that's the one to keep, your comfort is more important then newer technology.
I agree, and yea, the Trek seems a bit large for you in that you've had to move your saddle too far forward to deal with the longer effective top tube. If you do keep the Trek, I would suggest you move your saddle back to a more appropriate position and get a shorter stem, though you might be limited as your present stem is not very long.

Last edited by robow; 07-23-20 at 12:55 AM.
robow is offline  
Old 07-26-20, 06:40 AM
  #7  
andrewclaus
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Golden, CO and Tucson, AZ
Posts: 2,823

Bikes: 2016 Fuji Tread, 1983 Trek 520

Mentioned: 13 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 669 Post(s)
Liked 725 Times in 422 Posts
I once made a decision to get a bike that was too small because of the better components and in retrospect that wasn't a good decision.

I remember thinking I could swap the components off it, but there were all sorts of reasons that didn't happen, as mentioned above--minor compatibility issues.
andrewclaus is offline  
Old 07-27-20, 06:16 AM
  #8  
gsulit@shaw.ca
Newbie
Thread Starter
 
gsulit@shaw.ca's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Edmonton, Alberta Canada
Posts: 54

Bikes: Bianchi Cielo, Miyata 1000, Marinoni Special

Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 14 Post(s)
Liked 12 Times in 7 Posts
Originally Posted by greatscott
NO NO NO, do not switch components around, keep them stock.

Man, I would hate to have that decision.

You say the Miyata fits you better? Then that's the one to keep, your comfort is more important then newer technology. Besides that older Suntour stuff was bulletproof, more so than than the newer crap they make today. I would keep the Miyata, if the Accushift thing turns out to be a hassle simply go on EBay and buy a long cage Suntour Cyclone Mark II GT, or Mountech II GTL derailleur and swap the two out but keep the Accushift. With the Mountech you do have to keep the derailleur clean and not let dirt get into the pulleys, but it will reward you with the fastest shifting derailleur in the world in it's era for mountain bikes or touring bikes.
Originally Posted by MarcusT
I would look at the type of touring you intend. If you're doing weekend trips, the Miyata would be fine. Longer stints where you might use a front rack, the Trek would be a better choice.
But in the end: Fit and comfort. Which bike is the one you can ride all day?
Originally Posted by robow
I agree, and yea, the Trek seems a bit large for you in that you've had to move your saddle too far forward to deal with the longer effective top tube. If you do keep the Trek, I would suggest you move your saddle back to a more appropriate position and get a shorter stem, though you might be limited as your present stem is not very long.
Originally Posted by andrewclaus
I once made a decision to get a bike that was too small because of the better components and in retrospect that wasn't a good decision.

I remember thinking I could swap the components off it, but there were all sorts of reasons that didn't happen, as mentioned above--minor compatibility issues.
From the 5 quotes above, I have decided to keep the Miyata. That is what I was leaning towards keeping but your sentiments just validated my decision. Thank you all. I appreciate it.
gsulit@shaw.ca is offline  
Old 08-05-20, 03:35 AM
  #9  
imi
aka Timi
 
imi's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
Posts: 3,227

Bikes: Bianchi Lupo (touring) Bianchi Volpe (commuter), Miyata On Off Road Runner

Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 151 Post(s)
Liked 123 Times in 93 Posts
The Miyata frame which fits well, with the Trek shifters, derailleurs, brakes and levers, and drive train would be a great bike too.

What else than spreading the rear end to 130 mm would have to be done?

Last edited by imi; 08-05-20 at 03:40 AM.
imi is online now  
Old 08-20-20, 02:11 AM
  #10  
ShannonM
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Location: Humboldt County, CA
Posts: 848
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 405 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 430 Times in 286 Posts
Originally Posted by imi
The Miyata frame which fits well, with the Trek shifters, derailleurs, brakes and levers, and drive train would be a great bike too.

What else than spreading the rear end to 130 mm would have to be done?
You probably won't even have to have the rear triangle spread. I'd grab the rear wheel from the Trek and shove it in the Miyata. Decide if the amount of hand force you have to exert to get the wheel in will drive you nuts. If it does, spread the frame. If not, don't bother. All of the other parts should transfer just fine, except maybe the bottom bracket, if you want to swap the cranks, which you probably don't need to do.

Me, I'd put whatever parts I liked best on the frame I liked best, and then sell the other bike. But, then, in over thirty years of riding, every bike I've ever owned has been a frankenbike, including the only two I ever bought new. The OEM parts spec is always a compromise. Well, actually, the bikes I build are compromises too, but they're my compromises, not ones made by somebody else with different constraints, priorities, and preferences.

--Shannon
ShannonM is offline  

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.