prigge

Hello everyone,

I'm in the market for a mountain bike that I can use as a touring bike, and from time to time as a cyclocross bike as well. I've stumbled upon the Ross Mt. Whitney and I'm thinking about getting one. My main concern, however, is the weight of the bicycle. I've read that it ranges from 22lbs to "like a volvo." I know that in touring having a sturdy strong bike is better than a light delicate bike. However, a heavy touring bike can be a pain after four days of 40-60 miles. Weight will also determine if I can even use it as a cyclocross bike. I'd also like to point out that the only bad thing that I've heard about this bike is its weight. I have only heard moderate to good things (mainly the chrome finish) about the bike. The image is the bike that I'm thinking about getting. They're asking $350, going to try to talk them down..

mparker326

I responded on your other thread. It will probably weigh around 30 to 35 pounds.

Price is too high though unless you are in a hot bike market. I would tour on it. The stem might be .833 size though which would limit your choices if you wanted to swap out the stem.

Bikedued

Unfortunately they are an oddity price wise, and go for that much and more usually. It's also a classic US made mtb(and chrome to boot), and it would be a shame to turn it into something it's not. They are plenty of rigid mtb's you can get for MUCH less. I bought a 92 C'dale M500 earlier this year for $120, and I am pretty certain I won't be chastised for swapping out a few parts on that. The stem is .833 I believe. That severely limits stem choices. I'd say let someone who wants a sweet classic mtb buy it, and look for something else.,,,,BD

Bottom line is, that is one of the bikes that should be left stock, if you ever want to see a return out of it. They are only original once.

My Mt Hood, a couple of notches down but still cool. I think the saddle, seatpost, and tires aren't original equipment. Possibly the grips? All wear items that need replacement.

bikemig 

Touring bikes aren't light. Neither are vintage mtbs. I would not focus on weight. I would focus on whether you are buying the right tool for the job.

wrk101

The chrome Mt Whitney is a niche, collectors bike, probably worth the asking price. Its also somewhere around 32 to 35 pounds (heavy!)

On touring and weight, I met a 65 year old cyclist last summer in Utah, he was riding coast to coast from Washington, DC, and was unsupported, and camping! His bike with all the gear, BUT NO WATER, weighed 95 pounds. His bike was a Surly Long Haul Trucker, bare bike weighed in at 26 pounds +/-. In his case it was all about gear. He surely could have lightened the load some, but with the pace he was maintaining, why not?

The guy was doing 100+ mile days, I met him in the mountains of Utah. The day before he crossed the desert, 75 miles of no service. He was carrying another 20 pounds or more of water that day. The next day, he rode 120 miles, over two mountain passes (one over 10,000 feet) and lots of additional inclines.

As far as the Mt McKinley as a touring bike choice? Its a lousy one for that use, and at the $350 price point, you should be able to find a "real" touring bike. Some people tour on mtbs as it is a thrifty way to go ($350 ain't thrifty). I do light touring with my Cimarron drop bar conversion.

I can't image touring with those bull horn bars. How resourceful are you? Bike will need new stem, bars, shifters, brake levers, racks, and lighter tires as a minimum.

seely

I would pass and look for something a little more common and conventional. Older Trek 820/30's are pretty ideal. They used a basic chromoly frame and had long chainstays. Other major manufacturers had similar bikes. If you're looking to convert to a touring setup, you will wind up with a heavy bike no matter what.

Mine started life as a '92 Schwinn High Plains, which was a fairly top end model. It's a higher quality steel frame, but as pictured still weighs in at close to 40lbs. As a touring bike, the weight has never been a concern, but I wouldn't recommend using it as a cross bike.

Good inspiration here: https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...sions-131.html

Bikedued

I looked up the Whitney, they are aroumd 31 pounds. 32-35 is more like a Schwinn Sierra weight, imho.,,BD

prigge

I understand your concern about changing it into something it's not. If I change any parts on it I would keep everything that's been removed and if someone expresses interest in the bike I would replace on the parts. The only parts that I probably would replace is the stem and handle bars. But since the general consensus is that it's a .833 stem, that will be the most difficult part.

prigge

I'm pretty resourceful. I have most of those things laying around. The only thing that will be a problem is the stem. Hmmmm.... it's a beautiful bike.... decisions....

jtgotsjets

I would only consider buying that bike for half the price. I actually owned one that I tot for free; the last two vintage mountain bikes I bought were $120 and $100 (and the cheaper one was a top-of-the-line model). And I'm in an expensive market for bikes to boot.

Anyway, if you do get it, don't worry too much about the weight. For touring, you're going to put another 200lbs on it between you an your luggage; what's the point of worrying about getting a bike that's four pounds lighter?

Bikedued

No way in hell you'd get that bike for half that price. In case you haven't noticed vintage mtb's have gained value lately. That price is the low end of the spectrum for an USA built bike. I'd like to see how hard they'd laugh if you offered him half that.,,,,BD

wrk101

Don't let the stem stop you. You can find them on ebay, I picked one up for a Mt Hood project. There were millions of bikes that came with that stem size, not just bottom end ones either.

+10 Don't kid yourself on price. It is worth the $350 asking price. Some collector will eventually snag it. If it is what you want, I say go for it, cash in hand, and maybe you get a small discount.

Nice vintage chrome bikes are hard to find.

You can also put this bike on a diet. First is the heavy steel stem and bars. Second are the heavy tires. Third are the heavy wheels. Since you are resourceful, you could probably cut FOUR pounds or more off the weight attacking these items.

blilrat

I did a two day tour on an '84 Mt Hood a couple of years ago. Here is my post in the touring section with some suggestions by the good folks there - https://www.bikeforums.net/touring/79...ng-set-up.html. I have no idea how much it weighed, but it was heavy enough that I didn't want to know.

My final set up minus the drive side pannier. I would strongly suggest bar ends if you stick with the bull moose bars or find a bike that you can convert to drop bars. It honestly handled very well, but I think if I stretched the trip out longer, it would be on a drop bar bike.

jmeb

Wow, if Thrifty Bill says it is worth 350...that makes this local 200 dollar one look like a steal: 1984 Ross Mt Whitney- Deerhead XT .

Lascauxcaveman 

Sure, as long as you know some of what your paying for is the cachet of this particular model. But for purely utilitarian reasons, many, many other old (and cheaper) MTBs are a better value for converting to a comfortable, practical tourer.

Chrome is awsome, IMHO.

wrk101

That's what kicks the price up IMO. You take chrome with a desirable model+bull horn bars+top of the line components. Check out what Deerhead bits are bringing. I really like the models around 1986 with the roller cam brakes. Now those really have it all.


Can better vintage mtbs be had for $200? Sure. This is just a fairly unique one.

dddd

Using a road-bend handlebar on one of these old MTB's usually means having to use a short stem extension in order to keep the steering response neutral, since a road bar positions the rider's hands much further forward of the steering axis. This means that the rider will firstly want to select a relatively large frame size to extend the forward reach to the bars, since the seat tube's layed-back angle will pull the head tube rearward for any given top tube length.

There is good availability of .833" stems in the 7-9cm range, often these are the "Compe" brand, with the triangular-section extension. All such road stems will have a 25.4mm bar clamp btw.

This bike and it's 26" wheels will provide extra durability and stiffness, so might be an especially good choice for heavier load and heavier rider.

Four or five years ago I bought a pair of these Mt Whitney bikes in original condition for 125 each. I agree that they are pretty high-grade overall.

jtgotsjets

I haven't noticed that. Like I said above, the last two vintage mtbs I bought were had for $120 or less and they were as nice or nicer than this bike. If some collector or chrome freak wants to pay $350 for this, that's fine with me, but IMHO it's worth about half that. Just giving my opinion. I owned this exact bike and I was not that impressed.

The Golden Boy 

It's just as Bill said:


As far as an ATB like this as a touring bike...

I have an 87 Schwinn High Sierra- I also have an 84 Stumpjumper Sport.

The "flat" bars are not good distance bars. They simply lack hand positions- after 8 miles or so, my hands get sore on them. I've relatively recently converted the High Sierra to Drop Bars.... I really want to love my High Sierra- I've had it for 20 years, so much of what I love about bikes is encapsulated by this bike- the fillet brazing, the long wheelbase, the gazillion braze ons, the cool styling, the utlility, the elegance, the brutishness... But I'm just not comfortable on it as I am on my other tourers- It's cool to the grocery store, it's cool going downtown... I don't know if it's the 26" wheels, the geometry, or whatever.

I've considered converting the Stumpjumper (actually, that was the bike I originally was thinking about- I saw a Long Haul Trucker with that color and it looked as cool as all get out... However, my Stumpjumper feels much heavier than my High Sierra.

For whatever it's worth- some people are fantastic with distance on these bikes... I'm not.

Bikedued

My 84 Schwinn Sierra turned touring bike ended up being sold for the same reason pretty much. It looked AMAZING, but it wore me out to ride it. I don't know if it was geometry, or just weight. It had decent components, adjusted to the nines. Shifted like a dream, no brake drag. It seemed like the brakes were lightly against the rim any time you rode it, when both wheels spun freely.

My C'dale M1000 is almost road geometry, so it rides much differently with drop bars. I am working on another C'dale M500 at the moment. It will be more of an offroad bike, but with Origin 8 Gary Bars, alloy 600 headset, hollow Titanium Specialized BB, etc. Going for as light as my stash will allow.,,,,BD

bikemig 

Trekking bars work well with MTBs. It is an easy swap as all the parts go over. Your position on the bike doesn't change much either which is a big plus. Drop bars do change your position on a mtb and that may (or may not) be an issue. I put drops on my stumpy comp. I really like it but I had to fiddle with the fore/aft position on the saddle (long rails help) and I have to let myself get accustomed to it. I'd consider touring on it. Great for rough roads but won't handle quite as well as a dedicated touring bike:

jtgotsjets

You'll notice that's pretty much exactly what I said. There's very little on this bike that is of practical value over other MTBs of this vintage; it just has a pretty finish and interesting parts. Any bike can have interesting parts if you put them there, and I don't personally care much for chrome finishes (I'd personally pay a premium for 80s Miami Vice colors though).

Furthermore, like I said above and as others have echoed, the ride on these is not nearly as nice as one would hope for a bike of this level. Sluggish and dead feeling, IMHO. I gave mine away for free to a friend who didn't have a bike.

If someone wants a beautiful, interesting vintage mountain bike because they like to collect things.... Yeah, maybe $350 isn't bad. For someone like the OP who wants a bike to actually ride on tour and on trails, this is a high price for a mediocre bike. Just my humble opinion.

The Golden Boy 

"Practical" and "value" don't necessarily have a whole lot in common.

A pretty finish and a couple of fancy stickers will make a dud desirable.

wrk101

+10 If on a budget and practical, there are a lot of "better" choices. But if it is the bike you want, and it fits within the budget, why not? Worst comes to worse, you try it, you don't like it, you resell it and move on. Its not life altering money we are talking here (and if it is, then don't buy it!!)

If you want to probe the value for the $$, someone needs to explain why a made in Japan celeste Bianchi MTB is worth 2X what a similar era and equipped made in USA Trek mtb.

I have a chrome Katakura Silk (road bike) right now. If you add up what I have spent on it, I could have easily gotten a MUCH "better" bike. Do I regret it? Not for a second.


"In the old days", people toured on anything. One of my favorite youtube videos is the promo video of a group of college students riding cross country on total crap JC Penney's road bikes.

krobinson103

I've put a rack on that and taken it touring with a tent for two days. In fact until recently it was my long distance bike. Done up to 400km in one go with that one. More often 200km in a day.
Recently I got this...



Soma Double cross dc. Setup with 29 inch wheels (26 in that picture) its the ideal distance bike. I tried drops but really can't stand them. Both bikes are hand built and modded just to my liking. I care not what I could get if I sold them only that they are effective for the job I give them. Jack of all trades take me anywhere I want to go tourer/brevet/commuting bikes. The fuji also makes a fine xc bike with the right tires.