Rysz's retro MTB thread

[rysz]

Hey there,

I am a bit of a fool for early MTBs with the late eighties and early nineties really being my jam. Playing with bikes is a great outlet for me as my job in IT means I never really do anything with my hands...

I thought that I would share my most recent ride, and I will add on my next projects in this thread eventually!

First up is my 1988 Muddy Fox Courier, this has been built as a really smooth and nice tow path basher / cafe cruiser.

How it was when I first got it from Newport Wales for the bargain price of £40 (IIRC):




These old MF bikes were high end and this is riddled with loads of specific MF components (That have pretty much all been removed! ). They are built out of Tange steel and were manufactured in Japan.

The frame and forks are tatty but this will wait until the winter when I will do a strip down and a repaint.

Here are some progress shots:




















Current spec is as follows:

Frame and Forks: Muddy Fox Courier in massive frame size.
Stem: SR Sakae quill stem from an 80's Raleigh.
Handlebars: 24Seven DH riser bars (Chosen as they are 22mm constant diameter and also have a good rise).
Wheels: Mavic X213 rims on XT hubs.
Tyres: Schwalbe Billy Bonkers (26"*2.0).
Bottom Bracket: Shimano XTR (Thanks Dez ).
Chainset: Sugino cranks with a 40T Stridsland Journal chainring.
Rear Mech: Shimano XTR (9 speed).
Cassette: Shimano XT (8 speed).
Shifter: Shimano XT Thumbshifter (7 speed with the hidden 8th click).
Pedals: Race Face Chester in snazzy purple.
Brakes: XT Front V brake, Dia Compe Rear U Brake.
Grips: ODI Longnecks.
Saddle: Flite Titanium (Because 90s).

It rides super smooth and it is an absolute comfort and joy as it does not curse word my back up due to the seating position!

Next big project is a Giant Cadex CFM 2 for a super light actual off road bike, I have the frame and the wheels (Sexy Rolf ones) and the plan is some RockShox SIDs and an XT 1 by 10 speed drivetrain (That I have most of the bits for).

I need to do a rationalisation of frames etc. as I have far too many (See this pic of my garage prior to the clean up), there is also a 1993 Zaskar LE and an old Raleigh in there as well...

[rysz]

In a shock change of plans, the next project is a tow path cruiser for my GF and she is considerably shorter than I so none of my 'in stock' frames would have been any good.

10 mins on FB Marketplace netted me this:



A ropey 1998 Kona CinderCone. The CinderCone was upper mid range for Kona and was always I bike I wanted as a wee person - the main reason I was looking for a Kona though was that this 18" Kona frame is effectively a 16" frame and ideal for GF.

On the same perusal, I also managed to wangle some late P2 forks so this will be going full rigid.

The list for the Kona is currently as follows as I have literally only just picked it up:

Seatpin that fits
Seat collar
34T Narrow / Wide ring
Some lighter / cooler wheels that I have in stock
New pads / Cables
Pedals that I have in stock
Tyres (Probably Billy Bonkers or Maxxis DTH or similar)
Different bars (In stock - see the hoarding theme?)
Grips

If she gets on with it, then I will do a full respray / redecal on it in a Red / Black / Gold theme.

Yay another project!

Cheers,

Rysz.

[HARDCORE]

You should share pics of the Cannondale you built for Pip. That think looks siiiiiick

[rysz]

Jun 1, 2023 15:59:44 GMT HARDCORE said:

You should share pics of the Cannondale you built for Pip. That think looks siiiiiick

Good thinking.

Here is a 2000 and something Cannondale Caffeine that I picked up yonks ago with a kippered headshock fork. After swearing a great deal about the previous owner botching the steerer on the fork because they didn't understand how they worked and it only needed a new bottom bearing race, I sourced some Cannondale stupid size specific RockShox and a new headset for it.

Pip from this parish needed a new bike and this seemed to fit the bill...

So after putting some better wheels and tyres on it and replacing all the pads / cables / shifters (Again, the previous owner(s) were ham fisted and clueless), it has gone to Pip to use! This was a super light bike and I am glad to see it in use again!

Mid build:



Finished article:



Not my normal build, as I utterly despise front mechs and disc brakes are a bit fancy for me, but turned out all good generally!

Rysz.

[rysz]

Finally got the P2s for the Kona, all fitted up with the headset, Thompson stem and inspired trials bars over lunch.

Next steps are:

Disassemble drive train and check BB.
Sort out the mullered seattube where an idiot tried to hammer a too big post in. I'll trim the knackered section and slice in a new relief, thankfully there is space to do that on the Kona!

Rysz.

[rysz]

And because the correct number of bikes is always n+1, here we have a teeny tiny Kona Hahanna that is destined for my GFs daughter as she's very short.

I've ordered some 'new' tyres off FB marketplace and I'll replace the saddle otherwise it's a peach. Built up by a chap that works at Moulton so it's super well maintained!

Cheers!

Rysz.

[rysz]

Back on the Cinder Cone build, a quick chat with Dez meant that I am going to be trying something new to me to repair the seat-tube.

He mentioned that he has repaired these in the past with some delicate hammer and dolly action, now with me being an absolute amateur when it comes to fab work, I contacted purplevanman who is local to me and he has just turned me down a suitable bar that I can use.



I just need to go and pick it up and then start having a bash (literally) at it when I get the chance (My life is BUSY atm).

Pics to follow when I start attacking it, should be a good one.

Also, for any bike tinkerers like me, I would strongly recommend Amazon as an excellent source of random parts on occasion, as I got 10 star nuts for forks from there for less than a fiver and they are normally £2-£3 on ebay!

Still waiting for the Maxxiss DTH tyres for the Hahanna, but I am sure that they will be here soon!

Rysz.

[ballbagbagins]

This takes me back. My brother had a Marin in the early 90's. Last year I bought a rockhopper. I used to borrow my mates one in the late 90's, couldn't afford a decent bike back then so always wanted one. Rides lovely.

[BritBrick]

Very pleasant!

Have a few myself...





And my current project, a 1990 Scott...

[rysz]

Jun 20, 2023 10:21:54 GMT ballbagbagins said:

This takes me back. My brother had a Marin in the early 90's. Last year I bought a rockhopper. I used to borrow my mates one in the late 90's, couldn't afford a decent bike back then so always wanted one. Rides lovely.

They are a lovely thing. The late 80s and the early to mid 90s really are the sweetspot for me for MTB's!

Rockhoppers are a marvelous ride!

Rysz.

[rysz]

Jun 20, 2023 11:50:26 GMT BritBrick said:

Thanks man, love the Scott! Massive big steel frames are aces!

Rysz.

[BritBrick]

Aye, I'm 6"4" with a 35" inside leg so when the big frames come up for sale I usually nab 'em.

In the right of the first pic is my freshly restored '95 Saraden Tufftrax in non standard black. Just out of shot is my '95 Alpinestars.

The silver road bike is my Claud Butler Sierra in 531. Got that new for my 15th birthday in 1983 and still have it, had a full resto three years ago.

I go out to the man shed to smoke my pipe and read in peace. White often very little actual tinkering gets done.

[rysz]

Jun 20, 2023 15:29:29 GMT BritBrick said:

Aye, I'm 6"4" with a 35" inside leg so when the big frames come up for sale I usually nab 'em.

In the right of the first pic is my freshly restored '95 Saraden Tufftrax in non standard black. Just out of shot is my '95 Alpinestars.

The silver road bike is my Claud Butler Sierra in 531. Got that new for my 15th birthday in 1983 and still have it, had a full resto three years ago.

I go out to the man shed to smoke my pipe and read in peace. White often very little actual tinkering gets done.

That is a nice collection. I also need the gate sized frames at 6'2 with a 36" leg...

Waiting patiently is also a Saracen E-Stays frame in my garage. Not sure what the plan is for it yet though!

I have to get these Kona's done and sorted, then the Giant, then maybe the Saracen!

Rysz.

[rysz]

Because I'm trying to rationalise my collection/parts, I obviously smashed this together as proof of concept!

It's an early 90s Saracen that stealthstylz picked up for me over a year ago as I adore e stays and Saracens!

The head tubes on these are absurdly long, so these RS Psylos just fit with the Onza headset and a random BMX stem.

The bars are just the only 22mm ones I have, but I think it'll work, the colours are all wrong but that can be remedied.

Cheers!

Rysz.

[grenade]

Love the Zaskar and the Kona. You've got some fun stuff in there!
We've been a bicycle family for decades. I use the MTB for relaxing distance rides, but even at my old age, I still get on the ramps with my 20".
Very cool to see so many other bike guys!

[bmcnut]

Jun 26, 2023 19:04:42 GMT rysz said:

Rysz.

Nice frame that. I'm looking for something similarly weird myself. I saw an unusual frame at the tip afew weeks ago but it had no name on it and the bike was absolutely shot. Also looked a bit on the small side.
All this talk of people remembering certain bike things when they were new. Means nothing to me lol. I'm still trying to remember the decent brand names so I know what to look for when I go to the tip instead of looking for bikes with nice looking bits on them.

[rysz]

Jul 9, 2023 18:00:55 GMT bmcnut said:

Jun 26, 2023 19:04:42 GMT rysz said:

Rysz.

Nice frame that. I'm looking for something similarly weird myself. I saw an unusual frame at the tip afew weeks ago but it had no name on it and the bike was absolutely shot. Also looked a bit on the small side.
All this talk of people remembering certain bike things when they were new. Means nothing to me lol. I'm still trying to remember the decent brand names so I know what to look for when I go to the tip instead of looking for bikes with nice looking bits on them.

This one can be available to be fair and I have the original headset and rigid forks to go with it as well.

It's surplus to requirements, I'm attempting to thin the herd as it were, too much stuff / too many projects.

PM me if you're interested, it won't be expensive!

Rysz.

[grenade]

I'd be interested in that Saracen frame & fork. Needs to go to Ohio, USA though.
Or at least my buddies place in Northampton

[rysz]

Jul 10, 2023 13:04:48 GMT grenade said:

I'd be interested in that Saracen frame & fork. Needs to go to Ohio, USA though.
Or at least my buddies place in Northampton

bmcnut has passed on it, so I'll get you some more pics. Is it the rigid fork you're interested in?

Cheers,

Rysz.

[grenade]

A fork that best matches anything from the era. I'll bet US shipping would make it too expensive anyway, but that is a cool looking frame, it deserves to be built