Santa Cruz Chameleon (1998+)

Lacuna said:

That disc adapter was the only one available from Santa Cruz

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rigidftw said:

Good to see the front tyre is on the right way now

Got any close-ups of the rear brake adapter? I don't think I ever saw one that positions the caliper below the chainstay.

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Tsia said:

Lacuna is quite right, it's the only OEM one available for the Chameleon MK1! It's less than ideal, especially with larger rotors (180 pictured, previously was 160) as the hose sits at a terrible angle, but it does the trick. There's somebody on here that managed to use a disc dropout from another bike brand entirely in order to fit one in the "correct" position which was quite interesting.

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Lacuna said:

Yep, its mine

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Tsia said:

Hey everyone, recently found this forum thanks to some Facebook Marketplace browsing and thought I'd get a post up about the bike I'm 'restoring' at the moment. I picked up an old Santa Cruz Chameleon (MK2) which I originally believed to be a pre 1998 frame/MK1, but it turns out I was plain wrong. It's a MK2.

Pictures speak a thousand words, or so they say - so here's how it looked the day of collection.

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Upsides: The frame was in great condition. Everything generally worked.
Downsides: Just about every component was old, worn out or simply of poor quality. Bottom bracket cup was seized in to the frame too - but more on that to come.
First things first was stripping it down and realising that I don't actually have the right tool to remove Octalink cranks! I got it down as far as I could then popped to the local Halfords to ask for a spot of help there.
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So far so good! Off to the powder coaters it went once I'd stripped all the remaining 'protective duct tape' off the frame. I decided as I wanted to build a modern spec on an older frame, it would be fun to go with a similar theme to the latest Chameleon... so here we have it in beautiful RAL 1028:
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I then began re-assembly. Stupidly, might I add - because I'd forgotten all about that bottom bracket that took a LOT of work to remove. Thankfully, the threads just need a little chasing - so there'll be another short trip to a shop in the week - another tool I don't have.

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And here's how it sits today. I've swapped out the bars and stem to something a bit less awful than it had before, and to give me a little more width - as well as adding a dropper seatpost and some cable-to-hydraulic hose guides to tidy up the routing. I've since bought some bits off Marketplace that I'm waiting for - namely a SRAM 1x12 setup, and waiting for a response on a set of Mavic Crossrides before I order some proper tyres. I'm keen to build this properly, but I don't want to go spending silly money on it, so I'd rather wait for the odd bits to appear here and there. Once I've sorted out the drivetrain and made it rideable - the forks will be next!

Spec below
Frame: Santa Cruz Chameleon MK1 (late)
Forks: Rockshox Reba Solo Air 120mm
Bars: Brand-x 740mm, 31.8mm (due to be cut down I think)
Stem: DMR Defy 35
Seatpost: Brand-x 100mm 27.2 dropper post with remote lever
Saddle: Charge Spoon
Brakes: Shimano Deore hydraulic disc
Cranks: SRAM SX Eagle 170mm 32T
Pedals: DMR V6 Nylon
Rear derailleur: SRAM SX Eagle 12sp
Shifter: SRAM SX Eagle 12sp
Cassette: SRAM 12sp (for use on regular freehub body)
Chain: SRAM Eagle 12sp
Wheels: MTX33 with Shimano hubs
Tyres: Maxxis High Roller

That's all for now - will post updates here as they come!

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