1991 Trek 990

[GeneralOsik]

Just curious - any chance you weighed the frame when you had everything apart? Assume these are solid 5 lb'ers?

Unfortunately I did not. And Trek didn't have the frame weight listed separate in the catalog.

I miss mine, so if the General ever wants to sell….

Not any time soon. The tight, springy frame is a dream to ride. Soon, I'll be investing in some 1.5" Tioga City Slickers, and I have a Trek Sonic cycling computer, with cadence monitor. I also want to find or build a lighter set of wheels for this bike. Hoping I can find some black Bullseye laced to Trek Matrix rims, or I could build up some wheels with Matrix Mt. Aero.

 

[raidan73]

I loved these 990's back in the day. They were great to set up out of the box too

 

[GeneralOsik]

I just found this video of the two riders from Rodando Por Ti, and Juanma Montero still has his Trek 990:

 

[GeneralOsik]

Back in November, I took this bike on a ~60 mile overnight tour along the Katy Trail in my home state of Missouri.

Shakedown ride day before the trip:



Fully loaded, at the half way point on the way back:



I outfitted it with my old Topeak rack, a small GoRuck duffel, and an Ortlieb pannier.



On the front, I fitted a newer Sunlite front rack, a Wald 137 basket, and and a Makeshifter Basket Case.



I also swapped on a pair of Tioga Psycho IIs, some XT M730 pedals, a Flite for more comfort, and a Velo Orange Mojave bottle cage for 1.5L of water reserves

.

Along the ride, my bottom bracket got a little loose and creaky, my headset lock ring failed to keep my headset tight, and my rear derailleur started getting noisy. Since I got back, I've replaced the loose Vetta jockey wheels with a pair of red Bullseyes, adjusted the bottom bracket, and replaced the Tioga lock ring with the original Gorilla Headlock that came on the bike. I also took the racks off, and put the Tioga pedal assemblies back on. A few weeks after this ride, on my weekly Friday night ride, one of the Psychos pushed it's wire bead into my tube, so I swapped back to Tioga City Slickers.



I love how easy it is to convert this bike into a touring machine! I am happy to have it turned back into a quick city ripper, and now I have the inspiration to build a dedicated touring bike!

 

[Spankyfart]

Do you remember what width the tapered BB was, I have the 92 frameset but it had no BB installed.
I know they had BB UN50's in there but no sign what width although I assume it's 113.
Any info would be appreciated.

 

[DB24]

Great thread.

Personally I think the Turbo looked better than the Flite

 

[Tsundere]

Looks like this old Trek is loving life

 

[GeneralOsik]

I figured it's time for an update. I've swapped a few parts out in the past, and mentioned that, but not yet shown photos. There's also plenty of new to show off:


Here's my every day bike, and I literally ride it every day!


You can start to see the patina after a few years of riding. The frame condition is quickly getting back to where it was when I first bought it!


I absolutely love this crankset/pedal combo.


Here you can see the Bullseye pulleys I installed, as well as an earlier Rollamajig.


I recently installed this Oddysey Svelte skewer in the back. I've had it knocking around for a few years, but decided to install it, cause it's lighter than the XT. And it has a bent metal hoop, so it matches a couple other things aesthetically.

Great thread.

Personally I think the Turbo looked better than the Flite

I'm with you on looks, but my butt loves the Flite. If I'm going to ride this all the time, it has got to be comfy!

I also installed a saddle rail Cateye mount, and super glued the mount together, cause the adjustable part strips and loosens. Never again will I lose a light to one of these mounts.


I recently installed a lighter weight Gorilla Headlock Ultralight, replacing the regular silver one. I have another part to swap into this headset stack, so I'll have to post about that later.


When I bought John Balmers Sex Too, it had this Topeak pump on the frame. It fits nicely here.



I also recently finally got a Wald 137 basket for myself, and it is exactly what I was looking for.


It's mounted to the frame with a Sunlite GoldTec front rack, and it's plenty sturdy. I won't carry anything heavy enough to compromise the brake bosses. This is mostly for weekend party rides, carrying beverages and snacks around, or a short grocery trip.

Looks like this old Trek is loving life

This Trek is loving life, and so am I, right along with it! I can't imagine my life without bikes, especially this one.