I've just aquired this frameset from another Retrobiker (thanks Paul!), it's a 1993 (I think, frame no: A3050573) Orange Prestige...
There's a story behind this frame... way back in late 93'/early 94' I was a young mountainbiker and had recently had my Claud Butler Magna stolen (some might see this as a blessing
) and so the insurance paid out the value of the stolen bike, so I saved up money from part-time jobs and browsed the magazines (no internet back then!) for what bike to get. I knew it had to be a hardtail, and steel, and so bikes like the Explosif, Stumpjumper, Hoo-Koo-e-Koo, Rock Lobster etc were all possibilities, but in the end I opted for an Orange Prestige from Leisure Lakes in Bury.
The frame was on sale at a discount as being a "last seasons model", and so I ordered the frame, some Pace RC30 forks, and Magura HS Raceline brakes, and then had to take a trip over to Bury to pick it all up, like a kid in a candy store.
It was built up with DX running gear, Mavic MA40 rims, Grip Shift 800 x-ray shifters, X-Lite Ti bars, Controltech Aheadstem, Vetta SL Ti saddle, and SPD's, and according to the scales at Stif in Leeds came in around the 24lb mark.
Over the next few years it was used in MTB races, cyclo-cross races, and even wednesday evening 10mile road time trials with tri-bars and a set of Specialized Fatboys on
It was my one and only bike for nigh on 10years, and then for some reason I convinced myself that full-suspension was the future and so I put the Prestige up for sale :shock: I think it sold for something like £150, which even then (somewhere around 2002/3) was a lot of bike for the money. Needless to say the GT I-Drive which replaced it never really won me over the same way the Prestige had
So fast forward a few years and I stumble across the Retrobike site, and it re-kindles my passion for mountainbikes once again A few bikes are bought and sold, until one day whilst browsing the forum I come across a thread which makes very interesting reading... http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewto ... mp;start=0 another Retrobiker has bought an Orange Prestige frame, and it bears an uncanny resemblance to the one I used to own! :shock: In fact it turned out to be the very frame I had sold all those years ago, what are the chances?!!
It's new owner was intent on building it up, but through PM I hinted at my interest should it ever be up for sale. Well, after being renovated the frame was recently up for sale and so I deceided it was now or never and bought the frame. The Prestige frame I had originally bought in 1993 and used for nearly 10 years was now back in my possession
The previous owner had the frame repainted at Bob jackson cycles in Leeds, and they did a top job on it, it's literally like a brand new frame!
I am 100% sure this IS the same frame I originally bought, not least because I had the rear brake cable stops drilled out to allow the hydraulic brake hose to run through the stops.
Couple of things that I don't understand though....
Where did the canti brake bridge go? looks like it's been removed, and shouldn't there be rack mount points there too? (I can see a small pinprick hole each side, perhaps they were fillered over?).
Also, shouldn't there be rack mounts on the dropouts? looks like they've been chopped off too...
I'm pretty sure these things were originally on the frame as I recall the Prestige had these features (ie rack mounts) but the P7 did not (more of an out & out race frame?).
This is not a problem though as I'm unlikely to use canti brakes on this build, to be honest I'm not sure how to build it up, I'm tempted to just transfer most of the XT M739 kit from my Proflex to make it into a runner as soon as possible.
But I wouldn't mind updating the build for the 21st century, creating a build which would last me for at least another 10 years, and using up to date components, but on a retro steel chassis. :?
For now though, I'm just chuffed to have rediscovered my first "proper" mountainbike
There's a story behind this frame... way back in late 93'/early 94' I was a young mountainbiker and had recently had my Claud Butler Magna stolen (some might see this as a blessing
) and so the insurance paid out the value of the stolen bike, so I saved up money from part-time jobs and browsed the magazines (no internet back then!) for what bike to get. I knew it had to be a hardtail, and steel, and so bikes like the Explosif, Stumpjumper, Hoo-Koo-e-Koo, Rock Lobster etc were all possibilities, but in the end I opted for an Orange Prestige from Leisure Lakes in Bury.The frame was on sale at a discount as being a "last seasons model", and so I ordered the frame, some Pace RC30 forks, and Magura HS Raceline brakes, and then had to take a trip over to Bury to pick it all up, like a kid in a candy store.
It was built up with DX running gear, Mavic MA40 rims, Grip Shift 800 x-ray shifters, X-Lite Ti bars, Controltech Aheadstem, Vetta SL Ti saddle, and SPD's, and according to the scales at Stif in Leeds came in around the 24lb mark.
Over the next few years it was used in MTB races, cyclo-cross races, and even wednesday evening 10mile road time trials with tri-bars and a set of Specialized Fatboys on
It was my one and only bike for nigh on 10years, and then for some reason I convinced myself that full-suspension was the future and so I put the Prestige up for sale :shock: I think it sold for something like £150, which even then (somewhere around 2002/3) was a lot of bike for the money. Needless to say the GT I-Drive which replaced it never really won me over the same way the Prestige had
So fast forward a few years and I stumble across the Retrobike site, and it re-kindles my passion for mountainbikes once again
A few bikes are bought and sold, until one day whilst browsing the forum I come across a thread which makes very interesting reading... http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewto ... mp;start=0 another Retrobiker has bought an Orange Prestige frame, and it bears an uncanny resemblance to the one I used to own! :shock: In fact it turned out to be the very frame I had sold all those years ago, what are the chances?!! It's new owner was intent on building it up, but through PM I hinted at my interest should it ever be up for sale. Well, after being renovated the frame was recently up for sale and so I deceided it was now or never and bought the frame. The Prestige frame I had originally bought in 1993 and used for nearly 10 years was now back in my possession
The previous owner had the frame repainted at Bob jackson cycles in Leeds, and they did a top job on it, it's literally like a brand new frame!
I am 100% sure this IS the same frame I originally bought, not least because I had the rear brake cable stops drilled out to allow the hydraulic brake hose to run through the stops.
Couple of things that I don't understand though....
Where did the canti brake bridge go? looks like it's been removed, and shouldn't there be rack mount points there too? (I can see a small pinprick hole each side, perhaps they were fillered over?).
Also, shouldn't there be rack mounts on the dropouts? looks like they've been chopped off too...
I'm pretty sure these things were originally on the frame as I recall the Prestige had these features (ie rack mounts) but the P7 did not (more of an out & out race frame?).
This is not a problem though as I'm unlikely to use canti brakes on this build, to be honest I'm not sure how to build it up, I'm tempted to just transfer most of the XT M739 kit from my Proflex to make it into a runner as soon as possible.
But I wouldn't mind updating the build for the 21st century, creating a build which would last me for at least another 10 years, and using up to date components, but on a retro steel chassis. :?
For now though, I'm just chuffed to have rediscovered my first "proper" mountainbike
Last edited:
