1995 Norco Team Issue (Chromag cruiser build)

[yeti_bomb]

Finally found a old Norco in my size after 4 years of looking. This one is a bit rough but will do for cruising the town and some light XC riding. So far I'm hanging a bunch of old spare Chromag parts on it. Also a Mantiou X-vert. Not sure about drivetrain yet, either SRAM 9 speed or SS. Its a bit sleek and bit weird looking at this point but I love it. I wish I would see more old steel Norcos on RB but I know they are not highly regarded.

 

[k-rod]

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nothing wrong with that.

 

[jimbotoad]

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are you, by chance, a canadian ex-pat? there's definitely a canadian theme in your collection and with the rockys and cro-mag parts use- not typical for someone in/from cali. rep on 'early' norcos might not be stellar to handmade rocky or brodies, let alone konas, but they're probably built in the same factories overseas as your rocky and konas, using fairly tried and true geometries, so for whatever the decals say, you have as good a frame as any typical ride of the day. things changed for norco when pete stace-smith came aboard in those early 90s and was responsible for bringing the norco brand up from its mid-level status by way of plenty of r&d through riding experience. and he did!

on your present set up, the only thing throwing me off is the blue saddle and red forks. ever thought of working with the orange/copper? of the 'shadow' in the decals? like early z-? bombers in orange? orange cable housings, maybe grips and a funky orange or orange/black saddle? nice with the neutral metal colour of the frame that you can use any colour as a compliment/contrast- might just depend on what's in your parts bin! i look forward to seeing what you do with it! ;o)

 

[yeti_bomb]

If I was Canadian I would never leave. Southern California native. I was looking for some old Z2 forks even though XC600 were the OG spec. The blue saddle is hard to look at but for 13 bucks couldn't resist. Will likely throw on a old Lynx saddle when I find one. Really looking forward to riding it around.

Orange would look cool on it. Being a budget bike it gets whatever cheap parts I can find though, atleast for now.

 

[jimbotoad]

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that's cool! cool to see you seem to be a fan of canadian bikeware. yah, you'd love the riding up here, but not so much the weather if you're used to so. cal. sun/heat. everything else more than makes up for the weather, though.

so is it just coincidence you have a bunch of cromag pieces? and did you find the norco locally? there's more norcos than you can throw a stick at, up here in vancouver-town. old and new- craigslist is full of them. and rockys, konas, brodies, dekerfs and toads, too. what i wouldn't give to find a nice old rockhopper! sorry, we are spoiled, but the good stuff is drying up if that's any consolation...

nothing wrong with a low-cost build. do you have a recycled bike/parts place in your neighbourhood? a potential source for good, used parts at a reasonable price? i'm sure it'll be fun to get the team issue built and mobile. keep posting pics as you progress...

 

[yeti_bomb]

The Norco was bought from a ebayer in Whistler. Have bought a lot of stuff over the years from friends in Canada. But sometimes local stuff pops up here as well. I spend a lot if time looking for deals on craigs, retrobike, pinkbike, and ebay. Chromag is my favorite stuff though. If I see something cheap I just grab it incase I can throw it on something later. I've bought and sold over a hundred frames in the last three years. Short attention span I guess, though I do love my Rootdowns!

 

[jimbotoad]

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super cool fun time! ;o) keeps you busy, right? half the fun is searching for bikes and parts and the other half is tinkering/building. of course the last but not least half is riding! wait a minute?

 

[Smithjss70]

Cool! I like it

 

[addicted]

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Whats not to like? Ritchey tube set very Nice.

 

[burritohammer]

looking forward to how this turns out!

just started rebuilding my old norco, low end cherokee frame but still fun.