2001 Ti Airborne Corsair - Infant Joy / Eternal Conflict / Tinkerer Test Bed 🍷🤪

[Imlach]

Thanks buddy!

Really wanted to get this done prior to summer, but that didn't happen. Noticed that there is much much more of this kit in the UK at very reasonable prices. In Europe it's all over the place geographically and price wise. I suspect in part this is because Shimano messed about so much over those years (Shadow Shifting, 104 BCD, Octalink, a weird Parallel Push design in the short-lived BR-M750, dreadful ugly Dual Control). There's probably loads of Trekking bikes in Germany with kit on too still going strong - it's prior to all the Deore and XT Trekking gruppos. 9 speed too I think is excellent in terms of durability and for compatibility with older wheels that are out there.

Prices make no sense to me atm. I've been complaining about Danish prices for years, you know, but I've been getting some scores recently. I'm seeing the old mid range going for nothing at all as well. I'm seeing a lot in Germany too but I feel that there's still a good chunk of chancers riding the retro wave thinking all old is gold. That's fading here in DK.

In all honesty though, the abundance of M739 stuff and the quality level we all know is right up there still and makes a solid case even today and simply stay with 8 speed. Going the other way, perhaps M770 or M780 10 speed gruppos for these older frames - I think these are the very last rim brake XT Triple gruppos.

You know I don't care much about keeping anything period and I'm not really too bothered about what I kit the bikes with but I do agree about the quality and abundance of groups like m739. A nobrain investment, just works, really solid, can take a beating.

Interestingly there is a lot of lx stuff going for outrageous prices here

 

[Woz]

More startling high paced progress ......

Considering this was supposed to be built for summer, and now summer is well over (6C this morning), I've been dithering sometime now to do a scope and ambition change. I will not have time to fiddle with a drop-bar (albeit got most parts together and still waiting for a delivery of some Travel Agents like @moonlite is using) so I'm moth-balling that one now till after winter.

I did a mock build with a few parts, including an old Kore silver flat-bar, looked back at some old photos and really think it needs more black.

The absence of decals doesn't make a strong visual central point. Got another parts list going now, and I will go straight in hanging semi-decent condition parts off it at this point in the year.

Want to get two sets of wheels sorted; x1 Crossmax XL with off-road tyres, and x1 Crossmax SL with some sort of 26 x 1.7" road type thing that I don't have at the moment. Both sets of wheels are in need of a full service too and are starting to show their age



Unsurprisingly I was in this similar situation a couple of years back and at that time decided to throw on some M739. I've now sold off most of this and discontinued 8 speed altogether. Took my stash of lightly used 8 speed cassettes and chains to the bike charity shop last week. Only keeping a couple of new 8 speed chains back if ever the day comes to brush off something single speed again.



Going to make a final decision on this lot below today, or switch to a black crank with a silver spider and silver granny ring that I could really do with using up. I have serviced the XT pedals a couple of days ago and there's still plenty of life in these. How I've ended up with so many heavily used, used, lightly used and NOS pedals is beyond me. I really need to rid myself of the PD-M520s since I no longer have that special plastic tool to service them.

 

[Woz]

Rear derailleur - eeny meeny miny moe

Choice is a rough looking XT RD-750 that I'll need to check-over, a rough looking Deore RD-M510, a NOS RD-M510, and a 105 RD-5701 with a bit of road rash.

These all look outdated now. Always thought Shimano took the pi$$ a bit with the Deore M510 but I like it. Really does look skinny without all the wide pivot link gubbins just like some older road mechs. In fact I found everything interchangeable with the old 105 RD-5501 and the knuckles virtually identical - practically the only thing Shimano did was increase the length of the inner and outer parallelogram plates to increase max sprocket capacity to something more trekking or touring friendly.

The 105 RD-5701 10 speed will work fine 9 speed and with MTB shifters ...... I'll probably keep it back for the drop-bar version.

 

[Woz]

Who remembers these contraptions?

How I got carried away with LX front derailleurs is beyond me. It took 18 months to sell a NOS LX FD-M560. I've counted 3 used and 3 NOS LX FD-M565, 5 NOS LX FD-M566, 3 NOS LX FD-571. Officially there is more than my underpant collection. Nothing to do but use them up / swap them out regularly / offer them as a free gift with a box of cornflakes.

 

[Woz]

Time to try these out again ......

Seems a long time since I used these. These are rather nice Tektro Quartz M730 and at one point very much XT quality and much lighter than any of the Shimano top-end stuff. Good mud / snow clearance which won't really be an issue.

Have had issues matching them with Tektro or TRP levers and always found them underwhelming compared to the Shimano. Want to do a good comparison using Shimano ceramic pads vs. Shimano severe weather pads and XT parallel push vs these.

 

[Woz]

New cassette and chain time.

Got to confess to cutting corners and being cheap in this area. 105 / LX level is about the highest I will pay. I see it better to be lazy with cleaning and change out regularly with cheap and reasonable. In the distant past had XT and Ultegra stuff which all felt like a waste of money for such a consumable part. SRAM PG-1050, PG-950, or 105 or Tiagra works fine for me. This is a Sora HG400 11-30 that I've not used before but it appears like the old Deore / Tiagra HG50 to me. Using a KMC chain this time around for no particular reason.

 

[grantoury]

The exhaustive way you research your builds is impressive, I think you should be the one to write the definitive work on the history of the French randonneurs.

 

[Woz]

The exhaustive way you research your builds is impressive, I think you should be the one to write the definitive work on the history of the French randonneurs.

..... oh man. Thanks but no thanks. Not at the speed I go.

Personally think this stuff (bar perhaps a few details) is more-or-less grounded from the 90s, some of the last refinements, and possibly the pinnacle of the old school? The road origins and overlap with MTB is evident and putting them on the scales sort of proves it. Everything at least feels very familiar in the hand to me, nothing radical, nothing ground breaking. Even boring - the minute differences are in the most part really superficial and no real innovation to speak of.

The following period seemed to me to be obsessive with fork travel and disc brakes. MTB seemed to change for good - the flat-bars and bar-ends also gone. These type of hardtails updated with a rigid fork I think are still capable and offer something versatile - they won't win any MTB races and have also been largely surpassed by the whole gravel thing.

From about 2005 I was doing a fair bit of comparisons with CX bikes and Hybrids. Always felt for the riding and terrain I was on, one of the other would be slightly faster where the other had to go a little slower - but could be deceptively very similar in most cases. Very blurred edges and the only really significant difference I found boiled down to tyres, tyre pressure, and contact patch size.

On fire roads without too many sharp corners, a CX with 33C (about mid tyre pressure) a MTB with light 26 x 1.9" (higher pressure than normal) would be fairly well matched overall. Today I'm not that bothered about speed; I'm finding comfort and complete bicycle longevity more important.

 

[grantoury]

Everything at least feels very familiar in the hand to me, nothing radical, nothing ground breaking.

Very much recognize that sentiment

These type of hardtails updated with a rigid fork I think are still capable and offer something versatile

Riding my Trek Singletrack, I think it is a very competent bicycle. Only thing I would change is a bit more tyre clearance. With narrower tyres, less than 50mm, I would prefer 700c. But that may have to do with my height.

 

[Woz]

There's a rather nice history of Shimano groups here:

https://www.shimano.com/en/100th/history/products/31.php

For XT the last rim brake and a familiar functioning traditional RD (albeit without a barrel cable adjuster ) is M770 released in 2007. It was initially 9 speed, and 10 speed came in 2010.