HourGlass
Dirt Disciple
Greetings RetroBike people!
I thought I'd share the tale of my 1995 (ish?) Giant ATX 780.
The bike has been with me for about 15 years after being given to me by my (then) girlfriend (now) wife.
It had originally belonged to her late grandfather and had been hanging in her parent's garage for a good ten years or so; I can only assume bought it and never used it as it was practically new (as suggested by the lack of marks on the paint work and the fresh rim sidewalls).
I commuted on it whilst studying and whilst I was fond of it, it never really had my attention in the same way that other shock / disc-equipped memebers of the bicycle fleet did. When I moved out of home (and later overseas), it once again took its place at the back of the garage.
With a trip back to Australia planned for Christmas, I thought it might be a nice opportunity to dust off the bike, tart it up a little and go take it on some adventures!
The aim of the refresh was to address a few shortcomings:
> Reach: I always felt too stretched out when cycling this bike.
> Brakes: They sucked (no thanks to me)?
> Gearing: Let's just say GripShift never sparked joy.
So I collected a few parts to throw at it.
Proposed Spec
Basics
Butted Cromo Frame, DiaCompe Headset, 'Zenith' 70mm stem and 3ttt Xtreme Flat Bars
Braking
Shimano LX M563 Cantilevers mated to Dia Compe SS-6 levers.
Pads are dried up rim-eaters so I'll use some Jagwire jobbies untill I can source Shimano M/65T cartridges
Drivechain
Shimano LX M563 (F) and Shimano XT M739 (R) derailleurs mated to MicroShift SL-T08 Thumbies.
Cranks Shimano LX M563 with Shimano UN52 BB
Chain and Cassette and Rings: Original Shimano 8-speed
Crank Bolts: Specialties TA (Self-extracting crank bolts are my favourite bicycle component)
Pedals: Original EXT-Pro (for show) and Wellgo V8 copies (for use)
Wheels
Rigida on Shimano LX with Maxxis Larson TT 26x2.0 (F) and Maxxis Crossmark 26x2.0 (R) tyres
Finishing
Oury grips, Fizik Gobi XM Saddle, Giant seatpost and binder bolt
Part I:
As found in the back of the garage.
The Avid SD7 levers are not stock and were an addition by me (long before an understanding of pull ratios...)
These pads are not doing the rims any favours either.
I thought I'd share the tale of my 1995 (ish?) Giant ATX 780.
The bike has been with me for about 15 years after being given to me by my (then) girlfriend (now) wife.
It had originally belonged to her late grandfather and had been hanging in her parent's garage for a good ten years or so; I can only assume bought it and never used it as it was practically new (as suggested by the lack of marks on the paint work and the fresh rim sidewalls).
I commuted on it whilst studying and whilst I was fond of it, it never really had my attention in the same way that other shock / disc-equipped memebers of the bicycle fleet did. When I moved out of home (and later overseas), it once again took its place at the back of the garage.
With a trip back to Australia planned for Christmas, I thought it might be a nice opportunity to dust off the bike, tart it up a little and go take it on some adventures!
The aim of the refresh was to address a few shortcomings:
> Reach: I always felt too stretched out when cycling this bike.
> Brakes: They sucked (no thanks to me)?
> Gearing: Let's just say GripShift never sparked joy.
So I collected a few parts to throw at it.
Proposed Spec
Basics
Butted Cromo Frame, DiaCompe Headset, 'Zenith' 70mm stem and 3ttt Xtreme Flat Bars
Braking
Shimano LX M563 Cantilevers mated to Dia Compe SS-6 levers.
Pads are dried up rim-eaters so I'll use some Jagwire jobbies untill I can source Shimano M/65T cartridges
Drivechain
Shimano LX M563 (F) and Shimano XT M739 (R) derailleurs mated to MicroShift SL-T08 Thumbies.
Cranks Shimano LX M563 with Shimano UN52 BB
Chain and Cassette and Rings: Original Shimano 8-speed
Crank Bolts: Specialties TA (Self-extracting crank bolts are my favourite bicycle component)
Pedals: Original EXT-Pro (for show) and Wellgo V8 copies (for use)
Wheels
Rigida on Shimano LX with Maxxis Larson TT 26x2.0 (F) and Maxxis Crossmark 26x2.0 (R) tyres
Finishing
Oury grips, Fizik Gobi XM Saddle, Giant seatpost and binder bolt
Part I:
As found in the back of the garage.
The Avid SD7 levers are not stock and were an addition by me (long before an understanding of pull ratios...)
These pads are not doing the rims any favours either.
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