CassidyAce
Senior Retro Guru
1996 Marin Sausalito, San Rafael, Stinson, or Larkspur: these are cromo, hybrid bikes that might not quite take a 2.1" tyre, I'm not sure, but I reckon you could get a 700x50c in, depending on the tyre. I had 40c on my Stinson and there was room to spare. These ride nicely, with a springy ride quality, and look pretty much like 90's MTBs scaled up to take 700c wheels. (See also: https://www.retrobike.co.uk/threads/1995-marin-stinson-streetfighter.415363/#post-3050890)I was planning riser bars, i never got on with drops. So literally transplant a full set of early 90s mtb kit onto a 700c frame.
Tyre size seems to be an issue, whilst i don't need mega wide, to be able to get 2.1" in would be great, but them in not sure there is an old skool, 700c, steel, cantilever frame that takes them is there?
The surly cross check ( not that i really want to buy one!) only takes 45mm apparently.
I'm referring to the 96 Marin range because I can vouch for them but you could look at the surrounding years and other manufacturers had their equivalents: Specialized Crossroads, Ridgeback 50-something-or-other, etc. One of the selling points of 29-ers is that it's a better wheel size for taller riders so, if you want the frame and technology of the 90s combined with 700c sizing, looking at some of the 90s hybrids from MTB manufacturers might be worth your while. There are usually examples to be found on ebay.
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