'First' retro - what would you look for?

[Reluctant]

Not too long after finding the joys of Retrobike.co.uk, I bought myself an old bike from a member. Got a GT Karakoram in tequila sunrise colours, largely because I love that paint job ~ paid £110 and was worth every penny. I enjoyed fine tuning it, riding it to and from work on sunny days and generally reminiscing about the good old days. I replaced it a while later with a 92 Stumpjumper, which cost me £200 and did same again really ~ but neither bike saw any real off road action. I've now found myself falling into the post-98 camp and riding my retro off road whenever possible. I've found bikes from a slightly later era more practical in a few areas; aheadsets, suspension (or sus corrected), riser bars, V brakes - all things that make a bike more usable for me.
I'd still go down the route of buying a full bike until you really know what you want. You can tinker to your hearts content and if you swap later you won't loose out on too much money. Happy hunting

 

[trail_head]

I love riding as much as my old Claud Butler Vantage back in the 90's

You answered your own question right there in your first post!
You must find that bike!

If you don't have a bike to ride today, that hardrock will do to get you on the trails. If you already have something to ride now then start looking for your Vantage. Also, stay true to your heart. No matter what you're building, a great retro comes from your love of that bike. Weather It's your childhood dream bike, the race bike of your cycling hero, some crazy cool technology or a wacky paint job from planet Klein, If you feel it deep in your heart it'll thrill you!

Good luck sir! We've got your back!

 

[xerxes]

For canal paths and sustrans trails I don't think suspension is really necessary so I would go for a mid 90s rigid forked steel frame.

Some things I would look for:

A good tube set, one of the better cro-mo frames with double butted tubes, Tange Prestige, Tange Ultimate etc.

The geometry of 90s frames were generally fairly similar, but one thing to look for is top tube length, some were fairly long for a given seat tube length/frame size compared to others, for example Marins and Konas were quite long compared to Orange and Claud Butler. What works best for you is partly personal preferance, partly body proportions, whether you have long legs and a short back or vice versa. Have a look through the Manufacturer Archive at some of the catalogue scans which have frame geometry and size info.

A 1-1/8 inch A-headset will give you a lot more choices of headsets and stems and bars than 1" and 1-1/8" threaded stearers and quill stems.

I like top tube routed cables, but I probably wouldn't exclude nice frames with down tube routed cables.

Decide whether you want Mudguard eyes and rackmounts. Some race orientated frames didn't have these, which makes them look cleaner, but makes them less versatile should you ever want to fit mudguards or a rack.

 

[Anthony]

A Hardrock is really not a good bike at all. You'd be far better off go for a good quality frame. An obvious option, invariably sold at bargain prices, is the Orange C16R made from 1994 to 1997. You shouldn't have to pay more than £150 and if you think the Hardrock is a decent bike, you would find a C16R a complete revelation.

 

[Ian W]

I *think* my Claude Butler is a Vantage? Top tube stickers are long gone!

Owned this for 16 / 17 years

 

[sylus]

Depends on your budget and intended use. It's very easy to get addicted and spend a shedload of cash regulary

 

[electronicaeric]

Depends on your budget and intended use. It's very easy to get addicted and spend a shedload of cash regulary

Amen to that Brother

I only came here to buy a rear wheel for my '93 GT Timberline and here we are now having had a string of GT frames built up,along with a Giant a Couple of modern Scotts an Orange and Im just waiting for my next and maybe final project a Klein

Its a great place here to buy spares :!:

good luck with what ever you choose.My fav ride is my Giant.Its just a cheap 2005 frame but with lots of stuff bought off here.Its a comfy bike so I just keep upgrading.

I can recommend GT's,they make a good first bike IMO

 

[MADJEZ]

I would say buy something you really want (so whatever you wanted BITD). Don't fall into the 'it's old/interesting/cheap so I can do something with it' or you'll end up with ten bikes you don't really want.

 

[Chute55uk]

I would say buy something you really want (so whatever you wanted BITD). Don't fall into the 'it's old/interesting/cheap so I can do something with it' or you'll end up with ten bikes you don't really want.

What he said

 

[Coleman]

go for whatever takes your fancy it's nice to build a bike up from scratch but pricey I would buy a complete bike like the hardrock because you can ride it straight away you never know you might not get on with the riding position of older bikes that way you save a bit of cash and if you do like it you have one to ride wile you build your next one

This is great advice.

but the hardrock is gonna have shite components and the frame will not be great either when compared to the lobster, you will also deny the guy the fun of sourcing all the parts and building the bike. The lobster would also suit a more modern type build, risers and decent travel forks if riding position is not great.

buy a frame and go from there i say

oh just noticed you are Birmingham too, so happy to help with any tools, parts and advice, and i also need to develop my fitness and am well known for hammering the canals, well i was before it rained all the time :cry:

It doesn't have to be the hard rock - not sure what the budget is but if he can spend £150 - £300 then you will get a great old bike that you can upgrade and ride from day one - a LX, DX or XT equipped mid-high range rigid would be my advice.

Buying a 'decent' frame first will cost more, take ages and result in a pile of parts that were mistakes/rubbish/replaced before they were fitted.