gm's 30 days of gt

[petitpal]

Have to say that a lot of the early, "why's he doing a GT thread it's not fair stop it" posts show the classic British mentality (even if not everyone was British ); my dad always used to say that if someone drove down the road in a Ferrari past a Brit and an American, the American would say, 'how can I get one' and the Brit, 'how can I take it off him'.

Aaaaanyway, that said - I'm loving the posts and have always admired gm's depth of knowledge on GT (and the number of Zaskars he has!) I do get quite confused about the number of people who seem to be very anti-GT (and I don't just mean in this thread) and I do sometimes wonder if it's a bit of anti-snobbery (a bit how some people refuse to listen to Louis Armstrong because he's so well known).

Personally I've loved my Zaskar - handling, fit, ride, etc - ever since I first built it up and have no real desire to own another bike. All in, I'm looking forward to seeing more of gm's collection.

 

[brocklanders023]

I think the thread's ace, well done GM.

Miles more interesting then threads with the same questions being asked over and over again. That's not me having a go as I've asked them in the past, it's a sign that I've been here too long and don't often see or read things that interest me anymore

 

[Loki]

Interesting post. I think if you check geometry amongst the leading brands in the early-mid 90's you'll find that 95% of the industry was running a similar 71-71.5/73-73.5 frame geometry in the middle sizes. Some brands switched to a different geometry to accommodate more travel earlier than others. The triple triangle rear stays had no effect on the top tube lengths. At some point because of geometry the top tube and down tube will meet a head tube and there just isn't that much difference between top tube lengths and head tube lengths when the geometries are within a half degree. Remember also that many suspension forks were designed to be run at a particular front end geometry to function properly and not put added stress on head tubes. There is what, maybe 5-9mm top tube length difference in a half degree geometry difference? The size you rode, stem length and correct saddle fore and aft... all of those may have been an issue. Proper professional fit for the rider is key on any bike. I think if I had ridden a 19" instead of an 18 It'd maybe have seemed more comfortable on the straights but the 18 was just a safer bike to ride and it seemed like it was quicker and better handling and running a 130 stem on those early bikes was not overly long for someone long in the body and shorter in the legs like myself. I also think the overly stiff you speak of refers to an aluminum frame and not the triple triangle hellenic design. Having ridden and still riding a lot on older GT steel and Ti frames I cannot say that they are overly stiff. I think they are solid and do hook up well when climbing but a good part of that is fit and riding skills too. Riding a hardtail aluminum now that's another story. I had a shop employee, RIP Gerard, that rode Zaskar's from the beginning and he was always complaining about the beating he was taking and he eventually switched to a Xizang and I never heard those words from him again.

I find my 92 Zaskar handles excellent with a 3D fork. Mild to wild depending on which slot you put the axle in. Now throw a Manitou three on it and I certainly could understand geometry criticisms. You can't blame the bike for bad fork choices.
What was the first year GT changed the HA to accommodate suspension forks?

 

[Nader]

Today is the seventh of January! :?

 

[SeeingisBelievingGTMuseum]

Today is the seventh of January! :?

patience my friend it's coming.

 

[SeeingisBelievingGTMuseum]

oops, delete post

 

[SeeingisBelievingGTMuseum]

oops

deleted and moved to the correct location...long day sorry.

 

[Shamus]

This is a great way to show bikes! I like it a lot! Thanks!

I still would like to have option to comment to those topics...

 

[Loki]

Re: Regarding 1990 Team Avalanche.

I wonder if anybody knows the differences between the 1990 Team Avalanche and the 1990 Avalanche . Frame differences are what I am interested in. They both seem to sport Prestige concept in the main tubes anyway. Maybe GMXXXXXX will showcase the regular 1990 Avalanche so I can see if it has the same 19mm tapered stays?

Stay tuned!

Still waiting................

 

[cleiende]

I think the thread's ace, well done GM. ...

Spot on. That is why I joined retrobike today.