Help please - Steel GT serial numbers

[kingoffootball]

First 'new' GT for a little while - 1991 Tequesta Purple Haze 16in. T9012 A50437
View attachment 924342

Needs some work !

Is the paint rescueable? Purple Haze is such a great scheme.

Thank you, I think that confirms every model code for 199 except the Talera and Outpost, which I expect to be A6 and A7 respectively.

 

[PhillB]

Is the paint rescueable? Purple Haze is such a great scheme.

Thank you, I think that confirms every model code for 199 except the Talera and Outpost, which I expect to be A6 and A7 respectively.

I hope so! Might be a thread on here in the spring summer...

 

[pilule911]

I think the 89 timberline has the rear brake by the bottom bracket and the 90 has it internally routed? 300LX makes me think 1991 Talera

@kingoffootball & @senorroboto I have stripped most of the black paint and revealed most of the burgundy/candy apple color that was underneath. I believe this to be the original colour since it has a certain shine remaining and it contains sparkles but I cannot find any GT bike from this era painted similarly. Plus, I have to say, I agree more and more with @senorroboto statement about the u-brake being locate on top of the seatstay instead of the below the chainstay like most 89 Timberline. Also the stem does not match any 89 Timberline I saw on the web.



- Is there some thing I could do to reveal more clearly the S/N on the bottom bracket?
- Does the white/cream colored spot coming throug the brugundy ring a bell when it comes to color scheme from era? I would like if you could give my frame another look to see what model it may be please?
- Would a bike stamped with a SN containing 89 be sold at retail the following year? (maybe it's a 1990?)

I will add new pictures of my frame and pictures of confirmed 89 Timberline found recently for comparaison.

 

[kingoffootball]

@kingoffootball & @senorroboto I have stripped most of the black paint and revealed most of the burgundy/candy apple color that was underneath. I believe this to be the original colour since it has a certain shine remaining and it contains sparkles but I cannot find any GT bike from this era painted similarly. Plus, I have to say, I agree more and more with @senorroboto statement about the u-brake being locate on top of the seatstay instead of the below the chainstay like most 89 Timberline. Also the stem does not match any 89 Timberline I saw on the web.

View attachment 925717View attachment 925718

- Is there some thing I could do to reveal more clearly the S/N on the bottom bracket?
- Does the white/cream colored spot coming throug the brugundy ring a bell when it comes to color scheme from era? I would like if you could give my frame another look to see what model it may be please?
- Would a bike stamped with a SN containing 89 be sold at retail the following year? (maybe it's a 1990?)

I will add new pictures of my frame and pictures of confirmed 89 Timberline found recently for comparaison.
View attachment 925719View attachment 925720View attachment 925721

Really hard to say from the paint, this inside of the bb shell might help.

There are some other seat stay ubrake photos around as evidence they may have changed it mid-year. Not a big surprise given other models like the Karakoram were already seat stay.

April would be very early for making the next year's model, but maybe not unheard of. However, later in '89 frames that are '90 models have a three number model code, 007 for the Timberline, whereas all the 1989 Timberline serial numbers I have seen have a TM code instead. That's the most convincing evidence for me.

 

[senorroboto]

@kingoffootball & @senorroboto I have stripped most of the black paint and revealed most of the burgundy/candy apple color that was underneath. I believe this to be the original colour since it has a certain shine remaining and it contains sparkles but I cannot find any GT bike from this era painted similarly. Plus, I have to say, I agree more and more with @senorroboto statement about the u-brake being locate on top of the seatstay instead of the below the chainstay like most 89 Timberline. Also the stem does not match any 89 Timberline I saw on the web.

View attachment 925717View attachment 925718

- Is there some thing I could do to reveal more clearly the S/N on the bottom bracket?
- Does the white/cream colored spot coming throug the brugundy ring a bell when it comes to color scheme from era? I would like if you could give my frame another look to see what model it may be please?
- Would a bike stamped with a SN containing 89 be sold at retail the following year? (maybe it's a 1990?)

I will add new pictures of my frame and pictures of confirmed 89 Timberline found recently for comparaison.
View attachment 925719View attachment 925720View attachment 925721View attachment 925723

The 1990 Timberline came in gloss red, I'm pretty sure this is an example of it:

https://www.reddit.com/r/xbiking/comments/173kzfc/scored_this_gt_timberline_free

I don't think there was any white colorway for the Timberline until the Daktari White one in 1992. White could very well be a primer paint.

My guess is the real color is the one seen on your steerer tube, which was covered and didn't get a heavy coat of black paint on top of it, which may have discolored it.

Since GT has been shown to switch designs (chainstay to seatstay u-brake), factories (Hodaka to Sanfa on 1994 Tequesta), and tubing brands (1991 Timberlines with Ishiwata or Tange tubing) mid-year, my guess is they started producing some red models in April 1989 at the factory line that was going to produce the 1990 model, and it was sold in either 1989 or 1990.

P.S. have you tried doing a rubbing of the serial #?

 

[senorroboto]

actually i take it back, there was a white 1985 Timberline and then this person seems to have a 1988-89 in white: https://www.mtbr.com/threads/1989-gt-timberline.799756/