My Sunn Vertik II

[freewheelin]

Just dug this baby from a heap of garbage down in the basement




Isn't she gorgeus? And the ride... well, classic, isn't that the word?

I've owned the beauty from the beginning, since 998, but usage was minimal for many many years. But I'm glad we found each other again after all that time!

Almost everything is original stuff: Deore LX rear, STX front, way cool Cycledelic saddle \o/, Sunn rims & pedals, Sugino cranks, Avid 10 brakes, Avid AD-1.0L brake levers, Shimano 85(?) shifters etc. I got a riser and shorter stem, and also the saddle post had taken too much damage, so got rid of that.

Share your stories and opinions concerning Vertik II (or just plain Vertik, what's the difference between the two?) on this thread, scans from old catalogues or magazine reviews would be my wet dream... :shock: The whole history of Sunn and their magical bikes seems so complicated and fascinating. There's quite much talk here about higher end Sunn bikes, but not much text about Vertik.

Also any ideas on what to get for front suspension would be greatly appreciated. Something that would fit nicely, something as cool and classy as the ride itself, and I don't want to spend much.

Anyway, my first post, yey! So glad I found this coolest of forums. And sorry about the quality of text, english is not my native language.

Happy trails!

 

[kaiser]

Sunn's are always very very cool bikes

 

[Anthony]

Yes I have the catalogue wih that bike in it. I haven't got a very good scanner, but I'll try to scan the Vertik II pages for you when I have time.

I don't think there was any difference between the Vertik and Vertik II frames, both Fuji double-butted cromo, it was just the level of equipment. In the UK, a rigid Vertik with Shimano was £439 and the corresponding Vertik II was £529. They called that saddle a Rudd Fulguroselle incidentally, Rudd being their own brand name.

As we can see from your photo, there isn't all that much clearance on those rigid forks, so the frame geometry is set up for at most a short-travel suspension fork. 55mm was the longest travel Obsys, so all modern forks are going to be much longer than the frame was designed for. I think the Bomber Z2 is the classic fork of that period, but I had a Manitou SX-R on my Vertik, which had 63mm. That worked OK, but I actually preferred the bike with the rigid fork as pictured below.

 

[freewheelin]

Anthony, that scanning thing would be very awesome.

Nice ride you got there also.

I wasn't too sure on the susp fork thing before, and after your info I think I'll be sticking to the rigid myself. I'm sure it's much more preferable. It's perfect as it is. And isn't that like true old school, rigid sh*t..?

 

[Wold Ranger]

Forks

I have a spare set of NOS Carbon 40mm Obsyss forks, ideal for the Vertik!

 

[dyna-ti]

Lovely bike m8,nickel plate looks nicer than painted