The 'Introduce Yourself Here' thread

[millemille]

Howdy one and all....

Hi

Stumbled across this site after watching a Fisher HooKooEKoo on fleabay and that got the juices flowing again!

Got my first mountain bike back in '84/'85 - a Specialised Stumpjumper. Had a wide and eclectic selection following that; in no particular order - Fisher AL1 and a CR7, Saracen (can't remember the model name but had U brakes front and rear and ground to a halt if you ran over a sheep dropping!), Diamond Back Axis XT, Roberts custom, San Andreas, GT LTS, Cannondale - a hard tail with the headshock arrangement, Yeti FRO and a Fat Chance Yo eddy.

Did a bit of racing but it kind of tailed off with the last proper ride being at a round of the Avalanche cup in France back in '97.

Took up motorbike racing as fitness - or lack thereof - wasn't as much of an issue!

Thinking about getting back into pedal power again - aproaching 40 in the next few years and need to do something to stave off middle aged spread.

Would love to get/build another FRO - the pictures in the gallery of the immaculate FRO almost made me cry - mine was white but other than that that's mine!

Looking forward to it.

Mille

 

[Alp*Willi]

Hey u guys!

Hi all!

I came across you lovely bunch whilst trying to source some bits for my trusty steed and decided to join in the fun.

I have owned the same bike since I got bitten by the MTB'ing bug long, long ago. It is a one and only circa 1991 Alpinestars Cro-Mega LX in faded and rusty white, complete with elevated overstays. My mate who worked in a local bike shop got hold of a frame for me at reduced cost (the importers were only just down the road in Newport) and we built it together. At the time we fitted it out with:

Exage 500LX chainset
Deore DX front mech
Deore LX rear mech
Deore LX hubs with Mavic rims
Deore LX cantis
Deore LX pods
ONZA bar ends

The only bits left from the original build are the chainset and the front mech, with the rear mech being written off in a big drop years ago. It now has a Deore rear mech and Deore DX pods (the LXs broke through heavy-handed usage). It now also has a more comfortable set of handle bar grips and a new Topeak saddle for those long rides in the country!

The bike and I have seen action in the Valleys of S Wales (my home area), The Midlands (Rutland to be more precise), Northumberland, Cyprus (Bombing down from Mt Olympus was just great!) and now Cornwall (blessed with loads of tracks and scenery). I don't really get out as much as I used to but this is partly due to work commitments and my aversion to getting wet unnecessarily!

My pet project at the moment is a frustrating attempt to add suspension to the front of the bike. With my peddler having the old Evolution 1 1/4" threaded headset, finding bits has been a bit of a search. What I have also found is that the steerer on my current forks seem to be a little longer than most at around 180mm. Ultimately I would like to remain with the threaded set as it is part of the bike's appeal! Any help form you guys with this would be much appreciated.

To finish the beast off it needs a new paintjob but I can't seem to find transfers (or even pictures of them) to add to it afterwards. Does anyone have any ideas on where to find these?

To conclude, I'm looking forward to chatting with you all and finding my long lost passion for cycling again

Keep up the good work and Mint Sauce for PM!

 

[Hilts]

Welcome to the wonderful world of RetroBike guys, prepare to leek money like there's nio tomorrow in search of those phantom parts..

Willi,
Not sure about where to get Alpinestar decals from, you may have some joy asking the guys at Argos cycles or there's our very own Gil_m who was able to make me some (for my Spesh) from a picture of the the old ones, that could be an option as various guys on here have alpinestars, myself included.

Have fun and lets see pics of the bikes ...

 

[thd]

Hi, newbie's first post

Hello'

I've just re-found my love for cycling after some time out to have kids, get a sensible job and a less sensible mortgage.

I've also turned 40 recently and getting more than a little chubby so it's time to get back into a respectable shape again.

I used to do a lot of road riding and racing as a schoolboy and junior on my MB Dronfield 531 custom but as I got older and less fit moved more into MTB.
I just bought an Orange C16r with STXRC kit that I'm really happy with and it's light and agile enough to give me some much needed help up the steep bits.
Something about new bikes and the over-engineered kit puts me off - I love the purity and simplicity of a steel frame and straighforward, functional parts.

 

[tintin40]

Warm Welcome 'thd'

 

[Graeme]

Re: Hi, newbie's first post

Hello'
I used to do a lot of road riding and racing as a schoolboy and junior on my MB Dronfield 531 custom but as I got older and less fit moved more into MTB.
I just bought an Orange C16r with STXRC kit that I'm really happy with and it's light and agile enough to give me some much needed help up the steep bits.

Do you have pics? Particularly of any transfers which might say 'C16RS', rather than just 'C16R'.

Thanks

 

[development_cycle]

Hello there, I guess this is the bit where I tell the story of my Mountain biking journey. Actually it has been long, but with few bikes as I tend to hang onto them. I got into mountain biking in the late 80's and bought a Carerra Krakatoa in black with yellow fleck. It was crap, and Halfords were useless, so I started to take it apart and rebuild, and it went on from there...

Moved on to a '92 Kona Explosif 20" in gold, lots of trick Pace bits etc, but really it was too big, so in '94 I bought a Marin Indian Fire Trail, and I'm still riding it!

I treated myself to a set of Manitou's from a similar era very recently as I was still a sus' virgin. They look great but ride like s**t! I think the elastomers are shot.

My dream bike, well, maybe a Brodie from the late 80's!

 

[longbeech]

Newbie intro

Hi,
First post from a young 50+ biker. Nothing serious but enjoy buzzing through the woods as well as commuting a couple of times a week.
Current Bikes,
94 Marin Bear Valley
93/4 Raleigh M-trax 2000 (Cro Mo)
91 Kona Cinder Cone (The Gold One)
Good to see so many great bikes still loved and cared for.

BFN

Longbeech

 

[paul_tea]

Hi. First post by me. I've had a great few hours reading posts on here about all those expensive bikes I could never afford when I was a kid, particularly the original Manitous, candy apple Kleins, Trimbles and all the other exotic stuff. Got into cycling seriously after watching the classic 89 tour de france and, like many no doubt, I'm still dreaming of putting together that perfect early 90s Lemond replica - TVT or Carbonframes with full C-Record and delta brakes. Hmm.. daydreaming again

 

[ilovebadgers]

hola!

hi, it's badger (formely gingernuts) - i have been around here before, but lost my log in...anyway... my list is below.