Why Don't I like the 'good' bikes?

[My_Teenage_Self]

Interesting...

I'd agree that these were the bikes/frames/components that I thought acheivable when I was 15... I was never gonna own a merlin ti...

I also wonder if there is an element of reverse snobbery about it ,for me, at least. When I got my first MTB (MF Pathfinder, thankyou) there were plenty of folks (yes, even in the MTB world) that looked down there nose at me from their mid-high range XC missiles.

I never wanted to be them.

:roll:

Oh, and I'd have a Delta V at the drop of a hat, but hate anything made by Pauls.

 

[My_Teenage_Self]

Rock Lobster isn't exactly on the same level as Kona or Orange. Seriously nice bikes.

Yeah, seriously nice, but they were never seen in the same light as other non-mainstream skinny tube steel frames. I always heard them referred to as 'a cheap alternative to a proper handbuilt frame'

...so why don't I want a proper hand built frame? It is, after all, the logical choice.

 

[Tazio]

Rock Lobster isn't exactly on the same level as Kona or Orange. Seriously nice bikes.

Yeah, seriously nice, but they were never seen in the same light as other non-mainstream skinny tube steel frames. I always heard them referred to as 'a cheap alternative to a proper handbuilt frame'

...so why don't I want a proper hand built frame? It is, after all, the logical choice.

Save your pennies and Rock Lobster will make you a custom frame, MTB, road or cross. I've got one of the Merlin licensed ones and though I know it isn't the same I love the decals and the look of it overall.

 

[sancho]

Disagree with the kevlar bead stuff

+1 Kevlar beads just make sense. I find them easier to install/remove, and they're lighter where it matters most ("an ounce on the wheel is a pound on the pedal").

 

[My_Teenage_Self]

Disagree with the kevlar bead stuff

+1 Kevlar beads just make sense. I find them easier to install/remove, and they're lighter where it matters most ("an ounce on the wheel is a pound on the pedal").

Aye, it makes sense, but I don't need it, nor do I need a titanium bottom bracket despite that also making sense.


If I had sense, I wouldn't be sat here polishing a second rate, 15 year old worn-out frame that someone almost threw out.

 

[Barneyballbags]

... some of the owners look down on others who find the same pleasure but don't play the keeping up with the jones's game

I agree with that too. I've certainly noticed an element of snobbery and elitism on this site.

I've also noticed people complain about the abundance of mid-range, "common" bikes on the site. Well, that'll be because it's what the majority of normal people ride and maintain on a day-to-day basis.

The fact that the bikes are more common makes them no less Retro.

 

[drcarlos]

When I go for a ride most of the time I go straight to my Muddyfox. I cost half what the CB and Kona cost when new but I just love it and have treated it to some XT kit now.

Carl.

 

[Charlieboy28]

I agree here to a large extent, I came here with my 89 Muirwoods, upgraded to lx spec, it was a bike i had many many years and could not afford the luxery of buying a new frame bike each year, lx was the best i could afford and i still remember saving my pennies for the next bit of kit, turning it over in my hands and marvellling at it. I remember also starting a thread like yours but...

there is a slippery slope , I had always lusted after the relatively common kona's so I got me a 94, and GT Zaskars, so got me one, I have now begun to lust after bikes way out my league as a boy, those two titanium konas for sale for example, i keep drooling over, I have also started to buy pretty much exclusively XT, and have now bought my first NOS XTR and I reallly want a breezer now, and some titanium and want to ride an IF and DOGGS BOLLX and...

still my aim is to have one of each oof the major brands i like in the stable before i venture more upmarket

another but, the current bike of choice mid range GT Ricochet $800 RP which had been a winter hack, rides beautifully IMO is now being slowly upgraded with x-lite and xt and use etc

i'm off at tangents again, but beware is all i have to say

oh and i have no issue with the elitist bit as long as the bikes and boutique bits are ridden hard, and work better than the mainstream standard

 

[silverclaws]

Another one to agree with the essence of elitism and snobbery that appears to be here, the same as I perceived bitd with the mountain bike magazines. But am currently sorting out a bike older than my own for a friend, not a restoration as such, but a rust stop and make sure everything is working so it can be used kind of thing, it's groupset is GS200 low range bitd, but I am impressed with it, very impressed as this is my first experience of it and to be fair, it does the job and the stuff I am messing with, has less wear than my XT. Perhaps the race mentality in the mountain bike world is the cause of this seeking the best, but we are not all racers are we being conned I wonder.

 

[Malvern Rider]

I just love bikes and cycling. Have ridden and enjoyed most everything from a first steed (Raleigh Tomahawk) to a Puch 3 speed 26" road bike with steel wheels, Carlton racing bike (another build from scratch) a Dawes Tracker, a self-built early Specialized Rockhopper, RM Thin Air, RM Vertex, a Club Roost XC4, Kona Cindercone, Daewoo Shuttle (!!!), Cannondale F900SL, M-Trax 1500, Diamondback V-link, 1970s Raleigh folder and a Dahon Mu.

Currently have a defunct Raleigh Apex which weighs a ton but gave me lots of fun, a Kona Ute - which is a 40lb ship of a bike and cruises at 8mph like a dream full of groceries/beer/camping gear, and a battered old Cannondale F700 which serves as my only XC bike, Headshok is so gritty I use lockout 90%.

Current obsession is a 97 M-Trax 150 that is being rebuilt as a training/touring/exploring bike. Can't wait to get it finished.

Now, did I have more fun on the £2K Vertex or the £16 Raleigh Apex?

Truth is I had most fun on the Dawes Tracker (£275 new), my first MTB ('ATB' at the time of purchase) - I put more miles on that than any other bike - it did road tours, mountain descents, singletrack and commuting. It had Exage and thumbies. Funny I just put Dawes Tracker into Google and found a kindred spirit who wrote: http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-149097.html

It just worked, and had a little bit of 'zing' in the ride (Reynolds 501?) which helped a lot. So, arguably, did my lack of knowledge and experience about higher-end MTBs. Nonetheless I soon became an LBS lurker... weighing and trying out Kona Cindercones, Kilaueas, Explosifs, Sunn Columbus Nivachrome wafer-thin steel exotica etc...unable to afford, soldiered on on the Dawes until I found a Cindercone in Cash Converters. It was hardly life changing, for me, at least. Mostly because it was a tad too small and constantly at the repair shop or in the shed (self-build on a budget).

Least fun of all was the old Raleigh folder. What a pile.

Yes, I sometimes dream about the 'perfect' frame and the 'perfect' build, but these dreams are always enjoyed with an eye on the reality - ie there is nothing more 'perfect' than a day on the road/trail and coming home to a hot bath with a grin on your rain/mud spattered face. I've done this on all types of bikes.

Having a light/exotic bike can help a lot, but having a bike that is mechanically sound and fits your bad self like a glove is far more important - whether that bike is a Ti Dreambuild or a Hi Ten no-name?

But cleaning, fettling, polishing and admiring is fun too. Ah, the tapestry of bikeage...

Onwards and upwards, downwards and sidewards. A ridden steed is the best steed! Now, do I want a lightweight road bike to get fit and enjoy cycling on another level...or is that mid-life crisis? Could be both

PS I forgot to say, I haven't found Retrobike too snobby. You are nice people. And I am an XT junkie who dabbles in Deore.