My two

[xerxes]

Here are my two bikes.

I bought the Marin new in 1990 and now use it mainly on road. The chainset, deralliers, shifters, wheels and of course the frame are original, but most of the other parts have been replaced at some point. It's a little heavy, about 32lbs with rack, lights and mudguards, but it rides nicely and I look after it, so everything works well too. The frame is getting a little tatty though and there is some rust, so I'm thinking of stripping it down and having powder coated, which should make it good for another 20 years.

The other bike is a carbon fiber framed Giant, rarely seen this clean, usually covered in mud. It weighs in at about 24lbs with a nice light set of tyres, a couple more with the heavier Schwalbes that you can see in the photo. I like the look of the carbon fiber through the clear laquer and the smooth curves of frame are very sculptural. The carbon frame and front suspension give a very plush ride, really noticeable on rough, bumby descents compared to the rigid forked Marin.

[Bill]

Awesome bikes xerxes. What kind of Crankset does your Marin have, Sugino?

[xerxes]

Quote:Awesome bikes xerxes. What kind of Crankset does your Marin have, Sugino?

Thanks Bill, it's actually a Shimano Deore 2, it had a whole Deore 2 groupset until I change the brakes for a set of V-brakes about a year ago.

I want to fix up the Marin, get the frame powder coated and generally smarten it up a bit, so I wanted another bike to use as day-to-day transport. Picked this up for £30.00, about $45.00 USD:

[attachment=1021]

I'm not entirely sure how old it is, 10 years or so I imagine, but I doubt it's done more than 50 miles since new. The cables are a bit ratty, so I'll replace those, but other than that and a service, it's good to go.

[Bill]

Shimano, my bad. 45.00 is not bad at all for that!! Claud Butler's if my memory serves is medium end quality??? in it its time. Pretty great condition.

Oh and I forgot to mention I love the pattern in the black paint on the giant, very sweet!

[Billy]

(06-16-2010, 10:46 AM)xerxes Wrote:  I want to fix up the Marin, get the frame powder coated and generally smarten it up a bit...

Are you planning on changing the color scheme? I like that white/orange combination.

[xerxes]

Quote:Are you planning on changing the color scheme? I like that white/orange combination.

It's actually a pale grey, almost a battleship grey. To be honest, I never particularly liked the grey, I bought the bike on the strength of some favourable magazine reviews and the fact that there was a substantial discount on it as it was a display model and had a scratch on the top tube.

I was thinking of having the whole frame and forks in a bright orange, should go well with the mostly black components that are now fitted.