Members' MTB to Road bike conversions

[LEE]

Apart from just spotting the ugly radius of the rear mudguard (I'll address that) my work here is done.

I finally got round to chopping out the middle section of cable-outer for the new V-Brake and gear cables (although the rear one still has a full outer cable, for reasons of V-brake asymmetry).

It's cleaned up very well and everything feels slick and solid.  Can't wait to explore some French villages in summer.



Biggest mod was removing the combined brake-lever and 7-spd shifter (for canti brakes), fitting some Deore V-Brakes from the parts bin and separate shifters (courtesy Rogerzilla).



Back in 2002 it was 6 years old then.

[slope]

^^^ Ace

[MagnusOpus]

That's looking very nice......fun and practical all at once

And no doubt for a fraction of the cost of a modern "adventure tourer"

[LEE]

That's looking very nice......fun and practical all at once

And no doubt for a fraction of the cost of a modern "adventure tourer"

I have an "adventure tourer", a Thorn Raven Tour "Rohloff".  RRP is about £2300 but it's quite striking the similarity between 1980-1990 Hard-tails and "adventure tourers".  Nice "relaxed" geometry and built like a brick outhouse. 

I'd happily take the Saracen on a fully-loaded adventure, in fact I think it's in need of a fully-loaded photo shoot (for that other thread) 

I'd like to see how the frame handles under a heavy load.  The Raven Tour is very twitchy unloaded but gets better and better the more you load it up.  There's a possibility that the Saracen may get worse and worse I suppose.

It's not worth me selling because, in my deluded mind, it's worth the same as a Thorn Sherpa (a £1200 "adventure tourer") but, in the eyes of Ebay, it's worth <£200

The Muddy Fox "Courier", in good nick, is my dream conversion.  Why?  Because I came very close to buying one in 1986, when they were like something from Outer space.  I bought a traditional British Eagle Touristique instead (Both bikes were about £290) and had no regrets... but the Courier, like the Raleigh Chopper, is a bike I still have a hankering after.

[MagnusOpus]

I'd happily take the Saracen on a fully-loaded adventure, in fact I think it's in need of a fully-loaded photo shoot (for that other thread) 

I'd like to see how the frame handles under a heavy load.  The Raven Tour is very twitchy unloaded but gets better and better the more you load it up.  There's a possibility that the Saracen may get worse and worse I suppose.

The Muddy Fox "Courier", in good nick, is my dream conversion.  Why?  Because I came very close to buying one in 1986, when they were like something from Outer space.  I bought a traditional British Eagle Touristique instead (Both bikes were about £290) and had no regrets... but the Courier, like the Raleigh Chopper, is a bike I still have a hankering after.

I've gone on some long trips on the Conquest with very heavy loads (I reckon about 50kg worth of 2 full panniers, front rack, camping gear, camera gear and a big box of records on one occasion!) and it's worked very well.....love the way the loooong chainstays and slack angles of mid 80's MTBs carve around corners ....great excuse to hunt down one of the those white Couriers....you know you want to!

[MagnusOpus]

Mac is coming along.....I reckon he's a handsome old country gentleman....finally managed to remove the original freewheel via total destruction.....decided he needed the original brake levers back on and the thumb levers relocating....chocolate flavour grips installed....did go for a spin up and down the road, and he really does put a smile on the face....takes a bit to get going, but once he's rolling he plows along....need to sort out a front brake hanger and he's just about done.....

Now planning his maiden camping voyage, a trip down the Ridgeway to Avebury for midsummer

Thought I'd also get the bottom of the garden in all it's wild glory in the picture while it lasts, as I'm now half way through deforestation

IMG_20160523_194448712 by Mike Clampitt, on Flickr

[fruitcake]

That's lovely.

I've been inspired by the Charlie Cunningham bikes raced by Jacqui Phelan in the 1980s. Gonna build myself a single speed drop bar MTB with cantis.

[paul vanderoost]

https://www.flickr.com/photos/185555283@N05/49083900191/in/dateposted-public/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/185555283@N05/49084104692/in/dateposted-public/

https://youtu.be/xAUpQppxco8

Bought this Raleigh Stone fly Steel mtb in 1998 for my youngest son, now 34, to do his paper round on.
The last 4 years I have used it in this configuration.
Hybrid 26x1.5 tyres.
North road bars
Full mudguards
large sprung saddle.
new rear cassette with higher gearing.
New cables to suit.
old alloy rear rack and cheap panniers.
I have toured on in. a camping weekend.
loved it.
I am now putting drop bars on it and making it a 1x. and
bar end shifter