Has anybody on this forum ever made an all-steel build?

As per title: did anybody attempt to build a reasonably light bike using all steel components?
I'm talking about a 90's build attempting to use only steel components where possible. (most of the really old stuff was mostly steel anyways)
I was thinking to take a Ritchey P-series frame and fork that I have and do something different than just the usual all Ritchey components.
Something along this lines:
Frame +Fork: Ritchey Cr-Mo
Quill stem: Ritchey Force Cr-Mo
Seat-post: Tioga T-bone Avenger Cr-Mo
Handle bars: True Temper Cr-Mo
Crank-set: Sweet Wings or Syncros Revolution
Are there any other components that are traditionally alloy but could be steel instead?
Open to ideas.

You can get still steel cantilever brakes:

http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/BCCANTI/ste ... r-brakeset

A lot of seat post quick releases were steel, as were wheel skewers.

I suspect by the 90s, most decent groupset components were at least in part alloy. Although some of the cheaper stuff is perfectly serviceable and in some cases long lasting (not my experiences of 200GS though).

Similarly, at the cheaper end of the market is was still common to find steel rimmed bikes (especially of the Emelle variety but possibly also true of a few Raleighs).

Can you still get steel rims? Ofcourse you dont want to but that will bring you clise to 100% steel bike.

I think they might still make steel rims but those are the cheapest of the cheapest beach cruiser crap. The on-one brakes are interesting. I'm trying to find some higher end vintage steel components. How about those Syncros Mental Stainless Steel pedals? They were quite heavy free ride pedals though. I was thinking in theory it should be possible to make a light set of cantilever brakes by using a similar design to the avid tri-aligns but using a steel tube for the arms instead do solid aluminum.

Re:

How about Onza Buzz-saw stainless steel chainrings or King stainless steel bottle cages?

Or buy a 1990 Marin Palisades?
300 LX chainrings...steel...check
Steel bars, stem.
Exage trail cantis: plastic coated steel...check
300LX rear mech...ditto.

Add a steel post off a P7 and job done.

syncrosfan":zo14kmr0 said:

As per title: did anybody attempt to build a reasonably light bike using all steel components?
I'm talking about a 90's build attempting to use only steel components where possible. (most of the really old stuff was mostly steel anyways)
I was thinking to take a Ritchey P-series frame and fork that I have and do something different than just the usual all Ritchey components.
Something along this lines:
Frame +Fork: Ritchey Cr-Mo
Quill stem: Ritchey Force Cr-Mo
Seat-post: Tioga T-bone Avenger Cr-Mo
Handle bars: True Temper Cr-Mo
Crank-set: Sweet Wings or Syncros Revolution
Are there any other components that are traditionally alloy but could be steel instead?
Open to ideas.

Click to expand...

I would use a Sweet Parts stem and use the Sweet Wings instead of Syncros Revolutions. Ritchey and Syncros, those stuff doesn't fit together.
As a Seatpost i would use an XTR if it should be as light as possible, or just a normal Deore XT.
Yo could also use a Vetta Lite Seat with hollow rails. When i compare mine to my Ritchey W.C.S. with titanium rails it's only a difference of 5g and the shape is quite similar.
Other ideas ...
- King Stainless Cages
- Deore XT Headset (it's steel, or am i wrong here?)

Brakes and Rims should be aluminium.

I would love a Sweet Parts stem (have one in 1 1/8 thread-less on my Homegrown to go with the crank-set). However it turns out that the ones in 1" quill are extremely rare (there's one on evilbay right now but it's Road and the seller wants 250$ for it! Madness!).
Good call on the steel headset (I'm not sure if the old XT was steel but I'll look into it).
In theory it should be possible to engineer steel components that are very close in performance to aluminum ones (Sweet Parts approach) but I guess it's too work intensive, lots of tubed structures welded together = too costly to stay competitive to aluminum parts. I have seen lots of titanium everything builds, or carbon everything builds, but not a high-end steel everything (that being relative of course) build.

syncrosfan":16b7nfh4 said:

I would love a Sweet Parts stem (have one in 1 1/8 thread-less on my Homegrown to go with the crank-set). However it turns out that the ones in 1" quill are extremely rare (there's one on evilbay right now but it's Road and the seller wants 250$ for it! Madness!).
Good call on the steel headset (I'm not sure if the old XT was steel but I'll look into it).

Click to expand...

I've got a Sweet Parts 1" quill stem. It's a roadie too though. I wouldn't want anywhere near that much for it, but I'm in the UK so postage would add a little on top.

I'm pretty sure that xt headsets were aluminium too.

"I've got a Sweet Parts 1" quill stem. It's a roadie too though"
What are the measurements? Length? Rise?
The True Temper handlebar I have coming in was advertised as 26.0 (which is kind of unusual for a MTB handle bar which should be 25.4) Could be that the seller is a pillock and doesn't know how to measure properly, or it would indeed fit a road diameter stem. Pending your measurements I would be interested in that stem...
It is possible that the very early XT headsets might indeed be steel, but then again I do have a Ritchey logic headset that seems to be steel for the greatest part.