My first ride in 7 years -- many lessons learned

Having re-built my 1993 Saracen Sahara Elite, yesterday was the first opportunity I had to get on the thing and ride it for real. I met up with a friend and his 2001 Lava-Dome and headed for the South Downs. We only rode for an hour and a half (it was all that my out-of-shape body could take) but it really was a blast. It reminded me of why I loved riding so much BITD. Afterwards, I ached all over... but I'll be doing it again next week! :twisted:

So, what lessons did I learn?
1. Get a haircut before you strap a lump of polystyrene to your head and ride a mountain bike in 24 degree heat.
2. Take two water bottles with you when you ride a mountain bike up hills in 24 degree heat, not just one.
3. Be more careful when you fit a new back tyre on your MTB, or else you end up with a slow puncture.
4. If you don't take a digital camera, you can't show the guys on RetroBike how fantastic the scenery was.
5. Saracen "own-brand" suspension forks are not suitable for 90 minutes of XC riding. Especially when the elastomers were last changed 10 years ago.
6. There is no gear lower than first, no matter how hard I push on the right-hand thumbshifter.

About those forks...
It wasn't long into the ride when the forks started to just collapse. After about 30-40 minutes, the elastomers must have simply flattened like pancakes, because when I lifted the front of the bike up and put it back down, the moving half of the forks was flopping up and down with no resistance whatsoever. Thankfully those forks only have about 10 to 15mm of travel anyway, so even when collapsed, the bike is still rideable.

During the car journey back home, the elastomers must have expanded again because the resistance in them had returned. But I know that the next time I take them out, the same thing's gonna happen again.

I mentioned in my re-build thread that I had some Marzocchi Bombers donated to me by a kind friend, and that I was considering whether to fit them to the Sahara. Well it looks like the time has come, but I have some questions...

1. If the diameter of the steerer tube on the old and new forks is the same, does that mean that I can definitely use the same headset with both? (photo below)



2. The steerer tube on the Bombers is 21cm long, which is exactly the same distance between the crown on the Saracen forks and the top of the Saracen stem (at the point above the steerer tube), so I have two options. Should I cut the steerer tube on the Marzocchis to the same length as the one on the Saracen forks and use the existing quill stem? Or should I leave the Marzocchi forks as they are and buy one of those stems that bolts around the outside of the steerer tube with a couple of allen bolts? (photo below)



Any guidance would be much appreciated.

You won't be able to use the same stem on the Marzocchis as the steerer is 'ahead' and your old forks are 'threaded'. If you wish to use the Marzocchis you'll need to get a new 'ahead' headset and an 'ahead' stem. You might also need to cut the steerer a bit shorter (an inch or so) on the Marzocchis or get some spacers. Do the Marzocchis also have the starnut installed - if not you'll need one of them. If cutting the steerer shorter you can push/knock the starnut further down the tube as necessary.

From the photos it looks like you have different types of steerer. The one currently fitted on the bike is threaded, the bombers aren't. So, no you can't use the same headset. Don't cut the bombers down - they still won't fit.

To use the bombers yyou'll need an aheadset and different stem, not the quill type. easy enough job though.

The above assumes both tubes are the same diameter.

pah....could have saved myself the effort there

Thanks for the replies, guys.

If the starnut is something that I would find inside the steerer tube, then no, there's nothing in the steerer tube -- I can see all the way thru to daylight at the other end.

So can I buy an "aheadset" and correct stem from my LBS, or should I try to get them secondhand?

Will I be able to see/measure the diameter of the steerer tube on the Saracen forks by just removing the stem? Or is it more tricky than that?

get the headset new - i find the Mart ones are excellent value. try to match the rise and reach of your existing stem

Buy new aheadset for £15 or so unless you want something special. Just check steerer diameter on the bombers first to make sure same dia as saracen ones. Need to know if they're 1" or 1 and an eighth inch.

Note if 1" forks fitted then 1 and an eighth inch forks won't fit. Can't tell from photo.

Stem for a fiver s/h from here or ebay

cce":3gvxnh6c said:

get the headset new - i find the Mart ones are excellent value. try to match the rise and reach of your existing stem

Click to expand...

Cheers, cce. I've checked the net and found the brand that you're talking about -- I've just got to see whether my LBS carries them. Hopefully, if I buy my parts from my LBS, the people who work there might be willing to offer as much advice as I need to do this switchover.

OK to go down the ahead route you'll need a starnut then (£1 from your LBS). Why not get a 2nd hand stem? Ask for one here - you might even be offered a karma one (free!). If you're lucky the existing forks might have stamp with the size on it - if it's 25.4 then it's 1". But hold the steerers end to end and compare diameters - if they match then you're fine. You can just remove the lock ring on the top of the headset to expose the current steerer.

Mr Panda":ziopeh1x said:

Note if 1" forks fitted then 1 and an eighth inch forks won't fit. Can't tell from photo.

Click to expand...

Will I be able to see/measure the diameter of the steerer tube on the Saracen forks by just removing the stem? Or is it more difficult than that?

orange71":2wq0k2ir said:

You can just remove the lock ring on the top of the headset to expose the current steerer.

Click to expand...

Got it! Cheers!