Rebuilt 2002 Rock Lobster 853

I've just spent 4 days here and there rebuilding my dream machine and I'm over the moon with the results.

I started with an 853 in 1998, purchasing from Merlin Cycles, best bike I ever owned and hated selling it in 2008 to raise money for a motorbike.

Anyway, fast forward to 2015 and I bought a second hand frame off Gumtree with the intention of rebuilding it and restoring my love for mountain biking.

I stripped the bike of all its old components and it sat in the shed for 5 years.

Last Thursday (14th May) I decided now was the time!!

Little trip to the shop for some sanding materials and spray cans and away I went.

Started with a sanding disk fitted to my drill and worked my way through all the old paint and small amount of surface rust that it'd picked up for the last 5 years.

That followed by 2 coats of Zinc Oxide primer on Friday to keep the steel frame safe and protected.

Saturday saw three coats of Audi Misano Red Pearlescent paint applied, taking my time to allow the tackyness between coats.

Sunday saw 4 coats of paint shop lacquer covering the frame and letting that go off.

I made sure I didn't sand between any coats as wanted to keep the shine and glow of the paint.

Last Tuesday after holding off 48 hours for the lacquer to harden I started my build.

Spec includes:

Rock Lobster 853 Steel frame 17 inch
Rockshox Recon 327 130mm travel forks
Shimano Deore Brakes
Shimano XT Shifters, front and rear mechs
Ritchey Pro headset, stem and bars
Mavic 717 rims laced to deore hubs
Charge Spoon saddle

The issue was my 27.2mm seat post wasn't the right size, so I had to wait a painstaking 4 days until this morning for the seat post, clamp and bottom bracket spacer.

Anyway, today it's done and I'm Iver the moon, I've only been up the end of the street and back but can't believe how it rides and how fast it is compared to my aluminium frame I've been on for the last 10 years.

Needless to say, this is exactly what I've needed and I'll be out later today seeing how it goes.

Let me know your thoughts and suggestions if it's not what you'd have done, any feedback welcome.

Like it alot

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Cheers Tintin, been a tough week and racked my brain trying to get the right spec, really happy with it though. Just need some wider tyres on there, set of Michelin wild Grip'r on the way

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That looks cracking, well done!

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Thanks Jim

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For extra pics from ride this morning, literally in love with cycling again

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Looks great! Did you put the decals on before the lacquer?

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Yeah 100%, decals on 1st then the 4 coats of lacquer. Hopefully give them longer longevity.

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After a bit of thought and sitting there staring at the bike over the weekend I realised something wasn't quite right, it was silver wheels with black components, it just looked odd.

So on went the black wheels off my GT I-drive along with some thicker rubber mounted to them.

I always had Michelin Wildgripper tyres on my original 1998 Lobster so when I saw these new versions it had to be them.

I personally think it looks so much better now, more aggressive and mean.

What do you guys think?

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Agree, makes it look cleaner and more complete