GT Timberline '93

I've never owned a GT, so off I trundled across the M62 and picked this Timberline up from a lovely bloke in the wonderfully named village of Grotton.

When I saw the bike in the flesh, I started to get some serious memories flooding back of scouring catalogues for the bikes I would pester my parents to buy as an 11 year old. My older brother had a '91 (I think) Avalanche in white with the veined / marbled lines in the paint, I loved this bike and still hanker after one...
Looking at this Timberline and giving it some thought, I think this was the actual model, year and colour that I'd been pestering my parents to get me! They didn't shell out for a GT for me, which I think is fair enough. My first bike was a Raleigh Mustang in a pink-ish tinge, then I had a few years of car boot sale bargains, in the form of an Al Carter and an Emmelle Classic. My dad eventually bought me my '94 Lava Dome that I still own.

So anyway, this Timberline is in pretty good nick for a 27 year old. Ok, so the right hand shifter shifts all the way up the block and then when you hit the lowest gear, it resets to the highest... No biggie...
Yeah, the seatpost is also stuck. It's too low for me, but for what I'm gonna use it for, it'll be reet. I've a feeling the mrs could also swing a leg over it if needed as it is. I may address this at some point, but for now it's fine and I want to enjoy the paint for a bit.

I've bought a ridiculous handlebar for it and have an ancient x-lite stem, so at some point it's gonna look a bit more klunker-esque... Think I'll go down the quill-ahead conversion route for now, as I can't afford a threadless fork.

Like I said, I bought a ridiculous bar for it, along with a BMX stem and a quill adaptor. Thought I'd just mock it up the other day, as I finally started to strip it, with the aim of getting seatpost moving.
No sure what method I'll end up going heavy with, but for now, I'll try a heap of soaks with penetrating oil over a few weeks, then try it in a vice. Fingers crossed I don't have to melt the sucker out with caustic soda, but that's probably what I'll do if method #1 is a fail.

How's the build going?

I had one of these, bought from new. Exact same frame, exact same beautiful marbled green colour, probably the same size too.
Still have the frame after all these years, sans fork, planning on building it up this year over the winter (Southern hemisphere winter that is).
But it won't be with period correct stuff, I'm going to modernise it quite a bit.

synchronicity said:

How's the build going?

I had one of these, bought from new. Exact same frame, exact same beautiful marbled green colour, probably the same size too.

Still have the frame after all these years, sans fork, planning on building it up this year over the winter (Southern hemisphere winter that is).

But it won't be with period correct stuff, I'm going to modernise it quite a bit.

Click to expand...

No way! Nice that there's some appreciation for it.
I think this is a 20", but still not got around to getting tape measure on it.
I'm stalled at the moment. I'd hung the frame up at the back of the shed full of penetrating oil and was gonna take it somewhere with a really big vice to try crack seatpost out, but never got around to it, due to a more pressing project.
It is next job though. Just need to dig the frame out, but it's deep...
I'd like to modernise mine too, but I've kept all the OG kit, just in case.

So, just since this is on my mind after a mate asked me how I was doing with removing the seatpost...

I dug the frame out in the summer and took it into work. Held the seatpost in a vice by the clamp and gave it hell. Tried my best to get it moving. Ended up that the saddle clamp / mast part of the post that I'd held in the vice just started moving instead of the seatpost.
So then myself and some much bigger lads (I'm 6'2", they breed em big up'dale) then clamped the seatpost further down in the vice, took it in turns and really gave it some pastie.
This was after using a liberal amount of plumbers freeze spray on it.
No joy whatsoever.

I think I'll revert to chopping the top off and hacksaw blade down it to slice a slither out.

Unless anyone can give me any other hints. The seatpost is now toast, just to be clear. I'd hoped to save it at the start. Ha.

I had a gold 18” timberline a few years back. Pretty much original spec and one of the best shifting and riding bikes I’ve ever had. Think it was full stx, did nothing to it as it was spot on from day one. Let my daughter ride it then sold it to buy a 92 Kilauea. The Kilauea is my daughters bike now and every time we go out she moans that it’s not as good as the timberline. Kinda wish I’d kept it now. Good luck with the build, mind the bar end plugs in the finished pic!

So after quite a few sessions with freeze spray and it had been soaking in penetrating oil for best part of a year, it ain't budging.
So I spent a few hours and a few hacksaw blades trying to get the stuck post out.
It's really tricky to know how you're getting along, as far as how deep you've gone through the post, down in the frame.
There's around 25cm (I think) post in there, so quite a bit. Unfortunately had to cut quite a lot of the post off, due to the insert for the cradle.


Found this brilliant little handle in my dad's old tools.


So I've got 2 slots cut, I thought I was doing pretty well and that I'd cut evenly, along the length, but you can't see how you're doing, even with a powerful torch.


Anyone got any advice?

Last one I had succumbed to lashings of Rost Off Ice and a slide hammer. And a fair bit of swearing.

If that's the original post going by the frame size then that's deep probably length of a hacksaw blade! You'll be swearing and busting knuckles till next century trying to get a slot thru it's entire length.
Looks like a nice clean frame plus it's a good size so don't try any another tools. You won't crack and roll that stem out it's way to thick wall. Get some acid and get it done let it do the hard work.