Orange Prestige 93

I have actually finished this and it's time I shared some pics. I got this off ebay about 4 months ago from the original owner who had looked after it quite well - protective tape on the top tube/chainstay. The ahead/suspension fork (and a riser bar) was a more recent addition but the original parts were included.

I already had parts collected up for this, the gripshift coupled with reverse cabled brakes (front brake on the left side) made it un-rideable to me! So once stripped down, I was a bit worried about the squiggle under the paint on the monostay but have been told it is contamination under the paint (I bought a neon true temper handlebar from here and that had exactly the same sqiggly bubble under the paint, just over an inch long but you could see the inside of the tube was fine - it was NOS after all so im quite satisfied!) Couldn't find a XT headset at the time but I did find a NOS DX one so I had that fitted.

I got hold of a NOS steerer tube for the forks - the nearest Pace length is 170mm which is taller than the original fork so there was room for a canti hanger (had to use the ahead style one as the Pace steerer doesn't have a notch in the rear to allow for the use of the Zoom one I had! Curse the Syncros stem without built-in hanger! I also put Nuke Proof 6/4 titanium bolts in the pace crown which look much better than the rusty ones they replaced! Was lucky to get the Syncros handlebar with shim that compliments the stem.

The frame number is: A3011978

nice one, i have the same prestige in purple /silver . it dose look nice with the rc30,s

Nice forks - you don't see many of the early RC30s.

Sweet looking bike

These are the bits I had collected for this (most NOS) - basically I wanted a black XT crank but getting hold of a black XT crank 170mm (or a Syncros revolution 170mm! I have seen 10+ 175's for sale over the past year or so!) was not happening! so I have used an Exage crank + Surly SS chainrings - the Surly logo is hidden under the crank arm - because there are no ramped teeth you can rotate it how you wish. I wanted the Stainless/mirror look to match the Pace crown - the rest....BLACK!

The Dia compe's are satin black so match the frame, and I pimped the NOS derailleurs (black bolts/Bullseye jockey wheels) I had a pair of NOS black XT hubs and so bought some RM20s and had my LBS build some wheels with black DB SS spokes + nips!

Check out the black HG50 12-28 from CRC! I have a NOS HG90 12-28 + HG91 chain but I wanted to ride this without fear of wearing down the drivechain! So the drivetrain is completely replaceable.

2 rides in and mud/cow shit cleaned off the tyres I took some photos

more pics

I did put ODI attack grips on but I don't like them - they are jelly! I also had M730 pedals but they felt way too small - I would not trust them when out of the saddle so I could have taken some photos for show (for this site!) but modern pedals & grips make this bike rideable to me. Those Ergon grips are a perfect solution to anyone wanting to use a long stem/narrow flat bar combo with a rigid stem aka retrobikers! Before I always rode on the edge of the grip to avoid bumps going straight up my spine - effectively creating a platform for my wrist - which is exactly what these grips do but in a secure way so I can recommend them as an alternative to the modern short stem/riser bar/less weight on the wrists style.


I swapped the seat post as the Syncros decals were disappearing back into the frame at my required height! I wanted a 19in frame though cos the 17in has a very low front end unless you raise it with suspension forks. I was hoping that those Kool stop pads - supposedly 'rim friendly' (meaningless marketing toss) - wouldn't wear the black off the rim too quickly - however you can see the front rim - it only takes a bit of grit/dirt and a bit of heavy braking - this is after 2 rides (6+ hours) from new, to be expected really but still!

The only 2 issues are:

1) creaking handlebar shim! clicking away like mad - I think the handlebar is very thin/flexy indeed.

2) massive fork judder! quite a big issue to have with the hills round here, I don't know whether the legs themselves are prone to flex or the aluminium crown is the weak link - the crown bolts are as tight as I can get them. There is a fine line between toeing in the pads and still having enough pull/power for the brake to be effective! Still not complaining, just if you see me coming, get out the way!

Nice job,like it alot

Very nice, reminds me of mine(not colour ) which was stolen out of the bike sheds back in the day.....