mechagouki's 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade new pix 5/6/2013!

mechagouki

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I could start this thread by waxing lyrical about halcyon days on blue-collar bikes, but it's all been done to death already. Suffice to say I had a 19" 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade (MEG) way back in 1992, I loved riding it, but I sold it on to buy a Stumpjumper, and have regretted it since. My original bike was the pale grey Zolatone 2000 model with the pinky-orange forks, a couple of years ago I thought I'd found a worthy replacement, a green/black splatter MEG frame/fork/stem/bar set being sold by a guy in Utah. I bought it, but when it arrived I found he had measured C-C not C-T and it was in fact a too-large 20" frame. I sold that on and forgot about early '90s Marin bikes for a while as many other machines came and went. Last week, I was standing at the service counter in the bike shop where I work in the small southern-Ontario, Canada town of Peterborough when a customer wheels in a bike to sell at our twice-yearly gear swap. The bike, which is filthy and sitting on frayed flat tires, is a 19" 1991 MEG in the neon yellow/pink splatter colourway. $75 later the bike is mine!

The bike is completely original aside from seat, tires and grips. It was in such a sorry state I didn't bother to photo' it until after I'd stripped it apart:

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The neon yellow is faded in places, and there are plenty of paint chips, some rusty (kickstands are the devil's own creation). A couple of the decals are damaged, but all of them are present. I've considered touhing up or repainting, but I like the "patina" of the frame so I'll probably just give it a good clean and treat the rust.

Components were better:

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One early quandary; do I de-gunk and re-lube the original push/push DX shifters, or do I cut the perches off the STI levers and use some brand new, horribly period incorrect, but perfectly functioning 3x7 rapidfire plus units? The bike is definitely going to be a regular rider, so I want it to work well - any input?

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I'm going to use modern Bontrager Team Issue tires (simply for weight and grip reasons) , Ritchey foam grips (closest available to original hex foam grips) and a brand new Flite Classic 1990.

I'll post updates as the project progresses.
 
Re: 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade; found another after 20 years.

I always liked this bike! My two cents on the shifters, stay with the DX push push shifters. If you've set it up with new cabling and regreased the internal mechanism, it works pretty well. You could also swap them for some nice DX thumbires ofcourse.
 
Re: 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade; found another after 20 years.

very nice

Im trying to put something very similar together

all i can say is look after the seat post - 29.5 diameter - try finding another one
 
Re: 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade; found another after 20 years.

Nice one mate! Stick with the original shifters!...don't go for those modern nasties!
 
Re: 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade; found another after 20 years.

wookiee":3nsvx6pj said:
Nice one mate! Stick with the original shifters!...don't go for those modern nasties!

Well I hear you from an originality POV, but both sets of push/push I had BITD, both DX and XT, would rank in my top 10 most hated bike parts ever. Honestly, the current Acera rapidfires shown above shift better than XTR did 20 years ago.

But I know, I know....it's just not right.

I spent most of the afternoon working on the bike, it's actually in amazing shape mechanically. The LX hubs just needed some grease and a little tweak of the cones to run like silk again. 3-piece Shimano BB and the stock Ritchey Logic headset likewise degreased and repacked and running smooth. I took some rolling chassis shots with the iPad, but the camera doesn't like the neon. I'll try again tomorrow.
 
Re: 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade; found another after 20 years.

mechagouki":2qz12pem said:
wookiee":2qz12pem said:
Nice one mate! Stick with the original shifters!...don't go for those modern nasties!

Well I hear you from an originality POV, but both sets of push/push I had BITD, both DX and XT, would rank in my top 10 most hated bike parts ever. Honestly, the current Acera rapidfires shown above shift better than XTR did 20 years ago.

But I know, I know....it's just not right.

I'm sure they work just fine...I just think they are a bit ugly! Its a taste thing for me!
 
Re: 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade; found another after 20 years.

I bought and rebuilt one of these for the mother in law when I lived in Singapore...the paint was shot though.
Chas May did a beautiful respray. Sadly the bike has NEVER been ridden since. :( I borrowed it recently and it still rides a treat.

I'm still plotting how to get it back. :twisted:
 
Re: 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade; found another after 20 years.

Small update; left DX push/push which I thought was blown seems to be coming back after liberal applications of Jig-A-Loo:

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I found a source for an unbranded hex foam grip near identical to the OEM grips - $6 a pair, so I bought 3 pairs. I also ordered a brand new Flite Classic 1990, the retail on this seat is nearly 3 x wahat I paid for the bike! Nothing else would really do though, and it looks like being the only major expense involved.
 
Re: 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade; found another after 20 years.

Glad to see you're alive and kicking and back on to RB finally with a project! BTW, I got a set of DX STI in good working condition if ya need! ;)
 
Re: 1991 Marin Eldridge Grade; found another after 20 years.

Hey Frank! Been meaning to email you (you know what I'm like), fancy doing a retro equipped Epic 8 this summer? Julian is up for it.

Might take you up on the STi units, sure I can find something to trade.
 
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