"Impossible is a word to be found in the dictionary of fools" Napoleon Bonaparte.
So when a good friend dropped this French Fancy at my doorstep I decided that it should be given another chance and that whilst some may call me a fool, the word impossible would not be mentioned......
Welcome to my possibly late 80's ? early 90's ? MBK Ranger Hi-Tech.
Rusty unloved and missing quite a few parts this Ranger really had spent most of its time outside in the wilds. The BB was full of mud, Spiders had taken up residence in any cavity going. Cables had rusted through and frayed and the once vibrant paint was looking dull and drab.
Everything was removed from the frame, where it was seized it was cut off, sometimes drastic measures is the only way. The jet wash was used to remove the spiders and mud from the frame and forks. The frame was dried and all bearings replaced and freshly greased in the Headset, Forks mated back up and already it was looking brighter. Wheels were in not bad shape, running true. Sadly the cassette was missing so a NOS Uniglide 7 speed Cassette was sourced. Again all bearings stripped, cleaned and greased and assembled. Some IRC Back Country tyres fitted and once again it was back up on two wheels.
New BB was fitted and a very clean LX 500 Exage Mountain groupset dug out of the Man-cave for fitment. New cables connected the brakes and gears back up and a Zoom seatpost purchased from ebay along with a Vuelta Saddle (Keeping with a European theme) A final T-Cut and polish helped to restore some vibrancy to the frame. New chain was fitted and some pedals I had lying around completed the build.
And here it is, what seemed like an impossible task resulted in a nice piece of French MTB history, if Napoleon was still around I'm sure he would have given it his seal of approval.
Vive La France...............
So when a good friend dropped this French Fancy at my doorstep I decided that it should be given another chance and that whilst some may call me a fool, the word impossible would not be mentioned......
Welcome to my possibly late 80's ? early 90's ? MBK Ranger Hi-Tech.
Rusty unloved and missing quite a few parts this Ranger really had spent most of its time outside in the wilds. The BB was full of mud, Spiders had taken up residence in any cavity going. Cables had rusted through and frayed and the once vibrant paint was looking dull and drab.
Everything was removed from the frame, where it was seized it was cut off, sometimes drastic measures is the only way. The jet wash was used to remove the spiders and mud from the frame and forks. The frame was dried and all bearings replaced and freshly greased in the Headset, Forks mated back up and already it was looking brighter. Wheels were in not bad shape, running true. Sadly the cassette was missing so a NOS Uniglide 7 speed Cassette was sourced. Again all bearings stripped, cleaned and greased and assembled. Some IRC Back Country tyres fitted and once again it was back up on two wheels.
New BB was fitted and a very clean LX 500 Exage Mountain groupset dug out of the Man-cave for fitment. New cables connected the brakes and gears back up and a Zoom seatpost purchased from ebay along with a Vuelta Saddle (Keeping with a European theme) A final T-Cut and polish helped to restore some vibrancy to the frame. New chain was fitted and some pedals I had lying around completed the build.
And here it is, what seemed like an impossible task resulted in a nice piece of French MTB history, if Napoleon was still around I'm sure he would have given it his seal of approval.
Vive La France...............
