1991 Litespeed Fat Bastard

nimbus

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I originally registered on Retrobike for 2 reasons; to get info about a titanium frame I had bought and to sell some old parts. Fast forward nine months and I've almost finished building up said frame; I haven't done quite so well at reducing the spares collection though :roll:

It's a 1991 'Fat Bastard', built by Litespeed for CBO with the geometry and tube sizes of a Yo Eddy. A poor man's Fat Ti, if you will. The build evolved from a modernish singlespeed, to a 1x9 to its present mostly retro geared incarnation. Parts have come from here, fleabay and things I had BITD.

Currently wearing: RC31 forks, Crank Bros headset (required due to the short steerer), no-name Ti stem and seat binder, X-Lite XLR bars, M900 cranks and mechs, XT thumbshifters, 8sp cassette & chain, Real Design levers, Paul's Crosstop/Stoplight, Nuke Proof hubs on Mavic 231 ceramics, Wildslippers, M540 spuds, LP carbon seatpost and Flite Ti.

Things I need include a bottle cage (maybe black H2O or King Ti?), a rivnut for same (as discussed elsewhere on here) and some bar ends and QRs (again probably black or Ti). Grips and chainring bolts will likely also get changed for black ones. Also looking for a Bontrager anti-chainsuck plate and perhaps some less worn chainrings.

Longer term I'd like to get a more period correct front end, but for now I'll ride it as is. Even though the forks are longer than they should be (420mm); the handling seems twitchy enough for one used to modern bikes.

Attached a couple of pics from lunchtime at the local trails, with the dreaming spires of the Granite City and the balmy North Sea as a backdrop.

Hope you like it.
 

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Nice functional build that.

Not sure which is more unusual... that frame or a blue sky day up on the "Gramps".
 
Nice work!!

I have to agree about the bar ends. Although black would make a nice contrast, in color, to the rest of the bike, I think the only right bar ends for this one are the Onza Titanium.
 
Thanks chaps.

Messiah, I'll trade you a go on your Cats Wiskas some time. The Gramps are just behind the office, so good for a lunchtime whirl at least. Bit guttery at the moment though.

As for the Onza Ti bar ends, I'd love a set, but they'd probably be the most expensive part on the bike...
 
nimbus":2givhwi9 said:
Thanks chaps.

Messiah, I'll trade you a go on your Cats Wiskas some time. The Gramps are just behind the office, so good for a lunchtime whirl at least. Bit guttery at the moment though.

As for the Onza Ti bar ends, I'd love a set, but they'd probably be the most expensive part on the bike...

Gramps just behind my office too... could easy do a retro lunchtime scoot sometime?
 
I know you're all on tenterhooks, so a bit of an update is called for.

I ditched the RC31 as it was too long, and fitted a pair of NOS Spinner chrome rigids with a segmented crown and curved blades (no pics alas). Lovely forks, but the steerer was too short (again) and I couldn't get the steerer extender to stay tight. Then I got my hands on a pair of Halson Inversions, forks I always wanted to try in anger. I'm now enjoying a (very) few mm of rubbery smooth travel, and they seem stiffer than the previous pair I had (could just be that the Paul's Crosstop is flexier than an XT v...) Other changes: headset, seatpost, bars, grips and bottle cage (random Ti thing). Bar ends are temporary until I find some Onza Ti or similar.

Frame: 1991 Fat Bastard M/L (Yo Eddy geometry, by Litespeed for CBO)

Fork: ~1993 Halson Inversion

Headset: Chris King
Stem: unknown Ti
Handlebar: Titec/Bontrager 118
Grips: Yetiyetiyeti...
Barends: Onza L bends (temporary) :oops:

Brakes: Front Paul Crosstop II, rear Paul Stoplight
Brake Pads: Kool Stop Eagle II
Brake Cables: Shimano
Cantilever cable hangers: Onza Chill Pill (rear only)
Brake Levers: Real Design

Shifters: SL-M732 XT thumbies
Front Derailleur: FD-M900
Rear Derailleur: RD-M900
Derailleur Cables: Shimano
Cassette: CS-M737i XT 12-32 (I think) :oops:
Chain: Shimano HG70
Cranks: FC-M900 XTR
Crank Bolts: Shimano
Chainrings: Shimano SG 28-38-48
Chainring bolts: SRP
Bottom Bracket: UN91 XTR
Pedals: M540 SPDs

Hub Skewers: Ringle Ti
Rims: Mavic 231 Ceramic
Hubs: Nuke Proof
Nipples: Black alloy
Spokes: DT double butted
Tyres: Michelin Wildslipper (dry) / Onza Porc 2 (wet)
Tubes: cheap

Saddle: Flite Ti
Seatpost: Titanium Red (Russia's answer to X-Lite...)
Seatpost Binder: Chinese Ti

Weight: 11kg, was about 10 with the RC31s :roll:


It climbs like a goat (i.e. rather badly with a 13 stone weight on its back) and feels totally comfortable on descents as steep as 10 degrees.

Long term I might still order a rigid fork from Rody, although keeping this with front suspension allows me to justify owning another fully rigid bike
:).

It also needs some black Love Levers, a Moon Unit hanger, black CK top cap and maybe a black front brake. I'd like to swap the cage for a CK Ti or Ringle H20, also in black. I might revert to a threaded headset if I can find the right stem.

For the time being, I'm happy just riding it.
 

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Lovely bike, how Ti should be...no anodizing etc but stealthy looking

Really not keen on the looks of the Inversion forks though, prefer it cosmetically with the RC31s
 

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