Method for building retro bikes...??

My GT RTS started as a green USE bar that nobody wanted . I think origianl owner was orange71 .

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I'd almost forgotten about that one!! yes it was mine.

...and if I work at the same speed as a glacier Mrs Radar wont notice another bike

Hi,

I am on a quite big pile of stuff. It wasn't there from one day on the other. It took years. I started this because I wanted proper stuff and price point was good. Initially it hadn't much to do with the 'vintage-thing'.

I am rarely searching for a particular part. By far most parts I acquired when I encountered them and perceived them as interesting. This could be because of various reasons, for example price/quality or uniqueness.

So ended up with a lot parts. I use my creativity with the parts laying around. Sometimes I get a eureka moment or I encounter a nice bit that triggers a whole new project combined with the stuff already laying around. Not much later a new bike is born

Result of my mainly using stuff laying around is that several of my bikes feature a quirky but functional XT/XCPro/Euclid mix ...or that my 'Herbold replica' has a Marzocchi DH3 fork and RaceFace Ti stem instead of Judy and Zooka :?

My preserving/storing habit implies that I rarely sell stuff I haven't multiple items from. The sale helps compensating for the spendings. A neutral result would be cool of course

What remains is of course a huge input of time. All quality time of course, so no complaints on that

Well- reading this I had better keep my head down. Although my Cannondale is an 86 model it has to work for a living, its mint and very much loved but in constant use for both trails and the daily slog to work and back. It has probably one original part on it (the Suntour roller cam rear brake which i'm stuck with as nothing else fits- it is pretty good at stopping on the plus side!), the paint has been stripped off (orig paint was too tatty)

Although it has loads of non period parts on it- I'm happy enough knowing that its spec is is still in the spirit of retro- rim brakes, elastomer shock etc.. its just kinda evolved.

Think of it as a MG Midget with a tuned K series engine and proper brakes.

The most important thing for me is that these wonderfull old sheds get used and don't become too precious. On the other hand i would love to spend my evenings with a highly polished Klein Adroit

Be very careful Dr S....

"love to spend my evenings with a highly polished Klein..."

That sort of behaviour will get you in very hot water

see http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=16284

neilll":2daj4h2r said:

I am currently adopting a willy nilly approach to sourcing parts for my first retro build...(and having some success)

Is there a suggested route/sequence or shall I just carry on buying random bits left right and center until my bike is finished?

How long do builds generally take? (can you tell im impatient?? :roll: )

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My Raleigh Tomac took 6 years to finish.


Generally speaking project bikes take anywhere from 6 months to a couple years depending on how rare/specific the parts build is.


It helps to have multiple projects going at once.

rumpfy":3iqueqdt said:

depending on how rare/specific the parts build is.

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:roll: :roll: :roll: Ahh yes...that little chesnut is where I'm having trouble, maybe i'm being too fussy/specific...

Well....

i dont think too long and hard about it It can take the fun out of building progress.... All good things come to those who wait! But really those lustfull parts we crave for, come along when the time is right