My 1991 GT Team Avalanche

Hi all,

Thought I'd try joining up and posting as I'm looking for info on the serial number for my original GT Team Avalanche that I've had since new.
The finish is Midnight Aurora and is fairly original with only the Grips, the thumb shifter for the rear mech and the pedals being changed from the original (I had SPDs put straight on from new so I sold the originals).
I have recently started researching it as a friend who owns a different GT (2nd hand) was trying to find out the model & year for his and this set me off looking for my serial number which it would appear is a simple "A1 8900" (Over 2 lines) but this seems to be very different from the ones I've found on-line. I had wondered if the paint was covering more of it - the only option being to remove some and thats not too appealing so thought I'd ask here first. My frame size is 16.5inches which I was told wasnt readily available in the UK but was available in limited numbers for team (or sponsored?) riders - I was not "that" good but was (still am) short enough that a bigger size wouldnt have suited me. Fortunately the shop I bought my last GT Timberline from managed to source one for me and had it bought over.

The bike has been great to ride and is still now more than capable of living up to my needs. Although I do have the stem up and the forks forward to make it a little more stable for my newer more sedate riding style. It was laid up in my loft for well over 15 years and took very little work to get it back on the road with the main issue being the broken thumb shifter which I replaced with a much newer lx shifter as it was cheap, worked and fitted on the brake lever.

I do have pics but they are all too big to put online so I'll have to get some smaller sized pics later.

If anyone knows any info about the serial number or can point me in the right direction it would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Chris.

Pics and more of the serial number if that helps?

I've managed to get some lower sized pics of the bike and the serial numbers. Further inspection has also shown some more numbers on the opposite side to the "8900" markings below the "A1". The new numbers look like "T9010"

I have noticed that there is one on here for "Zaskar" serial numbers and they seem to have a similar series of numbers to the ones found on the right of my bike , the coding for those seems to point towards the 1 from my "A1" and the 8 from the "8900" meaning it is a 18inch frame but I'm sure its only a 16.5inch frame as it is very small. This would also mean it was bike 900 in the series of bikes made by GT that year (?). I am then wondering if the "T9010" is in reference to the Tange Concept steel tubing?

If anyone has any thoughts it would be appreciated.

Hi,

lovely bike!


T9010 = Toyo (Japan) Factory, built in 1990, 10th month (october).

Your bike modell year 1991. It was the top of the line of the complete bikes.
http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=47913

Regarding frame size: GT-frame sizes are measured centre bottom bracket to centre top tube. Officially, the smallest frame size was 16inch for your model.
http://fotos.mtb-news.de/p/705375 But your frame looks smaller; maybe it is a 14.5?

I doubt, that this frame was built for official or sponsored riders. Team riders would have used Psyclone (Steel), Zaskar (Aluminium) or Xizang (Ti).

Thanks for the response

Hi Rahbari,

Thanks for the informative response, my estimate of year was obviously wrong as my memory from all those years ago is a little fuzzy now But good to hear I'm wrong and the bike is better - lol. Although the info about the manufacture year being 90 could mean thats when I ordered it which is why I thought it was older.

I have just taken a measurement from the points you gave and it is 16 Inches so that helps clear that up too. I know what you mean about it looking even smaller, I think it must be the visual change in the "Triple Triangle" geometry from the larger bikes - I found a 22Inch frame on here and it looks nothing like mine even though they are identical, mine almost looks like a pseudo trials bike in comparison. If you put the bars down it makes it look even smaller.

I can only imagine that the info I got regarding the supply of the smaller bikes may have been a bit of "Spiel" by an enthusiastic sales youth to get me to take the available 18inch frame size by making it sound like the smaller ones were not available (Its fair to say I have become a synical 'ol man over the years - lol). I know they were very keen to sell me the shop stock bike but I had a Timberline of the same frame size and it fitted me like a glove so I was not about to buy a taller one and risk my future as a parent. Plus it meant I got to specify the Midnight Aurora paint scheeme.

Thanks again for the reply, it's really appreciated and quite nice to know a little more history about my trusty GT.

Glad, I could help.

I suggest, you buy some nice skinwalls (e.g. the Ritchey Duro.K Force on ebay for 50 quid) and post a "Wanted-to-buy" for your right shifter. User gm1230126 has the original Grips (I think, they are called ATE) for sale. A bike in this standard and condition deserves to be made perfect again.

P.S. why not edit the title of this topic (by editing your first post) and adjust the title to 1991 GT Team Avalanche - for easier reference for other users.

Thanks for the advice, have changed the title, which makes sense given the new info.

As for the "Slippery Slope" of originality, I have to admit that I thought long and hard about sourcing the correct shifter and when I changed the grips I had the same feelings but I know what I'm like and have the same problem with cars, if I make the decision to go full original I'll get all pedantic and want everything to be perfect, I'll buy a shifter but it will look cleaner than the others, so then they have to go and then the otherbits will be in need of bringing up to the same level and then I'll end up with a shiny bike I'll fall off of (ever noticed how you seem to fall off less when the damage is already done? - lol). I'll also end up scouring the world for a new instaflate pump as I lost my old one (they had the most ridiculously flimsy cage/holder). I must admit that the tyres would be a nice touch as I currently have a Cheng Shin replica of the Megabyte hard drive and a Kendra that also looks similar. I mainly want to buy decent armoured tyres if I'm gonna make the change, I also used to have puncture resistant innertubes which I replaced as they'd perished in the loft and have since had plenty of punctures with the cheapo replacments so I now know they're not a total con

The bike in my Dreams when I was 15!
Very nice

Very nice , did you take the plastic cable guide off the underside to see the frame numbers or is it missing ?

Thanks

Thanks for the compliments Crus and Hendrix (love your music BTW Jimi).
In answer to your question Jimi, I only took the guide off for the pics and then put it straight back again as I reckoned it would be a real pain to source another (or was that your way of sounding me out as you have one? - lol).

ChrisGT75":1at3ii3v said:

Thanks for the compliments Crus and Hendrix (love your music BTW Jimi).
In answer to your question Jimi, I only took the guide off for the pics and then put it straight back again as I reckoned it would be a real pain to source another (or was that your way of sounding me out as you have one? - lol).

Click to expand...

You would'nt be saying that if you heard my (very bad) rendition of Voodoo Child

Regarding the cable guide, not at all, just that i remember seeing a bike that had the guide missing for ages and the cables had been running on the frame.

Sometimes hard to guage a newbies knowledge of bikes but you are obviously clued up