Bontrager Privateer OR, update as of10/10/13

Ok, i accidentally bought another frame :facepalm: i was not looking for another project but i saw this frame and thought 'i can do something with that', besides it's a Bonty so it must be pretty good right?

in all honesty i know more about Keith Bontrager than i do his frames/designs so tell me about this one, i paid £100 for it which i thought was ok, the stickers say it's a Privateer OR, the canti hanger suggests 1996 or earlier and it's a 1" headtube, any ideas on seat post size?

my plans are pretty straight forward, find a fork to suit, not sure what yet, then do a frame swap from another bike for the build kit, i'll like get it painted as the paint is very worn and through to the metal in alot of places so rust avoidance is the main reason although, it'll be a cheaper single colour powder coat, i found a good place in portsmouth that are willing to powdercoat then lacquer after i have fitted stickers so that's cool.

anyway, tell me about this frame

P1100141 by Dr. Branom, on Flickr

P1100140 by Dr. Branom, on Flickr

P1100139 by Dr. Branom, on Flickr

P1100137 by Dr. Branom, on Flickr

P1100136 by Dr. Branom, on Flickr

P1100132 by Dr. Branom, on Flickr

P1100131 by Dr. Branom, on Flickr

P1100130 by Dr. Branom, on Flickr

Re: Bontrager Privateer OR, new project, tell me about it!

Worth a look here which should help you with dating and there is a wealth of good information on Miss Moneypennys 'show me your Bonty' thread on here, generally in the last few pages. Carl posted a lot of good info and links.

Really fancied one bitd and one is still on the list now.

Re: Bontrager Privateer OR, new project, tell me about it!

Looks good is the paint bad enough to merit a repaint ? Shame to lose the original finish even
If a little tired

Bit of tlc works wonders

Re: Bontrager Privateer OR, new project, tell me about it!

@FFTC, thanks for that, looking at that link the frame is an OR as opposed to the 'race' although having looked through the for sale section i saw an advert for the same frame for £120 so i think i did ok for £100, also that sale thread listed it as a 1996 model which also makes sense because the link you gave shows an earlier model because this frame does have some 'race' model features, mainly the rear canti hanger.

either way i'm happy with it.

@ plus one, in the pics the paint probably doesn't look that bad but there is a large chunk of paint missing on the underside of the downtube, rust is what i'm concerned about really as my bikes get ridden and it's still pretty wet out there so i think it's the sensible thing to do, i'll try for something similar to something that would have been done though, not this green but i'll have a look through some original paint jobs and look for a colour scheme i like

Re: Bontrager Privateer OR, new project, tell me about it!

Looks spot on for the money Jon
A mate had one bitd tho I think it might have been a race , was also poorly painted tho
Nice light fast bike , but a bit like a DB apex in a lot of ways

Re: Bontrager Privateer OR, new project, tell me about it!

Plenty of catalogues in the archive. 1996 seatpost size is listed as 26.8mm, no data for 97 and 1998 is 27mm.
Bontys are a great ride, enjoy

Re: Bontrager Privateer OR, new project, tell me about it!

26.8, that's convenient, i think i have one

i have to get a fork sorted before i do anything else, thinking maybe an orange f7 fork, gonna try and keep this a cheap-ish build, i wouldn't usually mix bike brands but if they are painted to match i think they'll suit it quite well.

Re: Bontrager Privateer OR, new project, tell me about it!

410mm a-c project 2's on my 95/96 race give a 71 deg head angle as per the catalogue chart.

Re: Bontrager Privateer OR, new project, tell me about it!

there is some common confusion going on here

its a privateer, by the time these were being made the OR moniker was a generic term for bontrager mountain bikes

the original production frame was the true OR model, then came the race and race lite(still labeled OR on the tt, though the origanal OR was phased out around this time), and then the privateer

Re: Bontrager Privateer OR, new project, tell me about it!

The OR stands for Off Road, like what hollister was saying. The era your bike was made they had a Privateer, Race, and Race Lite. If my memory serves me the biggest differences were the amount of butting the steel got. Little to none in the Privateer, basically resulting in a heavier yet more durable frame. I say more durable as I heard the triple butting in the Race Lite wasn't recommended for a rider over a certain weight. Love these bikes!