steel GT Avalanche, '93?

Finally got round to putting together the old steel Avalanche frame that's been hanging up in the shed for umpteen years. When i originally bought it many years back, it was a dark purple metallic (maybe with sligth splatter effect?), and kitted out with a mixture of Suntour Pro and XC SE, so not sure of its actual vintage. Being a fashion concious teen I quickly did away with the Prince paint job...

I'm feeling guilty that I didn't spend longer doing the frame this time though, especially after seeing the work going into that stunning palisades and other bikes nearby.

My method:

1. 15 mins with a drill brush
2. 20 mins with sandpaper
3. 2 sessions of 40 mins, a couple of days apart putting 2 cans of Hammerite on

But from anywhere other than close up it's still pretty tidy

Used a mix-match of bits from the tin and ebay, as budget is limited right now, but mainly Deore / LX and some new SRAM x-7 shifters which I've never tried before - very impressed. After my first day out on it yesterday I'm really happy with how it rides, I'd forgotten how good a quality steel frame feels. The RST 281 will be replaced imminently by something a bit better on its way, painted in a blue to match the ebay decals, or black, can't decide. There's another black 121 rim to match the rear coming as well.

Not a minter like some, but I like it, but it's already getting me back out and looking for excuses to nip out for stuff, much more than my bouncer...

gonna be '93 or later has not sporting a U brake on the rear.

really? been trying to work out exactly how old it is. hmmm

I was going on when i thought i'd bought it, but thinking again that may be quite wrong...

I actually bought it when i was 20/21, now i think about it, not earlier, which would put buying it at around 1994, so I think you are right. It had still seen fair bit of use when i bought it though, and wasn't exactly pristine.

So I'd verge on the older side, and go for '93 then. Hop htat's retro enough (even if half the rest of the bike isn't )

Can you not tell it's age by the frame number?

Chris.

Nice bike that.

I used to love the Mavic 217 SUP rims!

cjax":lu9xumtx said:

Can you not tell it's age by the frame number?

Chris.

Click to expand...

wouldn't have a clue, is the year usually part of it, or is there a reference table somewhere?

under a thick coating of hammerite i'm not sure if it'll even be readable tbh, not to mention the previous layers of paint already in there

will check tomorrow. had first serious ride out in swithland woods nr leicester on sat, really good fun, depsite the 281s being virtually solid. some manitous coming this week, so all that should be sorted

88 and 92 Avalanches had u-brakes. If this is a steel Avalanche frame???.... the only year they were made with canti/v-brake bosses was 1993 . If it is from 1993 it would have to be a Team Avalanche because in 1993 that was the only Avalanche model that was made in steel. 1993 was the year the Avalanche AL (aluminum) was introduced and the following year and ever since the Avalanche models have only been available in aluminum. So, if it's an Avalanche me's guessing it's actually a 1993 "Team Avalanche" which was only sold that year in "Blue Imron". What was the original color of yours?

It's definitely steel, and definitely has no u brake mount, unless one's been removed or remounted??

Had a look round the bottom bracket and can't see any frame number at all. There's what looks like the start of vague impression that could be a serial or postcode, but that runs across the BB underneath the plastic cable guide, so can't make out anything :? Fram no would be around the edge of the shell I assume.

Original colour as best I remember it was a very dark blue/black with indigo/purplish splatter effect, i suppose could loosely termed as blue :?:

Just found a thread:

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?p=1893826

So far have found 91 - 93 models, team and non team, in yellow, solid blue, band white, but only one in a weird purpley colour, a Team model, unfortunately that is also U-brake:

http://www.eandsweb.com/cgi-bin/bikes.c ... 0Avalanche

:?

I'm getting into sleuthing mode now...

would the original stem help? it's in my for sale thread, and interestingly isn't a flip-flop style:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v77/b ... CF6171.jpg

pics so far:

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v77/b ... Avalanche/

EDIT - just found this in the same thread:

http://forums.mtbr.com/attachment.php?a ... 1187243436
http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?p=1893826&page=3

exactly the same stem as mine, but again with U brakes (not the original colour either).


Going on what the original paint was AFAICR, and the year I believe it to be, I'm starting to think it's the team model you mention, with new mounts brazed on. If only my memory worked better I might remember it being a 'team' or not :?

The Flip Flop III chromoly stems are circa 1993 also. The Avalanche never cam in the color you were trying to describe. This photo is the only Avalanche model from 1993. Do any of your other parts match these specs. Was yours "Black Widow" colored which was black or deep deep blue with a lighter blue spider web like fine webbing. If so that's a 1990 model year Team Avalanche and it too would have had a u-brake.

Your poic looks like yours has the 'groove tube" cable routing with the indented top tube and three cables running in the groove. If so and canti...it's a 93. No other possibilities or options unless it's another model and even then it's 93 because previous to that they were all u-brake.

thanks for the help with this

to add:

mine does indeed have the groove tube, but it only houses one cable run, the other two run go under the down tube.

i may also be wrong on what i remember to be the original colour, as my memory isn't famed for it's sharpness, and it's a few years back now! The dark blue spiderlike effect you describe doesn't sound too far away from dark purple...

only other clues are the components, like i say. mine has same seatpost and stem (albeit bare metal) as the above bike. it was also equipped with some suntour XC pro bits, which i've not seen on any GT as OEM...

maybee the team with the brake mounts changed?