Marin Indian Fire Trail 1994

Inigo Montoya

Senior Retro Guru
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all this has such a long story i don't want to start with it right now. what matters is i got a really nice frame from a member on here which got shipped to vienna where marin bikes are rare for whatever reason. its a indian fire trail from 1994 made of 7005 dubble butted aluminium alloy. nice fat down tube. shiney nice retro stuff. i will document my buidup here out of respect for the member that sold me the frame.

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specs:
i wanted to put all sorts of funky stuff on in the beginning but now i'm quite sure i'll keep it rigid. decided against using the original specs i.e. no LX stuff just M737 where possible.
specs as follows

Frame Marin Indian Fire Trail 1994 17,5"
Fork Marin Rockstar Fork (CroMo), original
Headset Shimano XT HP-M741, 1 1/8, NOS
Stem Marin Lite 135mm length, some rise, original
Handlebar Marin Lite, on its way to vienna
Grips Onza Ules, black, NOS
Brakes Shimano BR-M737
Brakebooster Brodie Magnesium Brake Booster for the rear, black
Cantilever cable hangers none
Brake Levers Shimano ST-M737
Shifters Shimano ST-M737
Front Derailleur Shimano FD-M737
Rear Derailleur Shimano RD-M737
Cassette Shimano CS-M737-8
Chain Shimano HG90, NOS
Cranks Shimano FC-M737
Chainrings don't know yet
Bottom Bracket Shimano BB-UN71 or BB-UN72
Pedals Shimano PD-M735 and PD-M737 i.e. got both
Quick Releases Shimano from 94
Rims Mavic 217 SUP rear and Mavic 230 SBP front
Hubs Shimano FH-M737 rear and Shimano HB-M738 front
Tyres Onza Porcupine 2 all black
Saddle Selle Italia Flite from 1994
Seatpost Marin Lite silver, 31,4mm, original
Weight i don't care but we'll see

buildup:
got the frame with an UN51 bb that was ni bad shape and a ritchey ahead headset. took quite an affort to get rid of both. the clear laquer on the frame+fork and the decals were in bad shape. just got new decals from gil so i removed the old ones with a hair dryer. to get rid of the clear laquer i put etchant on the frame and fork. got rid of most of the laquer without damaging the alloy. next thing to do is to polish the frame with fine sand paper and alloy polish.
more on this next weekend...
 
Looking good Philipp, she was a very light bike even with the part XT part LX parts, so I reckon it could be even lighter.

I have decided to split the original wheels so if you want it I will have one M230SBP rim that is your for postage to make a matching pair.

Can't wait to see it polished with new decals.
 
Had a flatmate that had teh Nail Trail that year. Think it wa sthe smae frame but not as nice comps as the Fire Trail..(?).

Nice. Interested to see it finished.

:D
 
:)

PARTS:
got a un71 bb from a friendly fella from switzerland. hope its english threaded :oops:. some spare parts finally arrived from chainreactioncycles that i needed to fix the M737 rearmech. it was in horrible condition but with new jockey wheels and new barrel adjuster its cool now.
only thing missing to make it completely Shimano XT M737 are the chainrings. might possibly go with the compact ringle ones i got. we'll see...

FRAME:
had to put on some etchant one more time. some lacquer was still on the frame and had to delacquer some other stuff anyway so polishing up the frame will hopefully happen next weekend. got some special clear lacquer in a spray can from a german "car wheel polishing shop". it is said to be perfect for polished aluminium. i'll give it a try.
 
:) thought that you would be askin...
i have all parts that i need. the problem is, that there is still a whole lot to do.
1.) polishing the frame:
i already spent some hours removing the laquer and polishing. but its still not done. i think i'll give steel wool a try...
2.) fork:
removed the laquer but the fork is VERY rusty inside. don't know what to do yet. will possibly flood it with rust converter. have to spray it afterwards...
3.) bars:
waiting for some marin bars i got on ebay. they are NOS. at least i hope so...

i fear it will take ~3 month to finish, sorry!
:(
 
No worries, the bike that I have replaced the IFT with is still not finished being built either, yet another long story!

Good luck and look forward to seeing it brought to a new lease of life
 
That's looking like it will build up into a cracker.

I had a friend who had the IFT with the CNC chainstay bridge (I think that's the '95). His was all XT with a Manitou fork up front. It was a beaut of a bike.

I'm looking forward to watching this one develop. :cool:
 
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