1994 Marin Palisades Trail - change of direction page 3

Awesome thread.. What's with Marin's and people going to great detail to bring them back to life! In all honesty though BITD the Palisades Trail was a low end bike.. BUT.. the details on the frame are amazing! The welds are awesome and the dropouts are soo nice! It just goes to show that they make a really good basis for a project! Between you and WD Pro, I'm in thread heaven! :D
 
A little bit more progress on this build. I keep getting side tracked by an Amp B4! Next in line, but it keeps pushing forward.

I have noticed that the lower end Marin frames actually have different geometry from the top end bikes. This frame is actually 4cm shorter on the top tube, than my Ti frames and my uncles' Eldridge Grade.

I had to strip the rear mech and repaint the back plate as it had corrosion under the factory paint. The bottom bracket shell needing re-threading as well. I'm unsure why, as it looked perfect.

Had loads of trouble trying to get a Black 26.4mm seatpost for it. I had one on order from CRC for nearly 3 months, but decided yesterday that I've had enough and have sourced a BBB one from Dotbike.

The panniers and bags have arrives, and I'll show them installed next time around.

Max insisted on being in this photo.

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As you can see, I have started to lose some weight from the replacement of steel bolts. I will continue to do so once it's up and running.

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I decided on the later Deore shifters and 9 speed XT cassette for its tougher build and better range of gears. I have had past troubles with the fragile quality of 8 speed XT shifters.

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Hope you like. Remember, this one is for carrying me across the country!
 
OrangeRetro":3cnpar1y said:
Awesome thread.. What's with Marin's and people going to great detail to bring them back to life! In all honesty though BITD the Palisades Trail was a low end bike..

They are just nice to ride! I have a 1990 Palisades which would still be the bike I would get rid of last, in spite of having a Lynskey-built Litespeed in the stable.

It's a drop bar tourer nowadays, and tracks perfectly even at 45mph with 4 panniers and a bar bag.
 
Thats really coming along nicely Ben. Very clean lines and old school in style. Looks like it will ride well for you on your journey.

A bike built for a purpose, whatever next?
 
Thanks for the kind appreciation.

It's not far from ready to test now. I plan a 50 mile off road round trip with a night over camping in the hills of the Lancashire/Yorkshire borders, just to test all the gear we have accumulated.

As for what's next...

...Got an Amp B4 that's currently in mock build awaiting final sign off for detailed clean and build.

Although I do now have all the parts for my '90 Team titanium build, just sat neatly in boxes.

Then again, I have just received my Campagnolo ergopower levers for my road bike which needs an overhaul.

I look over in the other corner and there's my 1997 dream bike begging for a build and shakedown...
 
jmm":159d9h2w said:
You need to get out more ben..!!
and work on the mk1..!!

Thanks.
For everyone else's benefit, he's referring to this...

http://www.vwgolfmk1.org.uk/modules.php ... highlight=



Anyway, back to an update on the Marin.

Pannier rack arrived and fits nice, as do the pannier bags. They are fairly cheap Brand-X panniers from CRC, but I picked them up for £8.50 for both! I am impressed at their quality and generous capacity.

The seatpost turned up, which looks a lot better in Black. The last post was the right size, but I couldn't get along with the Silver finish, so it's been donated to my mate. He is also completing the journies with me, and will be riding something a little older; a Giant Escaper from roughly 1988 that I rescued from a skip across the road from me. I will ask him to post a thread up, as it makes interesting reading.

Although I will take a camelbak with me, I think it is a wise idea to take water bottles along too, as water can run out fast on a long hot day.

Still waiting on a chain, inner chainring and that's about it. The chain will of course be a Rohloff, which seem to be getting very expensive these days. I remember paying £21.99 for them back in 1991. Plus I need to finish painting the pedals. They were Silver , but I wanted Black, so enlisted the help of Black Hammerite, and it works a treat. You really wouldn't know thay were ever another colour. So there you go boys, paint those worn looking Onza pedals with Hammerite and have 'em any colour you like.

The photos aren't that excitng, but the bike is honest and purposeful with a retro twist. I intend to complete a coast to coast ride in Wales, going from top to bottom, but that will be 2010's challenge.


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A quick before and after, demonstrates how far this little bike has come since its humble beginnings and all for the initial cost of £28 for the frameset, forks, stem, and bars. Most of the other bits were hanging around in boxes, swapped in deals or bought very cheaply on the net.

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