Ok so collected today from a lovely gentleman called Paul (member ‘Paulupnorth‘) in Worksop. My first impressions were how bright the paint is. I thought the main tubes were yellow, but they are bright florescent yellow/lime colour in the flesh. The bike is exactly as described on ebay. From talking to Paul and checking over the bike the following parts aren’t original:-
-Front wheel, has been entirely replaced with a Hope Ti hub and F.I.R. rim.
-Rear Rim, has been replaced with a Mavic 217 SUP rim.
-Rear Mech, has been replaced with an XT M737.
-Tyres, have been replaced with Panaracer XC Pro 1.8”.
-Rear brake blocks, replaced with Aztecs.
Paul says the original rims were Bontrager (not sure what model), the front hub was XTR M900, the rear mech would have been XTR M900 also and the tyres were Continental 1.8“ with a brown/red wall, so I’d like to confirm that before I source some.
The following parts I’m unsure of and need to confirm from photo’s etc:
-Apices headset.
-X-lite bars.
-Bar ends, manufacturer unknown.
-Sachs chain.
-XT M737 SPD’s.
-Kalloy seatpost, seems odd to have Syncros stem and not a matching post.
-XTR brake blocks.
-Flite saddle.
Anyway, got the bike home and gave it a quick once over, the bike has not been ridden much in the past years so needed a bit of fettling. Got it sorted and took it up the hill at the back of me. I have to say it impressed me, it’s a complete thoroughbred, absolutely no nonsense bike. It’s not interested in pulling wheelies and stuff, it just wants to get from point A to point B in the fastest time. The riding position is very unforgiving, flat out XC or nothing with this one, those with bad backs best stay away! It climbs extremely well also, I normally ride with slightly lower gearing but this was fine as it was and flew up what is a very steep hill. On the negative side the brakes are absolute junk, I’ll have to put some time in on these I think and the stem might be a bit long for me.
This is the present spec.
Frame: Raleigh Dyna-Tech. XMT 100 Metal Composite Titanium Tubing.
Fork: Raleigh Dyna-Tech Titanium Rigid, 1 1/8” x 6” Steerer.
Headset: Apices Tange 1 1/8” Threaded.
Stem: Syncros 0 degree 135mm 1 1/8” Quill Type.
Handlebar: X-Lite Titanium 525mm.
Grips: ODI Mushroom.
Barends: X-lite alloy with Titanium bolts.
Brakes: Shimano XTR M900 F&R.
Brake Pads: Front M900 XTR, Rear Aztec.
Brake Cables: Unknown.
Cantilever cable hangers: Shimano XTR M900.
Brake Levers: Shimano XTR M900 STI.
Shifters: Shimano XTR M900 STI.
Front Derailleur: Shimano XTR M900 Bottom Pull 28.6mm.
Rear Derailleur: Shimano XT M737 Short Cage.
Derailleur Cables: Unknown.
Cassette: Shimano XTR M900-8 12-28t.
Chain: Sachs
Cranks: Shimano XTR M900 175mm
Crank Bolts: Titanium (marked as ‘upgrade’) Bolt and Washer.
Chainrings: Shimano SG-X 28-38-48t.
Chainring bolts: STD Shimano.
Bottom Bracket: UN-90 68x113mm.
Pedals: Shimano XT SPD M737.
Hub Skewers: Shimano XTR M900.
Rims: Front F.I.R. M123, Rear Mavic 217 SUP.
Hubs: Front Hope Titanium Blue Anodised, Rear Shimano XTR M900.
Nipples: Unknown.
Spokes: Unknown.
Tyres: Panaracer Fire XC Pro 1.8”.
Tubes: Unknown.
Saddle: Selle Italia Flite Titanium (original with red lettering).
Seatpost: Very worn can read Kalloy and possibly 26.8mm?
Seatpost Binder: Titanium sliding boss which slides over seat tube. Complete with titanium bolt.
Weight: Very light.
I will be looking to swap/ sell the non standard parts at a later date for the genuine articles. I think i'll ride the bike pretty much as is until Christmas before starting the restoration. I'd be a bit miffed if the tyres are Continental's as I sold one NOS earlier in the year. I think the frame will require a full respray and i'll look into getting this done at argos or a local place (not sure if any special primer etc needs to be used on Titanium?). The graphics are basically stickers so i'm hoping to just peel these off with a hair dryer and send to Gil_m for copying. Many of the XTR logo's have rubbed off so might also ask Gil to make some reverse stickers and spray the XTR back on.
So gents there we have it, thanks for your help so far. I'd much appreciate it if you post your pictures and confirm/question the parts on the spec sheet. Thanks again.