shogun700
Retro Guru
Over the last few years, I've ridden my 20" Ritchey Timber Comp and Miss K's 20" Ritchey Ascent back to back quite a few times, and noticed I liked how the Ascent handled. Both are essentially the same year and fit about the same. At some point, cruising the oldmountainbikes.com Ritchey catalogs I realized why-the Ascent has Team Comp/Super Comp geometry!
So I set about looking for a 21" Ascent. I actually want a Team Comp/Super Comp, but Ascents are relatively cheap and I feel like I've discovered some big secret. An oddball came up on ebay-all white, 21", black components, bullmoose bars, mostly original. Hmmmm, the seller called it an Ascent, but aren't Ultras usually white? I didn't know a lot about Ultras.
What I found out is the Ultra really is the 'poor mans' Team Comp, tig welded instead of fillet brazed by Tom. Same geometry and tubeset, and always equipped with XT gear (black, whenever possible), and typically painted white. Looking at the sellers photos, I could see the Tange Prestige sticker. Back to the database, and...aha! Some Ultras have similar serial numbers to Ascents. I guess now I want an Ultra!
The seller dropped the price a couple times and I snagged it. It looked to be in great shape. I could see from the listing pics that it was much like the '84 TimberWolf that I bought last year, some original parts were replaced/upgraded in the early 90's. Ritchey brake levers, Mavic rims, newer saddle. No worries, I had an XT 730/RM20 Super Hard Anodized wheelset hoarded, and found the right brake levers on ebay before the bike ever arrived. Pulled out a white Avocet saddle, some Ritchey tires, and waited for the box to arrive.
It's always a relief when a bike arrives safely! I didn't even wipe it down, just swapped out the wheels, levers, and saddle. The bars ended up being aluminum, which is really cool, but they were cut down too narrow (another early 90's mod, I'm sure) for me to use comfortably, so I replaced them with a black 'Ritchey Mountainbikes' bullmoose I had stashed.
With it assembled, I hoped for a reprieve from winter in New England so I could try it out. Today was that day! Sunny afternoon, drying roads, and well-above normal temps. Time to get it out for a test ride.
The bike is fantastic-fit is perfect and the quick handling I was hoping for is there. I wanted badly to test it back to back with the TimberWolf, but ran out of time. The shifting and braking were both spot-on, all I did was get on and pedal.
I am very surprised how much I like the look. White paint really shrinks a gate sized frame to my eye. I'm a sucker for black M730 (and M700) components also. White grips and saddle are working with the black bars and seatpost, but I will throw black on and see if I like that better.
Now that my need to ride it has been satisfied, I'll pull it apart and get everything cleaned and restored. Hopefully as I go I'll be updating the thread with pics and the build. Until then, a parting shot. Enjoy.
So I set about looking for a 21" Ascent. I actually want a Team Comp/Super Comp, but Ascents are relatively cheap and I feel like I've discovered some big secret. An oddball came up on ebay-all white, 21", black components, bullmoose bars, mostly original. Hmmmm, the seller called it an Ascent, but aren't Ultras usually white? I didn't know a lot about Ultras.
What I found out is the Ultra really is the 'poor mans' Team Comp, tig welded instead of fillet brazed by Tom. Same geometry and tubeset, and always equipped with XT gear (black, whenever possible), and typically painted white. Looking at the sellers photos, I could see the Tange Prestige sticker. Back to the database, and...aha! Some Ultras have similar serial numbers to Ascents. I guess now I want an Ultra!
The seller dropped the price a couple times and I snagged it. It looked to be in great shape. I could see from the listing pics that it was much like the '84 TimberWolf that I bought last year, some original parts were replaced/upgraded in the early 90's. Ritchey brake levers, Mavic rims, newer saddle. No worries, I had an XT 730/RM20 Super Hard Anodized wheelset hoarded, and found the right brake levers on ebay before the bike ever arrived. Pulled out a white Avocet saddle, some Ritchey tires, and waited for the box to arrive.
It's always a relief when a bike arrives safely! I didn't even wipe it down, just swapped out the wheels, levers, and saddle. The bars ended up being aluminum, which is really cool, but they were cut down too narrow (another early 90's mod, I'm sure) for me to use comfortably, so I replaced them with a black 'Ritchey Mountainbikes' bullmoose I had stashed.
With it assembled, I hoped for a reprieve from winter in New England so I could try it out. Today was that day! Sunny afternoon, drying roads, and well-above normal temps. Time to get it out for a test ride.
The bike is fantastic-fit is perfect and the quick handling I was hoping for is there. I wanted badly to test it back to back with the TimberWolf, but ran out of time. The shifting and braking were both spot-on, all I did was get on and pedal.
I am very surprised how much I like the look. White paint really shrinks a gate sized frame to my eye. I'm a sucker for black M730 (and M700) components also. White grips and saddle are working with the black bars and seatpost, but I will throw black on and see if I like that better.
Now that my need to ride it has been satisfied, I'll pull it apart and get everything cleaned and restored. Hopefully as I go I'll be updating the thread with pics and the build. Until then, a parting shot. Enjoy.
just perfect
