Gary Fisher 29er . . . . . . from 2002 , FINISHED ! ! !

[Mike Muz]

Re: Gary Fisher 29er . . . . . . from 2002 . Updated 24/8/14

its all about marketing

Worked with me, I like black and orange. :mrgreen:

Guess you like licquorice allsorts too then !

Only a small update today , as I need more stuff :roll:

Got the SPD pedal back together and on the bike , as can be seen in one or two of the pictures .
Also on the list of jobs was polishing up the fork crown , as it was looking a bit dull . Came up really well , after not a great deal of effort .






Also got the brake cables done , but it was getting too dark to take pics this evening . Been pretty dark all day as it happens , raining throughout .
Just need to get a rear gear inner cable , paint the bits that are meant to be yellow and wait for the chain to turn up now . I do have my eye on another saddle , as I'm not sure about this one , but the one I have in mind isn't in very good condition .

Can't wait to try it out ! Something a bit different for me

Also made some lovely bread



Tastes fantastic, and takes away the smell of WD40 too !

Mike

 

[Mike Muz]

Re:

Happy Friday evening all ,

Happy , as it's not my Saturday to work .

Managed to finish my 29er thingy this week , after some bits arrived .
Having established that I'd inadvertently bought an odd pair of shifters :roll: :facepalm: , I was pleased to see these arrive ,



They're specific to the rear mach , with a 1:1 pull ratio . Fitted them on and cabled up ,



Also , I got the final piece of my colourful jigsaw in the shape of a Flite saddle , not sure of the model , but it has a hole in the middle for comfort . Having been a bit ' tender ' lately , I thought it worth trying out , also being very cheap helped .



Can you get colour restorer for these ? It's ok as it is , but I think would come up nicer with some tlc .

So , ladies and gentlemen , here is the final bike in all it's glory .





Just by way of comparison , I've taken a couple of photos of the same sized framed bike with 26" wheels , and the same 80mm of fork travel



Hope you like it

Managed to do three rides this week , trying to get used to it . Varied terrain , from fast wide open tracks , along rapid gravelly descents , along fire roads , singletrack , and flipping tight twisty technical singletrack in the dark :shock: :shock:

My first impressions are thus .
You're taking the Suzuki Vitara out in the woods . You have to pick good lines , or feel the repercussions of taking bad ones .
Now get in the Hummer . No need to worry about lines , it just rolls over everything , fast . Just avoid trees and you'll be laughing !

Also , on the less technical trails , it feels a lot faster , and I got confident about the sort of speed I could do that I wouldn't dare try on my other bikes . That's not to say that I was getting a nose bleed due to the mph I was doing , but confidence inspiring nonetheless .
Felt a little slow steering on the uphill sections but not a lot so .
All in all , good fun .
Given the choice of the two bikes above on a Sunday ride . . . . I'll still choose the yellow one .
More input required , and therefore more satisfaction . Also better on the really twisty singletrack .

But I'm still happy with the build , and I hope you are too .

Thanks for watching

Mike

 

[NeilM]

Re:

The 29'er looks great, but the two of them side by side show that they have been built with a well practiced hand.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, you build a spanking good bicycle Mr Muz.

 

[Mike Muz]

Re:

Well practised hand . . . . spanking . . . .

Know what I mean eh ? nudge nudge Say no more , say no more , say NO more !

Thanks for your kind comments Neil , the cables on the Kaitai are a bit long , as I had to put the 560mm wide Ritchey ProLite bars on . If they stay , I'll cut them down naturally , the cables that is :roll:
The 590mm ones that were on it are the ones pictured on the 29er .

Hows the KTM , btw mate ?

Mike

 

[NeilM]

Re: Re:

Hows the KTM , btw mate ?

Mike

Very much as you describe the Fisher, although it is light in feel and will handle pretty skinny single track, but it does not steer anything like as quickly as my retro's. I'd like to get it up to the Mendips before the Autumn rain sets in and see how it handles some proper off roading. I'm sure my daughter will not need asking twice if I suggest a meet up.

I'll be using the DOGS for MADORC though. :mrgreen:

 

[Mike Muz]

Re:

Yes that's not far off is it , MADORC .

Had a blast around the local woods on the 29er the other night . Remembered both Cree lights , but only one battery :facepalm: Used it on the bars to start with , but was not much help , due to the twistyness of the tracks . Attached it to the helmet and it was so much better . Found myself pointing the beam further up the course . Worked really well . Lesson learnt . Check number of batteries before leaving home :roll:

Mike

 

[NeilM]

Re: Re:

Yes that's not far off is it , MADORC .

14th Sept.

Fingers crossed it stays dry.

I love night riding, I must get up the local woods after dark on the KTM.

I charged all three batteries the other day and put the diffused lens light on my KTM road bike today, as the evenings are drawing in.

 

[Mike Muz]

Re:

I too have been making the most of the dry trails , before it becomes a bit more tricky .
Did 4 hours on this bike on Wednesday evening . Bit stuffed afterwards tbh , but I showed a lot of others from the group my back wheel
Doesn't help that it weighs over 12kg ! :facepalm:
I could lose 1kg by putting rigid forks on , but in all honesty , I'd rather lose the extra kilo myself , and keep the comfort .

Mike

 

[NeilM]

Re:

I built mine as light as I could, so I guess that makes for slightly easier handling.

On the minus side, it will probably be a bit of a handful on fast rocky / rooty descents... and there are a few of those on the Mendips. :mrgreen:

 

[sparkiegaz]

Re: Gary Fisher 29er . . . . . . from 2002 FINISHED ! ! !

Came out well, never knew 29 inch wheels were around that early, does look so much bigger set next to the normal 26. Sounds like it rides well tho bet it felt strange at first,