Santa Cruz Mid-Late Mk 1

The Kilt

Old School Hero
So after much searching, I finally found a Mk1 Chameleon frame at a decent price for the condition. For the sum of £25, I picked up this beauty. Properly battered in need of a respray and had a seized BB but for £25 you can’t grumble! I took all the parts off the Planet X build, with a few other bits which I accumulated, the nicest being the X-Lite DH stem which I loved back in the day.

Built it up to see how it rode before I start to renovate it with a re-spray, but still unsure how im going to go with it. There is a vapour blaster round the corner from where I work which would give it a lovely finish and I could polish it to look even nicer, or just bead blast it and then re-spray in the same colours. I do like the Mango and it is growing on me. I have tasked the wife with sorting out traditional decals (she is into vinyl cutting) to get it back to as original condition as I can.

So far it rides superbly, nicer than the Planet-X too. Manuals easier and jumps pretty nicely too. I have another crown for the forks which is a slightly longer steerer tube, and I am looking at getting some other bars too so I can keep a similar bar height (Yes the forks are slightly twisted, i think its the Arch). If I can locate one, I will look at the Disc conversion kit for these, and go down the Hope C2 route I think, or maybe some DH4s. Also a blackspire arch woudl be nice if one comes up to straighten up the front end. Some hope hubs are on the way for the wheels, which I will lace up over the weekend. The single speed at the moment is OK, but where I ride I think I need to go down a 1x9 set up. I will keep an eye out for a slalom MRP guide, and also an XTR mech to set it up with some gears. Maybe even find a good old Mr Crud DCD if I’m lucky.

Current pics of the shabby chic:
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IMG_6130.JPG IMG_6131.JPG
 
Surely this isn't the one on Ebay that ended early at £32??? If so you Jammy devil, I was prepared to bid strong for it 👍
 
Surely this isn't the one on Ebay that ended early at £32??? If so you Jammy devil, I was prepared to bid strong for it 👍
The very same! I went to view it as it was local to me, and the seller preferred that. Turned out he needs people I work with and we work in the same circles (emergency services). The paintwork is proper rough. The sticker on the top tube hid a pretty savage paint flaking disaster!
Also I’m not that impressed with the quality of the frame. The junction where the top tube meets the seat tube is misaligned.
 

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The very same! I went to view it as it was local to me, and the seller preferred that. Turned out he needs people I work with and we work in the same circles (emergency services). The paintwork is proper rough. The sticker on the top tube hid a pretty savage paint flaking disaster!
Also I’m not that impressed with the quality of the frame. The junction where the top tube meets the seat tube is misaligned.
The paint on mine was just the same, they do ride lovely though!
 
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