Another one has arrived.....
While searching for the lesser spotted 95 Explosif, I came across this lava dome on ebay, it caught my eye as being pretty much all original, so i made an offer and gambled it'd all be all right.....
And it is. It arrived today, and i'm very pleased with what came out of the box. Its pretty much as per the 95 Catalogue (Katalogue??), the only exceptions i can see are a different chain (sram) and bar ends. The cantilevers are STX, but despite the catalogue specifying they were originally Dia compe items, my memory seems to recollect some spec changes mid season that year (95 was my first bike shop job, and a lot of that first year in the industry is etched in my mind!), although i'd be happy to be corrected if this wasnt the case.
Bad points first then... the original saddle is split on one corner. Both hubs are rough, although judging by the rest of the bike they haven't been used much, could be just mis adjusted cones and old grease.
There's a few tiny rust worms forming under the lacquer, and some of the usual scratching.
The original tyres are split in a couple of places, nothing too bad, but I may move them on in favour of more modern rubber.
Some nasty scratches on the P2's
Good points:
No dents! Virtually no rim wear. At all.
smoothest Impact headset i've felt in years
Original parts all here, including BB and pedals.
Plan is to strip, clean and polish, then decide on a couple of spec changes. I hate the gripshifts for example, and the reach is too long. I'm already on the lookout for a shorter stem and an inline post,
And do I V brake or no V brake?
I will probably fit my nicer XT wheels, but i'll see how the hubs are after a service.
Watch this space!
While searching for the lesser spotted 95 Explosif, I came across this lava dome on ebay, it caught my eye as being pretty much all original, so i made an offer and gambled it'd all be all right.....
And it is. It arrived today, and i'm very pleased with what came out of the box. Its pretty much as per the 95 Catalogue (Katalogue??), the only exceptions i can see are a different chain (sram) and bar ends. The cantilevers are STX, but despite the catalogue specifying they were originally Dia compe items, my memory seems to recollect some spec changes mid season that year (95 was my first bike shop job, and a lot of that first year in the industry is etched in my mind!), although i'd be happy to be corrected if this wasnt the case.
Bad points first then... the original saddle is split on one corner. Both hubs are rough, although judging by the rest of the bike they haven't been used much, could be just mis adjusted cones and old grease.
There's a few tiny rust worms forming under the lacquer, and some of the usual scratching.
The original tyres are split in a couple of places, nothing too bad, but I may move them on in favour of more modern rubber.
Some nasty scratches on the P2's
Good points:
No dents! Virtually no rim wear. At all.
smoothest Impact headset i've felt in years
Original parts all here, including BB and pedals.
Plan is to strip, clean and polish, then decide on a couple of spec changes. I hate the gripshifts for example, and the reach is too long. I'm already on the lookout for a shorter stem and an inline post,
And do I V brake or no V brake?
I will probably fit my nicer XT wheels, but i'll see how the hubs are after a service.
Watch this space!
