Top 5 Mountain Biking companies ever.

[legrandefromage]

Marinovative is from 1989 and he had a few models

Heres some 1970's new old stock Shimano Hydraulic U-brakes

Hahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Shimano-3-3- ... 3797105186

 

[Prodigal Son]

Marinovative is from 1989 and he had a few models

Heres some 1970's new old stock Shimano Hydraulic U-brakes

Hahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Shimano-3-3- ... 3797105186

Shimano didn´t go from these to an xtr V brake. They got it from marinovative.
Anyone can claim "hey i was a mountain biker way before the repack gang"... but those guys in northern california brought up the format, the shape. The mountain bike as an influential product evolved from that shape.
You can say that everything bicycle related has been invented way before it reached the masses but we are talking about something different: influence. Which company was influential? The repack guys formatted the sport. Suntour made a mountain bike group. Specialized sold a mountain bike in large numbers. There were other people before doing similar things but it didn´t make into a cultural/industrial format.

 

[FluffyChicken]

Re:

V-brakes didn't change mountain biking. It was just a different way to do the same thing. Just easier to set up and route so became popular.
Disc's are a greater change and over a longer time. Caused a change of rim design, hub design and the whole wheel design and pushed forward hydraulic onto MTBs.
V-brakes did not of that, bar a bit of cable routing options.

 

[legrandefromage]

Dont get grumpy about it, Finley-Scott was cited as an influence if you read the old books,

These paragraphs do not begin to fully indicate Mr. Scott’s influence on the initial manufacture and promotion of mountain bikes, which cannot be overstated.

https://mmbhof.org/john-finley-scott/

Suntour lost to Shimano simply by not renewing their patents, Shimano jumped in and the rest is history

Ben Capron didnt patent his design and someone else did. Shimano were way more successful in making their 'v-brake' popular

http://mombatbicycles.com/MOMBAT/BikeHi ... ative.html

And coming from a manufacturing backbround, patents were a pain, you had to research so much to make sure you're not treading on other peoples toes or in a position to be sued by same said people.

 

[BlackCat]

Re:

Well, everyone is entitled to his opinion.

V brakes were a Newtonian leap over cantis and Marinovative were well ahead of the shimano curve in that regard. Maybe you remember reliability of headsets differently to me, but they didn’t have much of a lifespan in the early 90s around my hood. CK excepted. Oh.. and they were, and remain the gold standard headset both back in the 1990s.. and to this day on this forum. Which counts for something, I suppose.

 

[legrandefromage]

You can set up cantilever brakes to be just as brakey as v-brakes, its just that v-brakes were easy and cantilevers are and were and always will be a complete faff unless cider and techno is available.

As for CK headsets, they were just exotic unobtainium to the average rider. FSA, Tioga, Dia Compe all made reliable then theres also Tange, Mavic etc.

A threaded Mavic 316 headset almost brings a tear to eye.

SACHS! Sachs for making chains that were great.

 

[nic0]

Re:

Gary Fisher
Kona
Marin
Ritchey
Shimano

 

[nic0]

it would be fun to make a Top 5 Worst Mountain Biking companies ever :mrgreen:

 

[Prodigal Son]

Dont get grumpy about it, Finley-Scott was cited as an influence if you read the old books,

These paragraphs do not begin to fully indicate Mr. Scott’s influence on the initial manufacture and promotion of mountain bikes, which cannot be overstated.

https://mmbhof.org/john-finley-scott/

Suntour lost to Shimano simply by not renewing their patents, Shimano jumped in and the rest is history

Ben Capron didnt patent his design and someone else did. Shimano were way more successful in making their 'v-brake' popular

http://mombatbicycles.com/MOMBAT/BikeHi ... ative.html

And coming from a manufacturing backbround, patents were a pain, you had to research so much to make sure you're not treading on other peoples toes or in a position to be sued by same said people.

I read some about Finley Scott and liked every bit about his bikes and style. Actually i feel closer to him than to the repack competitive, entrepeneurial attitude.

Suntour also lost because Shimano shifted better. NOt to mention Shimano´s experience w/ supplying less expensive parts. That´s what i learned from reading the great website Disraeli gears.

I agree V brakes are not that much of a revolution. Discs otoh make it possible for a bike to have multiple sized wheelsets among pther things.
I like Vees simplicity and how good a $20 V can brake but discs took it to another level.

 

[mk one]

Certainly a tough one, so many great ideas and products.

Kona, Rocky Mountain, Brodie - their design really suited the singletracks of the UK, and switched me from bmx to mtb.
Mavic - Great rims, there are others of course but the ones i have used the most throughout all my years of riding.
Shimano - Nothing fancy but kept me rolling as it were (that line should have been on the Mavic reason )
Raleigh - "just hammer the market with so many bikes, surely someone will buy one", and im sure most of us have at one time or another.
USE - just for making my seatpost hunt that bit easier