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I'm having one of my annual wobbles. :facepalm:
Giving serious thought to ditching most of my retro to buy a modern hard tail. I will certainly keep at least one of my retro fleet which will more than likely be my mint orange/white Clockwork.
My problem arises from the change of modern geometry as much as anything 10 years ago I could switch from modern to retro with no real issue. Bars were a bit wider (680 vs 580/600), stems were a bit shorter (70/90 vs 120/140), top tubes were similar and wheels the same size. Now though my main bike is a world away from the old gear with 800mm bars, 50mm stem, mega top tube, 29" wheel etc which then makes returning to retro feel alien and if I'm honest, not that enjoyable. Add to that the fact my retro was always a bit small for aesthetic reasons (
) I find none of it gets used. Not such a problem for the odd bike but I think it's a shame to leave a bunch of nice bike hung up at the back of the garage. Don't even get the chance to get them out and admire them due to my kids taking up all my time.
As mentioned the Clockwork will stay but that still leaves me with a 1989 Saracen Tufftrax and Traverse complete, another Clockwork f+f, a 1992 GT-RTS 1 frame with Rockshox, some NOS Mavic wheels, a couple of M732/5 groupsets and various other goodies that I have been hording without any real need for atm.
Now the Saracens are lovely to me but not worth much. They take up space though and deserve to be ridden. The GT was always a dream bike bitd and I'd still love to build it but it deserves full M900 as per original spec and the price of that has gone daft and is above what I am really prepared to spend on a bike I won't use. I have various parts for it already but progress stalled some time ago. The Clockwork is in the colour I always wanted as a teen but needs a full re-spray. Again, I'd love to do it now I can match the colour but can't help think the cost will be prohibitive for a bike I will rarely ride. All the other parts are perfect for future builds but they may never happen. :facepalm: :?
I have toyed with chucking them all in to get a super retro such as a Yo Eddy but can't help but think it'll be a lovely trinket to look at and admire so my attention has now turned to a modern HT that will compliment my full suss. That would give me a couple of bikes both set up to use as I pleased with no compromise. I don't get out enough as it is but just can't see the retro getting used any time soon and it seems such a shame for it to sit in a damp garage feeling sorry for itself.
What does the retrobike brains trust think?
Giving serious thought to ditching most of my retro to buy a modern hard tail. I will certainly keep at least one of my retro fleet which will more than likely be my mint orange/white Clockwork.
My problem arises from the change of modern geometry as much as anything 10 years ago I could switch from modern to retro with no real issue. Bars were a bit wider (680 vs 580/600), stems were a bit shorter (70/90 vs 120/140), top tubes were similar and wheels the same size. Now though my main bike is a world away from the old gear with 800mm bars, 50mm stem, mega top tube, 29" wheel etc which then makes returning to retro feel alien and if I'm honest, not that enjoyable. Add to that the fact my retro was always a bit small for aesthetic reasons (
) I find none of it gets used. Not such a problem for the odd bike but I think it's a shame to leave a bunch of nice bike hung up at the back of the garage. Don't even get the chance to get them out and admire them due to my kids taking up all my time.As mentioned the Clockwork will stay but that still leaves me with a 1989 Saracen Tufftrax and Traverse complete, another Clockwork f+f, a 1992 GT-RTS 1 frame with Rockshox, some NOS Mavic wheels, a couple of M732/5 groupsets and various other goodies that I have been hording without any real need for atm.
Now the Saracens are lovely to me but not worth much. They take up space though and deserve to be ridden. The GT was always a dream bike bitd and I'd still love to build it but it deserves full M900 as per original spec and the price of that has gone daft and is above what I am really prepared to spend on a bike I won't use. I have various parts for it already but progress stalled some time ago. The Clockwork is in the colour I always wanted as a teen but needs a full re-spray. Again, I'd love to do it now I can match the colour but can't help think the cost will be prohibitive for a bike I will rarely ride. All the other parts are perfect for future builds but they may never happen. :facepalm: :?
I have toyed with chucking them all in to get a super retro such as a Yo Eddy but can't help but think it'll be a lovely trinket to look at and admire so my attention has now turned to a modern HT that will compliment my full suss. That would give me a couple of bikes both set up to use as I pleased with no compromise. I don't get out enough as it is but just can't see the retro getting used any time soon and it seems such a shame for it to sit in a damp garage feeling sorry for itself.
What does the retrobike brains trust think?
