anyone know their schwinn's? 86 sidewinder content

hi just bought an 86 schwinn sidewinder for a bit of fun really. can anyone tell me anything about them? were they any good and any suggestions for replacing the fork?

heres a link to the ebay listing..

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0361987845

Scwhinn's first entries into the MTB market came a bit late, and were probably more influenced by BMX than by the Northern California mountain bikers. Their first two models were the King Sting and the Sidewinder, but the King Sting was the premium bike and the Sidewinder was the entry level bike.

I'm pretty sure the frames came in only one size, but the frames were as tough as they were heavy. No one to my knowledge rode one in a race, and when Schwinn hired an unknown rider named Ned Overend to race MTBs, they had a custom bike made for him.

Checking out the photos, I would have paid what you did for the bike (about $70 American), which has been upgraded in many places and was obviously owned by someone who loved it. It may not be a superb example, but it looks like something you can ride.

cool. thanks for your input!

how ironic that the pioneers of the sport were modifying old schwinns yet schwinns first attempts didnt hit the mark