'99 Gary Fisher Joshua X1 - What to do

[SFP]

So I purchased this with the idea of a parts bike to you on one of my "guest bikes".

yes I have guest bikes. Mostly for female friends, but also guys who don't own their own.

Saw this medium single owner garage princess for a steal with upgrades and I bought it for the parts.... that changed when I saw it in person.

This is mint. With upgrades... never seen dirt... looks brand new.... feels brand new...

Upgrades include:
- new WTB speed saddle (this may end up on my Ritchey)
- Alex DM18 rims with modern Deore hubs
- Rock Shox Judy T2
- Tires (kenda rear, tioga front - both Holy Roller copies)

I believe most of the rest is stock. XT rear derailleur, Sugino cranks, Deore front derailleur, Dia Compe VC737 brakes. Shocks front and rear are supple and in brand new condition.

Showed it to a couple of friends who would be the people riding it and they both love it. So now, I am thinking I keep this as the guest "off road" bike (I have a '94 Diamond Back Axis built up as a road/city bike for them).

Prior to this this women's guest bike was a 2003 Trek 4500 Women's edition frame with factory upgrades (disc brakes, etc, Marzocchi XC Bomber forks). It is built up with XTR V-brakes, Race Face cranks, HQ eyelet rims, Titec stem and bar, etc.... in short it's a killer race ready hard tail sized for women 5'4 to 5'8 (which are typically who use it) - I call her "The Valkyrie".

But two of the friends who ride the Valkyrie the most and neither of whom are experienced off road/single track riders and who like the Trek, both love this dual suspension Fisher (and it fits them with the post lowered a tad).

So the question is: Keep the Trek, or move parts to the Fisher? Feedback and thoughts welcome, especially from women.

If I decide not to keep it and part it our for my own projects, I have a buddy willing to trade me a Softride frame and fork road bike (which I want) for the Fisher frame.

But as Keils said, "how many bikes do you need for just you, and this is supposed to be for friends and this bike (fisher) gives me more confidence riding it than the Trek".

A few phone pics from it sitting in my media room.

 

[markoc]

I think I'd keep the Trek to be honest, as the Fisher (as nice a it is) is probably quite a heavy lump for an occasional rider. Perhaps make a few changes to the Trek to make it a bit less racey and a bit more "fun" - so a more relaxed riding position. Your (female) friends will likely appreciate the lighter weight of a rigid bike - but not the twitchiness that could come with it. At least that was my consideration when building one up for my wife (steel, small, comfy).

That said, the Fisher looks like all it really needs is a good strip down and clean. Were these essentially built around the same geometry a a Trek Y? If you have the space, keep both?

Equally, if exclusively for the ladies, might be worth picking up a ladies geo saddle for whichever you go with. Made a big difference for my wife - think the Specialized ranges are well thought of and I got one on ebay for a surprisingly small outlay.

 

[SFP]

I think I'd keep the Trek to be honest, as the Fisher (as nice a it is) is probably quite a heavy lump for an occasional rider. Perhaps make a few changes to the Trek to make it a bit less racey and a bit more "fun" - so a more relaxed riding position. Your (female) friends will likely appreciate the lighter weight of a rigid bike - but not the twitchiness that could come with it. At least that was my consideration when building one up for my wife (steel, small, comfy).

That said, the Fisher looks like all it really needs is a good strip down and clean. Were these essentially built around the same geometry a a Trek Y? If you have the space, keep both?

Equally, if exclusively for the ladies, might be worth picking up a ladies geo saddle for whichever you go with. Made a big difference for my wife - think the Specialized ranges are well thought of and I got one on ebay for a surprisingly small outlay.

Totally built around the Trek Y bikes. When I agreed to buy it, I thought it was a carbon Y like the Treks of the era.

And that is what I keep thinking... the lighter more responsive Trek over the Fisher. That being said, this Fisher is surprisingly light. That being said I can build the Trek down to 23/24 lbs... Fisher without going bonkers best would be 25/26 lbs.

The Trek issue is the women specific frames were designed to be a woman's privateer level cross country racer. I figured adding the Bomber VS the Rock Shox it came with would mellow, but nope. Raised the front end making it worse (took them off a team issue Kona Stuff dirt jumper).

Saddle wise I have a women's Specialized MTB saddle as well as a WTB women's specific saddle I can swap depending on who it riding it (and what they prefer - mounted on seat-posts, so I just swap posts with seats already attached).

I am leaning towards taking the T2 Rock Shox off the Fisher and putting it on the Trek. Both have riser MTB bars. Maybe take the uber sensitive XTR brakes off the Trek? I have some XT v-brakes as well as a set of Dia Compe 987s I can put on. Maybe a slightly longer stem on the Trek to make it less twitchy?

I toyed around on the Fisher tonight on the street... it is very relaxed compared to what I ride.... which may be why Kei and Marion prefer it over the Trek. End of the day, the Trek will be lighter being a hardtail.

Also of note... M is 50 years old, K is 35 (the other three run the age range).... so I totally get why M WAY preferred the Fisher (technically she has only ridden packed gravel trails to date - total newbie). K is fearless as a rider, just needs to develop skills... M has the least skills out of the five who ride the guest bikes.

If I had the room I would keep both... and maybe that is the end game... clean the garage for more space... (and buy the Softride outright instead of trading it for myself) (my BMXs are gonna be jealous as they both want parts lol).

Living on Vancouver Island the free ride/big air/gaps/drop capital of Canada where the average bike is $7000 with six to eight inches of travel front and rear, neither bike is gonna be tackling trails like those... and for sure not at 30 kph plus. I just would like them to enjoy some casual single track and actual mountain bike trails VS paved/packed gravel eh. Hell I am one of those freaks from the 90's who LOVES a good technical climb on single track, hence my love of hard tails and 26" wheels.

End of the day, I paid $40.xx (yes forty) CDN for the Fisher from a verified seller (aka proven it is not stolen)... so I in no way loose in any manner... the damn near WTB Speed saddle I will be moving to my vintage Ritchey is worth that alone.

 

[SFP]

Equally, if exclusively for the ladies, might be worth picking up a ladies geo saddle for whichever you go with. Made a big difference for my wife - think the Specialized ranges are well thought of and I got one on ebay for a surprisingly small outlay.

Yeah in my experience Specialized makes the best bang for buck saddle for women. Terry also makes nice ones and I hear Chromag are also really good.