1984 Ritchey Timberwolf. All together, time to test ride!

[shogun700]

Hello, It's been some time since I posted, hope you all are well. For many years I have been searching for a fillet brazed early/mid 80's Ritchey to replace my Timber Comp-at 20", it's too small. Last week a 1984 Timberwolf, #1B41, came up on ebay...21.5", not exactly the frame I'd been looking for, as I prefer the look of the roller cam Comp frames, but close enough.

Here is the drive side shot from the auction:


It looked to be in nice condition, but with a few non-original parts, so I hoped the price would stay within my budget. Luckily, it did, and I won the auction.

A couple more shots from the listing:




So now I must wait for it to arrive! The seller is inexperienced but concerned, so his LBS is packing it. Fingers crossed it makes it here undamaged.

The paint looks quite nice, and I'm happy to see a press-fit BB and Sugino AT crankset-177.5mm no less, if a blurry pic in the listing can be believed. Looking at other pictures from the listing, it seems parts were likely swapped out in the late 80's-Deore II RD, Mavic chainrings, a Salsa stem, and a newer wheelset, probably with XT hubs. I can't figure out what the seatpost might be, not a Laprade, certainly.

Regardless, I'm looking to build it back to correct spec, while retaining as many of the correct parts that came on it as I can. The '84 Ritchey catalog is unavailable, but the '85 shows a Shimano 600/M700 build, with Magura brake levers, Suntour XC pedals, and bullmoose bars. My build will be correct for the era, with a few alterations.

A couple more pics:



The black seatpost looks great, and I think the 'catalog' build handlebars were also black. This is good, I like it with the blue frame, and it's different than my Comp (which is also blue). I can't make out the canti brakeset and levers from any of the auction pics, they appear to be lower/middle end Dia-Compe. If so, I'll be adding a black MC70 front cantilever, and silver for the rear (while I hunt down another black one):


I have a cosmetically decent (the pic makes it look worse than it is) and mechanically wonderful RD-M700 SuperPlate RD for it:

Other bits and parts for the build have also been hoarded-I've got to go for now, but will be adding more as I wait for the big box to arrive...the anticipation is killing me. I'm telling myself two weeks, but wishing for it by next weekend. A blurry parting shot of the smooth fillet of the BB, until I have time to post again:

 

[Si_33]

Re: 1984 Ritchey Timberwolf incoming. Finally, one my size.

Very nice! Signing in for updates - looks a great project

 

[raidan73]

Re: 1984 Ritchey Timberwolf incoming. Finally, one my size.

Welcome back Will That looks to be in great shape, looking forward to seeing more.

 

[shogun700]

Re:

Thanks! I've been cruising old Ritchey pics and the catalog scans available, I'm very curious when this bike was built. The AT crankset and Dia Compe brakeset are referenced in the '83 catalog, but by '84 there was more a full Shimano spec going on. The date codes on the parts will tell the tale. I like that it's early enough to give me some build options.

Here is the wheelset I'll be using initially, blue ano 26 x 1.75 Weinmann 525's, laced to solid-axle Mailliard sealed hubs. I believe I pulled these from a Ross Mt. Something several years ago, and have been using them on my '86 Timber Comp to save the original Dura Ace/RM20s. They match the blue Imron paint quite well, and they have an '84 date code :





The hubs are large diameter, but the surface finish leaves something to be desired. Polishing laced hubs is a pain, but I'll see what I can do.

More to come...

 

[shogun700]

Re: 1984 Ritchey Timberwolf incoming. Finally, one my size.

Alright, it's been shipped. Hopefully arriving next Tuesday. For now, a few more parts for the build:

Tommaselli Racer brake levers, assuming I'm not going to be happy with the Dia-Compes. I've had these for a dozen years:



Suntour XC-II Pedals, sadly I had a beautiful black set that I sold several months ago. These are the standard body, and will need a cleaning, but they are smooooooth:



I have this 6207 headset, but for now I'm leaning toward keeping the Avocet that's on it, assuming it's in good working order:



That's all for now...

 

[raidan73]

Re: 1984 Ritchey Timberwolf incoming. Finally, one my size.

Perfect choice of parts there. Those levers look mint

 

[shogun700]

Re: 1984 Ritchey Timberwolf incoming. Finally, one my size.

Perfect choice of parts there. Those levers look mint

Thank you, sir. The levers are very good, not perfect, but similar condition to the bike.

Same with the grips, ODI Mushrooms:



And bars, with the rest of the parts:



These are Nitto/MountainBikes/Specialized bars-with apologies to the purists, these are what I'll be using until a proper Ritchey-stamped or fillet brazed setup can be sourced. I think the year is very close though.



I have work to do, first stripping the rattle can black off the bars. I'll see how they look chrome before I commit to black, even though I'm pretty much committed to black. :facepalm: Tires will need to be sorted also.

Tuesday cannot come soon enough.

 

[shogun700]

Re: 1984 Ritchey Timberwolf incoming. Finally, one my size.

Another update: Late-night scouring of ebay has netted a poorly listed rear Dura-Ace/RM-20 wheel. It was listed as 'Shimano Japan Hub with Araya RM-20 Rim' with a BIN of $19.99. :mrgreen:



We will see what the condition is, dirty does not always mean destroyed, plus the braking surfaces are dull but not scratched or grooved, indicating low or light use. At a minimum I need the hub for parts, the freehub on my Timber Comp is delicate. Plus the skewer and 6 speed cassette are included-again, possible parts to use depending on condition.

Until the complete wheelset can be pulled together, this is what the blue Weinnmanns will look like, as seen on my Timber Comp in the foreground. I don't mind it, but prefer the traditional polished aluminum look of the RM's.

 

[shogun700]

Re: 1984 Ritchey Timberwolf. Big box arrives. Fun day ensues.

It made it, the wait is over.



I had to do some sleuthing though-returned home from work at 12:15 with the rest of the day free to wait for the truck, they rarely come this way before 2PM or so...not today, the door tag said I missed delivery at 11. Bah! I had to get it today, the rest of the week is a mess.

With far more than an appropriate sense of confidence, I loaded the dog in my pickup, and tried to figure out where my bike was-I live in a small metro area, and have a basic idea where the driver might be going....but it was still going to take a bunch of luck. 20 minutes later, I was trolling a mixed residential/commercial area a few miles from home and there it was, the white box truck of glory! I flagged the driver down, signed my name, and got my box. Yessss.....and the whole afternoon free to unbox and examine.

It was packaged well, no damage, what a relief. I pulled everything out of the box and had a look.



The condition was about what I gathered from the listing, some expected patina but overall quite good. Pleasant surprises? These nice XT 730 pedals, look to be hardly ridden.

Plus this Titec Hellion titanium riser bar, which I didn't know I needed for my Ted Wojcik until I saw it come out of the box. Quite rare these days.

The parts assortment on the bike is a testament to era-specific changes/upgrades-the late 80's brought Dia Compe 986 brakes and SS7 levers, XT pedals, what appears to be a very early ControlTech seatpost, the front hub (XT), and Deore II RD. Another 10 years or so went by before the hubs were re-laced to Mavic X517 wheels and the bar/stem combo was probably added at this time, late 90's I suppose.

Here is a spoke nipple color combo I've never seen before, gold, green, and bronze:


I like these cut-down levers on the M700 shifters, never seen this done before:


With most of the afternoon left, I decided to swap what I could for parts over, and give the bike a test ride. I had to, it was a sunny, reasonable mild day for mid-March, and all the snow is gone. After a couple hours and a flurry of activity, I was ready to roll. It's just a quickie test-ride build, but nice to get it looking proper!


What a great feeling to be on a bike you love that's the right size, after many years of compromises. I love the way these frames feel-stiff yet lively, with the sense that every ounce of pedaling effort is being transferred directly to the rear wheel. Awesome.

Time for a beer, it's been a good day. I'll update more as I pull the bike back apart and get everything prepped and ready to assemble. A parting shot until then:

 

[Martin]

Re: 1984 Ritchey Timberwolf. Big box arrives. Fun day ensues.

Good story, lovely Ritchey!!