1995 Gazelle Titanium Pro Sort of Retro-Mod-Rat-Rod Build
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Captain Stupido
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rrrright.
The postman's been busy...
First up this arrived, it was cheap, and being an 11-40 should give me plenty of gears. But it's quite heavy. Partly had me wondering whether the 1x thing is a false economy in terms of weight saving... although I do like the simplicity of it in theory. If anyone has any suggestions for a suitable reasonably priced cassette which is lighter then let me know. I did wonder whether the Alivio/Sora level HG400 11-36 might be a better bet. No idea what it weighs, and obviously less wide range of gears, but it might be enough.
Next to arrive was a pair of Manitou Mars CLs bought on eBay. Was quite excited until they arrived. Steerer was well corroded, so I decided to send them back. Spotted some nice looking Judy SLs which are on their way. Shame cos I was getting into the red thing, but actually I think I like the look of the Judys more, and besides, closer to the right period...
Oh, there is a bit of red on them... they might be a bit too shiny though!
Frame arrived! Nicely packed in some old rags with a bit of wood offcut. Very dutch packing job, I think, nice, correct without being fussy, and nothing wasted. Smelled oily (the rags have clearly been around).
Dents are well gnarly. In fact the top tube is ever so slightly oval where it's been squashed. There are more, too, I haven't bothered to photograph them. I checked the frame for alignment, it seems pretty straight, is within a millimeter or two from the head tube to the dropouts. Should be OK I think. I'm neither a fat bastard, nor am I particularly brave, so it's going to have a relatively easy life with me riding it.
It's bloody light though, this is with bottle cage screws and seatpost shim intact. Tubing has a lovely "feel" to it too. Sounds nice when you ping it... etc... I'm into it.
Last thing to arrive was this. It's an Orbit X. It's nice. They're on offer at On-One. Less than £20 for a brand new, shiny, lightweight headset with cartridge bearings, can't argue with that.
I gave the frame a bit of a clean. As it stands I'm actually really liking the blue. Better in the flesh than it is in photos. I like the scruffiness of it and I don't feel much like the labour or chemicals involved in stripping the paint off. I don't want a flash bike. Also, I should say that due to a slight mix-up with the sellers measurements it's a bit smaller than expected! So maybe see if the size works before I get too involved. I think c-c it's not much different to other bikes I like.
Rockshox in the pic are robbed off a Mongoose I just stripped, not going to use them, but I like how the yellow and blue combine. Bit of luck that the seatpost clamp off the Mongoose fits...
So the box of bits grows, in fact I'm not far off being able to put it together. Probably going to do something temporary for wheels and tyres while I see how I like it. If I like it a lot I might buy some fancy hubs and build a nice set of wheels.
The postman's been busy...
First up this arrived, it was cheap, and being an 11-40 should give me plenty of gears. But it's quite heavy. Partly had me wondering whether the 1x thing is a false economy in terms of weight saving... although I do like the simplicity of it in theory. If anyone has any suggestions for a suitable reasonably priced cassette which is lighter then let me know. I did wonder whether the Alivio/Sora level HG400 11-36 might be a better bet. No idea what it weighs, and obviously less wide range of gears, but it might be enough.
Next to arrive was a pair of Manitou Mars CLs bought on eBay. Was quite excited until they arrived. Steerer was well corroded, so I decided to send them back. Spotted some nice looking Judy SLs which are on their way. Shame cos I was getting into the red thing, but actually I think I like the look of the Judys more, and besides, closer to the right period...
Oh, there is a bit of red on them... they might be a bit too shiny though!
Frame arrived! Nicely packed in some old rags with a bit of wood offcut. Very dutch packing job, I think, nice, correct without being fussy, and nothing wasted. Smelled oily (the rags have clearly been around).
Dents are well gnarly. In fact the top tube is ever so slightly oval where it's been squashed. There are more, too, I haven't bothered to photograph them. I checked the frame for alignment, it seems pretty straight, is within a millimeter or two from the head tube to the dropouts. Should be OK I think. I'm neither a fat bastard, nor am I particularly brave, so it's going to have a relatively easy life with me riding it.
It's bloody light though, this is with bottle cage screws and seatpost shim intact. Tubing has a lovely "feel" to it too. Sounds nice when you ping it... etc... I'm into it.
Last thing to arrive was this. It's an Orbit X. It's nice. They're on offer at On-One. Less than £20 for a brand new, shiny, lightweight headset with cartridge bearings, can't argue with that.
I gave the frame a bit of a clean. As it stands I'm actually really liking the blue. Better in the flesh than it is in photos. I like the scruffiness of it and I don't feel much like the labour or chemicals involved in stripping the paint off. I don't want a flash bike. Also, I should say that due to a slight mix-up with the sellers measurements it's a bit smaller than expected! So maybe see if the size works before I get too involved. I think c-c it's not much different to other bikes I like.
Rockshox in the pic are robbed off a Mongoose I just stripped, not going to use them, but I like how the yellow and blue combine. Bit of luck that the seatpost clamp off the Mongoose fits...
So the box of bits grows, in fact I'm not far off being able to put it together. Probably going to do something temporary for wheels and tyres while I see how I like it. If I like it a lot I might buy some fancy hubs and build a nice set of wheels.
Captain Stupido
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Some messing about but no real progress. Judy SLs arrived. They look really nice, and are very light at 1338g.
As the frame is smaller than expected the steerers on all the forks I have are too long really... I'm loath to cut them down!
The Paces were set aside for my C16R but now I'm inclined to stick the Judys on the Orange... Would be a nice upgrade on the current Indy SLs.
If anything am feeling the Pace forks for the Gazelle, partly because the steerer is slightly shorter...(and replacement steerers exist) but then they aren't the lightest (1621g).
Maybe I should go rigid after all and keep it super light. Anyone got a set of RC31s?
I could even put a set of brand new Exotics on it - they are affordable and would probably work well. Would 44.5 or 42.5 suit the frame better?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/eXotic-Rigid ... 2809598545
Decisions!
Some messing about but no real progress. Judy SLs arrived. They look really nice, and are very light at 1338g.
As the frame is smaller than expected the steerers on all the forks I have are too long really... I'm loath to cut them down!
The Paces were set aside for my C16R but now I'm inclined to stick the Judys on the Orange... Would be a nice upgrade on the current Indy SLs.
If anything am feeling the Pace forks for the Gazelle, partly because the steerer is slightly shorter...(and replacement steerers exist) but then they aren't the lightest (1621g).
Maybe I should go rigid after all and keep it super light. Anyone got a set of RC31s?
I could even put a set of brand new Exotics on it - they are affordable and would probably work well. Would 44.5 or 42.5 suit the frame better?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/eXotic-Rigid ... 2809598545
Decisions!
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TOMAS
Senior Retro Guru
Just a heads up, you might find the A-C on both those forks quite long and may slacken it out a bit too much, I have a torus on trimnells and believe this frame suits a 390A-C and the judys are at least 420A-C but not sure on the pace forks. I'll get my tape measure out again a bit later and let you know for sure. Whats the stack height on the lower headset as you might get away with those forks with a super slim lower stack? My Trimnell's run an effective semi-integrated (way before it's time) headset so again will incorp all this into measurements.
Captain Stupido
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TOMAS":37apbc2i said:
Ah...
Judys are 420, Paces about 430.
In this review it's wearing Manitou IIIs. Any idea what the A-C is on them?
http://www.retrobike.co.uk/gallery2/v/M ... 1.jpg.html
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I have RC 31 ti 440mm on mine, that’s my choice. I preferred 440 rather than 420mm a/c, but I like it a bit slacker.
The a/c on Trimnell forks depends on the steerer tube length! But as above, they were designed to be 390mm.
You have to put up with using straight bars on them, which is a pain. I will build new crowns and stems for mine one day.
I’m not a fan of suspension.
I have RC 31 ti 440mm on mine, that’s my choice. I preferred 440 rather than 420mm a/c, but I like it a bit slacker.
The a/c on Trimnell forks depends on the steerer tube length! But as above, they were designed to be 390mm.
You have to put up with using straight bars on them, which is a pain. I will build new crowns and stems for mine one day.
I’m not a fan of suspension.
Captain Stupido
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Thanks! There's actually a nice set for sale on RB, I pm'd the guy and he reckons 410mm. They're quite tempting... but I'm trying to resist the urge to do this original/period spec.TOMAS":190yl3e8 said:
In any case, if that's what Gazelle fitted from new then I can't imagine that 420mm forks are going to ruin the geometry.
Interesting. I'm actually leaning towards putting rigid carbon forks on this for a change. Last fully rigid bike I used off-road I found a bit unforgiving compared to the front suspension I've got used to. I'm a relative newcomer to MTBing and front suspension has been a confidence booster for me. Saying that I can see the appeal of fully rigid, and I want to keep the weight down, so perhaps carbon would be a good compromise for this bike.Rampage":190yl3e8 said:
If a set of RC31s don't turn up then I might end up buying a set of Exotics for it. I'd be inclined to go for the 425mm ones. If what I've read online is accurate I think it's probably swings and roundabouts compared to RC31s in terms of ride quality, and I don't mind a bit of modern on this one. Might be a bit heavier, but on the plus side would mean I could potentially run a disk brake up front.
TOMAS
Senior Retro Guru
Re:
Okay so good news... my Mani 3 (gathering dust) comes in at 420-425mm A-C, I'm pretty sure the crown you see them with is the correct one, however the other crown you see pictured which is spare and can't remember which mine came with (twin bolt clamps) is actually 5mm shorter in overall length... so all that said, your Judy SL's should work fine as they have same A-C as Mani 3s. I've recently serviced 2 sets of '97 Judy SLs and MUST recommend if you haven't already, give them a service and swap up the damping oil (depending on your weight) so something fresh and thicker, I run 10wt in mine (think they come from factory with 7.5wt). It makes a HUGE difference to their performance imo... if you want talking through a service on them then PM me and I'll talk you through it, it really is a doddle and tonight's that I serviced took me all of about 20-30mins
, unless you are local to Nottingham and happy to lend a hand if needed
As above for Trimnells it does depend on the length of headtube of frame (they don't run a steer tube, just a long Ti bolt). I've no idea if Raleigh made all the frame sizes of these with same length head tube, i'm fairly sure the Torus frame is factory designed around a geometry with 390mm A-C fork but then i'm also fairly sure it has a very funny rake as the wheel axle does sit fairly far out with the offset of the crowns and then also the forward facing dropouts.
Okay so good news... my Mani 3 (gathering dust) comes in at 420-425mm A-C, I'm pretty sure the crown you see them with is the correct one, however the other crown you see pictured which is spare and can't remember which mine came with (twin bolt clamps) is actually 5mm shorter in overall length... so all that said, your Judy SL's should work fine as they have same A-C as Mani 3s. I've recently serviced 2 sets of '97 Judy SLs and MUST recommend if you haven't already, give them a service and swap up the damping oil (depending on your weight) so something fresh and thicker, I run 10wt in mine (think they come from factory with 7.5wt). It makes a HUGE difference to their performance imo... if you want talking through a service on them then PM me and I'll talk you through it, it really is a doddle and tonight's that I serviced took me all of about 20-30mins
, unless you are local to Nottingham and happy to lend a hand if needed As above for Trimnells it does depend on the length of headtube of frame (they don't run a steer tube, just a long Ti bolt). I've no idea if Raleigh made all the frame sizes of these with same length head tube, i'm fairly sure the Torus frame is factory designed around a geometry with 390mm A-C fork but then i'm also fairly sure it has a very funny rake as the wheel axle does sit fairly far out with the offset of the crowns and then also the forward facing dropouts.
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Captain Stupido
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Thanks - especially for the offer to help rebuilding the forks. As it happens the Judys seem to be really working well, but my Indys are toast - I think they need new elastomers - and having never taken a set of suspension forks apart it's been my plan to practice on the cheaper Indys first. They can only get better...
Will see how I go re what I put on the Gazelle though. Seems a shame to cut the steerer on the Judys and it's far too long as is. I'd feel less guilty cutting down the Indys. OTOH RC31 seems an obvious choice if anything turns up at a reasonable price.
At this stage I'm going to hold fire on the build altogether for a month or two anyway as I've got a house move coming up. The frame's going back in the box. Will update once I'm in my new workshop!
Will see how I go re what I put on the Gazelle though. Seems a shame to cut the steerer on the Judys and it's far too long as is. I'd feel less guilty cutting down the Indys. OTOH RC31 seems an obvious choice if anything turns up at a reasonable price.
At this stage I'm going to hold fire on the build altogether for a month or two anyway as I've got a house move coming up. The frame's going back in the box. Will update once I'm in my new workshop!
