Building the same bike over and over and over

[Dead Rats]

... reading the same thread again only joking fella, was sure same thread basis came up in last few months and fair question. I'd agree with them above who declare that variety is better even if some only get ridden once in a blue moon (when that blue moon comes out, you'll be glad you've built that bike!)

 

[brocklanders023]

I'm trapped in the '92/'93 era Orange range and can't get out Gonna run out of new projects soon though so where do I go then?

 

[karlomanx]

The ideal collection for me is a diverse one, alloy front suspension, alloy rigid, steel front suspension, steel rigid, full suss XC, maybe a Klunker and a DH full suss.

Absolutely !
Except for aluminium rigid or HT bikes, that's what I tend to have in my stables, including road bikes.

 

[Dead Rats]

The ideal collection for me is a diverse one, alloy front suspension, alloy rigid, steel front suspension, steel rigid, full suss XC, maybe a Klunker and a DH full suss.

Absolutely !
Except for aluminium rigid or HT bikes, that's what I tend to have in my stables, including road bikes.

alu rigid - that's a bit harsh

 

[Defiant]

i do build bikes with some similarity in parts
I just like a certain kind of bike and parts wise i have a weak spot for a few brands.
All of my bikes for instance have Chris King headsets, just because i like them and they can de trusted.

With regards to the style, i like my bikes to be hardtails, mid 90's and Steel or titanium.
When it comes to brands, i like the underdogs; great brands which are not the first brands that pop into peoples heads when they are asking what brand they like best, in my case this is Serotta and Nuke Proof

 

[utahdog2003]

I think it makes as much sense to have a style of bike you are comfortable with, both as a rider and as a mechanic/builder/enthusiast, and then build within that style, as it does to try to fill your life with a specific bike for every possible trail variation or purpose.

All my retro bikes are full rigid and date from the late 80's-early 90's...the era when I spent the most time working in shops and day dreaming. They all follow a theme and many would say they fill the same role. I'm OK with that though, because in the heyday of the mountain bike, they ALL filled the same role. Once upon a time there was only 'the mountain bike'. This task specific stuff is a market driven industry profit generator, and you don't necessarily need to buy one of each. Conveniently for me, new fangled Free-Ride All Mountain stuff is from a generation later than my favorite so I don't feel the desire to own a bunch of that stuff, and while my 2008 EWR can serve that task (with a little rider restraint!), it's by no means an AM/FR dedicated machine, and can also serve general marathon cross country duty. Truly a decendent of the original mountain Bike ethos

I'm not saying that a 5 inch travel bike is a waste, I'm just saying that as a rider, accepting a bit of compromise in favor of your favorite trails is just fine. Riding my blue EWR, I followed a bunch of guys on AM bikes, around lava rock strewn trails in central Oregon last summer. Sure they were faster than me, but that had more to do with my gut and less to do with their bike's prowess. The EWR was perfectly serviceable in Oregon, if not optimum. I wouldn't run out and dump 5 grand on an Elsworth or whatever to gain that little bit more of potential, if that 5 grand could be instead spent acquiring a few more of my favorite bikes from back in the day.

I don't race, so I don't care about that either.

I don't see a problem with having a slew of bikes that handle the same general purpose. You are not the first person to realize that your quiver is filled with all similar arrows. Surfers have done it for 50 years...