History of the Orange Clockwork.

[sylus]

Orange have clearly sold out their past...whilst being disappointed they are now just like any modern dross, I understand why but my pennies were I to have £2,500 could find much better bikes modern wise than anything orange produces.

As to the eu excuse , I'm reminded of a program I used to watch. Jackanory

 

[futuristicoldman]

We unwrapped one of these at the office the other day, before the box was opened I wasn't so sure but in the flesh its a beautiful bike that certainly holds its own against similarly priced stuff. Its easy to forget that well made but sensibly priced Taiwanese stuff is bloody good these days,if that means they can dress it up in some above average kit that is designed to run for the long haul then that sits just fine with me. As the original was from the same part of the world I don't see it as a bad choice.
That pewter coloured powder coat looks lush next to the purple, takes me back to less tasteful times!

 

[Silvergoat]

Yes, I know it's late and it's been a long day but for some strange reason that I cannot fathom yet, the Orange RX9 ("The Thingy"), with its rear wishbone and proper more traditional looking tubular frame (albeit aluminium), makes me think of the lineage back to the Clockwork, unlike the new 'technomachine' Clockwork25. Put some fat tyres, flat bars, mountain kit, etc, on it and you're nearly there... They could have done a celebratory frame similar to the RX9 and maybe at half the price.

Meanwhile, here's a proper Clockwork...

 

[sylus]

Perhaps that's where we are at fault and need to move on

The orange that helped make the British mountain bike scene so great has long gone and is just now another bike company selling mostly Chinese frames with sticker kits on

For modern bikes there are far better value models for money and the only people who would even know what a clockwork was wouldn't touch the new ones with a barge pole.

Orange are pushing out mass shit on historic labels. They would simply be better forgetting trading on the past and stop undermining it's past in a 95 year old wearing adidas sambas kinda way.

It disrespects the brand and makes it look comedic and sad

Orange was cool and that's the bit most of us love.... Today.... Who really knows what's under that sticker kit ?

Sorry if my view offends but it feels like the cool kid on the block has sold out but is trying to kid you they havn't

 

[Silvergoat]

"Stop undermining it's past in a 95 year old wearing adidas sambas kinda way". OUCH! That conjures up a vaguely creepy image (in a Jimmy Saville kinda way).

I do get your drift, even though it's a little on the harsh side.

 

[legrandefromage]

A young fellow me lad looking for their first trail centre hit would go straight for the nearest all singing all dancing full susser. He would just laugh at the original Clockwork and complain that the C25 didnt have full suspension and therefore inferior to anything in MBR.

The days of fighting against the tide of marketing and business is over - you cant win. You either find your niche and stick to it as long as you can or you evolve with the bikes to a point where its physical pain to ride an early bike. I do not want the latter, I am Zaskar shaped and shaped by a Zaskar. That is where I'll stay.

The young fellow me lad will be MBR shaped unless they accidentally find RB then maybe we can educate them that there is so much more to cycling.

Vive le niche!

 

[Silvergoat]

Very wise words indeed Fromage. Having watched through a load of North Shore, Red Bull and other "rad" downhill mountain biking clips on YouTube the other night, I fear today's young tykes in their armoured moto trials style couture on full-suss bikes would snigger at us 'granddads' trying to "shred it" on an ill-equipped rigid steel thingy from the past. And frankly, I'd fear for my bones too in trying to keep up with them. But we on RB can still live the dream and keep the faith, in our own little niche.

Vive La Struggle chaps!

 

[cherrybomb]

When I were a lad you didn't get 'trail centres' you got 'countryside' and the bikes we rode BITD were perfect for riding in said 'nature'. I'd argue that they're just as good, if not better, than modern bikes for that kind of riding cos that's what they were designed for, carving a trail through the wild places.

Manicured trail centres that are purpose built to make the most of modern full sus monsters are often no fun on a 20 year old ridged bike, but they do cater for the modern mountain biker who wants the thrill of the 'fun' bits without putting the miles in to get to them.

Hell, I can see the appeal if I'm honest, as you get longer in the tooth there are more things demanding your time, so the idea of shooting over to Sherwood Pines for an hour to get a quick fix does have it's place. (Probably not the best example 'cos you could ride most of the trails there on a CX bike!, but you get the drift.

Horses for courses I reckon, but I'm not ready to turn me old nags into Tesco burgers just yet, cos they can still show the young 'uns a thing or too.

Oh and £2500 could buy you a VERY nice original Clockwork AND a Five which would allow you to do a bit of both.

 

[Silvergoat]

In my old college and early working days, I lived in Cardiff, just as the mountain biking scene was starting. I used to explore the area on my, ahem, Raleigh Arena college commuter, with the fattest you could fit. Then I got a Marin Palisades, fitted some early Rockshox and teamed up with like-minded souls out of Reg Braddicks. We did the hills, forests, quarries, disused mines and mountains of South & Mid Wales before the notion of trails and centres. It was a real blast bitd. But I'd love to see what I could get up to around these modern purpose built trail centres on my trusty old rigid Clockwork.

 

[sinnerman]

I fail to see how this modern take on the clockwork is any different to the old.

Its made in the far east..... and before the Mass use of Aluminium for bicycles, Steel was the cheap material.

Progress and Mass production costs......... the market turned to Aluminium, and this became the cheap material.

Their Business Model hasn't changed. and Nor have We.

And there in lies the Problem.

And FWIW, whilst the bike is capable of trail centre usage, im pretty confident this wasn't the reason or the usage/market this bike was intended for.

They build there own bikes for that.

Whilst the apple really hasn't fallen that far from the tree with this model.............The company did come good and really did start building there Own bikes in the end, and have remained a small independent UK company.

That in itself is an achievement by anybody's standards in the modern market place.....imho.