recommend me a retrobike.....

[Andy B]

I've been out of the loop a bit when it comes to 90's bikes

So I would like some recommendations as to which bikes would meet my needs in a retrobike

I would like a nice handing steel frame, not too heavy, nor race whippet light. I am not the gentlest of riders, nor am I really hard on bikes.

Must be able to run suspension and rigid forks

Nothing really expensive or exotic. This bike is on a bit of a budget!

I quite like the look of most Kona's, but have never ridden one, same goes for specialized, also like Orange.

So folks, what would you recommend and why?

 

[cce]

Kona. anything from a lava dome upwards, in steel, but the kilaueas are really nice

fast, fun to ride, and look lush!

 

[jonnyboy666]

for a senisible price and quite common to find you are looking in the right area, kona/orange etc.

i just got a 96 P7 project, something like that would be good, my original (a 97) had judy xc forks in it with 63mm(?) of travel and shimano 24speed xt, but i'd recommend the 97 model purely because that was a v brake model so you could have good brakes aswel without having the unsightly unused canti hanger! i really love the way these ride. and they are considered to be the iconic P7.

kona wise i would suggest similar era for similar reasons to the orange and as CCE said, lavadome and above, i always liked the kilauea because it's the underdog to the explosif even though mostly iirc they were the same frame, but it always seemed some how cooler to me even though i have an explosif myself.

also i find that the 96/97 stuff doesn't seem to go for big money so i find they tend to be a bit more of a bargain.

 

[Andy B]

cool, yeah your thoughts confirm kind of what I was thinking of

V Brakes are also my preferred choice of retro brake, so canti hangers on frames would look a bit out of place

I'm not after a project to restore to factory spec, just something that looks right and rides well.

I will probably buy a singlespeed bike to start with to keep initial costs down, then as cash allows I'll no doubt get the upgrade bug!

 

[orange71]

if you're after something at a good price, go Saracen. Plenty to choose from.

 

[Andy B]

Whilst I do have a soft spot for UK companies like Orange, OnOne, Cotic etc I'm not a big fan of Saracen, unless anyone can show me one that looks as nice as a Kona or Orange! (OK Kona isn't a UK company, but they sure do look pretty!)

 

[orange71]

pretty rear wishbone seatstays, hooded Ritchey dropouts, 853 tubing

 

[Andy B]

still not floating my boat though

Might be the odd componentry & the colour (I don't do red bikes lol)

 

[Jones]

I'd say a Kona as well, although I must say I do have a soft spot for late 90s Saracens, they are lovely they remind me of the last of the Raleigh Special Products frames, it was as if it was their last stab at making a high end frame so they made them extra special

 

[Neil G]

Kona. End of