1991 Raleigh MTB, thoughts please

[DRM]

They have gone a bit posh recently ..well, it is all relative , but for old cheap MTB bits its always worth a look here

https://www.bankruptbikeparts.co.uk/

I've had a look at their website & there's a couple of items I'm interested in, but how on earth do you pay by credit card?, surely you don't have to ring them in this day & age, it shows paypal & bank transfer only, they must be missing out on a lot of possible sales with this.

 

[BalkanExpress]

I've had a look at their website & there's a couple of items I'm interested in, but how on earth do you pay by credit card?, surely you don't have to ring them in this day & age, it shows paypal & bank transfer only, they must be missing out on a lot of possible sales with this.

It has been a long time once I used them so I am not able to help, sorry

 

[RichardB]

I found myself doing some mild off-road the other day and the semi-slick tyres felt a bit skinny. I always thought they looked a bit spindly for the bike anyway. Today I have mounted a pair of Schwalbe Land Cruiser 26x2 and I think they look the business. I have Schwalbe Energiser on the ebike and they are awesome, but I have never fitted that make before. I've heard that Marathons can be a nightmare to fit, and I was ready for a battle, but these went on with finger pressure only. Too wet and windy to test them out today, but soon. I also refitted the cheap Chinese rack from its touring days.

Put some mudguards on and a rear rack and go off touring

Funny you should say that! I really like the look of the Kona in this post

https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/bike-fitting-for-touring-bodge-vs-bespoke.264409/

and I have put the panniers and bar bag on the Amazon with a view to using it more. That's proper 1980s Karrimor kit there, son. The ebike has been my utility/shopping bike, but I am going to put the Amazon in this role for a while. Should get me a bit fitter. I can see this as a light tourer no problem.

I absolutely love this bike.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

That seems to have turned out rather well. Very practical looking. i've also got some Schwalbe Land Cruisers in use and I find them good on the sort of surface you get after a normally hard dirt track has been rained on and gone a bit squidgy. They grip well but aren't as draggy as some of my el cheapo far east knobbly MTB tyres. More draggy than Marathons though.
Talking of Marathons, I don't know why they have such a bad rep for fitting them on rims. I manage to get Greenguards on without resorting to tyre levers, although you have to show them who's boss and they don't jump on the rim by themselves. I think some people seem to make a drama out of any such job. I remarked to a colleague that I noticed he had a pair of new 25 mm M+ on his commuter hack, and asked if they were a pig to fit. He just shrugged his shoulders and said they went on easy enough without a fight..

 

[RichardB]

I have no experience of Marathons, just what I have read - people failing and resorting to takin g them to a bike shop, etc. These went on so easily I was quite worried. Light finger pressure only, and when I got one bead on the wheel I had to hold it in place or it would slip off by gravity. They are marked up to 70 psi, but I only put 50 psi in, as I was afraid they would blow straight back off again with full pressure. As it happens, they fit very evenly and snugly and feel very 'right' at 50, so I may well leave them there. They roll extremely well, only a little bit more draggy than the Vredestein Monte Carlo (semi-slicks) that I took off. And they seem more than capable of managing the odd bit of wet ground and gravel that I am likely to put them to. Very pleased with them.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

They are marked up to 70 psi, but I only put 50 psi in, as I was afraid they would blow straight back off again with full pressure. As it happens, they fit very evenly and snugly and feel very 'right' at 50, so I may well leave them there. They roll extremely well, only a little bit more draggy than the Vredestein Monte Carlo (semi-slicks) that I took off. And they seem more than capable of managing the odd bit of wet ground and gravel that I am likely to put them to. Very pleased with them.

I run my 26" MTB's with 50 PSI in the back tyres and 38 PSI in the fronts. I weigh about 14 st 2 lb, excluding clothing & footwear, so say 14 1/2 stone in a ready to ride state.

 

[RichardB]

I run my 26" MTB's with 50 PSI in the back tyres and 38 PSI in the fronts. I weigh about 14 st 2 lb, excluding clothing & footwear, so say 14 1/2 stone in a ready to ride state.

Hmmm. I have always been an advocate of the 'harder is better' approach (stop sniggering at the back there), but maybe a little less at the front might make it a bit comfier. Will give it a go.

 

[Gravity Aided]

It might be an idea to run with full pressure on the road, and lower the pressure for off-road riding and touring. I don't care so much for softer tires on the road, but I can do some mixed touring around here, and have a drop-bar MTB (modified Trek 950) set up as a touring bicycle. My old Fuji folder may go that way, but with riser bars and a long stem and seat-post.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Hmmm. I have always been an advocate of the 'harder is better' approach.

Tyre pressures need to be roughly proportional to the load on each wheel, with the caveat that you don't want the front one so soft it affects the steering or allows the rim to bottom out if you enter a pothole. The weight distribution on a flat bar bike with fairly relaxed geometry is roughly 60% rear, 40% front. I tend to set the rear one according to the load, but run the front proportionally slightly harder to avoid pinch flats. If you run rear-suitable pressures in the front tyre with that weight distribution, the front is overly hard and tends to transmit more vibration to your hands. Running the front at 75% of the rear pressure seems to be a good compromise for both comfort and pinch puncture avoidance.

 

[RichardB]

That makes a lot of sense, thanks. It used to be the case (back in the Middle Ages) that harder = less rolling resistance = easier to pedal, but I understand that with modern tyres that isn't always the case. I'll try a 60/40 approach and see how it goes.

 

[RichardB]

Spent an hour today getting the Amazon ready for winter (basically fitted the plastic mudguards I had kept from its French Pub and Shopping Bike days). Since I last posted here, I have made a couple of modifications:

1. Cut about 3cm from each end of the handlebars as I didn't like the wide arm position - big improvement.
2. Removed the ergo grips and refitted the clamp-on Boardmans from earlier days, so that I could
3. Fit bar ends (the kind with the built-in toolkit)
4. After a couple of false starts, got period Shimano shifters that a) clear the brake levers and b) don't skip the middle ring on the chainset. Surprised how many come up on eBay, but it took a couple of attempts
5. Finally found and fitted a Mirrycle MTB mirror. I can't recommend these highly enough.

The Altus cantilevers and Tiagra levers work brilliantly, so they are staying. Still working on changing the stem, bars and seatpost for polished alloy, but to be honest the current ones don't look too bad, so no urgency. It's all working really well and feels harmonious at the moment, and I'd have no problem taking it on an extended tour. Maybe after the coronacrisis is over ...

(Those bar ends are at the same angle, honest. Blame the phone camera.)

 

[RichardB]

Incidentally ... those lock-on grips are fine, buit I find the diamond pattern very hard on the palms after a while. I'd like to wrap them with something like bar tape. Is there a way to wrap them which avoids having a turn of plastic electrician's tape to finish off? I can wrap drop bars neatly (always go top to bottom), but I'm struggling to see a way to wrap grips like these without having a free and to deal with. Anyone?

Second question: when the bike was on the stand I noticed that the steering was really notchy. There is a distinct notch in the straight-ahead position which I had not noticed in riding. It's not an issue day-to-day, but will need sorting eventually. Will a standard set of head bearings fit, or is thgere a proprietary Raleigh standard that I will need to go for?

 

[AKHiker]

You like the Amazon so by all means upgrade. Since you're pleased with it now you can do it in increments as compenents wear out. it gives you more time to shop for a deal on quality replacement components too

 

[SGG on a bike]

That's coming on nicely. I k now what you mean about the bars. I just put some bar ends pn mine to reduce the width a little and it's much better for it.

 

[RichardB]

Just thought - I can wrap the bars including the bar ends and tuck the excess into the end of the extensions, provided I can get the thread to accept a bit of extra material. That would solve it. Hadn't thought of wrapping the bar ends before, as I like the chunky alloy look.

Thanks for the nice comments. Of all the bikes I own/have owned, this is the one that is closest to my heart. Forgive my sentimentality: G&Ts have been consumed.