"old" Santa Cruz chameleon dilemma
Discussion
Hi folks
Right,as above i have a bit of a decision to make regarding my bike. Background is i used to race downhill and dual slalom back in the mid 90's with mainly GT's,RTS and then LTS DH,state of the art at the time!! Gave it all up when commitments grew too much and bought a Santa Cruz Chameleon frame and built it up as something to have a bit of fun with. Pretty sure i bought the frame new from Stif bikes in 2002. All the components on it are from that time and were (are!) pretty good.The frame and forks have there fair share of scratches but not too bad really! The spec is roughly
Kawasaki Green 14" (Think) frame
Marzocchi bomber Z1 forks
Mavic 321 disc Rims on Hope big 'un hubs F and R
Hope Hyd discs F and R
Kore stem
Bontrager seatpost
GT downhill cranks with TA chainrings
XT F and R mechs
Now apart from the first year or so i have hardly ridden the bike at all and is still in great condition and works fine and now with the youngest at school i am finding myself getting the the bug again!!
The problem is that i am kind of too big for the bike! Was ok few years ago when i was young and fit and never really needed a comfortable bike but now i really need something a bit more suited for long rides rather than messing about in the woods with.
So,looking at couple of new bikes now,Gt Zaskar i used to have and they still look great and the Orange Subzero i think it is. But do i buy new bike or buy a new frame where i know i will want to upgrade to lots of shiny new bits which will prove pricey i think!!
The Chameleon really is superb but just too small (i'm 6'3),i realised that when i built it but could live with it then but not now.
The problem is if i buy new is what to do with the Chameleon as no idea what it would be worth or where to sell??
Really out of touch with the whole scene these days and things have changed so much!!
Look at how old the mechs are but still work like new!!
So bit of a quandry really......
Cheers for reading
Dave
Right,as above i have a bit of a decision to make regarding my bike. Background is i used to race downhill and dual slalom back in the mid 90's with mainly GT's,RTS and then LTS DH,state of the art at the time!! Gave it all up when commitments grew too much and bought a Santa Cruz Chameleon frame and built it up as something to have a bit of fun with. Pretty sure i bought the frame new from Stif bikes in 2002. All the components on it are from that time and were (are!) pretty good.The frame and forks have there fair share of scratches but not too bad really! The spec is roughly
Kawasaki Green 14" (Think) frame
Marzocchi bomber Z1 forks
Mavic 321 disc Rims on Hope big 'un hubs F and R
Hope Hyd discs F and R
Kore stem
Bontrager seatpost
GT downhill cranks with TA chainrings
XT F and R mechs
Now apart from the first year or so i have hardly ridden the bike at all and is still in great condition and works fine and now with the youngest at school i am finding myself getting the the bug again!!
The problem is that i am kind of too big for the bike! Was ok few years ago when i was young and fit and never really needed a comfortable bike but now i really need something a bit more suited for long rides rather than messing about in the woods with.
So,looking at couple of new bikes now,Gt Zaskar i used to have and they still look great and the Orange Subzero i think it is. But do i buy new bike or buy a new frame where i know i will want to upgrade to lots of shiny new bits which will prove pricey i think!!
The Chameleon really is superb but just too small (i'm 6'3),i realised that when i built it but could live with it then but not now.
The problem is if i buy new is what to do with the Chameleon as no idea what it would be worth or where to sell??
Really out of touch with the whole scene these days and things have changed so much!!
Look at how old the mechs are but still work like new!!
So bit of a quandry really......
Cheers for reading
Dave
Edited by nessiemac on Tuesday 4th March 23:48
Wow. I'd kill for that to be hanging up in my garage.
However, not sure as to its value as a whole, but as with ALL older bikes, they are worth considerably more broken down and sold on.
A lot of those parts are worth a bit due to their age, and additionally the frame is a classic.
Ebay or Singletrack would work well here.
However, not sure as to its value as a whole, but as with ALL older bikes, they are worth considerably more broken down and sold on.
A lot of those parts are worth a bit due to their age, and additionally the frame is a classic.
Ebay or Singletrack would work well here.
Edited by neil_bolton on Wednesday 5th March 08:49
Oh mate, thats is AWESOME. D321 rims, Big-un 5 bolt hubs, Orange Bombers.
Thats the kind of thing I yearned for as a 14/15 yr old.
It looks mint. So the on;y problem is sizing?
Get yourslef on www.singletrackworld.co.uk , ebay etc, and you'll be able t obag yourself a decent period frame for probably less than £100, or something a bit newer.
Someone will love the chameleon frame too, very sell-able I reckon.
Swap the bits over to larger frame, and et voila, a very cool, fully working bike.
If it aint broke...
Thats the kind of thing I yearned for as a 14/15 yr old.
It looks mint. So the on;y problem is sizing?
Get yourslef on www.singletrackworld.co.uk , ebay etc, and you'll be able t obag yourself a decent period frame for probably less than £100, or something a bit newer.
Someone will love the chameleon frame too, very sell-able I reckon.
Swap the bits over to larger frame, and et voila, a very cool, fully working bike.
If it aint broke...
snotrag said:
Oh mate, thats is AWESOME. D321 rims, Big-un 5 bolt hubs, Orange Bombers.
Thats the kind of thing I yearned for as a 14/15 yr old.
It looks mint. So the on;y problem is sizing?
Get yourslef on www.singletrackworld.co.uk , ebay etc, and you'll be able t obag yourself a decent period frame for probably less than £100, or something a bit newer.
Someone will love the chameleon frame too, very sell-able I reckon.
Swap the bits over to larger frame, and et voila, a very cool, fully working bike.
If it aint broke...
Yeah the only problem really is the sizing and the lusting after something new after looking round a couple of bike shops at the weekend!!Thats the kind of thing I yearned for as a 14/15 yr old.
It looks mint. So the on;y problem is sizing?
Get yourslef on www.singletrackworld.co.uk , ebay etc, and you'll be able t obag yourself a decent period frame for probably less than £100, or something a bit newer.
Someone will love the chameleon frame too, very sell-able I reckon.
Swap the bits over to larger frame, and et voila, a very cool, fully working bike.
If it aint broke...
Anyone have a clue as to how much it might be worth as a whole bike then???
Not enough to warrant selling it as a whole.
2nd hand bikes are worth jack all im afraid. I bet you could get £100 for the frame, and I also bet you wouldnt get much more than £200 for the whole lot.
See what I mean? It becomes a bit silly to sell it all in one.
The frame will sell pretty easy I reckon. Hell I'd love it if I had any spare cash.
You could even get a new shaper Chameleon in the right size? They got one or two in Stif last time I looked.
Then replace as things break / wear out.
2nd hand bikes are worth jack all im afraid. I bet you could get £100 for the frame, and I also bet you wouldnt get much more than £200 for the whole lot.
See what I mean? It becomes a bit silly to sell it all in one.
The frame will sell pretty easy I reckon. Hell I'd love it if I had any spare cash.
You could even get a new shaper Chameleon in the right size? They got one or two in Stif last time I looked.
Then replace as things break / wear out.
Wow, that is a nice bike, but it will be hard to sell it really for what it should be worth, if i was you i would keep it as if you sell it for a couple of hundred pounds, you may regret it later,
it should be worth 350-400 complete with all that gear, but you hard pushed to sell complete
Sell the parts maybe.
Keep It,
Hand it down to the kids when they are bigger,
I have kept most of my old frames and bikes as memento's, all the ones i did sell, i wish i had not, and hardly worth the money i got for them. Space is a problem though, you can not keep it all. I do try,
it should be worth 350-400 complete with all that gear, but you hard pushed to sell complete
Sell the parts maybe.Keep It,
Hand it down to the kids when they are bigger,
I have kept most of my old frames and bikes as memento's, all the ones i did sell, i wish i had not, and hardly worth the money i got for them. Space is a problem though, you can not keep it all. I do try,
Edited by pastrana72 on Wednesday 5th March 22:58
nessiemac said:
Martin_Bpool said:
Nice Bike, not sure what its worth but when you know you could try singletrack for selling it on.
HTH.
Whats singletrack then martin?HTH.
snotrag said:
Might just have to drop him a PM.....Cheers MateDave
try here:
http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/
better than singletrack when it comes to old-skool rides..
http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/
better than singletrack when it comes to old-skool rides..
agreed retrobike is the home for that, looks great. Singletrack also a great biker resource,
I think £400 isnt unreasonable if that photo was taken recently. Its about everything top drawer of the era, bulbs as well, my favourite
as a bit of reference, i have a medium (read tiny) planetX hammerhead as a second bike for general riding to the FS bike. I am also 6'3 and not as light as i used to be, bent a thomson last year, and that was with half of it in the frame! Depends on your riding style, and yeah mountain biking has really found a few set niches in recent years.
I think £400 isnt unreasonable if that photo was taken recently. Its about everything top drawer of the era, bulbs as well, my favourite
as a bit of reference, i have a medium (read tiny) planetX hammerhead as a second bike for general riding to the FS bike. I am also 6'3 and not as light as i used to be, bent a thomson last year, and that was with half of it in the frame! Depends on your riding style, and yeah mountain biking has really found a few set niches in recent years.
LRdriver II said:
try here:
http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/
better than singletrack when it comes to old-skool rides..
Cheers lads....what a great site!!!http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/
better than singletrack when it comes to old-skool rides..
Dave
Strip the frame down and flog it on the bay. Use the money and put it towards something which suits your riding now. If the bits are still good then carry on using them until they break / wear out - 'speshly the wheels 
PS - if you do think about flogging the frame let me know - markrobson@hotmail.co.uk. I'm currently riding an old Storm Corner Worker HT and find it a touch too small for the sort of riding I do now but that Chameleon looks just right. Nice colour too.
PS - if you do think about flogging the frame let me know - markrobson@hotmail.co.uk. I'm currently riding an old Storm Corner Worker HT and find it a touch too small for the sort of riding I do now but that Chameleon looks just right. Nice colour too.
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