Coming back to MTBing

[fiatpower]

When I was mid to late teens (6 years ago) I did a lot of mountain biking but when I got into uni and work I stopped and just used my bike for commuting. I used the same bike throughout but didn't really look after it that well to be honest. I got the bike out yesterday for the first time in over a year and the bike is really very tired now. The frame is ok but all of the components are done in (chain skips, teeth missing off cassette, wheel gets pulled to one side when braking when the brakes work etc). As a bit of a project whilst my leg heals (fractured it a a month ago) i'd like to completely refurbish the bike. Once my leg is healed I want to get back into it, taking it around the Cannock Chase trials and the like.

I plan to do the following:

-Strip the bike down, shot blast and then get it powder coated
-Refurbish/replace parts of the drivetrain
-Replace the brakes (Avid juicys from 2006 I think, never been bled...)

I'm going to keep the wheels as they seem quite straight but may replace them later on.

Now for the problem...As I haven't been in the MTB scene for a while technology has passed on by and now I no longer know what is good and what isn't.

I think these are the brakes I will go for:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/shimano-xt-m785-disc-brake...
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/shimano-xt-rt86-ice-tec-20...

Any suggestions on a decent drivetrain set up (crankset, derailleur & cassette). Looking 9 to 10 speed rear and either single or twin ring on the front. Probably looking at between £200 to £300 for the set.

[fiatpower]

I have a total budget of £1000 to upgrade everything. Going off the rough estimates for cost so far I have around £400 to £450 left over for forks. Any suggestions for these? I would be looking at XC with the ability to go on some rougher stuff (singletrack perhaps).

[Mr Gearchange]

Sell the bike. Add to your £1000 budget. Buy a new bike - in the sales

[Incorrigible]

Mr Gearchange said:

Sell the bike. Add to your £1000 budget. Buy a new bike - in the sales

this ^^^ or second hand, my bike was £4k new, mine for well under a bag and only a few years old

[richardxjr]

I agree but yes, stick to Shimano.

Have a look at the On One Parkwood for a reasonable suggestion of what a grand buys these days. Don't forget cycle to work tax free scheme too.

IMO you'd be better off spending your recovery time researching modern geo, wheel sizes (!), tyres, forks and everything else. You might decide to go lightweight rigid and/or singlespeed and get one of the many home brewed framesets?

Edited by richardxjr on Monday 13th October 22:01

[anonymous-user]

my suggestion:

Do refurbish your existing bike: It's a fun project.

Don't spend a lot of money doing it: Plenty of s/h decent parts on ebay and the like, costing a lot less than new parts. Rebuild it with decent s/h parts.


Why do i say this:

MTBs have moved on dramatically in the last few years, and a modern bike is vastly more capable than ever before. If you get back properly into the sport, you WILL want a better bike at some point, so save your money for that.

[daddy cool]

It sounds like you intend to replace everything but the frame - you must really like that frame! What is it?
I'd have to agree with the above, spunk the £1000 on something brand new off the shelf.

When its on sale, and you use the various discounts available, you could have this for £730, leaving you some money for further upgrades and/or sweets:
http://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/mountain-bik...

Edit: oh, and as for those brakes, yes they are nice, but probably overkill, and the extra cost buys a slight weight saving rather than increased performance. The M675 SLX (which i went for as an upgrade over my Boardman's Avids) is considered the sweetspot for price/performance. Also have the ice-tech finned pads (though ive just replaced them with non-finned ones as they are pricey)

Edited by daddy cool on Tuesday 14th October 13:03

[fiatpower]

Ok thanks for all that info.

I've decided to wait until the sales and see what I can get then. In the meantime i'm going to strip the bike down and give it a good service and maybe replace the odd bit of kit that needs replacing in order to get it going for now (thinking chain and possibly cassette for now).