[Closed] Components you don't see mentioned anymore?

I miss rapid rise rear mechs. But all the bikes are gripshift now.
The summer hardtail still has a taper bb too

Tioga disc drive.

Their dirt derraileurs were pretty good too, AFAIK the first to use front cable entry.

And that's where SRAM acquired it - when they bought Sachs.

You'll want some bullmoose bars to go with your beartrap pedals. And a bashbar under your bottom bracket to protect the chainrings.

And maybe a u-brake to slow you down gradually. If it will fit round your Farmer Johns.

IRC Mythos tyres.

How long until a thread similar to this includes 26" wheels in all their stiffer, lighter, faster accelerating glory?

In the meantime, you don't see much mention of 24" wheels these days.

Or STI (Shimano Total Integration) where the shifter and brake lever was all one unit, like a matchmaker or I spec, but without any means of seperating them.

Pretty sure Campagnolo made a brief foray into MTB transmissions, along with rims (I had some Sthenos built onto parallax hubs by Merlin), but then scarpered when they realized Lycra was losing ground in the fashion stakes.

I miss rapid rise rear mechs. But all the bikes are gripshift now.

Rapid rise is a characteristic of the mech - the spring is set up on the other diagonal of the parallelogram - gripshifters should work just as well. Also, what?

I liked dual control. Didn't like rapid rise though (which predated DC by a good number of years - XTR M950 was definitely available in RR).

Or STI (Shimano Total Integration) where the shifter and brake lever was all one unit, like a matchmaker or I spec, but without any means of seperating them.

I've got them on my pub/station bike. Just the brake bit, though. My hacksaw did a wonderful job of separating the (knackered) shifters. Total Disintegration.

Still got Dual Control on my MTB.
The same MTB that has 26" wheels, ISIS BB and a triple chainset...

😳

I just bought 3 sets of bar ends for my bikes as PX were selling off the really light black ones for a fiver each. I mount them inboard of my grips so i dont hook my bars on bushes and it they give me a much needed alternative hand position due to my injured wrist. With modern bars being so wide they are kind of in the same position as they used to be!

IRC Kujos

Seeing all the bar end love on here is anyone interested in a pair of Mr Dirt bar ends? Take the place of the outer ODI lock on clamp

I was thinking about 24" wheels the other day. Do dirt jump types still use them?

Oohh, Tioga Factory DH tyres. Pretty sure there's a good reason they aren't talked about any more though...

Odyssey triple trap pedals, Tioga "DH" tyres, SRP break away bolts and over priced anodised chainring bolts, Cook Bros Racing cranks, Stratos forks, Girvin vector forks, once porcupine tyres and porcupaw grips, original nukeproof 'bombshell' hubs, old ringle hubs, amp b2 frame/F4 forks, proflex frames, trimble frames, panaracer smoke/dart tyres, answer accutrax... Etc, etc...

Some of these things I owned, others I merely desired...

Pretty much everything I own from '03-'04 seems to be covered in stickers from MBUK

IRC Mythos tyres, Titec Carbon bar ends, Pace forks, SRAM wood effect composite mechs and long grip shifters.

Still got..
LX and XTR rapid rise groupsets = on two bikes still used,
Old Italian made 130mm Z1's = on old retired 5 Spot
Rollamajig + spare Ball bit = in spare box
Muddyfox Courier rocking cantis = given to boy at uni to be mobile, I just repair it when he comes home..
M'old... 🙁

Massive DH saddles.

Massive DH chain rings too!

"4x" bikes

The time when people bought Mavic rims

Marin bikes

Michelin tyres

FSA pig headsets

Marzocchi and Manitou forks 😉

Nothing that you can't buy today but all stuff that has fallen by the way side as times changed or is struggling to match the popularity of its hey day

is dual control what my xtr shifters have? they allow the thumb to push the trigger usually reserved for the index to change up AND down?

That's dual release. A different argument between SRAM and shimano.

SRAM made shifters where the finger trigger (as opposed to the thumb paddle) could be operated by either your finger or thumb. Shimano weren't happy as they had the patent on the whole finger and thumb thing and SRAM Rocket/Attack* shifters were really popular and stealing their market. So SRAM changed their's so now SRAM isn't possible to release with your index finger, but as a result stumbled upon dual release which is great as you can now shift up (release cable) with a thumb or knuckle in either direction. So obviously Shimano copied it!

Bit like rollamajig, a SRAM cruch that made the contemporary shimano kit work almost as well as their own.

*no ones mentioned those yet!

Kenda Nevegal?
Kenda Blue Groove?

Oh oh oh! Forgot the obvious...

CONTI VERT PRO!!! 😆

4x" bikes

My Dialled Bikes Holeshot is going to be out on the trails again tomorrow morning, complete with its...

Marzocchi......forks

of the 4X variety.

I will be be building up a brand spanking new, far more sensible for trail riding, Dialled Bikes Love/Hate on Wednesday though.

As for components not mentioned much anymore, how about those reinforcing bars you used to be able to get for riser bars?

Kenda Nevegal?
Kenda Blue Groove?

I have one of both, completely unused, sat in my shed.

As for components not mentioned much anymore, how about those reinforcing bars you used to be able to get for riser bars?

They've been mentioned a lot already on this thread 🙂

Does anyone still buy Azonic components?

Does anyone use a qr seat bolt any more?

Yes.

Well, I don't actually use it. But have one fitted. No dropper either though.

-->> Racing Ralphs. Back in 2009, the answer to every question on STW would have been 'get a set of Racing Ralphs'

Now they are virtually a tyre pariah. I still rate them massively though 8)

Racing Ralphs.

Still the go to XC race tyre

Gorilla Headlock.

They've been mentioned a lot already on this thread

Where? I've not noticed.

(Admittedly I'm lying on the couch, the best of the way through 3 litres of Leffe, after a run of 4 horrible nights working for the NHS, so may have missed it.)

The hardtail I currently use manages to feature, a triple chainset, 26" wheels,9 speed cassette,bars narrower than 700mm, rapid rise ,"lightweight" inner tubes,stem longer than 80mm,dual control shifters, QR front forks with straight steerer and a racing Ralph..........
I think the term is " quaint. "

I have at least one if not two 9sp rapid rise mechs in a box somewhere. forgot about those.

Components you don't see mentioned anymore?

Paul components. The original bike porn.

Was just thinking about Paul when I saw the RS7 cranks further back. Mmmmmm....

Kenda Nevegal?
Kenda Blue Groove?

What about Suntour groupsets?
Adjustable stems like Zoom.
Muddy Fox

FiR rims. Especially the ones with the ridge at the bottom of the brake track to stop your badly adjusted/worn brake pad sticking underneath.

Shimano Airlines

Bula hats

Blimey, my mountain bike features 26" Mavic rims, a 100mm stem, 3x9 gearing on RS7 cranks and a square taper set-up, with a rigid seatpost and bolt clamp. And a thumbshifter for front shifting duties. I'm so yesterday.

Di2 thumbies?

Wot no Etto helmets mention?

Paul Components?

I just fitted these to my touring bike....

[URL= http://i410.photobucket.com/albums/pp187/rcatkin/Bikes/Genesis%20Tour%20De%20Fer/96317D07-672A-4343-9537-CB0099493B30_zps4yaqw8bp.jp g" target="_blank">http://i410.photobucket.com/albums/pp187/rcatkin/Bikes/Genesis%20Tour%20De%20Fer/96317D07-672A-4343-9537-CB0099493B30_zps4yaqw8bp.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]

Paul Components Dura Ace bar end shifter converters - I now have 9sp thumb shifter and wow they are nice to use. 🙂

[URL= http://i410.photobucket.com/albums/pp187/rcatkin/Bikes/Genesis%20Tour%20De%20Fer/C21198DD-5735-4E6C-AD62-2357A89D2A77_zpsiztqtopk.jp g" target="_blank">http://i410.photobucket.com/albums/pp187/rcatkin/Bikes/Genesis%20Tour%20De%20Fer/C21198DD-5735-4E6C-AD62-2357A89D2A77_zpsiztqtopk.jp g"/> [/IMG][/URL]

I've got an old Crud Claw in the garage - don't think it was ever used.

Toe clips are another thing that you never see any more - thank god! Spinergy wheels don't appear any more. When I think about it, there are quite a few companies from way back who have vanished - AS, Roox, Rocket (4x frames).

Agree about the Sachs Wavey shifters - they were so much better than the Gripshift alternatives.

As for Manitou forks - I've just bought some Mattoc's and am really happy with them so far.

Dialled Bikes

They should probably have a mention of their own. Once upon a time you couldn't move for PA's on a STW ride, those or 456's and Souls. 'Fashion' seems to have moved on from steel hardtails.

I guess suspension is now good enough that people are happy to put up with the annual cost of upkeep.

tang - Member
Does anyone use a qr seat bolt any more

Yup, for a 125mm dropper but really enjoy the extra bit of clearance I get on the steeps when fully dropping the post

Hayes brakes - does anyone use them any more? They don't even seem to come OE any more.

I'm in the minority and used to actually like their brakes.

I'm reading this thinking 'tick' that's another one I still use across my 4 bikes, one of which is a Dialled PA.

If someone mentions WTB velociraptors I'll have a full house on tyres I'm using....

Michelin Wild Grippers
WTB Velociraptors
Conti Verts
Racing Ralphs

Three of which are in 26", and all with tubes.

Still running triples with 7 speed STI brake/shifter combo, 8 speed LX, 9 speed, all on square taper (nothing lasts like a good UN73 or UN55).

Also using 4 fixed seat posts, no droppers and one quick release clamp.

Two sets of Mavic rims, 3 sets of cone bearing hubs, 3 lots of QR forks (one of which is elastomer), one set of cantis, one set of V's.

All flat bars gone though, min width of 660mm, and one set of (trimmed stubby) bar ends.

Two of the bikes are fitted with Crud Catcher guards, including one original 'flat' race guard.

wash your mouth out, when gripshift were dead light but widely reported to be shite as soon as they saw a bit of mud waveys were simple, had an extra flange to help with front mech shifts and were cheap as chips.

mine started to disintegrate after 2 rides...the plastic grooves on the inside where the cables sat crumbled away.
i ended up binning them and i bought a pait of cheap EZ fire units but as i had avid v brakes i ended up chopping the brake levers off the ez-fire units as i only needed the shifters....looked hideous but it worked

ive always hated gripshift...i refer to them as shitshift

azonic headlocks were awesome heavy but so easy to use...woodman components did something similar but that was rubbish

I remember the exact moment STW suddenly decided Nevegals were over. I asked for a recommendation almost as soon as I joined the forum and it was Nevegals as far as the eye can see but then the Church of Traction had a schism and suddenly they were not merely uncool, but officially awful. I think a lot of people never got their head around the fact Kenda make OEM spec tyres that look like the real thing but are rubbish, same as Conti.

Still got a QR on all my bikes. Dropping a dropper is sometimes useful and it's all of 10g or thereabouts weight penalty. I was getting pretty annoyed on the testrides at the weekend with bikes with no QR, and more so with the dropper routing that didn't allow easy seat adjustment.

You do still see them but they're in massive decline- bashrings on trailbikes, and blackspire stingers.

bashrings on trailbikes

I was wondering that the other day. On HT's they were always about chain retention so superseded by NW rings, but why have they gone from FS bikes?

What is now clear is that this thread isn't so much a reflection on components that you don't see any more, but a reflection of the little fashion bubble that the average STW rider sits in 🙂

Nearly everything mentioned in this thread I still see out and about on bikes still in use, around town, on the trails, at events etc. If ever there was proof that STW is not representative of 'the biking public' in general this thread is it!

Tioga 2.3" DH tyres. The go-to tyre for hanging round your shoulders at The Bikeshow.

What is now clear is that this thread isn't so much a reflection on components that you don't see any more, but a reflection of the little fashion bubble that the average STW rider sits in

Nearly everything mentioned in this thread I still see out and about on bikes still in use, around town, on the trails, at events etc. If ever there was proof that STW is not representative of 'the biking public' in general this thread is it!

No, but no one ever asks the question "what's the second best option for keeping a chain on", double + bashring + Blackspire stinger was the best until N/W rings and 10-42 cassettes came along (or 11-36 if you're poor/financially sensible). Most people probably still have a 26", bash guarded, QR forked bike somewhere. It's just not a topic of discussion anymore.

I even still have toe-clips on one bike, best tool for that particular job (riding to work and not having to walk into the office in cleated shoes)!

Same way I ride a fat bike, and some probably view me as a fashion victim as a result. Doesn't mean I don't still see other bikes on the trails.

Chris King components (sry if mentioned already). Used to be a big deal back in the days of not-very-good bikes and components - v desirable stuff. Not so much, nowadays - everything has got better so there's zero value in marketing a 'premium' headset, say, for MTBs.

2unfit2ride - Member

Why did I start this thread, I'm now considering one of THESE
[img] [/img]
Help!

So it costs $350 and unlike the original flexstem, lacks a parallelogram mechanism, so the controls on the bars will rotate as it moves through it's travel. Great bit of kit 😆

It's staggering just how many of the terrible components mentioned I've owned over the years.

Anyway, my '92 GT Tequesta sported one of these:

[img] [/img]

That looks like a Panaracer Smoke rear tyre. Another to add to the list.

No, but no one ever asks the question "what's the second best option for keeping a chain on", double + bashring + Blackspire stinger was the best until N/W rings and 10-42 cassettes came along (or 11-36 if you're poor/financially sensible). Most people probably still have a 26", bash guarded, QR forked bike somewhere. It's just not a topic of discussion anymore.

I think that's exactly my point though, STW is very much in the thick of the latest-and-greatest bubble*, it reflects only a very small section of the biking public and is not representative of the majority.

Nobody on STW asks "what's the second best option for keeping a chain on", but other forums, and offline there are plenty of people using more mainstream and older kit who might be/are thinking and asking about adding bash guards, chain devices, replacement QRs, new 26in rims etc. Everyone on here knows what a NW ring is, I was explaining it to a chap the other day who was not only amazed that such a thing existed, but who also had never (consciously) seen a 1x drivetrain and didn't know that Shimano had an 11sp groupset. He's been riding for ~40 years and rides his MTB every week, he is also not at all unusual.

I was just making the observation that this place really does move with the times, more-so than a lot of other forums and 'in real life' if you know what I mean.

* And I don't mean that in a bad way, I love the new tech as much as the old and it's great to be able to chat to like minded people who are also trying out new stuff and genuinely helping push the tech forward

I know they don't actually exist in any real way anymore, but I remember the heady early days of mountain bikes, when the question was whether or not your GT had Shimano or Suntour.

I had Suntour, but I can't remember what groupset. Anyway, you definitely don't see them mentioned anymore!

Sachs Wavy shifter.s

Interesting to see the continued interest in RR rear derailleurs. I have about 4 or 5 sitting in a box, 2 are brand new and unused. Keep on meaning to try and sell then but never get round to it. Anyone interested?

my current bike has 26" wheels, it also has a bashring fitted (i've had a few strikes there so i know it serves its purpose in protecting the N/W ring), it also has a blackspire stinger, the rear wheel is a QR and the hub is a shimano slx so its the traditional cup/cone job, i have a QR seat clamp keeping the dropper secure, the headset is a standard 1 1/8th with a straight steerer fork, the forks use a 20mm axle

using all this supposed old/retro kit hasnt killed me yet...

sachs wavey shifters are still shit!!

enmac - Member

Interesting to see the continued interest in RR rear derailleurs. I have about 4 or 5 sitting in a box, 2 are brand new and unused. Keep on meaning to try and sell then but never get round to it. Anyone interested?

Toga Psycho tyres, the most lethal tyres ever

Suntour self energizing brakes 🙂

Quasar suspension forks. I actually sent off for the catalogue for these:

[img] http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/download/file.php?id=38003 [/img]

In my dream build they'd of gone on my elevated chainstay Smokestone....

Ringle

[img] http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/download/file.php?id=298264 [/img]

Sachs Wavy

[img] [/img]

Axo Pony

[img] [/img]

I had these in this colour, non SPD, used with power Grips & Triple Traps!

Long Travel Kits (43mm - a whopping 60mm)

[img] http://www.mtb-news.de/forum/attachments/20140131_132757-jpg.270607/ [/img]

I remember immersing my Mag21s in a kettle of boiling water to split the lowers from the uppers!!!

Hayes brakes are a good shout

There is a distinct lack of MTX Camo rims nowadays too 🙂

What rubber buccaneer said, Brahma Bars, had these on a GT in about 1992, great bit of kit.

Also for Michelin Trans-Alp tyres, for XC riding these were and still are the grippiest tyres I've ever used,

I remember immersing my Mag21s in a kettle of boiling water to split the lowers from the uppers!!!

I remember the plastic top caps of RS Judy's not doing a very good job of keeping the internals in the forks on big hits - they were like an expensive Nerf gun, sending elastomers flying (in the days when jumps / drops to flats were acceptable).

Mavic rims seem to be vanishing too - when I first started riding, they were pretty much the default choice for a custom wheel build but they don't seem to have moved from from the D521/321 era. The complete wheels seem popular enough but not the rims.

Mavic rims seem to be vanishing too

Yep, mentioned Mavic rims... I guess Stans rims coming in shook things up the most in that regard

Thinking about it any product falling under then Hayes group seems to be doing its best to stay under most people's radar (Hayes, Answer, Sun Ringle, Manitou). Seeing as these were all pretty much default choices at one time one can only assume the current owners have done less than a sterling job of things

Composite forks
[img] [/img]
Estay bikes
[img] [/img]
Toe clips
[img] [/img]

Softtails (proper ones) are another that died off

Thinking about it any product falling under then Hayes group seems to be doing its best to stay under most people's radar (Hayes, Answer, Sun Ringle, Manitou)

Answer were me default bars for the last few years and I still use them on my DH bike. I would have bought the carbon ones but the graphics were minging!

Manitou seem to be getting some good reviews for the Mattoc and are croping up on the odd bike as OE (Nukeproof, Merida). I really like mine and they're sensible money from CRC. They've got a long way to go to restore faith in them after the Manipoo days (Black, Splice etc).

Hayes seem to have all but vanished - the Strokers were pretty poor and killed them off I think. They don't seem to have bothered to developed anything new for ages.

Sun were never that mainstream although I used to really like some of their older hubs. Some of the rims were pretty good too.

I had Suntour, but I can't remember what groupset. Anyway, you definitely don't see them mentioned anymore!

there is good article online about it [url= http://pages.citebite.com/o2n1u6u4w3qui ]http://pages.citebite.com/o2n1u6u4w3qui[/url]

Separate rims/hubs in general. Wheelsets seem to be where it's at.
Shame really - it used to be one of the things that separated the good bike shops from the bad.

I dunno, still don't see many factory wheels on the trails, still see a lot of Mavic infact. There is more choice though, and a choice of hand-builts right upto the top:

Super High end - Enve
High end - Chinese carbon, other carbon, factory wheelsets
Mid-high end - Stans, WTB, factory wheelsets
Mid range - Mavic.

I don't think I'd ever go down the wheelset route off-road, I just view rims as too disposable, even though I'd consider £150+ carbon fat rims!

Do seem to see more "rockstar wheelbuilders", used to be you either DIY'd it, or it was a local old man you were referred to via a secret handshake from a roadie who built them all. Now it's all Strada, JRA, wheelsmith, shops that in effect turn out factory wheels from handbuilding components.

Thinking about it any product falling under then Hayes group seems to be doing its best to stay under most people's radar (Hayes, Answer, Sun Ringle, Manitou). Seeing as these were all pretty much default choices at one time one can only assume the current owners have done less than a sterling job of things

IIRC 'Manipoo' almost bankrupted the MTB side of the business and it's owned by a venture capitalist so I guess they have no great desire to throw money at the problem re-building the brand in a fickle market like MTB.

CRC also import them, so I guess no one stocks them as a result so they're unlikely to pop up as an aftermarket choice. They've been getting good reviews ever since they dropped the rubbish SPV system, I remember Dirt rating their offering much higher than the Pike which seemed to singlehandedly turn RS around.

Sunn own Stans though (or at least a significant stake in the company) which is why their wheelsets have proper stans bead hooks.

Hayes brakes are a good shout

Still exist but I've never seen a set in the wild. Didn't they do a 9" rotor for a while?

Wheelsets seem to be where it's at.

Not sure that's true; Hope Hoops on my bike are really just Hope hubs and Stan's rims that happen to have come from Barnoldswick. 'Wheelset' surely implies proprietary bits?

CRC also import them, so I guess no one stocks them as a result so they're unlikely to pop up as an aftermarket choice. They've been getting good reviews ever since they dropped the rubbish SPV system, I remember Dirt rating their offering much higher than the Pike which seemed to singlehandedly turn RS around.

The SPV system was rubbish - the TPC is and has always been pretty good. Pink Bike gave the Mattoc a good review too.

I've not seen a set of Hayes for a very long time. I really like my Mags, Nine HD's and Aces. They were all pretty simple but powerful. The El Camino brakes were the start of their downfall really.

The current Prime just looks like a Stroker with different graphics.