Would You Buy The Bike From Your Youth?

As per title. The bike that I did my first serious mountain biking on, the one that I ventured further with than just around the doors and local woods tracks has become available locally from a work colleague for not much money. (I’ve just spent similar on pedals!)

I’ve done the Retrobike think quite extensively in the past, Ritchey  P20, Bontrager OR, Cannondale Raven, many many Stumpjumpers, etc. I sold the lot as I wasn’t riding them. There wasn’t an occasion where I’d rather have the old bikes, even my P20 over my modern hardtail or gravel bike.

But this is the bike that got me further into the sport. Possibly more time of life rather than the actually bike and I’m tempted. Don’t honestly know when I would ride it, briefly looked at Retrobike to see when the meets are, but don’t know. It needs tyres and a saddle.  Not even sure where I’ll keep it, space is getting a little tight for bikes and yet…….. I’m still looking at it….

Still got my 21″ spesh hard rock frame. **** knows why. The forks bent and snapped about 20 years ago and it has a head tube longer than most forks so I’ve never found a replacement. The wheels and drive train are long gone. It’s literally a frame hanging on the wall

It’s geometry is probably on par with my cutthroat though – but it has disks and drop bars

No i wouldn’t

More clutter

It’ll be crap to ride

I wouldn’t be able to reach the bars

One of the 2 options that fits your description tried to kill me

But all of that it’s irrelevant to you

DMR Trailstar was my first proper MTB, learnt a lot on that bike and also was the start of me losing a shit load of weight (that’s slowly creeping back on). Not sure if I’d like riding it so much these days, but if they re release a steel version of the new Ti Trailstar with a shorter reach option I’ll probably end up getting one.

I bought the bike I lusted after but couldn’t afford. A 1992 Breezer Storm. It looks great but my modern gravel bike is more capable off road.

If I saw a Dawes Wildcat from 1985 for sale I doubt I could resist.

No, it would be tiny.

Funnily enough I saw my first proper mountain bike, a steel framed Saracen from 1990, at a bike jumble recently. It was interesting to see but no interest from me to buy it. Heavy, poor geometry, old standards. No use for riding, even as a pub bike. While it got me into riding it wasn’t anything special.

Still got mine, although it rarely leaves Zwift these days!

Youth? Well, I started MTBing at about 30, so the first bikes I rode “seriously” were Cannondale M3s, Principia MacB, they’d be fine, if I fancied a bit of rigid bike action.

My youth though, that was hand-me-down Chopper copies and a Puch road bike. Junk really, so no, definitely not the bike(s) of my youth.

A five speed Raleigh Maverick with caliper brakes,  steel rims and dross tyres. So heavy it generated it’s own local gravity field. Nope, no thanks!

I’ve got a modified 90’s Orange P7 though, I like that!

At 6ft3 would I fit a Raleigh Grifter?

Still feel the pain in the knees when the sturmey archer gears let go, sending your kneecap right in to the handlebar. No clue why they put padding on the crossbar of the handlebars. It was the bottom main bit that needed padding.

As for first “proper” “enthusiast” bike… it’s in my store room.  35yrs old this year.

Yes, but very aware of what they are – think MG B vs brand new MX5.
Have “copies” of my first two, ‘91 Fire Mountain – original given away! ‘98 Kilauea – original stolen. Still have my ‘02 Sub5pro.

I’m not a hater but I also could never see myself riding 26″ again, which is a shame as my favourite/most significant bike from my youth was a Kona Caldera when they were still classic skinny steel.

It was ‘fun’ enough that I started using it for all sorts of irresponsible stuff then stuck some 5″ Marzocchis  on it with predictable results…

Christ, first mountain bike was a raleigh montage, which was horrific, then after that monstrosity, i had a giant atx, which came with a set of forks that used to sizzle in the rain, as you could almost see the magnesium casing disintegrate ?

I’ll stick with this generations mountain bikes, i don’t think there’s a positive from the 1990s i can see, geometry was horrible, suspension was basic, brakes were deadly most of the time for actual mountain biking!

No. I don’t get sentimental about old bikes, I can’t overlook how rubbish they were. I don’t mean that in a nasty way – we’ve just come a very long way in terms of riding and bikes.  I would never ride it, it would stay in the garage taking up space and reminding me how rubbish it was.

My first “proper” MTB was a Muddy Fox Alu Lazer in the very early 90s. I loved it at the time but I certainly wouldn’t want to ride it again now. Always lusted after a Kona Cinder Cone or Marin Pine Mountain (the black and fluro orange one) in the 90s, but again I wouldn’t want one now. I then had a long break from MTBs (rode BMX and DJ bikes instead) until I got a 2005 Demo 8. Same story there, I doubt I enjoy it now.

I think the oldest bike from my history that I’d still ride today if it was in brand new condition would be my 2007 SX Trail. It’s the only bike I’ve ever regretted selling, although it did fund my 2012 Nukeproof Mega (which I just sold at the weekend for £400).

Update!!!!

it’s a 19.5”, not the 18” I thought it would be. So probably solves the issue, but then I’ve found another one…….

There were various 2nd hand Raleigh’s before this, even a Trek 830, but this is the bike that I started to explore more than just the local tracks. Growing up by the sea, there wasn’t much in the way of hills

Yeah I would and I have.

I actually had a palisades which was a lower model than this but came up and was virtually unridden and my love for the zolatone finish won.

I also have this

A retromod team issue. Always lusted after  this nickel plated beauty when I was young but there was no way I was ever getting my parents to buy me one and my £12 a week paper round money was never getting me one.  This is actually really good fun to ride and gets used for commuting on 2/3 times a week.

Also have these:

the FRS is absolutely disgusting to ride,  the team is lovely.

Other than the retromod, the others don’t get ridden much but are lovely to have and look at and don’t cost much compared to modern bikes!

I loved having mine (88 Rockhopper) for a few years recently.

Saved for short dry pootles, 5 mile commutes and the pub.

Took it round Glenstress, terrifying.

Happy I did it and scratched that itch, happy I now have the space back

I’ve still got my Bontrager Race OR – XTR/Hope/Pace RC39. Its a great bike but my Canyon Lux with SLX is objectively better!

The Bontrager is actually still a great climber on tight switchbacks but going down…

But I do tend to keep stuff – I still drive a 53 plate Cooper S – I’ve had that since new too.

I still have it; a 1995 ex-team GT Zaskar with Pace RC35 forks and an XT group set. It hasn’t been ridden for years and likely never will be again but I can’t bring myself to sell it.

I’ve still got my 1999 Maron Attack Trail frame, and I’m still riding my 2013 Salsa El Mariachi Ti, those are the two which I will never, ever sell.

The rest I’ll keep until something better comes along and/or they break.

So to answer the OP’s question, if it was the exact bike, I probably would, if it is just one of the same sort (which I think from his later post it is) then no, I have no attachment to a replica

Yes if I could find one and it wasn’t too expensive (1992 marin eldridge grade). My first proper mtb after my 1988 dawes ascent.

I used to be on Retrobike all the time and have had probably hundreds of different old bikes. Went on a good number of organised rides too. Not on so much any more though, seen all I want to see and won’t spend the money to get something lovely like a Yo Eddy as I wouldn’t ride it.

Still got a good number though and doubt I’ll ever sell my mint orange/white fade 92 Clockwork as it makes me happy just looking at it. If you have the space to put your old bike I’m sure it’ll make you happy too, even if it never turns a wheel!

My first serious mountain bikes was a 17.5″ Marin Team. Tange Prestige tubing and a straight XT groupset. Zolatone frame with magenta forks, stem and bars.

I’d love another ride on that thing but it might turn out disappointing.

Tempted to get my gravel bike resprayed as a homage to that bike, especially as the riding I do on it is very similar.

I’m still riding them…

A1997 Kilauea, and a 1998 Jake the Snake. One single speed and the other 1x. Both ride amazingly well on typical woodsy singletrack.

My main bike is a 2006 Kona the king….

All have had wheel changes, and set ups tweaked as I’ve become fatter/slower/less flexible over the years, but they’re still great for the regular riding on my doorstep.

Hey, I still ride 26″! (and 29) You do have to pedal more to get anywhere on a 26 as its the final gear ratio, but other than that I barely notice the difference. easier to sneak through kissing gates as well

I grew up with decidedly uncool bikes, teen years was also a Puch road bike of some sort with 3 speed gears and straight bars, followed by a Raleigh Pulsar which had early 80s Sinclair C5-ish futurist space age styling which I thought was amazingly cool- including a unique aero water bottle and space-shuttle-esque fonts for the decals. 10 speed with downtube shifters, and the brakes had hoods to rest hands, I was blown away with the ergonomics! Obviously complete trash but I’d be lying if I said I’d never looked on ebay or googled– turns out there was a more grown up version that would make a slightly more capable ride for an adult, but … nah

Nah they’re all crap, they’d be a waste of space.

The bike I have now is much more exciting.

I had a couple of Specialized rigids before I got my M2 Stumpjumper, and that’s the one I might have held on to for longer (it lasted 20 years before I gave the frame away). However lack of rear disk mount was a real pain and I don’t really regret getting rid (well, a bit). Having said that I do have a ’95 Kona which is kind of similar, so yes, may be I would.  Otherwise, no, mostly happy with the new-ish bikes I now have.

Absolutely not. It would be horrific to ride compared to my current bike.

Nope, I bought one of my lads a 26″ cube on close out about 18 months ago, at a guess, I haven’t looked, the geometry is a lot more modern than what I had through the late 90’s and most of the 2000’s, in a size I would have ridden, it felt dog shit around the car park, god knows how we rode those up hills and down dales, was horrendous, almost felt guilty buying it for him, however, to ride to school and back, fine, anything off-road? hell no

I never sold it. ’97 Lava Dome

I like tinkering on my first proper bike and riding it round after putting all the old bits on I could never afford as a kid. XTR yay. If it makes you happy why not?

You do have to pedal more to get anywhere on a 26 as its the final gear ratio, but other than that I barely notice the difference.

There’s 26 and 26.  My 2007 Patriot was a very capable descender and an absolute hoot.  My first bike though, a 1992 Kona Fire Mountain, was a completely different thing.  I very definitely notice the difference between that and my Nukeproof.

Both ride amazingly well on typical woodsy singletrack.

Unless you are very short, no they don’t. I had a 2007 Heihei scandium FS for ages (I need to get rid of the frame, PM me) which I loved at the time, but a few years ago I rode a 2005 Kona back to back with a 2015 Trek 29er and it was awful.  The front wheel on old bikes is underneath your chest which is great on climbs but awful on windy singletrack or descents.  But when it was all you knew it was normal.  There was a level of insecurity at the front that we just thought was part of MTBing until the issue was solved. I can throw my 29ers into corners in a way that would have had me eating dirt instantly on those old bikes that I used to think were brilliant.

MY roadbike I got in my 20s and still ride it but being of a certain age the bikes I had as a kid were like this

This was the bike from my youth and what fun we had .  40 years have past and  I still have it .

I’d love a ‘90’s Klein in the sunburst colour scheme but it would be an ornament, not a bike.

Cove stiffee.

With a 100mm stem I still wore knee pads. Mostly for smashing my knees into the bars.

With 130mm+ stem, 700c wheels and drop bars it would be an awesome gravel bike.

But I have a comment MTB with a mere 70mm stem and Jones bars that is probably better in every way.

So no. It was super fun at the time, but I wouldn’t buy it back.

It was this. A humble Trek 930 from 1994. Common sense has prevailed. This one was even cheaper!