Thanks!, Andy, you did a nice job with it, you know, these old 10 speeds, (esp tall ones) don’t sell so well, I would not even bothered with this one but something about the color with that saddle,,, I knew I could get the bar tape close with a bit of amber shellac. I am really glad you adopted it and finished it. At 5’10” I could barely ride it
Just did a 700 conversion to a 1980 Holdworth Mistral. Horizontal drop outs like this Trek. New wider rims host a whopping 40mm tire - with plenty of clearance. Original Mafac racer brakes made the reach. Rides so well.
I had a 1987 blue Trek 400 Elance with Reynolds’s 531, Matrix wheels, and a Sakae Eliptical [oval) triple crank. Put 12k miles on it from age 14-16. The CrMo fork was so bouncy, I thought that was the way all bikes rode! Great video, thanks for the background on the bike build. Interesting stuff. Now go get some tacos, you big, brown-loving lug, you! Merry Christmas.
That Fuji America was my dream bike back in 1979. I couldn't afford one so I ended up buying a 1979 Trek 412... which I still own and ride. Those Suntour derailleurs and Sugino crankset are to die for!
@@brianlightbody2612 I’ve come to accept that something isn’t truly mine until I’ve left my “mark” on it. Gets you over the obsession of trying to keep everything pristine. If I own it and it never gets any dings at all, can I really say it’s “mine”?
Recovering from Total Knee Replacement watching my favorite TH-camr. Merry Christmas to you and your family Andy! Can’t wait to get back out on my bikes 👍🏻 keep up the awesome content.
I absolutely love old steel Treks. I have a 520 that I cycled around Europe on and when I bought it I fell in love with Treks. I’m always on the hunt for more to add to the collection but they’re not so easy to come by here in the U.K. That old Fuji was beautiful too; I would have been reluctant to pull that old girl apart.
I just converted my '85 steel Fuji to 700x38. It's a bit snug at the rear brake bridge, but it works. I measured and pondered at length before finally deciding to try. It's good to know even the pros don't know how much tire they'll be able to fit!
So good to see you reviving existing bikes to their former glory. Classic steel design was so good, and definitely better than merely good enough for who it's for, and better for all of us who use bikes for something other than flat out racing or bashing down mountains. I had only one bike, a 1970s Zeus, with the 171 Sugino Mighty Compe cranks (double ring), for 18 years (1976-1994), and the cranks were excellent. You've inspired me to revive it from its dusty furnace room resting place.
I picked up a 1977 Raleigh Grand Prix for a little bit of nothin' last year. It looked like it got ridden twice and hung up on the garage for 45 years. It came with 27" wheels ( 2x5sp). I wanted to convert it to 700c and, thankfully, it came with Weinmann center pull brakes, which had enough reach to work with the smaller wheels. I put semi-slick 700c x 40mm tires on it with the new wheels and now it serves as my primary road bike.
I currently ride a 1989 Trek 420. I bought the frame and fork in 1993. In the end of 1996 the frame was retro-fitted with the S&S coupling and the frame was repainted to a much nicer color. And in the end of 2016, I built a set of 650B wheels to do a 650B conversion and I love the ride it gave for this bike. The front wheel has a dynohub, I put a front rack to carry a Rando bag and the 650B also made room for fenders. I road it today doing a 110 km (69 miles) permanent ride for RUSA. This bike has been to a lot of different states including Hawaii. It has also ridden in many RUSA events. I love this bike! ...
On using Presta tubes in a Shraeder rim - I’ve put the locknut on the INSIDE of the rim and then a second locknut on the outside. Seals the holes around the gap and holds the stem in place ok. Especially on some locknuts that have a bit of a shoulder on one side, put that raised inner part facing into the hole either side to keep the little assembly centered. Works a treat!!
Thanks for the inspiration. I grabbed my oldest (by ownership date, not vintage) bike and gave the wheels some much needed TLC. The wheels were my first parts-up wheel build, and they had a little hop, low overall tension, and a little out of true; the usual beginner rough edges. Hopefully I can get it back into a form I actually enjoy riding again.
so good of you to leave the goof off fubar in the video. man, i woulda made the same mistake. now i won't, hopefully. i use goof off too. but sure serves as a good lesson to us all.
Great video! This is exactly how these thing go for me... progress is not linear. Dont swest the decals, the bike is great. I mean those Trek branded lugs .... oooooweee!
I built up my first bike when I was 16 back in 1989, it was a Raleigh road bike steel frame with threaded headset, crankset was "unknown" wheels were unknown. I took it apart with an adjustable wrench and pliers, stripped the paint by hand (learned the hard way about paint stripper and steel wool) put it back together with parts I would've bought, borrowed or stole... When it was done, I woke up early one Saturday morning and took it out for a shakedown, it worked flawlessly... Since then I've built up the majority of bikes I owned.
Damn brother I feel so bad for you about the decal. I was yelling "no" at the screen when you were doing the goof off because I did the EXACT same thing for the EXACT same reason to a Bianchi decal on my 85 bianchi I am building up for Eroica. Have a beer on me to drown your sorrows. I was so mad when I did this. If I'd seen your video before though I would have been more careful and you're going to save somebody.
Well frankly..good enough content to keep my attention. Old 27” decent quality frames are perfect for a 32-38mm tyre build. Perfect for a huge number of folk. Used to sell Trek bikes in the early-mid 80’s..back in the ‘hand made’ era of bike manufacturing. Excellent.
I used to have a Trek 620 that I had bought in the early 90s. It was my first really good bike. I put thousands of miles in on that bike. It disappeared during one of my many moves during my college years. I'd love to find a replacement that I could restore.
Wow! Never thought it could be so interesting watching someone working on a bike project. You’re teaching us a lot about the artistic as well as the mechanical side of bicycle technology-and some history too.. Really impressed by how you react to the way bicycle design is or isn’t aesthetically pleasing. Never heard anyone focus on the visual aspects, the artwork, involved in bicycle engineering. Thanks for humanizing the steel parts, the cables, and the whole conglomeration of components that produce such an amazing machine. Really appreciate the contrasts with so much emphasis on performance content on other cycling channels.
Thanks for uploading! This video goes well with my morning cup of coffee, no better way to start my weekend! I was planning on just staying home, but I now feel like hitting the trails with my bike.
I could just feel your heart sink into your stomach about the decals. I did find them on eBay and sent you a note on Instagram. That’s a cool fun bike. Maybe you just keep it as is. It looks great.
I used to have a Trek 620 that I bought used in the early 90s. I still miss that bike. I'm in Central Wisconsin, so I see a lot of older Trek bikes. I need to maybe see about tracking one down. Having the cable housings match the decals was a nice bit of attention to detail on Trek's part.
Hey Bike Farmer, nice job getting the hop out of those wheels, I think I spent about 3 days off and on getting the thump out of the wheels on a project bike during covid. Your new ride looks incredible.
Thanks! I **love** this video. This summer, I bought and fixed up a 1976 Schwinn Continental, which is the ultra-heavy steel Electro-Forged road bike that even Schwinn described as a "short tripper" bike. It was my first, I don't know, resto-mod?, bike. Since I'm mechanically inclined, though not for bikes so much, this was a great learning experience, and I love riding this classic bike. Since I bought it from a vintage bike guy in my area (the STL region), I found out that it had one owner before me, and he was glad that it went to someone who fixed it up with minimal upgrades (new wheels, brake pads, cables and housings). I already knew how to deal with bearings, grease, etc., so it was a good "learner" bike. Great video. And... I kept the suicide brake levers on my bike. Ooops!
Sanshin Matsumoto Works Company was the parent company for both Suntour and Sunshine. Sanshin also made hubs for Specialized in the 1980’s and early 90’s.
Sheldon Brown's website has a detailed overview of wheel sizes, including explanations that "27 inch" wheels are bigger than 27.5 inch wheels, (which are different from 27½ inch wheels!), and even bigger than 28 inch wheels, which are almost always the same thing as 29 inch wheels. Yay numbers!
I got into bikes this past summer and have learned so much from this channel. I tuned up and replaced a bunch of parts on a mid-90s Trek 1220, and was just gifted an early-00s Trek 2200 that I'm tuning up. (Both Made in USA!) My project bike is an old Fuji Gran Tourer that I want to put 700x35 wheels on with a Brooks saddle and bar end shifters, but every time i start messing with it I wonder if I shoulda just left it alone. Great content, Andy, right in the wheelhouse of what I'm trying to do in my own garage!
I convered an early 80s Raleigh Capri from 27s to 700c and from 5 to 7 spd rear. It really brought it to life. Added a 3 piece Exage Shimano crankset. For a steel bike it felt quick!
That exact make, model, year, color was my first nice bike. I bought it used from a shop in Colorado for $110 around 2005. It was immaculate. I don’t think it had ever been ridden. Had a lot of fun on that bike.
Really enjoyed this one - very inspiring. How lovely is that old frame, it might not be that “fancy” but it’s got definite value. Love to see your enthusiasm about it too.
This one was great timing for me because I just acquired a 1984 Mercian in very good condition. It’s got all Shimano 600 components, super tall gearing so standing up is required for any type of hill🤣
Thanks for the vid. I have a 1982 Trek 614 with 3x chain ring. I've had it now since new. I want to put 700x32 tires on it simply to have better tire choices. I wasn't sure the Diacomp brakes would work, but I think you answered that question. All my decals are gone except the head badge. I will try to dress that up using a sharpie. Thanks for the idea. I have 7 bikes and the 614 is the best riding. At 67 years old, I changed the drop bars out to upright and thumb shifters as I am not as agile as I used to be. Still has a nice classic look.
Nice video, I rescued a similar 64cm 1984-ish Trek from the scrapyard years ago (possibly a 620) 1. If you look at the head tube, the lugs and tube are an entire casting 2. The internal cable routing is neat, but it kept ghost shifting, I had to route the cable externally. 3. The rear dropout material is soft, had to flip the knurled axle locknuts over because they wore a groove in the metal. 4. Installed centerpull brakes with koolstop pads, sneaking a cable hanger on to that fastback seat bolt casting was a challenge. This vastly improved the braking. Also testing ENE wing shifters for fun. 5. It's like owning an old car, you learn every little quirk and problem/solution combination to keep it going.
As a winter rig I'm running a 1984 schwinn world sport! And i got lucky with the 700c conversion. Didn't even need to get long reach brakes. Thing rides fantastic and only cost me 30 dollars for the bike before mods
Thank you for replacing those pads. Most people try a rim brake bike with old dried out pads and then say rim brakes suck. Put new pads on adjust them and they work just right.
Loved this video! Same era as my 1983 Trek 620 which I bought new in Dubuque in 1984 and still occasionally ride today. You have inspired me to do some touring, so I am currently setting that bike up to do so. Components are modified from OEM, but love the feel of a good steel bike. Thanks Andy! Also, while not cheap, decal sets for that bike are available if you were so inclined. The build turned out great the way it ended up, though. Also, for what it is worth, I would be inclined to put the other crank set on it. The current crank is too nice for that bike! Enjoy your new ride once the weather is more cooperative!
Time to get back to tuning up/redo(gravel?) my old Motobacane Mirage and a donor Fuji steel gifted me... your passion and personality for these old bikes is infectious. 👍👍👍
Heck ya man! I have a 86’ trek 660 made with reynolds 531c steel Made in Waterloo Campy rings and cranks, shamano 600 rear derailleur, campy big ring derailleur, mallard 700 front wheel, shimano 600 rear wheel, modolo speedy cantilever brakes, shimano 105 levers brake, shimano 600 suicide shifters… basically new and all cleaned up. Rolling on 28s.. biggest I could fit Love that thing ha
I have the same bike, same year, same paint but smallest frame size they made. I converted it to a freehub 700c wheelset with new dual pivot Tekro sidepulls. It now has 8-speed Shimano bar end shifters with an older Shimano XT rear derailleur. I added Tektro inline cyclocross style brake levers to allow braking on the handlebar flats. It’s got Pasela PT 32mm tires on it. Fun bike.
Oof, its a little late now, but that magic eraser thing, the white sponge looking pad. They work great for removing paint overspray, or other unwanted pain marks, without removing much paint. it will make the paint dull, but you can polish it back.
The head tube on that 400 was cast as one piece. With top and bottom lugs cast into the head tube. The top tube and down tube were brazed into that one piece head tube. Tim Isaacs desiged it? Stuffed a 400 into a car. Cut it up afterwards, and saw how it was put together. Not a lot mitering on the tubes. Those are nice bikes.
Sometimes You Eat the Bear, and Sometimes the Bear Eats You. Fun little project. I love taking cool parts off a too small donor bike to make a different bike more better. 🤗🤔😉
Thanks for the vid. I'm in the process of rejuvinating a late 80s? 90s? (ivory?) Trek 400 I found in my local bike co-op. It has the same cable routing as yours does through the chain-stay!
Oh, this brings me back to a pair of '84 Treks I had for a rather short stint: an 850 ATB (which I scared myself with thanks to hanging with some off-road mental cases that year), and a 560 road bike I didn't give enough time to get dialed-in. Clearly Trek's peak period IMO.
I still have my Specialized Rock Hopper MTB from 1984, down to the original tires. My son is stating to ride it now. The bike owner stated that he hated these MTB and that it was not going to sell them anymore, this happened just before the Los Angles Olympics and MTB went to the moon in popularity after that.
Thanks for this video.Inspired me dig out a trek510 I've been sitting on.Its just a frame/fork with headset now but its fun to put in my stand to look at for a while !
I love bike drum brakes. Short pull brakes and have the brakes as close as possible to rubbing without rubbing. Stops stupid fast. Works as good as disc brakes without having to weld the frame.
That was a fun build to watch especially for this old guy. The feel and look of a Trek steel lugged frame is so cool. Thats why I've kept my 1980 700 series 531 bike. I'd buy a new steel Trek if they made them. Up the stack number and drop the top tube for easier stand over. No internal cable routing and up to 40c tires. Keep the steel fork. I can only wish.
I have the 1984 Trek 520, same color but Reynolds 501 frame and fork, cantilever brakes. I’ve also converted to 700c, was relatively easy with the stock cantis. I also have a 1991 750 hybrid that I’ve converted to into a drop bar gravel bike, last year of the lug frame, love these old Treks!!!
Right up my alley... Sunshine is also Sanshin and they really had some top shelf hubs too. I think they made the rebranded hubs for suntour, like sugino/sr for cranks and dia compe for brakes.
I have an '89 420, which I love. That bike was also a garage find. When I got it the paint was pristine, but after I built it up and took it out into the sun, the decal color faded super super fast. So, maybe the decals from Treks of this era are prone to being delicate.
You can ink jet print on water slide decal paper (spray a few coats of lacquer on top after ptinting) Bike Farmer water slide decals would be fun! I used to screen print them with gold ink for guitar restorers.
I did a full restoration on a 1980 Motobecane Grand Sprint, as close as I could find to the one I rode when I was an undergrad. My old bike was a '79 with Suntour Cyclone derailleurs. The bike I found has Shimano Altus, which are original to the '80. Though she's not a collectible bike, I treated the old girl with more TLC than we're seeing here.
Could you do a full chainstay dimple tutorial on this at all? Your wording and "good enough for who it's for" logic makes me more confident working on my own bikes.
I know the feeling about industry. I'm in U.K. city of Birmingham. I'm about 2 miles from the famous Brooks bike saddle factory. The factory barely has the name on it, on a nondescript industrial estate (in fancy streets in central London they sell the Brooks brand lifestyle for crazy money). There were lost of really good bikes made in Birmingham and Coventry (Raleigh Nottingham). Chinese production, change in fashions and other factors. These areas now are about 60 percent Pakistani, Sikh, Indian and what have you. People scratch a living where they can but it's a shame the industries, engineers retired or moved away. All this hype on AI but the majority of jobs sill require some guy getting up early in the morning to fix something mechanical or open a market stall and what have you. Anyway rambling on but love the video. The man obviously is very passionate. I think he would have a great time chatting to some of the bike enthusiasts here.
Suntour V-GT RD is another great classic option, can shift up to 34T rear cog. I have done three 27" to 700C conversions, a schwinn I was able to use the stock calipers (basic dia comps like the video) while the others I went with Tektro 559 calipers. I did file the slots a bit but really did not need to. Only one is a "gravel bike" (40 mm tires) build, the others I converted for better tire options. All were near free (until parts were bought). The cheaper frames probably have more tire space.
I'm also a proud owner of an '85 660 in the minty green, whatever it's called. I have it tracked out with matrix ISO sewups and superbe bits, it's my second favorite bike. Such a smoooth ride.
The 38 CM Nitto bars would be great for customizing a kid's bike that originally had straight/swept bars if the kid wanted to go fast. I replaced the standard wide swept bars with steel drop bars on my single-speed Western Auto 24-inch balloon tire bike in about 1966, when I was 13, for that reason. When riding into the wind or going fast down hills it made a noticeable difference. And back then, I was flexible enough to ride on the drops most of the time.
I share your sorrow about the decal. Cycling and bike restoration are definitely aesthetic pursuits. Pretty sweet vintage component choies. My thought would have been to use polishing compound to remove the paint speckles, but maybe it would have damaged the decal also. Hope you can find this style decal somewhere. Keith Anderson Cycles hooked me up with some Trek decals when they repainted my Trek 910 very long ago, but they no could no longer find the funky "Lord of the Rings" style.
Speaking a Fuji bikes never really Hurd of them but some guy on marketplace was trading a 2007 Fuji roubaix rc with fsa bottom bracket and gossamer cranks ultegra 6600 10 speed drivetrain and felt wheels the paint is really pretty gray and pearl looking white with carbon forks and beautiful carbon fiber seat stays I'm a huge mountain biker never been on anything hybrid or road bikish ever in my life but your videos made me trade him a schwinn mountain bike he wanted for a Fuji that needed to be gone threw and new shifters I think it was worth it and I'm exited to get out on it it moves so effortlessly and now I know the meaning of climbs like a goat I was in a way high gear for any of my mountain bikes to even try and climbb but that thing went right up the hill with speed I couldn't believe how nice they ride been building my own bikes to now thanks bike farmer 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
Thanks!, Andy, you did a nice job with it, you know, these old 10 speeds, (esp tall ones) don’t sell so well, I would not even bothered with this one but something about the color with that saddle,,, I knew I could get the bar tape close with a bit of amber shellac. I am really glad you adopted it and finished it. At 5’10” I could barely ride it
Wow Spence! You didn’t have to do that! 🥹
THATS ALOTTA TACOS!
Just did a 700 conversion to a 1980 Holdworth Mistral. Horizontal drop outs like this Trek. New wider rims host a whopping 40mm tire - with plenty of clearance.
Original Mafac racer brakes made the reach. Rides so well.
I had a 1987 blue Trek 400 Elance with Reynolds’s 531, Matrix wheels, and a Sakae Eliptical [oval) triple crank. Put 12k miles on it from age 14-16. The CrMo fork was so bouncy, I thought that was the way all bikes rode! Great video, thanks for the background on the bike build. Interesting stuff. Now go get some tacos, you big, brown-loving lug, you! Merry Christmas.
Excellent! Merry Christmas to you and yours!
That Fuji America was my dream bike back in 1979. I couldn't afford one so I ended up buying a 1979 Trek 412... which I still own and ride. Those Suntour derailleurs and Sugino crankset are to die for!
The "faded" TREK decal(?) adds to the "patina"...
I managed to ding up the paint on my new (to me) XO-1 while working on it angry. Just have to embrace the beausage!
yup... that's 'bespoke hand-crafted' now :D
Absolutely. That’s not a fuck up, that’s “patina” 😂😂
@@brianlightbody2612 I’ve come to accept that something isn’t truly mine until I’ve left my “mark” on it.
Gets you over the obsession of trying to keep everything pristine.
If I own it and it never gets any dings at all, can I really say it’s “mine”?
Recovering from Total Knee Replacement watching my favorite TH-camr. Merry Christmas to you and your family Andy! Can’t wait to get back out on my bikes 👍🏻 keep up the awesome content.
Merry Christmas! Speedy recovery! Thanks so much! ✌️❤️🚲
I absolutely love old steel Treks. I have a 520 that I cycled around Europe on and when I bought it I fell in love with Treks. I’m always on the hunt for more to add to the collection but they’re not so easy to come by here in the U.K. That old Fuji was beautiful too; I would have been reluctant to pull that old girl apart.
I was thinking the same thing about the Fuji!
I just converted my '85 steel Fuji to 700x38. It's a bit snug at the rear brake bridge, but it works. I measured and pondered at length before finally deciding to try. It's good to know even the pros don't know how much tire they'll be able to fit!
Great relaxing video, Andy. It's nice to see the older bikes getting love, especially with all the newer carbon stuff floating around.
Better than Sunday night television! So relaxing watching you wrench. The Trek came out amazing!
So good to see you reviving existing bikes to their former glory. Classic steel design was so good, and definitely better than merely good enough for who it's for, and better for all of us who use bikes for something other than flat out racing or bashing down mountains. I had only one bike, a 1970s Zeus, with the 171 Sugino Mighty Compe cranks (double ring), for 18 years (1976-1994), and the cranks were excellent. You've inspired me to revive it from its dusty furnace room resting place.
More builds like this dude ! Cold as hell here in Minnesota too !!
I picked up a 1977 Raleigh Grand Prix for a little bit of nothin' last year. It looked like it got ridden twice and hung up on the garage for 45 years. It came with 27" wheels ( 2x5sp). I wanted to convert it to 700c and, thankfully, it came with Weinmann center pull brakes, which had enough reach to work with the smaller wheels. I put semi-slick 700c x 40mm tires on it with the new wheels and now it serves as my primary road bike.
There is a good way to do it. Clay bar is often the best way to get overspray off painted surfaces.
Agree totally, I had a Trek 930,that had overspray white paint all over the frame, the clay bar got it all off but it took quite a while.
@@JohnPilling25 Yeah, the key is to be patient. Any 'quick fix" won't be!
I currently ride a 1989 Trek 420. I bought the frame and fork in 1993. In the end of 1996 the frame was retro-fitted with the S&S coupling and the frame was repainted to a much nicer color. And in the end of 2016, I built a set of 650B wheels to do a 650B conversion and I love the ride it gave for this bike. The front wheel has a dynohub, I put a front rack to carry a Rando bag and the 650B also made room for fenders. I road it today doing a 110 km (69 miles) permanent ride for RUSA. This bike has been to a lot of different states including Hawaii. It has also ridden in many RUSA events. I love this bike! ...
On using Presta tubes in a Shraeder rim - I’ve put the locknut on the INSIDE of the rim and then a second locknut on the outside. Seals the holes around the gap and holds the stem in place ok. Especially on some locknuts that have a bit of a shoulder on one side, put that raised inner part facing into the hole either side to keep the little assembly centered. Works a treat!!
Thanks for the inspiration. I grabbed my oldest (by ownership date, not vintage) bike and gave the wheels some much needed TLC. The wheels were my first parts-up wheel build, and they had a little hop, low overall tension, and a little out of true; the usual beginner rough edges. Hopefully I can get it back into a form I actually enjoy riding again.
Thanks hey!
so good of you to leave the goof off fubar in the video. man, i woulda made the same mistake. now i won't, hopefully. i use goof off too. but sure serves as a good lesson to us all.
Great video! This is exactly how these thing go for me... progress is not linear. Dont swest the decals, the bike is great. I mean those Trek branded lugs .... oooooweee!
I built up my first bike when I was 16 back in 1989, it was a Raleigh road bike steel frame with threaded headset, crankset was "unknown" wheels were unknown. I took it apart with an adjustable wrench and pliers, stripped the paint by hand (learned the hard way about paint stripper and steel wool) put it back together with parts I would've bought, borrowed or stole... When it was done, I woke up early one Saturday morning and took it out for a shakedown, it worked flawlessly... Since then I've built up the majority of bikes I owned.
Damn brother I feel so bad for you about the decal. I was yelling "no" at the screen when you were doing the goof off because I did the EXACT same thing for the EXACT same reason to a Bianchi decal on my 85 bianchi I am building up for Eroica. Have a beer on me to drown your sorrows. I was so mad when I did this. If I'd seen your video before though I would have been more careful and you're going to save somebody.
Thanks hey!
Well frankly..good enough content to keep my attention. Old 27” decent quality frames are perfect for a 32-38mm tyre build. Perfect for a huge number of folk. Used to sell Trek bikes in the early-mid 80’s..back in the ‘hand made’ era of bike manufacturing. Excellent.
I’ve got a 1984 Trek 620. I love that bike and have done so many tours with it here, in Canada and in France.
I used to have a Trek 620 that I had bought in the early 90s. It was my first really good bike. I put thousands of miles in on that bike. It disappeared during one of my many moves during my college years. I'd love to find a replacement that I could restore.
@ That’s a very sad tale. I wish you luck finding another one!
Wow! Never thought it could be so interesting watching someone working on a bike project. You’re teaching us a lot about the artistic as well as the mechanical side of bicycle technology-and some history too.. Really impressed by how you react to the way bicycle design is or isn’t aesthetically pleasing. Never heard anyone focus on the visual aspects, the artwork, involved in bicycle engineering. Thanks for humanizing the steel parts, the cables, and the whole conglomeration of components that produce such an amazing machine. Really appreciate the contrasts with so much emphasis on performance content on other cycling channels.
I’m not a bike geek at all, but I enjoy watching and learning more about bikes!
Thanks for uploading! This video goes well with my morning cup of coffee, no better way to start my weekend! I was planning on just staying home, but I now feel like hitting the trails with my bike.
I’ve got an old Trek like this in my storage unit. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with it, but thanks to this video I’ve now got some idea.
I converted a 1986 Miyata 710 with Suntour Cyclone II derailleurs and shifters from 700c-25mm to 650b-38mm. I love that bike.
Agreed, 1980s Miyata are super silky, love them.
I could just feel your heart sink into your stomach about the decals. I did find them on eBay and sent you a note on Instagram. That’s a cool fun bike. Maybe you just keep it as is. It looks great.
Andy, absolutely love your appreciation of true bike art!!
Those 400s are a great value for sure! They are great for the money.
I used to have a Trek 620 that I bought used in the early 90s. I still miss that bike. I'm in Central Wisconsin, so I see a lot of older Trek bikes. I need to maybe see about tracking one down. Having the cable housings match the decals was a nice bit of attention to detail on Trek's part.
Thanks
Hey Bike Farmer, nice job getting the hop out of those wheels, I think I spent about 3 days off and on getting the thump out of the wheels on a project bike during covid. Your new ride looks incredible.
Thanks! I **love** this video. This summer, I bought and fixed up a 1976 Schwinn Continental, which is the ultra-heavy steel Electro-Forged road bike that even Schwinn described as a "short tripper" bike. It was my first, I don't know, resto-mod?, bike. Since I'm mechanically inclined, though not for bikes so much, this was a great learning experience, and I love riding this classic bike. Since I bought it from a vintage bike guy in my area (the STL region), I found out that it had one owner before me, and he was glad that it went to someone who fixed it up with minimal upgrades (new wheels, brake pads, cables and housings). I already knew how to deal with bearings, grease, etc., so it was a good "learner" bike. Great video. And... I kept the suicide brake levers on my bike. Ooops!
Thanks for all the great videos! Your 'good enough for who it's for' ethos has kept me from going overboard on a few recent upgrades...
Thanks much!!
Sanshin Matsumoto Works Company was the parent company for both Suntour and Sunshine. Sanshin also made hubs for Specialized in the 1980’s and early 90’s.
Sheldon Brown's website has a detailed overview of wheel sizes, including explanations that "27 inch" wheels are bigger than 27.5 inch wheels, (which are different from 27½ inch wheels!), and even bigger than 28 inch wheels, which are almost always the same thing as 29 inch wheels. Yay numbers!
27 inch = 630 mm
27.5 inch = 584 mm
28 and 29 inch = 622 mm
Thank you for sharing your knowledge and your enthusiasm surrounding bicycling!
Thanks, that’s what it’s all about!
Something always happens, but it does spoil your day. Such amazing work on these old bikes, a very overlooked area.
That reflector you took of the front would be great for keeping a bag of the frame.
The reflector bracket could be a great way to retrofit a decaleur to support a bag on a front rack. Never thought of that!
I got into bikes this past summer and have learned so much from this channel. I tuned up and replaced a bunch of parts on a mid-90s Trek 1220, and was just gifted an early-00s Trek 2200 that I'm tuning up. (Both Made in USA!)
My project bike is an old Fuji Gran Tourer that I want to put 700x35 wheels on with a Brooks saddle and bar end shifters, but every time i start messing with it I wonder if I shoulda just left it alone. Great content, Andy, right in the wheelhouse of what I'm trying to do in my own garage!
♫ All I wanna do when I wake up in the mornin' is see your eyes...Hozanna, Hozanna ♫
Not bad! 😂🤣
@@bkefrmr I've known about the JIS/Phillips issue for quite some time but did purchase some Hozans because of your videos.
I convered an early 80s Raleigh Capri from 27s to 700c and from 5 to 7 spd rear. It really brought it to life. Added a 3 piece Exage Shimano crankset. For a steel bike it felt quick!
That exact make, model, year, color was my first nice bike.
I bought it used from a shop in Colorado for $110 around 2005.
It was immaculate. I don’t think it had ever been ridden.
Had a lot of fun on that bike.
Really enjoyed this one - very inspiring. How lovely is that old frame, it might not be that “fancy” but it’s got definite value. Love to see your enthusiasm about it too.
I just refurbished a 1979 trek that had campy 700c wheels already on it, pretty sweet ride other than the down tube shifters!
Enjoyed this one, thank you!
Thank you!
This one was great timing for me because I just acquired a 1984 Mercian in very good condition. It’s got all Shimano 600 components, super tall gearing so standing up is required for any type of hill🤣
Perfect timing! Today, I embark on converting a buddies Peugeot 27” to 700c wide tire. Hope to learn from you, Andy!
I converted a 27” 1987 Cannondale to 700c but my original brakes didn’t reach the rims. Tektro has a longer reach brake which worked very well.
You took the words right out of my mouth! " Perfect timing" lol. I just started my 27" to 700c gravel conversion on my1990s Schwinn World Sport today.
Those Tektro long reach dual pivot brakes are absolutely fantastic, cheap too.
I had a Suntour Cyclone rear derailleur on my bike back in the 80s. I loved it. Never gave me any problems.
Thanks for the vid. I have a 1982 Trek 614 with 3x chain ring. I've had it now since new. I want to put 700x32 tires on it simply to have better tire choices. I wasn't sure the Diacomp brakes would work, but I think you answered that question. All my decals are gone except the head badge. I will try to dress that up using a sharpie. Thanks for the idea. I have 7 bikes and the 614 is the best riding. At 67 years old, I changed the drop bars out to upright and thumb shifters as I am not as agile as I used to be. Still has a nice classic look.
Nice video, I rescued a similar 64cm 1984-ish Trek from the scrapyard years ago (possibly a 620)
1. If you look at the head tube, the lugs and tube are an entire casting
2. The internal cable routing is neat, but it kept ghost shifting, I had to route the cable externally.
3. The rear dropout material is soft, had to flip the knurled axle locknuts over because they wore a groove in the metal.
4. Installed centerpull brakes with koolstop pads, sneaking a cable hanger on to that fastback seat bolt casting was a challenge. This vastly improved the braking. Also testing ENE wing shifters for fun.
5. It's like owning an old car, you learn every little quirk and problem/solution combination to keep it going.
Thanks!
Thanks hey!!
As a winter rig I'm running a 1984 schwinn world sport! And i got lucky with the 700c conversion. Didn't even need to get long reach brakes. Thing rides fantastic and only cost me 30 dollars for the bike before mods
Danke!
Thank you!
I’ve got one of those derailleurs on a Raleigh Super Course. Love it.
Thank you for replacing those pads. Most people try a rim brake bike with old dried out pads and then say rim brakes suck. Put new pads on adjust them and they work just right.
Loved this video! Same era as my 1983 Trek 620 which I bought new in Dubuque in 1984 and still occasionally ride today. You have inspired me to do some touring, so I am currently setting that bike up to do so. Components are modified from OEM, but love the feel of a good steel bike. Thanks Andy!
Also, while not cheap, decal sets for that bike are available if you were so inclined. The build turned out great the way it ended up, though. Also, for what it is worth, I would be inclined to put the other crank set on it. The current crank is too nice for that bike! Enjoy your new ride once the weather is more cooperative!
Time to get back to tuning up/redo(gravel?) my old Motobacane Mirage and a donor Fuji steel gifted me... your passion and personality for these old bikes is infectious. 👍👍👍
Heck ya man! I have a 86’ trek 660 made with reynolds 531c steel
Made in Waterloo
Campy rings and cranks, shamano 600 rear derailleur, campy big ring derailleur, mallard 700 front wheel, shimano 600 rear wheel, modolo speedy cantilever brakes, shimano 105 levers brake, shimano 600 suicide shifters… basically new and all cleaned up. Rolling on 28s.. biggest I could fit
Love that thing ha
Sounds like you've got a real beauty there!
Thanks man! Not everyone appreciates this stuff. I was thinking you could do finger nail polish to touch up the lettering decals
My favorite rear derailleur is the Suntour Superbe from early 80's. It's regarded by many as the finest shifting friction rear derailleur ever made.
I have the same bike, same year, same paint but smallest frame size they made. I converted it to a freehub 700c wheelset with new dual pivot Tekro sidepulls. It now has 8-speed Shimano bar end shifters with an older Shimano XT rear derailleur. I added Tektro inline cyclocross style brake levers to allow braking on the handlebar flats. It’s got Pasela PT 32mm tires on it. Fun bike.
Oof, its a little late now, but that magic eraser thing, the white sponge looking pad. They work great for removing paint overspray, or other unwanted pain marks, without removing much paint. it will make the paint dull, but you can polish it back.
Probably my favorite video of yours. Cheers!
I owned that bike
I gave it away yrs ago. I miss it.
I certainly wouldnt do again. I never thought the industry would become what it has
Very amusing video that. Enjoyed it. Have a great Sunday!
Absolutely love them 80s trek
and I'd be happy with that Fuji. But you came out good side of happy. Thanks for letting us watch again.
The head tube on that 400 was cast as one piece. With top and bottom lugs cast into the head tube. The top tube and down tube were brazed into that one piece head tube. Tim Isaacs desiged it? Stuffed a 400 into a car. Cut it up afterwards, and saw how it was put together. Not a lot mitering on the tubes. Those are nice bikes.
Sometimes You Eat the Bear, and Sometimes the Bear Eats You.
Fun little project. I love taking cool parts off a too small donor bike to make a different bike more better. 🤗🤔😉
Wow cool gear shift levers on the end of the handle bars I like that
thanks for the entertainment on a cold saturday morning!
Thanks for the vid. I'm in the process of rejuvinating a late 80s? 90s? (ivory?) Trek 400 I found in my local bike co-op. It has the same cable routing as yours does through the chain-stay!
Oh, this brings me back to a pair of '84 Treks I had for a rather short stint: an 850 ATB (which I scared myself with thanks to hanging with some off-road mental cases that year), and a 560 road bike I didn't give enough time to get dialed-in. Clearly Trek's peak period IMO.
I still have my Specialized Rock Hopper MTB from 1984, down to the original tires. My son is stating to ride it now. The bike owner stated that he hated these MTB and that it was not going to sell them anymore, this happened just before the Los Angles Olympics and MTB went to the moon in popularity after that.
Fun Fact. 'suicide levers' referred to the seat tube derailleur lever.
I run a Dawes 70's frame with 700 Weinmann wheels and 35mmm tyres, no problem.
Thanks for this video.Inspired me dig out a trek510 I've been sitting on.Its just a frame/fork with headset now but its fun to put in my stand to look at for a while !
I solved the brake issue using 700c rims by lacing them onto drum brake hubs. It looks great but... you need to allow for greater braking distance...
I love bike drum brakes. Short pull brakes and have the brakes as close as possible to rubbing without rubbing. Stops stupid fast. Works as good as disc brakes without having to weld the frame.
That was a fun build to watch especially for this old guy. The feel and look of a Trek steel lugged frame is so cool. Thats why I've kept my 1980 700 series 531 bike. I'd buy a new steel Trek if they made them. Up the stack number and drop the top tube for easier stand over. No internal cable routing and up to 40c tires. Keep the steel fork.
I can only wish.
I have the 1984 Trek 520, same color but Reynolds 501 frame and fork, cantilever brakes. I’ve also converted to 700c, was relatively easy with the stock cantis. I also have a 1991 750 hybrid that I’ve converted to into a drop bar gravel bike, last year of the lug frame, love these old Treks!!!
I worked at the factory in Whitewater back in the mid 90’s. Man I miss those great bikes from the 80’s.
Wasn't a bike fixe,was more like a spiritual journey 😁, awesome content,big fan
Right up my alley... Sunshine is also Sanshin and they really had some top shelf hubs too. I think they made the rebranded hubs for suntour, like sugino/sr for cranks and dia compe for brakes.
I have an '89 420, which I love. That bike was also a garage find. When I got it the paint was pristine, but after I built it up and took it out into the sun, the decal color faded super super fast. So, maybe the decals from Treks of this era are prone to being delicate.
Yeah, those decals are definitely fragile!
@@bkefrmr There is a 420 set on ebay currently. Looks like it might be the same colors.
I have been doing these conversions since the mid 90’s. 🤘🤘 love your channel BTW.
Awesome! Thank you!
I have a baby-blue ‘88 in 700C. Love it! Classic sport-touring geometry with a triple up front.
Just converted a 1985 Miyata 100! From drop bars with downtubes on 27" wheels to 700x35c with Alivio shifters on a flat bar.
I built an 1980ish 515 frame up for my wife. When I see the lugs on your bike I think "Oh, a modern Trek"
You can ink jet print on water slide decal paper (spray a few coats of lacquer on top after ptinting) Bike Farmer water slide decals would be fun! I used to screen print them with gold ink for guitar restorers.
I did a full restoration on a 1980 Motobecane Grand Sprint, as close as I could find to the one I rode when I was an undergrad. My old bike was a '79 with Suntour Cyclone derailleurs. The bike I found has Shimano Altus, which are original to the '80. Though she's not a collectible bike, I treated the old girl with more TLC than we're seeing here.
Could you do a full chainstay dimple tutorial on this at all? Your wording and "good enough for who it's for" logic makes me more confident working on my own bikes.
I know the feeling about industry. I'm in U.K. city of Birmingham. I'm about 2 miles from the famous Brooks bike saddle factory. The factory barely has the name on it, on a nondescript industrial estate (in fancy streets in central London they sell the Brooks brand lifestyle for crazy money). There were lost of really good bikes made in Birmingham and Coventry (Raleigh Nottingham). Chinese production, change in fashions and other factors. These areas now are about 60 percent Pakistani, Sikh, Indian and what have you. People scratch a living where they can but it's a shame the industries, engineers retired or moved away. All this hype on AI but the majority of jobs sill require some guy getting up early in the morning to fix something mechanical or open a market stall and what have you. Anyway rambling on but love the video. The man obviously is very passionate. I think he would have a great time chatting to some of the bike enthusiasts here.
Suntour V-GT RD is another great classic option, can shift up to 34T rear cog. I have done three 27" to 700C conversions, a schwinn I was able to use the stock calipers (basic dia comps like the video) while the others I went with Tektro 559 calipers. I did file the slots a bit but really did not need to. Only one is a "gravel bike" (40 mm tires) build, the others I converted for better tire options. All were near free (until parts were bought). The cheaper frames probably have more tire space.
I'm also a proud owner of an '85 660 in the minty green, whatever it's called. I have it tracked out with matrix ISO sewups and superbe bits, it's my second favorite bike. Such a smoooth ride.
The 38 CM Nitto bars would be great for customizing a kid's bike that originally had straight/swept bars if the kid wanted to go fast. I replaced the standard wide swept bars with steel drop bars on my single-speed Western Auto 24-inch balloon tire bike in about 1966, when I was 13, for that reason. When riding into the wind or going fast down hills it made a noticeable difference. And back then, I was flexible enough to ride on the drops most of the time.
I share your sorrow about the decal. Cycling and bike restoration are definitely aesthetic pursuits. Pretty sweet vintage component choies. My thought would have been to use polishing compound to remove the paint speckles, but maybe it would have damaged the decal also. Hope you can find this style decal somewhere. Keith Anderson Cycles hooked me up with some Trek decals when they repainted my Trek 910 very long ago, but they no could no longer find the funky "Lord of the Rings" style.
I would've revived the Fuji, but the heart wants what it wants. Sometimes you need an earthtone bike.
yeahhhhh, I would have gone with the Fuji, too. But the local connection with Trek is pretty cool.
Speaking a Fuji bikes never really Hurd of them but some guy on marketplace was trading a 2007 Fuji roubaix rc with fsa bottom bracket and gossamer cranks ultegra 6600 10 speed drivetrain and felt wheels the paint is really pretty gray and pearl looking white with carbon forks and beautiful carbon fiber seat stays I'm a huge mountain biker never been on anything hybrid or road bikish ever in my life but your videos made me trade him a schwinn mountain bike he wanted for a Fuji that needed to be gone threw and new shifters I think it was worth it and I'm exited to get out on it it moves so effortlessly and now I know the meaning of climbs like a goat I was in a way high gear for any of my mountain bikes to even try and climbb but that thing went right up the hill with speed I couldn't believe how nice they ride been building my own bikes to now thanks bike farmer 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
Tacos today! Thanks!
Thanks hey!
Enjoyed both the video and the soft background music!
That’s what I was going for, thanks!