Must be trying for a divorce or something!
No special place in my heart for Bontys, but cool handbuilt American steel none the less.
Frame only...this one might take a while to figure out the build.
Great looking bike. There's a good chance I built that frame... depending on the year. From the look of the seat stays it's a 1994 or earlier model. We went to a 1 piece seatstay in late 1994 iirc. Enjoy it! Cheers, KP
I have been researching a bit. I don't know the exact year of the frame, I read that the f der cable stop got moved from the back to the side of the seat tube in '94.
DC
I think I got that backwards???? I think this one is looking to be a '94 due to the combo of sleeved stays, the side mounted cable stop and the non square edged decals (slanted ends of panels).
$175.00 !!! - I'd say the cranks are worth that alone.
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Curious how you'll like the ride compared to your Fat.
I had that chance to compare the rides of both back in the 90's. I thought the Bontrager was very responsive, but rocky downhills always made me feel like I was going to go over the bars. Thats why I chose a used Fat Chance for the same price I could get a new Bontrager. I've never looked back. HOWEVER, I agree that they are top notch in the construction and they look sweet too! We'll see how this girl handles, probably won't have a Bonty offset fork(at least at first). It also probably won't get built as a traditional trail bike, as that is what my Yo and Buck are for!
I have built a lot of frames and been to a lot of bike factories, and can say that with the exception of TST, Bontrager frames were built better than anything else I have ever seen in person. TST (Sandvik) being an exception... but only because we insisted they use our process to build frames. They were so impressed with the results that they adopted the process for all of their frame production. I felt the same way on my Bontrager. My only complaint was that the seat angle was way too steep and put the rider in a much too forward position. I got launched over the bars more on my first Race Lite than any other bike before or since. Fortunately since I worked there, I was able build myself custom frames sporting twin 72/72 seat and head angles and a longer top tube [24"], a combo that still works perfectly for me today (for hardtails). Cheers, KP
It is the coolest thing getting to hear your inside perspective on the Bontragers, Kirk!
The first fork I'll be putting on it will be a Vicious 415(413?)mm that Colker is sending my way. Something in my gut tells me this may ride pretty well, we'll see!
Frame coming from Cali, fork from Rio...I'll be impatient very soon.
I'd say the possibility of this frame hanging around as wall art for a while are slim to none!!!
What was the point of the different fork offset? If you've ridden a bonty with and without, did it really make it better, or what? We sold a few, but I never spent much time on them since we never got any in that fit me (read, I'm tall).