[bdamschen]

So currently I've got nothing but an DH/FR rig to ride, and while those are fun, I want to do some longer rides just for fitness sake.

Enter my 1993 gt avalache frame. I realized the other day that I have tons of half working parts lying around and this old frame. I've decided that I am going to try to build this frame up into a decent XC bike using ~$200. I've already got older XT drivetrain stuff, and stems and bars and brakes and stuff all over the place. The three things it looks like I'll need will be pedals, a fork and wheels (I already have the hubs).

So that's where you guys come in. I'm looking for the most dirt cheap components that are light enought to be considered decent on an XC bike ( ie no extra beef where I won't need it) but that isn't junk that will leave me stranded on the trail.

First question regards fork. I have found a manitou splice in the classifieds for $80. I haven't paid attention to XC stuff since about 1996 so I have no idea if this fork would work for what I want to do. Comments? Oh yeah, and no "it's manipoo, don't buy it" or "my brother's friend's cousin had a neighbor who said it was bad" type stuff.

 

[FBTMILF]

i like the crank bros candy c pedals. fairly cheap and good.

 

[blue]

The Splice uses crap damping (FluidFlow, does it not?), as well as weighing a ton, not to mention 80$ is a bit much for a bottom barrel OEM fork.

You should be able to score a killer deal on an older Marzocchi Marathon or Atom something...I had an 02 Marathon that was my favorite XC fork by far. Light, plush, and I got it for 200 bucks in 2004.

Snooping would also probably dredge up a fair number of Manitou Blacks and Skarebs in your price range. They're all right, not anything special or fancy, but they'll get the job done without paying a price in weight or damping.

I'd advise avoiding RS Duke/Psylo stuff...complete crap. You'll end up paying out the nose to fix them. You can probably find a SID for cheap, but SIDs are to be taken at face value...undamped noodle forks. If you want to get spendy, the best XC fork bang-for-your-buck wise right now is the Rockshox Reba.

 

[vtjim]

To begin with, I have loved that GT Avalanche frame since I started biking. Back when it came out I oggled over it but couldn't afford it (still a kid). Even today I keep my eye out for it just to finally quench the urge to own it. Nice.

As far as the Splice I have one. Mine runs up at 5 inches of travel though and what has already been said about it is true. It's heavy and just doesn't perform as well as other forks on the market. Mine is currently sitting in the RockShox box that it's replacement came in :biggrin:

Keep searching for a better fork! I'm sure you can find one.

 

[jacksonpt]

Hold off on the fork. It's not hard to find Manitou Blacks for $100, sometimes less. For an additional $20, but black is a far better fork.

And as metioned before... look for OEM deals on these things at greenfish and the like.

 

[bdamschen]

Thanks for the advice guys, I found a marz atom bomb that's got the same polished aluminum look as my frame for $150.

Next up for cheap, light and durable questions is crank and bottom bracket. I've got an older XT crankset and bottom bracket from around 1999 that I'm thinking about using. Comments, suggestions?

 

[MMcG]

Use that old XT crankset - it'll be fine!

 

[BikeGeek]

Use that old XT crankset - it'll be fine!

No doubt. I still run the one that came with my '97 Voodoo. Check the teeth for wear, the rings may need to be replaced, but the crank arms should be good.

 

[bdamschen]

Ok, XT crankset it is. Def going to need new rings, but I'll worry about that when the bike is closer to being done.

The last thing I need to get sorted out are wheels. What's a decent, sorta light and cheap rim and hub combo these days? They will need to work with *gasp!* v-brakes.

 

[Bikebro]

Mavic Cross Lands are like $250 for a pair and are disc/rim and tubeless via a rim strip. Find it hard in my shop to sell alot of people up from them since they are so nice for the money. Little on the heavy side only cause they use a nice beefy rim though.

Other thing you can do is just go around to some shops and see if they bought any pre built wheels on closeout.

 

[MMcG]

You usually can find some Rhynolites laced to shimano hubs for around a 100 bucks a set. Check www.greenfishsports.com for some other good deals.

Mavic 223s laced to Deore Disc Hubs for $89.00 - that's a good deal.

 

[bdamschen]

well, the 223s are disc only, so they're out. That would have been a good deal though. The crosslands are a little pricy considering how little I'm trying to spend on this bike.

I am also considering building the wheel myself(this is also a learning expirence build up as well as a cheap ass one), are rhyno lites XC enough? Or are they considered too heavy? I really want this bike sub 30 lbs, closer to ~26 but I have no idea how obtainable that is.

What hubs would be good if I were to build the wheel myself?

 

[vtjim]

If you want to make the bike really lite it's gonna' cost some dough if you ask me. At least it's gonna' make it much harder to get the bike built on the cheap.