I think it needs a bit of work, but with the proper equipment I think it could do. It’s steel which is nice, I’m gonna throw a rear rack on it and try to fix the rear wheel which has murdered a bunch of my tubes in the past
by Hazardoos4
I think it needs a bit of work, but with the proper equipment I think it could do. It’s steel which is nice, I’m gonna throw a rear rack on it and try to fix the rear wheel which has murdered a bunch of my tubes in the past
by Hazardoos4
7 Comments
It’s perfect. Bombproof steel, and you can fit a full size frame bag in there if you want, even though it’s also got rack eyelets. Win win win.
That thing has potential! Currently using Kona Sutra LTD for my trips, but building one up from something like that is on my list to do.
It’s junk.
Old geometry.
Old gears and brakes.
26 inch wheels.
Not my cup of tea.
It’s a great start!
The big upgrade would be a cassette wheel if it doesn’t have one already. Freewheel will end up breaking quite often loaded on gravel.
Head over to r/xbiking to see lots of lovely old MTBs turned into gravel, bikepacking and commuter bikes.
I have bike packed on my unmodified ‘86 Rockhopper. Great trips.
Geo isn’t the same by far.
Rims are old and fragile.
I would opt for a new(er) bike with modern geo, new brakes and gears and at least 27.5 wheels.
What matters most is geometry/ bike fit which we cannot see and I guarantee you do not know unless you got fitted to the bike by someone qualified. After that the bike should have indepth maintenance done and ideally a few parts replaced such as pedals, locking grips & saddle, probably the chain as well if it is worn or improperly maintained.
After that you need to figure out a route & how much stuff you will take with. If you decide you need a lot of stuff, depending on how you carry it, that weight can put a LOT of stress on the bike and cause failures. Most likely failures with the wheel bearing & spokes, only viable way to address that issue is either quality built new wheels that were destressed, otherwise using a bike trailer could work to reduce stress on the bike by some margin (used bike trailers are typically cheap)