m1000

via www.peeble.com/bikes/bikes.htm

"This is largely original for an 11 year old bike. The groupset was Deore DX with Coda cantilevers (rebranded Dia-Compe 986s) and Force 40 cable routing. The bars were Tioga triple butted (which had a reputation for snapping) and the stem was an unbranded black one. The headset was a black Ritchey Logic in 1 1/4" size, which wasn't especially well sealed. The wheels are DX hubs with Wolber AT400 rims and plain gauge stainless spokes. The saddle is a very hard Vetta model with hollow chromoly rails.

The wheels, and chainset are still original, as is the seatpost (a pretty Kalloy affair branded Ritchey Logic). Force 40 wasn't all that great, so the brakes and levers are now Deore V-brakes which feel wonderful, although I'm sure that "noodle" is going to get clagged pretty regularly. The bars are Syncros and the stem is an incredibly rare (in Evolution size) Syncros Cattleprod. The headset is Shimano XT and I still have one additional pair of never-used spare cartridge bearings for it. Pedals are the first production DX SPDs. Very heavy but no cheap rubber seals that perish after 2 years, as on the newer ones.

Gear shifting was awful, so I got a new rear mech hanger from www.derailleurhanger.com (yes, there is such a thing!) which immediately showed how bent the old one was. Sadly, the RH thumbshifter also expired and now it's on STX RC Rapidfire units. These work extremely well although they're right in the firing line for mud. The rear mech is a new XT one because the DX one was getting sloppy (plus the crash that bent the hanger probably didn't do it much good).

The most significant change is the paint. It was originally a blue/black fade (there was a "gunmetal" option), which chipped very quickly. A few years ago I removed all the paint, but the bare aluminium didn't look that great. The frame was sound and perfectly welded, but the tubes have fairly deep extrusion marks which can't easily be polished out. It's just been stove enamelled in Ferrari red by Bob Jackson Cycles in Leeds.

It would be possible to fit 1 1/8" suspension forks with reducing bushes, but the frame doesn't have "suspension geometry". Besides, it's only 22lb without pedals and climbs like a rat up a drainpipe."