[Closed] 30 years of Marin

hmm not doing it for me, but each to their own.. (ex-marin owner)

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Man I thought the Alchemist was ugly but they seemed to be able to dig deeper each year..

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I love it. But I often do love Marin's line up. Someone over there has a good eye. 8)

EDIT: The first, that is; not the second.

Boy do I like that pine mountain. Lusted after the grey marins with bright forks when I was a youth.

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Especially the Bear Valley SE with grey on grey.....mmmm.

£750 for that pine mountain looks a bloody good deal.

That is what I thought, surprised their hasn't been more interest in it.

Especially the Bear Valley SE with grey on grey

oh yes!

Rather like the look of these new ones too

Doesn't seem that long ago, 1987, that I was driving down the A1 to Shockwave to buy my first mountain bike.
An all black Marin Bear Valley.

For £750 that pine mountain looks like my new cycle to work scheme bike!

My first MTB was a 1993 Marin Palisades and when the frame cracked they replaced it with a Pine Mountain. Quite a nice bike but I wouldn't go back to it.

£750 is quite interesting

OK for £750, you can have my Pine Mountain (the 'real' one)

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I'm not a B+ fan but that pine mountain does look quite good as a bit of a load lugger/bikepacking bike...

Looks quite good (Pine Mtn), first thing I noticed was the thiiiin seatstays, then the weird dropouts,/chunky chainstay. Like the retro graphics/paint job.

Huge price difference from the 1 (4130) to the 2 (Columbus Thron) 😯

That is nice. Oldschool seatclamp!

I like that. Any pics and details of the Pine Mountain 2?

They've redesigned the Four Corners with discs and clearance for 29x2

Looks like an interesting/affordable adventure bike option?

[url] https://cyclingabout.com/2016-marin-four-corners-touring-bike/ [/url]

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That pine mountain looks great for £750 - unless it weighs 40 poonds that is... could be a contender for n+1 and/or d-/=1 8)

My first mtb (well, not actually my one but same model)
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I really fancy one of those new Pine Mountains even though I really don't need it...

My first proper mtb was a Palisades Trail - circa 1989. I really wanted a Kona Cindercone but there's only so many paper rounds a boy can do. Still, it was a pretty flash bike and we had some great adventures.

That matt baked paint finish was a thing of beauty. You don't really see innovation in paint any more.

It looked great when clean but not so good when it held onto mud from non-Californian trails...

.

Boy do I like that pine mountain. Lusted after the grey marins with bright forks when I was a youth.

Just need a new Araya RM20 front wheel, a Marin saddle and mk1 Shimano DX STI and my 1990 Pine Mountain will be mint. 8)

Had a couple of antique marins parked outside work recently. Bear valley SE and a bobcat trail iirc. Look nice - in a retro way.

I'm not digging the aesthetics of the new stuff (but all my bikes look shit so it's not as tho I care)

My first proper mtb was a Palisades Trail

I had a '93 bobcat trail that I used to commute on and do some light offroad touring on (had a couple of Gary Fisher's for more serious offroad stuff).

Lovely bike. I lent it to a mate that needed transport when his car broke down. Never got it back. I think his cousin has it now 🙁

The new Pine Mountain looks great and price is very nice. Interested to see what it's like.

My first mountain bike was a Marin, a Hawk Hill, and I bought it at about this time of year, 20 years ago. I still have it, others have come and gone, but he's staying 🙂

The new one seems to have a very large cassette. Saw a mention that it was a SunTour one (now that IS retro).

First mtb was a Marin rift zone. Awesome bike apart from the unbelievably leaky Manitou forks which needed stripping after almost every flipping wet ride...

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25yrs on and sat in my garage. Rockstar tyres perished and saddle swapped out years ago and clipless pedals on but otherwise as it was 25 years ago.

Loving the new Rift Zone 29!

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Just seen the rather odd brace on the PM1 fork - shame as it spoils the looks.

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Tour of Channel Islands 1990

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I think they missed a trick not actually recreating the Zolatone effect but I must concede it looks a corker for £750

I had 4 Marins from 1989 onwards. Black and gold Bear Valley, silver and purple ano Pine Mountain, then [i]that[/i] grey and orange Pine (long story) then the 1995 Team Ti that is in bits in my shed.

Loved every one.

Open to offers on the Team Titanium, by the way...

If it were the black and gold Bear Valley then I'd be tempted. One of my favourite looking mtbs of all time.

My first ATB

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I agree the grey + bright forks era was superb. I really wanted one but ended up in 1991 with a Specialized Rockhopper Sport

This bike is available next month - my mate's going to buy one

The fork brace has gone by the looks of things

Only possible issue is mud clearance according to this report

[url= http://www.bikeradar.com/mtb/news/article/marins-back-to-basics-plus-bike-is-one-to-watch-45366/ ]Marin’s back to basics plus bike is one to watch[/url]

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I've not been remotely interested in the fat or plus size nonsense but I do like the look of these.

I think the Pine Mountain 2 looks stunning - love the unpainted brazing of the cable points.

After my 27.5 plus hardtail test at the weekend I think it'd make a great n+1 bike, but £2.2k is a chunk of cash for something I probably wouldn't use much. The PM1 at £750 does look like great value though.

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Looks ace! my first proper MTB was a Marin bobcat trail 🙂

Another Palisades Trail here.
1993, I think, two tone grey with purple bits.

I even had a matching purple Castelli rain jacket - not a good look on a fat lad.

And yes, the new one is stunning.
😀

My local BS have stopped selling Marin - 'they've gone downhill' was their comment

I'm not a fan of the latest FS bikes. The join between the toptube and the seat tube is too "boxy" for my liking. But, that makes no sense as I like the look of my 07 Quake, which is "boxy" allover.

Mine looks like this... [img] [/img]

The welds are beautiful, too.

My local BS have stopped selling Marin - 'they've gone downhill' was their comment

They certainly did.

From this, which for the time was epic;
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Via this. Don't know if any of these made it in to the wild or not!
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To the new stuff. A good recovery, I'd say!

Then again, so did Saracen, and they're churning out some great stuff again now. For illustration, from this sort of thing;
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To this monstrosity;
[img] http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/download/file.php?id=74643 [/img]
And now, some great looking bikes;
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Good to see Marin getting back in the game properly. Good luck to them!

What is going on with that disappearing/reappearing fork brace?

No brace in the pic bonesetter has posted but in the bikeradar review he links to (dated 2/10/15)....

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That would be a deal breaker for me.

Am I the only one that bought a Nail trail.?

I loved that bike.

That would be a deal breaker for me too

It looks to be there for the mudguard mount they mention. Tbh there still looks plenty of clearance. Interestingly it's not on the marin website video either. I no longer mountain bike but this has me quite interested

@Rickmeister - nope, I had a 1995 Nail Trail.

But my first proper mtb at 11 years old was a 14.5 inch 1992 Bolinas Ridge, purple with lime green forks and decals... adored that bike, and is the reason why I still like the brand, even if I haven't bought one since the Nail Trail.

Still got my Nail Trail frame as a rigid SS. Bought it with last of my savings when very skint 2001ish. Well paid for itself many many times over

my first proper mtb was an eldridge grade...it was all matt black except the rears stays which were that dayglo orange/red. the decals and stem were the same colour.
i absolutely loved that bike. it rode beautifully and i was absolutely devastated when it got stolen...insurance wouldn't pay out either!!

i would love to own one again

Still the best bike I've owned.From sticking it on the bike rack,to bottle position to ease of worKing on it, then it's superb ride. Faultless.
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Just had it confirmed by marin the fork brace on the pine mountain is there on production models. It's for mudguard mounting. They also said a 29er x 2.3 should fit but 27.5+ should really be used as that's what it was designed for

Oh dear

(good work BTW - back to the Stooge then? Don't take any notice of the Greg downer piece. He's focused on non-issues)

My first MTB was a '92 Pine Mountain (which I understand is still in the garage of the guy I sold it to 20 years ago...).

I also had a DH-FRS (frame only, 6" travel, with 100mm forks...) which was the same as the B17 that made people reconsider how much travel you could have and still ride XC with
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zippykona I think if my East Peak from 1998 had had disc mounts I'd still be using it.

Lol bonesetter the stooge is beautiful. Marin is hard to see past for the cash tho. And it takes me back to my teens.

A genesis fortitude alfine with big clearance or a longitude with alfine. I'll just keep on thinking as I'm in no rush tbh

Tho tbh the fork brace thing doesn't bother me really it's quite handy so long as it doesn't restrict mud clearance

I had a '94 Bear Valley SE.The grey one. I loved it, but don't think I'll be returning to rigid steel now, nice as the new Pine Mountain looks

Charlie the BM has sold 2 PM1's

Here's 25yrs of Marin. 1990 Pine Mountain. Spent today sorting drivetrain, all new cables, put v brakes on, new grips, rack and road quick release mudguards. Also put City Jet tyres on.

Been sat doing nowt for years. Great feeling bringing an old friend back to life for new adventures.

Doing c2c on it next week. Can't wait.

Yeah I know the slabs need jet washing!

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My first one was a Nail Trail, broke it (1 month) and bought a Specialised, broke that (1 week) and have carried on spending money on bikes ever since.

Squin , that's brilliant!

When that was new I'd have ripped the piss because of the mudguards and rack.....25 years on and I'm in full agreement about having them! 😆

Thanks Jonnystorm. Rack and mudguards only went on for the first time yesterday (as did the slick tyres) in preparation for coast to coast. I'll probably keep it like is it after as it's going to be my commuting bike.

Having not ridden it for over 10 years, it feels like I've got a brand new bike. Most of the upgrades were from my spare parts box so I only spent apx £40 bringing it back to life.

In 2007 i got my first MTB - a Marin Wildcat Trail. I was blissfully unaware that you needed a different bike for every type of riding so used it for everything and it was brilliant. Ok, so not great at DH (neither was i to be fair) but more 'forky' forks soon gave me more confidence and if i was feeling brave, it was fast enough. All day rides were no problem as you'd expect from an all day bike but it was happy to partake in a spot of dirt jumping if i asked. I'm very surprised it's still in one piece as it really shouldn't be. I had some pretty big crashes on it and lost many rear wheels but the frame is still sound. I don't know if that's because modern mtbs are really rather strong or Marin make a great frame. Could be a bit of both but it has left a lasting impression of the brand. It still lives in my shed, ready for my eldest if he gets bored of rugby, football and gurls.

Look how pretty she is...
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I too am still running one like zippykona's above. Kept ahead of a few guys at CyB when we visited a few weeks ago.

Flap jack, we need pictures!