Probably because they all broke but... Rocky Mountain ETS-X. I bloody loved mine, sold it to someone on here when I moved onto a 29er Element, but thought the ETS was a great bike. The alloy stay versions seemed to last better than the ones with the carbon rear.
In fact, there's one up on eBay... I'm not tempted, but I'll happily admire it from afar
I just recently put a set of u-turn revelations in my mk1 Soul. In fact literally the same forks I had in my original Soul, I sold em in about 2014 and then bought them back last year without realising. I think u-turn was my first experience of superior products getting killed because of convenience- "totally superior, properly adjustable product gets killed by Fox TALAS which was just a crippled climbing mode and less reliable and didn't work as well as the float and generally sucked donkey balls but works with a single press rather than the hideously onerous "turning a dial a few times"
Aside but i mentioned 26er Zesties up the page, the algorithm overheard and I spotted one on facebook classifieds yesterday and saw one at glentress today.
That ETSX is lovely. I always listed after that era of RM. Psyclewerx in Bristol had a Slayer in the window that I used to admire every time I walked past as a student. Could never afford one and ended up with a Marin hardtail, that admittedly was absolutely brilliant.
Turners
I have a Turner Flux hanging up in my garage.
I have a Flux v4.0 that still sees regular exercise.
https://www.pinkbike.com/buysell/3970569/
One of the aforementioned huck monsters. NOS, never built.
Actually a bit of a bargain. Last one to sell, having been used, went for £16k frame only.
This thread is a fascinating mix of bikes I wanted but couldn't afford/justify - early Marins, PRS-1, Turners, Ibis Tranny, Salsa Horsethief, and what I actually bought mainly On Ones. Still have a Lynskey 456Ti on U turn Revelations, the original Scandal is now reborn as a gravel/winter bike, my now grown up kids have an assortment of Inbreds and 456s and my son's original 456 small frame has been rebuilt and is ridden by a neighbour's son.
Some of the contents of my bike shed were never that common in the first place, a Montague Paratrooper ( also marketed as a Swiss bike ); a Slingshot Foldtech built up from a frame bought from On One who had somehow come into possession of a batch, never to be repeated; a Ventana El Rey bought from their only agents in the UK, Ventana are still going but I don't think you can get them on this side of the Atlantic anymore.
If fat bikes are now only found in reservations like the one near Formby ( presumably safely co-existing with the red squirrels ) then spare a thought for 29plus. I have a Singular Rooster, bought as a simple winter bike. Now difficult to get tyres for and uneconomic to sell, I had one offer and carriage would have cost more than the frame.
I did ride the Lynskey 456 on one event when MTBO restarted post pandemic. Luckily everyone wanted to talk about the bike I rode in on and not my score. Three people had had one in the past and made a beeline for me as I propped myself up and panted away, one lady said she still had the frame hanging on the wall in her office as she could no longer get parts for it but couldn't bear to get rid of it. We were then joined by a gent who wanted to know what the fuss was about and on being told said, "Really! I read all about them but I have never seen one until now." By the time the conversation stopped my pulse rate was almost back to normal.
However, I think the difficulty of getting sensibly priced, reliable replacement parts is an issue if you ride your decade old bikes regularly, particularly 26 forks with straight steerer tubes, and though I do have a few bits for the 26ers in the shed, the experience above made me realise that I did need to update slightly hence the Scandal being retired from MTBO duties and replaced by a Solaris. The rest? I will probably leave for the kids to deal with when I am gone and they have to clear out the shed, or I will follow the lady's example and hang them on the wall as art.
Now difficult to get tyres for
there bloomin loads of 29+ out there large numbers of stooges are still plus rubber, some the mainstream rubber folks have stopped making whoppers, but terrene, teravail, duro maxxis, WTB, surly, still make them and you can still pick up bontrager xr4's in a lot of places as well.
pretty every ride I go on, at least one person is on some form of plus rubber, rigid singlesspeedy thing. You lot just don't hang around with enough smelly weirdos
Proflex - never that common but way ahead of time. Could well make a decent gravel bike with the Girvn fork?
Scott Endorfin. Carbon Soft-tail back end that was reputed to crack at key stress points. Again, comfy gravel bike?
Neither of the above ever transitioned to Disc Brakes, due to cost of redesigning the back end, i believe, and I'm not sure teh Girvins could have easlily had a mount int eh tight place.
Early marin full suss bikes? Tubular frint end, box section swing arm. Were chuffing everywhere back in the turn of the millenium, transitioned to disk brakes and have had ongoing evolution since. Therre must be loads of Rift Zones in the backs of sheds.
Ohh...did someone mention Girvin foks
Just given my 28 year old set a refresh, along with the Zaskar LE frame that they are fitted with - purchased both back in 96 and still love them. Bike is built up with mixture of period XTR/XT/Mavic stuff
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EPX https://www.epxbikes.com/ep-x-2001-uk-brochure-download-
An Australian brand with a moncoque frame back in the late 90s & early 2000s. Probably way ahead of its time.
One feature was that the rear fork folded under the front of the frame to make it compact for travel.
(Needless to say, got one in the attic)
Fat bikes? Nah. Still riding and loving my Surly Ice Cream Truck. As for Turner, my Sultan is still being ridden regularly. It's funny but even with the chance to ride lots of shiny and new test bikes, I keep coming back to my own bikes and realizing just how much I enjoy riding them. Newer does not always mean better but definitely more expensive.?
I've got loads or at least have owned loads from this thread, but not seen one of these AFAIK. I was also the 3rd owner!!
Was that Ben Nevis ride for MTB Pro mag as part of the three peaks adventure you did? Remember you driving a Ford Maverick SUV between the peaks before they were a thing. Remind me. Did you summit Scafell Pike with the bikes? That was a great adventure to read about. Jesus. Was that really three decades ago? Bloody hell!
I've still got a single speed Inbred and a Cannondale Prophet.
The Inbred is one of those SS specific 853 jobs and is now in tarmac/sort of gravel spec with non knobbly tyres, solid forks and mudguards, I still love it. The Prophet is now ridden by my sixteen year old who absolutely loves it and goes dirt jumping on it, it's on its second frame ( donated by a friend who bought one and never rode it) unsurprisingly.
@sanny Yes, that was the one. Back before magazines knew about not summiting footpath-only Lakeland hills 🙂
I can still taste the Tropical flavour High5 we had to fuel us for that trip...
Pretty sure my 'highest puncture in the UK' record still stands...
My Turner Flux is a lot older than yours. The v4 is about 2014 mine is 2008 ish.
It does get ridden but not that often as I don't think the bearings for the older bikes are available and quite specific to Turners of that era.
Quite a bit more recent than most I'd suggest, but I bloody loved my Evils...
I had a Following first, then a Wreckoning, then an Offering... I probably sold a couple of dozen of them through my shop too over the 3 or 4 years that we sold Evil.
Not seen one on the trails in years now! Probably only a couple of times since I sold my Offering in 2020. Evil have almost entirely disappeared from the UK market.
A bit older, but not seen another Maverick in a while... Still have my Durance frame and DUC fork in the loft, but not seen one in use in a long time!
And Fat Bikes... As literally the last person in the world to join the throngs of fat bike owners (in 2020 during lockdown!), I bought mine literally just as everyone else was giving up on them! Would struggle to give it away now!
I still have a Maverick in perfect working order and keep it for passing visitors or as back up. Took my Genesis Core 40 to France last year and was pleasantly reminded what a spirited ride it provided. Haven't seen a PRST4 or a 456 in a long while.
My good lady has a Maverick. Still a very lovely bike. I saw a Whyte 46 in Ghyllside Cycles in the summer that is still going strong.
Which way did you go up and down Scafell Pike? Must have been pretty tough whichever route you took. Ben Nevis is a big step fest too. Ah yes, bikes and footpaths. You have inspired me to go and look out my old copies of MTB Pro from when you were a young fellow-me-lad. ?
Not seen a Fat Chance in forever......well, other than my own which I am rebuilding for a future article. It was a great bike and to be fair, still is. It was not one of those bottom up, heads down, stem like a tiller bikes that dominated the scene back then. My only nod to modernity is a Salsa Sunrise bar to give me a bit of width and height up front. Will be interesting to see how it stacks up against a modern gravel bike.
I wondered when @sanny would be on this with the contents of your closet.
I mean 'Sanny's bike mausoleum' 😉
The multiple Ibis softails?
The Specialized lugged carbon epic?
Does ginger still have that Cannondale XS, that was a lovely bike..
there should be a special feature on this
Your knowledge of my bike collection is impressive. Still have an Ibis Silk Ti soft tail. Loved that bike and have a nos SID to fit to it. Ginger punted the Cannondale to @spin many years ago. The S Works Carbon Epic is on display in Escape Route in Pitlochry. There is also my Ritchey Swiss Cross, Norco trials bike, first generation Salsa Beargrease (very rare!), Kinesis Tripster ATR, Salsa Fargo and others. Jeez. I have a lot of bikes! Of them all, I tend to ride my Surly ICT, DeAnima gravel and Turner Sultan. The rest only gets occasional outings so I should really get rid....except the Fargo as that is a real keeper.
Pretty sure you can add to the list! You have had some smashing bikes over the years.
Norco trials bike
Ah yes, after the Ryan Leech visit!
did you sell the 5spot for the sultan?
Pretty sure you can add to the list! You have had some smashing bikes over the years.
yes, I had some crackers.
an early (1992 I think) RM Blizzard, OCLV fisher procaliber with chromed RC30's and original crossmax ceramic wheels. 1st gen soul. that was a lovely bike. Oh the dekerf elysium titanium, that was quite the looker. and lots and lots of cannondales.
back to the thread. one bike I haven't seen but always thought was a great looking thing was a 2Souls Quarterhorse. No idea if it was any goo, but at the time it was nicely styled as a burly 29er HT.
Surprised ive not seen any Azonic's in this thread!
So ive had 4 Azonic's over the years, 3 Azonic DS1 Evo's and a Azonic Eliminator mk1
Only have pics of the last DS1 Evo build and a dody pic of the Mk1 Eliminator with DC Shivers!
Surprised ive not seen any Azonic’s in this thread!
check again 😉
Ginger punted the Cannondale to @spinmany years ago
@sanny I gave the frame to Chris at Chapeau Cycles a few years back. Not sure whether he was building it up or hanging it on the shop wall for the retro vibes!
On-One Pompino: I haven't seen one on the road for a while. They used to stand out with that blue colour.
@rone I do love a turner
06 five spot still in use here. Metallic blue and polished triangle
I must be going blind as i cant see any pics of other Azonics?
My Azonic Eliminator was bought from Wiggle in the days where you could order online and then wander in to thier warehouse to collect, my first Azonic DS1 Evo came from Halfords!
No pics, but they’ve been mentioned
Single speed specific frames. They make excellent low maintenance winter bikes it very hard to find now.
I’ve owned loads you never see any more, Original Kona Cindercone with the U brake, Orange Clockwork, Cannondale Super V, Cannondale Gemini, Cannondale Prophet MX, GT LTS Just to name a few.
Loved the looks of Rocky Mountain bikes, me and my mates could never work out why you rarely saw Wade Simmons on the same coloured RM7 till a mate got one. After the first two cracked in the same place he sold the second warranty frame on when RM said they wouldn’t warranty it again.
what happened to all the Marin FS bikes you use to see iirc they were referred to on here like the Ford of the bike world they were that common.
error...
Anyone know how to upload iCloud pictures to a hosting site? Won't let me access my library....
Charge Blender, there used to be loads of people ragging them downhill and at jump spots and now the only one I see is in my garage on pump bike duty.
Commencal Meta 5/55s were everywhere in about 2007, they (and the Spesh Enduro) were THE Megavalanche bikes of the time. I’m guessing they all snapped.
Have we done the "Mountain Cycles" and Ventana's? I didn't own any myself, but remember a couple of folks I met at some of the DH places riding the MC's. Was it Ventana that ripped off the MC design years ago?
I was a massive Cove fanboi, had the stiffee, and like others it got used for everything, it suffered a terminal crash (like all my bikes do). Also had the Gspot and Hustler - the hustler was always the bike that I thought would be a natural stiffee upgrade when going FS, it just felt right. I've also had one of mike's early PA's, it's still in the garage, stoopidly long top tube..
I had the Cove steel Handjob it had the worlds thinnest paint job.
Have we done the “Mountain Cycles”
I do remember lusting over some after going to the bikeshop in Tunbridge wells after riding at PORC.
On the rarer side of things also Sintesi. Very briefly popular but only in a few places. Still have a thruster which either need to stealth ad as a retrobike or restore for messing around on the local(ish) pumptrack.
"... leaves only the rider to blame for below-par performance" No skill compensator here!
In the early noughties I had a Saracen and I used to see a lot of X-iles and X-torts around. A bike from a time where riders were expected to be able to throw an X-up or manual for at least 3 car parking spaces to be vaguely respected. Discs, D321'S, DJ1's, Nokian gazzaloddi's... our bikes weren't rocking this spec though.
I wonder where all the inbreds and 456s are now
I very reluctantly sold my beloved inbred last year for £50 to make way for my comeback to modern MTBs. I think it's twighlight years are now as a caravan park shuttle on the East coast near brid
Saw a white Inbred chained up outside Deansgate Cotswold this week.
I have just remembered that I bought that inbred frame off someone on here in about 2008
What about a mongoose teocali? They were quite well regarded iirc.
Disappeared like mist on a summer morning
I wonder where all the inbreds and 456s are now
I donated my inbred frame to one of the charities a long time back, but I still have the inbred pictured saddle in one of the spares boxes.
Yeah, it was an ok bike, but **** sake was that thing prone to rust. Seemed the paint was just a bit thin if you know what i mean.
I still use an Inbred as a daily commuter!
@bruce apologies I missed your post. I think the v4.0 came out around 2016/17.
I bought mine direct from Turner in the US around 2018/19. It was certainly pre-Covid.
I've bought a spare bearing set from Turner, but think on the v4.0 model, they are pretty standard fare.
I use my inbred for pottering and mostly shopping duties. It's a little workhorse. Can't bear to sell it.
@el_boufador there's a special place in my soul for steel hardtails, I'm a big fan
This entire thread is mostly just a list of mid to high-end bikes fitted with 26" wheels. I know it's mostly a nostalgia trip, so people can reminisce about bikes they used to own, but it can mostly be summed up as 'pretty much anything with 26-inch wheels'. Except for Trek 69ers, which had only one of them.
We still have a Cotic Soul and a Ragley Ti in the house.
I wonder where all the inbreds and 456s are now
My daughter is pottering around York, riding to lectures on an old 456. Back to its spiritual home in Yaaaarshire
Have SC Chameleons been mentioned yet? Absolutely loved mine. It felt like an oversized BMX from a fun point of view, but was a proper do-it-all bike. I had to get rid of though as it was stiffer than a stiff thing and once you hit... ahem... 'a certain age' you need something a bit more forgiving
You don’t see many Lefties about these days.
This was a great bike.
You don’t see many Lefties about these days
and another thread goes political!
I remember almost buying a Brodie hole shot once. Haven't seen one since my uni days.
And in particular cyclo cross bikes with cantilever brakes. Last race I did last year I was the only rider I saw with cantis.
mine has been gravelized. Well I swapped the tyres, went to sram red 1x11 and got it down to sub eight kilos with a new carbon on-trend handlebar and carbon Fizik Antares. And it’s a Charge Freezer Ti too! What do I win? ? I did see the same bike for sale on eBay, but I’ve never seen another in the flesh.
I also ride a single speed Genesis IO as my mtb. Steel, 26” and SS.
And in particular cyclo cross bikes with cantilever brakes. Last race I did last year I was the only rider I saw with cantis.
Similarly, road bikes with rim brakes are now the exception rather than the norm. Was only 5 years ago where it was completely the other way around.
My last club ride was about 50-50 rim/disk. It seems the winter bikes are all rim as they are old. And that’s rather counter-intuitive. I have no disk road bikes. Still very happy with rim braking on alloy rims. I s long ride carbon wheels, and my Hed Jet6/9 also have alloy rims!
You don’t see many Lefties about these days.
Never had one. Still want one. Would need to be on a summer/dry ride only bike though I feel.
What about a mongoose teocali? They were quite well regarded iirc.
Disappeared like mist on a summer morning
Obviously not paying attention as I posted a picture of mine one page back!
kelvin
Full MemberNever had one. Still want one. Would need to be on a summer/dry ride only bike though I feel.
I'd love to cross the Bikes You Don't See Anymore streams and put one on my fatbike.
Here you go Northwind
https://www.merlincycles.com/cannondale-lefty-olaf-fatbike-fork-26-293328.html
@kelvin I rode mine in all weathers, in Pennine slop (including one ride where the brand new BB30 bearings had to be replaced afterwards as it was so wet) and didn’t have any problems. Servicing was a bit of an issue as it had to go to Derby.
