1989 Raleigh Appalachian

Tropheus

Hi Folks,

I was big into cycling up to about 12 years ago. I have a 1989 Raleigh Appalachian which I bought new. During its active life, it covered a lot of miles - 20k at a guess. I did mostly road riding for commuting and keeping fit.

It was the top of the range Raleigh ATB at the time and has a full Deore XT group set. It's dated by today's standards, but is still good quality.

The problem is that the bike has been lying up for the last 12 years. It has been indoors so is still in good overall condition. I want to get it going again so I can get a bit fitter and lose some weight.

What do I need to consider? Obviously new tyres, tubes and brake blocks will be a must. Do I need to look at gear and brake cables? To my knowledge, the rear cassette or chain have never been replaced. There's also some ware on the front centre ring as it's the one I used most of the time on the road.

How easy will it be to get parts for a bike this old? Anything else I may be overlooking? Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Ken.

Tonyandthewhale

Brake cables and gear cables are two euro each so I'd replace them if they're at all worn or rusted or stiff.
As regards cassette, chain, if they've been on the bike for 20k then they need to be replaced. I'm guessing it's either 7 speed or 8 speed. Both 7 speed freewheel cassettes and 8 speed freehub cassettes are still available (although the 7 wheel stuff might be a bit harder to find). 5, 6, 7 and 8 speed chains are all the same width so that's not a problem either.
Similarly you shouldn't have any trouble finding a replacement chainring, as far as I know the standards haven't changed although I'm not sure as I wasn't messing around with mountain bikes 12 years ago.

Check the rims for wear while you're at it and obviously give all the bearings in the hubs, headset and bottom bracket a going over too while you're at it and you should be good to go.

Tropheus

Thanks, I'll give that a go. I haven't done any big jobs on the bike previously as it never needed them, but I've worked on my car a bit so should be able to manage with some pre-reading.

You're correct, it's a 7 speed cassette. I never really used all 7 gears and don't really understand the need for the current 9 and 10 speeds. Maybe I'm getting old:D

Tonyandthewhale

You'll need a chain tool to break the old chain and cut the new chain to lenght and a cassette lockring tool to change the cassette (and a chainwhip if it's a freehub rather than thread on freewheel) and a set of allen keys.

If you don't want to have to splash out the extra money on tools, rothar in phibsborough will let you rent out workspace and tools for 5e an hour (provided your in Dublin) or your local bike shop will do it all for you no problem.

VanhireBoys

I put my old bike back on the road after a 23 year lay off..! It was indoors as well.. If a bike is left outside then its going to have siezed stuff ...

The compound in the tyres had gotton hard so there was no grip. The brake cables and gear cables were 100%. The block and chain I replaced as it was a 20-15T 7 speed and I didnt have the legs for it....! I replaced it with a 28-14T 7 speed from a MTB. I had to build another bike after an "off" .. Bent the frame in bits:mad:

If she has Deore XT then there wont be any bother...!

I found this site more than helpful http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/

Can we please see a picture of her...?

Tropheus

Thanks guys. Here's a few photos. She's hanging up in the garage so this is very much a "before" set of photos. She's been in the same place for about 10 years.

I think I'll start with new tyres and tubes and clean and lubricate as necessary. I won't be doing too much to start so not a big deal if something breaks. However, I think she's still in pretty good nick so that's unlikely in the short/medium term.

Photos in the album below:

https://skydrive.live.com/?cid=2a3ea7c06036473c#cid=2A3EA7C06036473C&id=2A3EA7C06036473C%21477

2 Wheels Good

Love the Biopace sticker, brings back memories. Bike looks fine. New tyres/tubes, pads and cables and a wash and drive on. You'd be surprised how far it might go without too much work on the rest.

Tropheus

I always thought the groupset on the bike was Deore XT. I was obviously wrong as it's clearly Deore. I thought it was the top Shimano MTB groupset available in 1989. Can anyone shed some light?

2 Wheels Good

ksimpson wrote: »

I always thought the groupset on the bike was Deore XT. I was obviously wrong as it's clearly Deore. I thought it was the top Shimano MTB groupset available in 1989. Can anyone shed some light?

This might answer your question
http://mombat.org/Shimano.htm#1989

Biopace

ksimpson wrote: »

I always thought the groupset on the bike was Deore XT. I was obviously wrong as it's clearly Deore. I thought it was the top Shimano MTB groupset available in 1989. Can anyone shed some light?

Pretty sure, back then, Deore was just one step down from XT, it was excellent kit and very hard wearing, had it on many of my bikes:D

Tropheus

Thanks Guys. I confirmed on Retobike that it is Deore II. There was a higher model, the Avanti, which had XT.

I have a vague recollection that the Avanti was £100 (punts) dearer than the Appalacian (a lot of money in 1989). I obviously decided that there wasn't enough between Deore and XT to justify the extra cost. The only difference between the Avanti and the Appalacian was the group set, the frame and forks were the same.

I gave the bike a good clean over the weekend. I'll put up a few pics later.