Refreshing an older Mountain Bike

[Nessism1]

Pulled out the old Nishiki Alien so I can start riding again. It's been a few years, and this bike is more upright than my road bikes, so I'm going to use it to get started.

The chain was not elongated, but rusty. Ordered a new one, but while waiting, I hit the old chain with a wire wheel, lubed it up, and put it back on. Also, changed the grips because the old ones were sticky and contaminated everything they touched.

Started riding, and first off, the brakes are horrible; grinding sounds and chatter. Ordered some Kool Stop pads. Shifting was flaky, so I pulled off the shifter pods and dropped them in the ultrasonic. Using Simple Green Aircraft, which is non-corrosive. This bike has Shimano DX components. Used Boeshield for lubrication. Post clean up, the rear shifting is fantastic, but the front upshift mechanism won't ratchet; you have to push the lever through a more than 90 degree stroke to get into the big ring. Opened the shifter and found a lot of rust, and the ratchet pawl for the upshift seized. Ordered a new/used unit off eBay to replace it. I tried to take it apart, but wound up breaking a part after forgetting that the threads are LH, not normal RH. My bad on that. Anyway, it's a fun project. Bikes are cool!

This photo shows the bike first when I brought it home. It's since got slick tires, a different seat and handlebars, and a whole lot of maintenance.

 

[AZjeff]

Absolute classic! Sweet! A shorter stem would get you more in today's more upright riding position. How is the grease in the wheel bearings and headset? I had one like if for a short time for trail riding but the trails here are too rocky and it was beating me up so sold it but it was a bucket list bike. Wish natural aluminum would come back instead of everything being black. DX is nice solid kit.

 

[Nessism1]

Absolute classic! Sweet! A shorter stem would get you more in today's more upright riding position. How is the grease in the wheel bearings and headset? I had one like if for a short time for trail riding but the trails here are too rocky and it was beating me up so sold it but it was a bucket list bike. Wish natural aluminum would come back instead of everything being black. DX is nice solid kit.

My memory is bad, but pretty sure I maintenanced all these items before. The BB and headset turn butter smooth. The rear hub spins nicely, but sounds like it's full of gravel. I'm going to open it up soon and check it out.

 

[charbaby]

Nice!
I picked up this bike while on an afternoon walk. Guy was throwing it out at the curb along with other things. Nothing I wanted. I knocked on his door to make sure it was being thrown out before I just took it.
I put on another seat that I had from another bike, used handle grips, reflectors, a kickstand that I had kicking(pun intended) around and two used but decent tires that I keep in the garage. I cleaned it up well, lubed the chain and made some adjustments.

Now, my wife & I have each have a TREK & SCHWINN (4 bikes), so I gave the RALEIGH to my daughter and put it in her garage at her house.

 

[wavinwayne]

Nice! I've been riding my old Ellsworth Truth a little lately. It's in dire need of a new drivetrain, but I'm trying to get 100% of the life out of the old stuff before replacing it all. Gotta take the wheels to the shop to be trued, and I've got new tires waiting to go on.

 

[Cujet]

!

This photo shows the bike first when I brought it home. It's since got slick tires, a different seat and handlebars, and a whole lot of maintenance.

Ummm, you know the requirement!! Pics!!!

 

[tcp71]

Nice! I've been riding my old Ellsworth Truth a little lately. It's in dire need of a new drivetrain, but I'm trying to get 100% of the life out of the old stuff before replacing it all. Gotta take the wheels to the shop to be trued, and I've got new tires waiting to go on.

That was my dream bike in the early 2000s. Never had enough money to buy one. Enjoy!!! A picture would be nice.

Edit: Just checked out their website (they're still around!). Total works of art.

 

[Nessism1]

Nice! I've been riding my old Ellsworth Truth a little lately. It's in dire need of a new drivetrain, but I'm trying to get 100% of the life out of the old stuff before replacing it all. Gotta take the wheels to the shop to be trued, and I've got new tires waiting to go on.

A friend and ridding buddy designed the rear suspension for the Truth. He was partnering with Ellsworth back in the early days of MTB rear suspension systems.

 

[wavinwayne]

That was my dream bike in the early 2000s. Never had enough money to buy one. Enjoy!!! A picture would be nice.

Edit: Just checked out their website (they're still around!). Total works of art...

If you click on my profile you will see my bike. Ellsworth has been wishy washy over the years, and I thought they had finally thrown in the towel for good. Sounds like that may not be the case. I wish them well if they are still producing quality frames. Mine is a made in USA aluminum frame from 2008. It was a warranty replacement for a 2002 frame that had the seatpost snap in two.

 

[97prizm]

Pulled out the old Nishiki Alien so I can start riding again. It's been a few years, and this bike is more upright than my road bikes, so I'm going to use it to get started.

The chain was not elongated, but rusty. Ordered a new one, but while waiting, I hit the old chain with a wire wheel, lubed it up, and put it back on. Also, changed the grips because the old ones were sticky and contaminated everything they touched.

Started riding, and first off, the brakes are horrible; grinding sounds and chatter. Ordered some Kool Stop pads. Shifting was flaky, so I pulled off the shifter pods and dropped them in the ultrasonic. Using Simple Green Aircraft, which is non-corrosive. This bike has Shimano DX components. Used Boeshield for lubrication. Post clean up, the rear shifting is fantastic, but the front upshift mechanism won't ratchet; you have to push the lever through a more than 90 degree stroke to get into the big ring. Opened the shifter and found a lot of rust, and the ratchet pawl for the upshift seized. Ordered a new/used unit off eBay to replace it. I tried to take it apart, but wound up breaking a part after forgetting that the threads are LH, not normal RH. My bad on that. Anyway, it's a fun project. Bikes are cool!

This photo shows the bike first when I brought it home. It's since got slick tires, a different seat and handlebars, and a whole lot of maintenance.

View attachment 329823

Go with a Chris King Aheadset. Invest in a great chain lube. There are different kinds depending on your riding style.

 

[FZ1]

Pulled out the old Nishiki Alien so I can start riding again. It's been a few years, and this bike is more upright than my road bikes, so I'm going to use it to get started.

The chain was not elongated, but rusty. Ordered a new one, but while waiting, I hit the old chain with a wire wheel, lubed it up, and put it back on. Also, changed the grips because the old ones were sticky and contaminated everything they touched.

Started riding, and first off, the brakes are horrible; grinding sounds and chatter. Ordered some Kool Stop pads. Shifting was flaky, so I pulled off the shifter pods and dropped them in the ultrasonic. Using Simple Green Aircraft, which is non-corrosive. This bike has Shimano DX components. Used Boeshield for lubrication. Post clean up, the rear shifting is fantastic, but the front upshift mechanism won't ratchet; you have to push the lever through a more than 90 degree stroke to get into the big ring. Opened the shifter and found a lot of rust, and the ratchet pawl for the upshift seized. Ordered a new/used unit off eBay to replace it. I tried to take it apart, but wound up breaking a part after forgetting that the threads are LH, not normal RH. My bad on that. Anyway, it's a fun project. Bikes are cool!

This photo shows the bike first when I brought it home. It's since got slick tires, a different seat and handlebars, and a whole lot of maintenance.

View attachment 329823

Nice bike. If you want to ride, take it to a bike repair shop and get it fixed. .02.

 

[Nessism1]

Here is the bike today. Just rode it for an hour. Great fun.

I'll install the new brake pads today, and the LH shifter when it arrives. Just for kicks, I bought another set of shifters, the higher-end XT version. Guy said one shifter is flaky, so it's a project. Should be fun.

 

[BISCUT]

A lot of chain lubes work, but this one here, I've never found better.

 

[wavinwayne]

A lot of chain lubes work, but this one here, I've never found better.

View attachment 329853

Prolink is also what I use. Good stuff.

 

[Nessism1]

Bike chain lubricant discussions in the bicycle community is just as bad as "what's the best motor oil" for car guys. I use Squirt, since it's a dry, waxy lubricant. Less mess.

 

[wavinwayne]

Since @tcp71 asked earlier in this thread, I snapped a pic of the Ellsworth today.

 

[Nessism1]

I've been working on the bike. Got the ebay shifters, and while in better condition than my old ones, they are full of sticky grease. I dissembled and put them in the ultrasonic to clean. All good now. Next project, remove all the rusty hardware, strip, and apply fresh zinc plating. I'll finish that up today. Before installing the cleaned shifters I'm going to change the cables. I've got a good many in the spares box, so why not?

 

[jadmt]

I turned my classic into 1X8 but will end up going to a single speed but not a fixie.

 

[853okg]

Here is the bike today. Just rode it for an hour. Great fun.

I'll install the new brake pads today, and the LH shifter when it arrives. Just for kicks, I bought another set of shifters, the higher-end XT version. Guy said one shifter is flaky, so it's a project. Should be fun.

View attachment 329851

I sold these. That Cunningham design was radical for the time, but came at an odd time when mtbs were changing rapidly.
I could be wrong, it’s hard to see in the photo, but it appears the linkless straddle cable on the rear caliper is too long. You’ll have very little braking power with the caliper in that position. In general, with a low profile cantilever, you are shooting for a 90 degree angle.
I’ll never be able to remember the specifics, but at the time there was a fairly popular fiction novel that featured a Nishiki Alien.

 

[Nessism1]

I sold these. That Cunningham design was radical for the time, but came at an odd time when mtbs were changing rapidly.
I could be wrong, it’s hard to see in the photo, but it appears the linkless straddle cable on the rear caliper is too long. You’ll have very little braking power with the caliper in that position. In general, with a low profile cantilever, you are shooting for a 90 degree angle.
I’ll never be able to remember the specifics, but at the time there was a fairly popular fiction novel that featured a Nishiki Alien.

The Y cable setup for the brakes use one leg that's fixed length, the other side is set to match the other side. You can't change angle much. The power is fine, regardless. Should be even better with the new pads. I've been working on the bike, and went down the rabbit hole a little too much; removed a bunch of rusty hardware and plated, now reinstalling.