My new to me GT Avalanche 1.0

[Savo]

Hi I bought this bike off Gumtree yesterday with good intentions of getting fit and enjoying a few local country paths. I am delighted with the bike but it does have a few faults. Part of the derailleur at the pedals is missing, i'm not too sure about the forks they clunk a bit and the wheels look a bit cheap & rusty. I plan to fix the gears first and enjoy the bike but over time I'd like to fix it up properly and possibly replace the wheels & forks. Any advice on what parts to buy would be greatly appreciated! I had been looking at new bikes at £300 - £400 when I managed to pick this up for £40

so I think I did o.k


Andrew











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[Angelfishsolo]

A picture of the broken front mech would help greatly. It looks in about the same condition as my first bike. Some TLC with oil and sandpaper for the rust and you may have something you'll enjoy riding.

Random thoughts in no real order -

If the chain is not slipping on the cogs don't change it or you will almost certainly need to swap out the entire drive train. If the wheels don't spin freely when removed from the bike the hubs need adjusting (probably just re greasing the bearings). Check the tyres for signs of splits and cracks and look at state of brake pads. Apply brakes and push bike forward to test front and backwards to test rear. Clunking forks. Rebound maybe too soft so try adjusting it.

 

[Savo]

Thanks, the chain and brakes felt good when I was out last night, the tyres do look a bit suspect and one off the pedals feels slightly bent. I am looking forward to getting the bike back into good shape, first will be the gears.








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[Angelfishsolo]

Ok so you could either try and bodge the front mech or pick up a new conventional (bottom swing) mech for under £20 See here for an idea of what is available. Just make sure it is a/ for a MTB and b/is for the number of cogs you have on the front

Thanks, the chain and brakes felt good when I was out last night, the tyres do look a bit suspect and one off the pedals feels slightly bent. I am looking forward to getting the bike back into good shape, first will be the gears.








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[Savo]

Thanks for the link, having a look now

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Pleasure fella. You will need a new gear cable and outer as well

Thanks for the link, having a look now

 

[billflat12]

I run an avalanche 1.0
Dont take this the wrong way but "it may not be the bargain you had hoped for" , it may be ok as a first bike if all the components are not worn out an work correctly .
Frame alone is worth more than £40 if its ok but the components look a very low spec. considering that the avalanche 1.0 is a top model in that range, it could mean that your bike has worn out replacement parts exchanged from a cheap bike (eg.. rusty "steel" hub wheels, thats a bso rear mech ? ,looks like frame could have been butchered to fit it where the removable hanger should be :, also forks look very basic with no disc mounts etc., basic twistgrip shifters, flimsy 2bolt stem !!!), i,m no bike snob but clearly any rebuild with half decent parts would easily cost more than ; £3-400 ,Your front mech looks like its missing a cable clamp or pinch bolt. Maybe Lots of tlc. gt85/wd40, ant re- grease wheel hub bearings , bottom bracket, pedals, cranks chain etc. " also check the fork oil & seals for leaks !!" maybe needs a few cables, i,d say just get it up an running before parting with the ££££££££,s on upgrades

see typical spec for a 2006 model
http://velospec.com/...nche10disc-2006

 

[Angelfishsolo]

I would very much doubt it would cost anywhere near that to make it ridable (unless forks are completely knackered). Does it need disk brakes? It is almost certainly going to be better than a modern BSO once it has been spruced up and a hell of a lot lighter.

Dont take this the wrong way but "it may not be the bargain you had hoped for"
Frame is worth the £40 but components look a very low spec.( what year is it ? does the frame have disc mounts ?) considering that the avalanche 1.0 is a top model in that range it could mean that bike has worn out replacement parts exchanged from a cheap bike (eg.. that rear mech is now fitted as standard to many bso.s), " decent forks are quite expensive too " , so check the oil & seals !! a rebuild with decent parts could easily cost more than a £3-400 budget, Front mech looks like its missing a cable clamp or pinch bolt. Lots of tlc. gt85/wd40, maybe a re- grease of wheel hub bearings , bottom bracket, pedals, cranks & chain etc. also replace a few cables an it may just be ok as a first bike.

 

[billflat12]

I would very much doubt it would cost anywhere near that to make it ridable (unless forks are completely knackered). Does it need disk brakes? It is almost certainly going to be better than a modern BSO once it has been spruced up and a hell of a lot lighter.

"a worn out s/h bso can be ridable", but not always reliable !!
I wanted another hardtail so built my Avalanche 1.0 up from a £30 ebay frame in 2007 it also came complete with truvativ crankset & deore lx front and rear derailleur, used spare hydraulic disc brakes s/h forks , and it still cost me over £300 getting it up to reasonable spec. in 2007.

 

[Savo]

I left the bike into a local bike shop. The owner said he had some spare parts for the gears and could get them working for £15 which was pretty good, he also pointed out all the cheap non standard parts

. He said everything seemed to work ok and that the frame was in good nick. I would have had difficulty justifying to the wife spending over £300 in one go to buy the bike, but hopefully over time I can upgrade it bit by bit so that eventually i'll have a good bike regardless of the cost. I'm happy that for the cost so far of £55 I have a bike I can ride and look forward to upgrading. Hopefully I will get plenty of advice from this site on what to buy and in what order as funds allow

Andrew

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Andrew that's great news indeed

 

[Savo]

This is my old bike from about 20 years ago I recently dug out of the shed & stuck new tyres on. The frame is in poor condition and the bike is far too small for me but riding it has given me a real want to have a good bike.

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Oh the poor baby

This is my old bike from about 20 years ago I recently dug out of the shed & stuck new tyres on. The frame is in poor condition and the bike is far too small for me but riding it has given me a real want to have a good bike.


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[Savo]

Yea not good.

 

[billflat12]

glad your LBS checked the frame as that rear mech is bolted on where a removable hanger to take standard mech,s should be ?

Hangers are frame specific and widely available as they are a frame saver designed to break.

typical avalanche rear derailleur hanger
http://cgi.ebay.co.u...=item19c2690a555

frame geometry is designed around a 100mm travel fork , ( I run adj air forks up to 130 , keeps me out of trouble.)