Gallery - Refurbished 1986 Trek 400 - Bob Schutter
Bob's bike is a good example of
what can be done to renew an old bike without spending a fortune. If
you have questions or comments about this bike, please contact Bob at
schutter84@hotmail.com.
Bob writes: "I've always liked the early steel Treks with their
nice cast lugs and their inside-the-stay derailleur cable routing, so
I decided to look for a bare frame to build up. After about three weeks
of searching on Ebay, a "mid-80's, 60cm" appeared. It was
described as having been given "a revolting purple and gold Krylon
home-brew paint job!" I stayed up until 1 a.m. one night to bid,
and was able to purchase the frame for $30."
"After the bike arrived, I e-mailed the serial
number to Skip and he was able to conclude that I had purchased a 1986
400, brazed in late 1985, with Reynolds 531 main tubes and cromolly
stays. A close inspection revealed several problems... an adjuster was
broken off inside the drop-out, one of the cable guides on the top tube
was broken, and the seat lug was crushed in from someone using a too-small
post. I promptly made the situation worse by breaking the lug away from
the seat tube when prying it back to the correct size. I was off to
a rough start. Fortunately, my brother works in a machine and tool shop
and was able to put everything right. He also did the sand blasting
and removed the rack braze-ons. Next I carefully spread the stays to
130mm to accept the modern Ritchey wheel set and used string to make
sure everything stayed properly aligned. A local bike shop aligned the
derailleur hanger. The fork that came with the frame was a replacement
of poor quality. That was discarded in favor of an aluminum short rake
Specialized take-off that I purchased for $20 from another local shop."
"The overall look of the bike was intended to
be a tip of the hat to Lance and the USPS team (I had both cancer and
a Trek before Lance!) The white powdercoat cost $50 and I applied the
decals and pinstripe. Some of the decals came from a seller on Ebay.
I emailed him about making the smaller letters for seat-stays. I had
the down-tube decals made at a local sign shop, they have a book there
about an inch thick with hundreds of logos. The red line is an automotive
pinstripe, five bucks at Wal-mart."
"I love these vintage frames, but I'm not a fan
of the older parts, so components were selected based on cost, function,
and aesthetics - not originality. One notable exception is the brake
calipers. The old Shimano 105's are nice looking, lightweight, and smooth
with their ball bearing pivots. A friend and his Dremel tool lengthened
the slots on the arms of the rear brake for the proper reach and I redrilled
the bridge for the recessed nut. The front caliper bolted right up to
the more modern fork. The drivetrain consists of a UN-72 bottom bracket,
Sora STI levers, Tiagra derailleurs and crank, HG-50 cassette and KMC
chain. The stem is a Ritchey, bars are ITM, and the post is an SR. The
USPS saddle and water bottle were Christmas gifts from my parents and
completed the bike nicely."
"The was not an easy or inexpensive project, but
I still have less invested than had I purchased a new Trek 1000; plus,
it's my own design and built by me!"
Click on each picture to see an enlargement.
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