Theres a well-known cycling adage that the formula for the perfect number of bikes for a cyclist to own is n+1 where ‘n’ equals the number of bikes a rider owns at any given time. The implication that a true cyclist is always thinking about the next bike they’re going to buy as they toil along certainly seems to ring true for me. I’ve spent countless happy hours  thinking about and debating what my next bike will be. Before the advent of the internet with its endless forums full of ‘experts’ each dispensing their own brand of the way the truth and the bike, or the mega retailers like CrC with their endless sales and enticing offers, it was the printed magazine which constantly led me astray.

MBUK, MbR, the sadly missed MTB Pro, they were all bought religiously each month and read and reread incessantly until I was sure I’d absorbed any nuggets of what I thought might be useful information. What gears ratios was John Tomac using this month? did Jason McCoy think the GT LTS suspension was a big improvement on the previously all-conquering RTS design? Why was Rob Warner still not a fan of the new fangled SpUD pedals when all the other pro’s were using them? (younger readers may have to google some of those names) I vividly remember reading that the new style of ‘riser’ bars would when fitted transform the handling and turn any rider into a wheelie popping riding god. Did they heck. That was another months allowance down the pan as a spotty teenager.

Sorry, I’m rambling again…… I’m sure you get the gist, and some of this is ground I’ve either moaned / ranted about / covered before – boy meets bike, falls in love, things are great, things go stale, his eye is caught by a younger model….. etc, etc. I think I’ve established the fact that I’m a serial compulsive  bike buyer / upgrader. I just can’t help it. The constant tinkering with the bikes I have and the lusting after bikes I usually both can’t afford and just don’t need is as much part of my cycling life as my clicking right knee and bad posture. And as I’m sure you’ve by now guessed yes I have bought another bike…. well actually in my defence not a whole bike and there is as I assured my long-suffering wife actually a plan this time, a plan which will actually result in an overall reduction in the fleet. So this is in effect just a temporary expansion which will enable an eventual return to a more sustainable and usable level of cycle ownership. (Nearly convinced myself there too!)

So to re-cap before I explain myself, the current harem of two-wheeled steeds comprises:-

1/ My lovely titanium framed Sabbath road bike (very happy with this, its pretty much perfect and just as I want it honest, so it’s not in any danger of being sold / changed / messed with anytime soon)

2/ A Helios 24′ wheel sized tandem – a hoot to ride and strictly speaking owned by my wife this was bought to enable us to have summer rides out together without me leaving her behind. Its great fun on the to rare occasions we do get to ride it so it’s not in danger either.

3/ Lapierre Zesty 314 – a 2012 model actually bought from a French retailer in the end of year sales and imported in those halcyon days when the £ was still worth something. It’s a great bike but as I wrote about a few months ago (see ‘Guilt and Neglect’ last june) its in need of a little love and really needs a full suspension re-fresh to get its sparkle back.

4/ Cotic Solaris 29er – Again if you check out my previous musings I explained the rational behind this one. This is a steel testament to all the points I make above. It’s a bike I didn’t really need but just couldn’t resist building anyway.

5/ A rusty old Decathlon rigid MTB of indeterminate age that lives in the shed – this was supposed to be my going to the shops bike to stop me using the car to pop the mile or so to the shops for a pint of milk / paper / cycling magazine. It never turns a wheel but its going to University with my eldest son next year as his uni bike so it doesn’t really count.

6/ And lastly this little chap who I’d almost forgotten about that was lurking under a tarpaulin in shed next to the lawnmower.

This is strictly speaking my eldest’s bike but it hasn’t been ridden for a long time. It used to me mine, its built round a venerable 2008ish vintage BrandX frame and was my first full suspension bike. I had some great times and rides on this bike and over the years before the Zesty came a long a supplanted her. Then like any other loving father I pasted on my cast off down the line of succession. However it soon became apparent than the son was going to be, and indeed now is considerably taller than his vertically challenged father and quite quickly ran out of seat post extension on this frame. (He never rode it that much anyway!) The bike was put into the shed and until last month gently forgotten about.

So my plan was hatched. This was definitely a bike which in its current state was surplus to requirements. I wasnt going to ride it again. It’s a heavy old beast and the 26′ wheeled full susser slot is much better filled by the Zesty. It would be unlikely to be worth much second-hand as a complete bike. BrandX was never a trendy or boutique brand back in the day and time has all but erased their memory from the MTB scene consciousness. Likewise its components are woefully out of date compared to current models. I mean the 26′ wheels are bad enough, but a triple chainset and Avid Juicy brakes? a 9 speed cassette? trendy bikers look away now!

However, the thing is there’s nothing wrong with any of these components. There’s lots of life in the drivetrain. The wheelset is strong and true and the venerable Rockshox coil sprung fork despite being heavy works better than a lot of air sprung forks which are twice the price. No, what this bike is crying out for is a frame transplant. Something which these components would feel at home on. Something steel. Something different from the norm. Something British made for British conditions and lashings of mud. Something those ‘in the know’ would appreciate.

So the eBay trawling commenced and the search was on. It didn’t take long to find a perfect new home for these veteran parts. Indeed as I type this I can still smell the GT85 on my fingers from this mornings bike building session in the garage.

More next time……….