[Tassie Devil]

Hi everyone,

I managed to pick up my first M700 equipped bike recently and will be starting a rebuild sometime soon but I’m wondering what are reasonable period grips for an 84 bike.

The only grips I really remember at the time on mountain bikes were cheap foam things which fell apart after a few months and were substituted with hard plastic BMX grips which had to be cut to clear the shifter. Neither of which really appeals to me.

So what do you people use on your early mid 80s bikes? And can I see some examples please??

Cheers

Andrew

 

[tductape]

Two good options....

MOMBAT: Grips For Sale

Think the Grab on's would be nice for your 1984 date......

 

[banks]

Magura too

 

[mechagouki]

Ritchey true grips are good, but not really period correct. Grab-ons would be the obvious choice, but they might fall into what you consider the "cheap foam things" category.

 

[pinguwin]

Someone on this forum pestered the folks at Grab-on for several years and finally convinced them to do a special run of the old school grips in the original foam and then First Flight took over the sale of them.

The typical, modern Mtn-1 grips are still the same shape as the originals but they are soft foam. The grips that FFB has are a much denser foam that is exactly the same as the ones you could get twenty years ago and no one could describe them as soft or mushy. I've got many sets of the reproductions and they are very nice.

 

[J Ro]

I love the look of the Oakley grips on the older mountain bikes. Kinda like the Ergons that are in fashion today.

 

[Fillet-brazed]

I love the look of the Oakley grips on the older mountain bikes. Kinda like the Ergons that are in fashion today.

Yeah, the Oakley 3 grips. I feel kinda claustrophobic on them now but had them and liked them as a kid on my BMX bike.

 

[mainlyfats]

Mushrooms with the shifter slice mark.

 

[83stumpjumper]

There are just some things that are very hard to come by when it comes to restoring a vintage '80's MTB. I'm of the opinion if it ain't from the '80's then it ain't vintage, it's just old. I think time period correct grips, tires and brake pads are the hardest to find. I think most vintage owners are willing to give you a break on the accuracy of the grips for that reason. Yes, the foam grips were pretty standard on the early bikes. They didn't hold up that well. Find a comfortable grip and go with it and do so with a clear conscience. When I was fine tuning my 1985 Stumpjumper, I went with a set of modern Specialized red grips to match the bike. I think it looks good, and I'm glad I replaced the black grips I originally put on.

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[83stumpjumper]

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[Oldfatbaldguy]

I have blue Oury's on an old blue Ross. The bike came to me with tattered foam grips that i ditched right away. To my knowledge, Oury has been around since the mid-1970's selling MX racers grips; My uncle was a cross-country snowmobile racer and used them on snowmobiles too.

I'm not an expert; I don't know that any well-known makers equipped bikes with them, but they would be period-correct for an enthusiast that preferred them at that time.

Another name I have heard of would be Renthall.

 

[Tassie Devil]

I’m warming to the Grab On grips from MOMBAT as they are relatively inexpensive and to be honest the old Bianchi isn’t going to see a lot of use.

My memory of foam grips is largely influenced on what was found on the bikes readily available in Tasmania back in the mid 80s – which largely rules out anything of real quality in many respects. Back then after a few months (or one really wet ride) the electrical tape came out to stop them falling apart. I’d say the Grab Ons are a much better foam than those ones and they’ll look the part too so I’ll try them out.

 

[pinguwin]

The other things about the original foam Grabon Mtn-1&2's, they last forever. They never wear and are very comfortable.

 

[Tassie Devil]

I think time period correct grips, tires and brake pads are the hardest to find. I think most vintage owners are willing to give you a break on the accuracy of the grips for that reason.

I agree some things are pretty hard to obtain - especially in my part of the world, but where possible with some builds I like to make them look period correct as practicable.

As this old thing has survived to this day with all its original parts (except wheels - which were rare/valuble BMX items and thus saved it from being destroyed) then I think its worth putting in a little effort and finding something which looks the part. If the parts weren't original then I probably wouldn't care that much and would simply find something in one of my boxes to throw on and ride.

Anyway that's my take on vintage bikes

 

[pinguwin]

Grips and tires can be a real problem in that they don't age so well in many cases. I have an original pair of Grab-ons from 1990 that I want to put on an NOS 1990 Klein and they are way drier, less flexible than the repros (but I like the idea of having original parts on it).

 

[H_Tuttle]

Oakleys, Odis, & Ourys

 

[Fillet-brazed]

Oakleys, Odis, & Ourys

The Ourys we all know now are from about 1991. The Odi Mushroom is probably 86ish I'd guess.

 

[H_Tuttle]

yeah, but i liked the alliteration
I have ODI mushrooms on my '85 redline RL20II

My King Sting and My OM Flyer had Oakley 3s

 

[H_Tuttle]

"The history of the Oury Grip dates way bay to the 1970’s, when professional motocross racer Bill Oury began developing his vibration damping grips. In 1985 the Oury Pyramid grip was released, which holds a special place in the hearts of throttle twisters and BMX riders, alike."

 

[Fillet-brazed]

"The history of the Oury Grip dates way bay to the 1970's, when professional motocross racer Bill Oury began developing his vibration damping grips. In 1985 the Oury Pyramid grip was released, which holds a special place in the hearts of throttle twisters and BMX riders, alike."

Right, I was just saying the Oury grips that they sell today would not be right on a mid 80s bike. I think they came out with those in the early 90s.