I'd say into the late 90's. Maybe 1998-99 at the latest. What parameters? Rigid framed, front suspension hardtails, full suspension?

You have to admit. My 1997 GT STS DH was pretty high tech at the time and is vintage.

I asked the same question about my 20 year old 2003 KHS XC504R and was told, "Not vintage. Just an old bike".

 

I believe in the car world, 25 years is officially "Vintage"

Sounds good to me.

 

It's the same, generally, for wristwatches. You'll hear between 20-30, but mostly 25 years.

For mountain bikes l say 1980 through 1989 are true vintage. 1990 through 1999 I deem as classic, because rear suspension was becoming the new norm and the onset of disc brakes. 2000 to 2014 I call the old geometry era. 2015 on new geometry era.

That sounds like an 'era'. Like, 'golden era, silver era', stuff like that. Those define a specific era of technology or style, while vintage is different, more about 'significantly older'. They overlap.

 

Everything before v-brakes = vintage

 

v-brakes = vintage

V for Vintage! (because slogans are catchy)

 

For mountain bikes l say 1980 through 1989 are true vintage. 1990 through 1999 I deem as classic, because rear suspension was becoming the new norm and the onset of disc brakes. 2000 to 2014 I call the old geometry era. 2015 on new geometry era.

 

That geo that kills. That’s vintage.

 

Suspension isn't vintage. Sorry.
=sParty

 

You again....

I have a full suspension Pierce Arrow from 1896 that says you don't understand cycling history very well yet. In fact, that late 1800's saw a blossoming of suspension designs, and cycling patents in general and it took the burgeoning automobile industry close to 30 years of making cars before they came up with something not previously patented by the bicycle industry.

To make matters worse, it's an "alternative drive", non chain based (shaft), single speed and a 29er to boot.

Walks away grumbling about kids these days.....

 

2022

 

sometime in the mid 2000's(?)

 

This is exactly what i tell people - its worn out an i need an upgrade.

 

For MTB's, pre-disc = vintage imho.

.

 

Great topic, @Hurricane Jeff.

As others have mentioned trailing 25 years is a good basis for vehicles and music to be considered vintage/classic. This seems appropriate for bikes as well.

 

When I was 19 years old I had a '66 Mustang, which at the time I owned it, it was 19 years old. I thought it was a vintage car. I now a 27 year old Toyota that I purchased brand new in 1997. I do not consider it vintage.

I think what we consider to be old/vintage has a lot to do with how old we are.

 

Just like the only good music that ever existed was right when I happened to be in my prime, so are vintage bikes.

 

I think vintage bikes suck. Still, I'm tempted to grab the local '84 Stumpjumper that is for sale.

 

Pre Sid forks. You can have RS1's, Manitou, IRD, some Marzochi. Also keep in mind that half the "vintage" bikes that get posted are really just pieces of crap with Exage parts. They may be old but they aren't vintage.

 

Also glad to hear that my Tundra is almost Vintage

 

In CT you can stop paying auto taxes on your vehicle after 25 years.

 

This was discussed over and over here on MTBR when the Vintage, Retro, Classic forum was added. It seemed the consensus among the regulars at the time was pre-v-brakes, or roughly 1996 and older.

 

So is that fixed or does it expand to include v-brakes as the years roll by?

 

25 years is a good basis for vehicles and music to be considered vintage/classic. This seems appropriate for bikes as well.

Is it pertinent though that 25 years is about 22% of motor car history, wheras 25 years is about 64% of MTB history.

If there's a divide between classic Cannondales or GT's for instance, and new-school it might be the move from made in USA to asia, perhaps that's a factor? It could explain this sentiment:

"Not vintage. Just an old bike".

 

Great questions.

 

2023.

 

Too soon. 😭😭😭

 

In cars there are actually three classifications - classic, vintage, and antique. Classic is generally 25 years, vintage is 50-ish. If you find a vintage mountain bike, that would be quite a trick. And antique bikes have terrible geometry for the downs.

 

Is a klunker/clunker from 1930s (which looked similar to the 1950s) considered antique or vintage? Or are those considered more like 1978 vintage mountain bikes?

 

That's a USE suspension seat post.

 

Interesting branding. 😁

 

I think mid 90s. Early suspension is vintage to me.

 

"Vintage" is the bike you rode as a kid.

Though per the bike industry is anything over one year old.

 

2016 and older tbh nobody riding **** that old if they aint poor or an old geezer or both, also if the hta is steeper than 60 degrees its def vingage

 

2016 and older tbh nobody riding **** that old if they aint poor or an old geezer or both, also if the hta is steeper than 60 degrees its def vingage

I fall into the geezer category, apparently.

 

As mentioned most "collectable" Vintage items are usually dated back at least 25yrs. Because of this it makes sense that category adds items on a yearly basis. So technically a bike from 2023 will achieve vintage status in 2048. However due to the fact that there are so many bikes these days that are just manufactured and sold in big batches that their intrinsic value will be diluted. How desirable will the dentist bikes of today be in the future in other words? Will a Guerilla Gravity bike for instance be desirable because they only made so many and then went out of business?

The spirit of the OG Klunkers/MTB's from the dawn of MTBing are what I consider to be "Classic" bikes. Ones like Cunninghams/Potts/Early Richies/Kleins etc. made in the 80's that are deemed the most valuable today as other classic categories tend to be. To me any but the first efforts of any of the overseas manufacturer bikes from that period like a first year Stumpjumper would be considered classic.

The Retro category is a bike made recently in the likeness of a Classic bike and probably hand built for a specific party that wants to abuse themselves or have a nostalgic wall hanger because modern bikes are just to much better than any of the other categories to ride.

 

Whatever year you were born in! So 73 for me

 

I guess we are both Vintage then

 

The Keyesville Classic has two VRC classes depending on the bikes age.

 

Which year should a bike be considered vintage? Let's ask our panel of experts.

Grizzled bearded guy: Well I'm into my 70s and I recall lusting after one of them Mountain Bikes. I think 1990 should be cut off.

Vintage aficionado: Anything prior to v-brakes is fair game.

Fan of old tech and cool bikes: I think 1996 and any follow on models should be vintage. So a GT LTS would be vintage even though it was from 97 or 98. V-brakes slip in, but I draw the line at 9 speed.

Dude in his 20s: I'm 23, and born in 2000. Anything around then is vintage, it's like, from when I was born.

Kid in his teens: I saw this really old bike the other day. It had like, 26" wheels and 2x10 speed. How cute are front derailleurs? I thought it was cool how you had a chain guide but it also shifted the chain. Some really cool stuff was being experimented with back then in 2012. But the head angle was so steep, like 68 degrees. But I suppose that was okay for a short travel bike, like 120mm.

Downhill weekend warrior: Anything from 2 seasons ago is virtually unrideable on the modern courses today. Like, people used to RACE world cups with 170mm forks and NO high pivot idler. Totally vintage and should a museum piece.

Marketing manager, bike company: Vintage bikes? Ummm... I think August. September maybe?


Personally, I don't think around years so much, but for me it's that era around the early to mid 90s. Like, 1991-ish to 1996-ish. When major brands offered titanium hardtails, 3x7 was awesome and 3x8 was not necessary but cool. Companies sprung up with CNC machines and anodising baths and made cool stuff. I could say it's more about the vibe around the expansion of the sport and the industry that coincided with me getting into it (which was 1991) but that "vibe" could equally apply to anyone today just getting into it.

If pinned down on an answer I'm going to go with the cut off being 1996. September. Thursday 12th.

No that I care, I don't even ride. I just come here to learn scales and modes.

Grumps

 

Personally, I don't think around years so much, but for me it's that era around the early to mid 90s. Like, 1991-ish to 1996-ish. When major brands offered titanium hardtails, 3x7 was awesome and 3x8 was not necessary but cool. Companies sprung up with CNC machines and anodising baths and made cool stuff. I could say it's more about the vibe around the expansion of the sport and the industry that coincided with me getting into it (which was 1991) but that "vibe" could equally apply to anyone today just getting into it.

If pinned down on an answer I'm going to go with the cut off being 1996. September. Thursday 12th.

No that I care, I don't even ride. I just come here to learn scales and modes.

Grumps

Grumps gets it.

A few others too.

A debate as old as the VRC board, and likely older.

Car mindset works as a general rule, 25 years is nicely vintage and yes, always adding to the party.

However, VRC isn't just "vintage", as several old timers have called out. Retro, different category, Classic, ditto.

So if you're just debating the V in VRC, have fun, but you're combining elements of all three and lumping them under one heading, and kinda missing the point of this dusty little corner of Empty Beer.

All this said?

Once designed obsolescence took over the industry, roughly 10, 12 years ago (and I mean, grabbed it by the throat and choked the living sh*t out of any creativity or individuality we had left, in favor of rampant profiteering and environmental rape) it became pointless to even categorize bikes in this manner, so really, after about 2010 or so, bikes ceased to exist as we know them, historically speaking, and became consumer commodities like refrigerators, or washing machines, and who's arguing about dating classifications for those, anymore?