# 1990 Fisher HK-II (Hoo Koo E Koo) build



## TXhokie7 (Jun 14, 2016)

Hey everyone! I'm new to this forum. I wanted to reach out and ask some advice from some of you that are more experienced in this build. I've wanted to get back into mountain biking having done so much as a kid along with bmx. I had a really small budget so I was looking for a cheap bike I could fix up for moderate intensity recreational trail use(forest roads, biking trails, etc). 

I picked up a 1990 Fisher HK-II from a resale shop for $35. Tires were flat/dry rotted, seat foam was falling apart, there was some slight surface rust on some of the components but it looked pretty good overall. It doesn't appear to have been ridden much, the original tires didn't have much wear and still had the little hairs you see on new tires. I've cleaned up the bike but have started trying to get everything in working order. The bike is completely original with:
-Shimano deore lx derailers, hubs, cantilever brakes)
-Araya rims
-1 1/4" threaded Fisher evolution fork
-Shimano STI shifter & brake combo units

I have several questions regarding where to go with this bike.
Is investing money into aftermarket parts worth it? I'm looking to purchase a new seat, replace brake pads or go with upgraded Avid single digit 5's v-brakes, maybe going single speed since I will need to purchase brake levers to work with v-brakes which will require new shifters as well since they are one unit. 

I've already put money into the bike with new tires so I'm wondering if I can build this up to work as a solid rigid fork mtb to ride on semi-aggressive trails or am I wasting my time? I recognize I'm dealing with old technology but given its robustness I thought it might be a good foundation for something I can learn on. 

Here's some pics to give you an idea of what I'm working with. This is after its been cleaned:


----------



## TXhokie7 (Jun 14, 2016)




----------



## girlonbike (Apr 24, 2008)

My personal 2c is for you to change the saddle, tires and maybe file the pads a little to make them grippier. If the pads are too hard, just replace those. Then I would ride it to see if you like it at all before swapping out a bunch of parts.


----------



## darkgizzard (Aug 12, 2016)

I had one as my main ride for a few years. Replacement headset, stem, seatpost, or bottom bracket won't be available at your LBS, which can be frustrating, but if you're ebay savvy they're not too hard to find. My fork was crimped by a bike shop employee and I was forced to convert to 1 1/8" threadless with a Chris King devolution headset. So that's an option. The frame is not suspension corrected so turning it into a hardtail could make handling wonky though. Otherwise a good candidate for modernizing, I loved it and rode it everywhere: from local trails to a tour of the coast of California. Replacing the bottom bracket bearings proved to be the final straw though, it sits mostly apart in the basement now. If you want to sell the fork, let me know!


----------



## unicrown junkie (Nov 12, 2009)

I have an 89 and 91 or 92 at home currently. Seatposts are totally available, they are either 28.6 or 28.8 iirc. I bought mine locally from a LBS. 

Bearings are not that hard either, it's spindle that is the PIA if you break it.

Great bike, and even though I must have built about twenty or thirty of these back then I forgot about this color.


----------



## darkgizzard (Aug 12, 2016)

unicrown junkie said:


> I have an 89 and 91 or 92 at home currently. Seatposts are totally available, they are either 28.6 or 28.8 iirc. I bought mine locally from a LBS.
> 
> Bearings are not that hard either, it's spindle that is the PIA if you break it.
> 
> Great bike, and even though I must have built about twenty or thirty of these back then I forgot about this color.


Seatpost is 31.8
Pretty sure bearings are only available through Phil Wood. That's not even the hard part though, removing and installing press fit bearings in a bottom bracket requires a press virtually no bike shop is going to have anymore, or requires rigging one yourself. Not exactly plug and play


----------



## unicrown junkie (Nov 12, 2009)

Those bearings are exceedingly easy to remove. Fisher sent us a slug tool to do the job and we used to change bearings with zero problems. My Procaliber was another story, if you didn't put the green Loctite after changing them out then eventually the whole kitten caboodle would work it's way out of the shell, which happened to me on ST John's Mtn west of Williiams, Ca on the 11 mile hillclimb.

It is plug and play, and the HKK has those circlips holding the bearings in making the system super simple. People are over complicating this. It must be 90 when they made the HKK with the wide shell because my 89 is still threaded. When I get back home to Washington tomorrow I'lll post pics of when I get a chance and I now want to rip my wife's 91 (or maybe 92) apart and see about those bearings.


----------

