# 1987 Diamondback Arrival



## old'skool (Jul 2, 2011)

No pics yet. It's listed locally for 100 bux. All XT. I'm gonna pick it up if it's still available. No brainer, right ?


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## bushpig (Nov 26, 2005)

If it is in good shape, for sure. I dig that bike.


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## girlonbike (Apr 24, 2008)

what the heck is the freaking Like thingy doing in the posts. 

weird, it's not in mine. phew.

Yeah, totally, especially if the XT stuff is in good condition.


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## Xizang11 (Feb 3, 2008)

Snatch it up! I think the paint job for that bike was pretty sweet, personally.


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## cegrover (Oct 17, 2004)

Those are indeed cool. I had one for a while, but it was a bit too small and was sold off. It's an interesting part of early, mass-produced aluminum MTB history!

Edit: Before and after shots now included...


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## old'skool (Jul 2, 2011)

CEGrover, that's pretty much the exact bike. Have an appointment at 4:00 so it's mine if I want it.

It's a 49CM ??? 19 inch, I guess, so it'll fit me. I'm guessing it's gonna have really laid back geometry ? Really slack seat and fork angles ?

I'll ride it tonight and make a decision to keep, sell, or part out.


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## Fillet-brazed (Jan 13, 2004)

old'skool said:


> CEGrover, that's pretty much the exact bike. Have an appointment at 4:00 so it's mine if I want it.
> 
> It's a 49CM ??? 19 inch, I guess, so it'll fit me. I'm guessing it's gonna have really laid back geometry ? Really slack seat and fork angles ?
> 
> I'll ride it tonight and make a decision to keep, sell, or part out.


Not slack, but not steep. Stays maybe look a little long. These came on the scene when only a handful of aluminum bikes were on the market.


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## surly357 (Jan 19, 2006)

Fillet-brazed said:


> Not slack, but not steep. Stays maybe look a little long. These came on the scene when only a handful of aluminum bikes were on the market.


those always make me nostalgic- i really liked the early tig'd japanese aluminum bikes. with a pair of ground controls, a longer stem, and some bars with less sweep, i feel i rode that bike really well. it was a huge step up in handling compared to bikes only a year or two old at the time. i was working in a little backyard shop in western colorado at the time. i ordered my arrival one afternoon, and about 6 a.m. the morning after next some guys in a van were in the bosses' driveway honking! they dropped off my bike and took off!!



















sorry if i've posted these pics before.....


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## old'skool (Jul 2, 2011)

Well, here she is. Brought her home, swapped out the commuter tires for some old contis I had laying around. Swapped the Nitto bar and stem for an HL and some Bontrager 175s, threw my pedals on her, and put a vetta seat on it too. 25.75 lbs. Not lite (I wonder were the weight is ?) but not a tank, either.

Took her to my favorite local rolling singletrack. And immediately formed some first impressions.

One - the bike is, well, neutral. Not twitchy, not slow.

Two - It doesn't respond to out of the saddle efforts, period. It likes you way back on the seat, folded in half when climbing. Some drops might be cool....

Three - It has a sweet spot. As I said, it's neutral. Seems to like middle chainring, middle of the stack, with your weight and position right smack in the middle of the bike. And, it;s sweet spot is at a pretty fast clip. Would make a great forest service road bike.

Four - Even with the Tange fork, it's HARSH. I was running 30 lbs PSI, and the frame still transmitted everything.

It' a fun bike though. Not something I'd ride every day. It's quite capable, and took everything I threw at it. I ride relatively hard, yet smooth. Really a kind of modern ride, considering it's vintage. 

Sorry for the blurry pic. It was dark when I got home.

Now, what do I do with it ? I'm not a collector, I'm a rider.


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## bushpig (Nov 26, 2005)

Keep riding it?


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## mik_git (Feb 4, 2004)

^^ that is a very good description of how my 89 Apex rides...standing up makes it all wonky (which i neve noticed at the time, but now I do) I used to burn out the middle ring, like all the time 3 for each big or little ring, and a good speed on a nice flowing trail or fire road... ah the memories...


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## old'skool (Jul 2, 2011)

She cleaned up nice.


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## GhostRiderNB (May 15, 2015)

*'87 Diamondback Arrival*















Here's a pic of my which has been stored in a Barn since '89. I just got it back a week ago and cleaned up quite nicely. Still rides great for an older Mountain Bike.


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