# Raleigh Technium Instinct



## 4130chromoly (Oct 9, 2009)

Is this a decent vintage MTB? I was also wondering what constitutes a vintage MTB? I know old schoool BMX is 70's to about '85 then mid school is '86 to about '00. I think this is an '88 model.


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## colker1 (Jan 6, 2004)

no. not a decent vintage mtb. there are much better bikes to be had at a decent price point.
vintage goes till about 95 but you could extend it till 99 if we are talking hardtails. ok, that's my take. some will tell you 93 is pushing too much. 
good vintage is either small frame builder or top of the line from big manufacturer, usually made at small shops w/ top of the line components. Like a ti/carbon specialized or raleigh Tomac replica or GT xyzang/titanium. then you have fat chance/ salsa/ yeti/ manitou... every other small manufacturer w/ high quality and lots of personality in their geometry/ tube choice and paint.


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## Rumpfy (Dec 21, 2003)

4130chromoly said:


> Is this a decent vintage MTB?


Nope.

I guess you could call it vintage, but the low value makes it more of 'just an old bike'.


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## MendonCycleSmith (Feb 10, 2005)

It's a solid foundation for a utility bike, but yep, nothing special....

The Techniums had aluminum front triangles, and steel rears, they rode nicely, but since they were produced over seas, by the tens of thousands they hold little cache for the "true" VRC hounds.


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## LIFECYCLE (Mar 8, 2006)

Make a nice singlespeed.


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## The Golden Boy (Oct 7, 2009)

colker1 said:


> no. not a decent vintage mtb. there are much better bikes to be had at a decent price point.
> vintage goes till about 95 but you could extend it till 99 if we are talking hardtails. ok, that's my take. some will tell you 93 is pushing too much.
> good vintage is either small frame builder or top of the line from big manufacturer, usually made at small shops w/ top of the line components. Like a ti/carbon specialized or raleigh Tomac replica or GT xyzang/titanium. then you have fat chance/ salsa/ yeti/ manitou... every other small manufacturer w/ high quality and lots of personality in their geometry/ tube choice and paint.


Interesting...

I know jack-diddley about "vintage" bikes.

What I "know" about "vintage" is primarily from the guitar world.

Around 20 years ago, I was a poor 20 year old college student kid playing rock and roll in little local rock and roll bands. I had money saved from the Army, was getting GI Bill payments and did a few odd jobs here and there. I bought guitars and amps I could afford. It just so happened they were "old" guitars and "old" amps. It also just so happened that some of that stuff happened to be good, some, not so good. But it was affordable old stuff.

Somewhere around 10 years later, the intArwebs made their way into guitar land. You had guys using their guitar collections as measuring sticks. So these guys went out and got all the cool "vintage" stuff. (not that a lot, or most of it wasn't getting collected anyway). But then the leftovers were all that were around. That made them "vintage." When the more desirable models and years got snapped up, the "next best thing" became "vintage." Eventually, the word "vintage" just meant "old."

What was a $400 1956 Les Paul Junior, with an ABR/stop Tailpiece added and a hacked up finish in 1992, became a $2000 1956 LP Jr with 'player wear.'

I've always gone by the theory that there's a difference in "vintage" and "old." "Vintage" stuff are the characteristics of an item that are a feature of that item in that time period. Whether it's desirable or becomes desirable is another matter, and that's the difference. Something isn't "vintage" because it's old. (for most people, it is, but they're wrong) Something is "vintage" because it possesses traits that are associated with the item in a given time period that are considered good.


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## 4130chromoly (Oct 9, 2009)

Thanks I know exactly where you are coming from. I also want to thank you for your service in our military. I wish our commander in cheif would either commit to winning this war or bring them home. To ask a young or for that matter any soldier to think before they shoot and not let them do what they are there to do is a great dishoner that puts them at an even worse situation. ... Fight to win or don't fight at all.


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## geckocycles (Sep 3, 2006)

MendonCycleSmith said:


> It's a solid foundation for a utility bike, but yep, nothing special....
> 
> The Techniums had aluminum front triangles, and steel rears, they rode nicely, but since they were produced over seas, by the tens of thousands they hold little cache for the "true" VRC hounds.


They were also built in their Kent Washington plant. The production numbers were staggering though. In order to have the "Made in USA" sticker on them they had to be at least assembled and boxed here.

Mitered tubes and parts were made over seas and parts were welded, painted, stickered, assembled and boxed in Kent. I don't recall seeing any mitering machines when I was up there in the factory. Custom Raleigh team bikes were built by guys like myself. They did have a R&D facility there too.

I was hired as a consultant to help decrease their 8% failure rate if I recall the number correctly. It was horrendous what they were doing at each station in order to keep the line moving at 20 seconds per station as I recall. Everything I suggested would mean slower production so it was pointless. I did get to see a really cool factory and got a free trip and some extra coin too.


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## Rumpfy (Dec 21, 2003)

The Golden Boy said:


> Interesting...
> 
> I know jack-diddley about "vintage" bikes.
> 
> ...


Thats well said and a good analogy. Its a tough concept for even several of the regulars here.


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## geckocycles (Sep 3, 2006)

You're not smog exempt until older than 25 now! LOL


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