# Old full susp mtb bike made into an urban/dj bike?



## JFD27 (Aug 11, 2012)

Here is my bike.


I just moved to florida, where everything is flat and smooth. I love to go fast jump bunny hop wheelie and everything in between. I want to make this bike lighter and more road/urban worthy. so what are things that can help me accomplish this. I am new to biking and don't really have much experience with working on them but I am eager to learn. first off, I was thinking some different tires that have a street like tread. I was reading about converting it to a 1x9. this means take off two of the gears of the crank where your feet are correct? and eventually I would like to make it single gear but I need to learn more. I was thinking of taking the front disc off along with the wire and lever and the obvious seatpost and seat and new bars. what else can I do to make this rig more road/street friendly and shed some lbs?


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## JFD27 (Aug 11, 2012)

whoops, it wont let me post pictures until I hit 10 posts. will post the pic as soon as that happens


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## JFD27 (Aug 11, 2012)

Here is the bike. I think I need to just buy a dj frame though and use this as a donor bike. so I would a new frame, single speed freewheel conversion kit and new bars and seat?


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## JFD27 (Aug 11, 2012)

took off the front disc brake to lose some weight and rid the bars, much more nimble and agile. I would love to make this into a single speed. where can I buy single speed cranks for up next to the peddles?


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## design-engine (Aug 12, 2012)

dude.... go hard tail and buy yourself a fixi if you want to really crush everyone. I rode with a design organization years ago and several Trek Engineers killed everyone on a single speed no suspension mnt bike. I was silently blown away. Remember the banana seat days of my childhood. We launched onthose in the woods near my house. 

I worked for Motorola down in southern FL as a consultant often. I always found killer trails with plenty of roots sand burns jumps and things for my eyes to look at while peddling fast.


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## Tone's (Nov 12, 2011)

looks like youll have a bit of fun on that mate, great to see your enthusiasm, go carve it up mate, cheers


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## JFD27 (Aug 11, 2012)

Thanks for the kind words guys. any idea where I can look for dj/park frame? whenever I put in dirt jump bike frame on ebay, all I find that comes up is like 5 different frames? is that how hard they are to come by or I think I just don't know where to look or what brand or what to type. im not new to riding, just new to knowledge on this subject.


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## Tone's (Nov 12, 2011)

JFD27, mate look on this forum n get a bike that others have tried n tested n bashed n crashed, do your home work n you'll be sweet.

When i got serious into DJ i started off with a STP giant, ive still got it, its taken a massive amount of abuse n still rides like a dream, you can pick a newer model up cheap for about 500 bucks, i paid about 1k for mine new, but look around im sure theres heaps of brands around that will do the job, just read n read through this forum, read tonnes of reviews, a hard tail is what you want not a full suss, cheers mate:thumbsup:


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## MicahZ (Dec 19, 2011)

Where in fl are you located? If your in the south, let's have a sesh, ill put you on a jumper so you can feel the difference. It's like night and day, your rocky is a good singletrack rig, I wouldn't destroy it trying to make it a jumper... If you are vigilant in hunting on craigslist, deals come up often in Florida, I'd say there's one good jumper a week available in the $300-600 range. Try key words such as dirt, jump, jumper, and slope in the bicycles sub-category. Also, I know a local bike shop that has a new old stock, still in the box, un-built 2008/9 Gary fisher mullet that you can steal as a complete 1x9 jumper its red, med. Frame and I'm pretty sure he said it can be taken for under $400, if your interested ill link you up with them.


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## JFD27 (Aug 11, 2012)

i am in west side of st. pete in largo, does that ring any bells? that would be awesome man, the price sounds right on that gary. i would love to come check it out. and since its unbuilt, i could make it into a single speed pretty easily right? just need a conversion kit for the back cassette?


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## MicahZ (Dec 19, 2011)

Absolutely, they're cool people, they might even work with you and swap the new rear derailleur for the single speed kit or something. Unfortunately, its a bit of a trek for ya... I'm in South Dade county aka Miami. But if you talk to the folks at the bike shop and work something out via credit card or something, I'm sure they could have the bike built to your spec, and when you arrive, they'll just fit it to your liking and you can enjoy Markham park or Virginia Key while your down. I'll pm you the shops name and number in a few. If it was a long frame, I would already own it as a spare.


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## JFD27 (Aug 11, 2012)

thanks alot man, my girl just bought a specialized today so we would love to come down there for a weekend or something. back to the bike though, like i said im pretty new to all this and don't know what size frame to look at but being 6'3 220lbs i would assume i would need a large frame right?


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## MicahZ (Dec 19, 2011)

That really all boils down to preference... Im 6'6, 240 pounds, and I jump a specialized p.3 short frame... The longer frames just feel too sluggish in the air, but I also have a background in bmx. My trail rigs are always larger though, but still, where I have been pointed towards 24-26" xl-xxl frames, I have found the best performance for my taste to be in the 18-22" or m-l frames, the xl and xxl rigs feel all sloppy in the turns and just feel cumbersome. The only downside to my preference is toe clearance, I know a lot of people prefer their feet centered on the pedals when jumping, and with size 18's my frame preference does keep me on my toes, litterally. My best advice would be take a trip down, try my rig, and go from there, the med. Mullet is only a slightly larger cockpit than the p.3. With any luck someone will be at the park with a long frame for you to try out as well. If you like the feel, go to the shop at that point and make a deal. I'm sure they can get it built out for you in a matter of hours... Take the lady to a nice spot on the beach for lunch while you wait, enjoy a brew or two and your bike will be ready. You really only wanna jump from 7-11a.m. and 4-7 p.m. this time of year... Unless you enjoy dehydration and extreme sunburn, haha.


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## cmc4130 (Jan 30, 2008)

Companies like Blackmarket, NS, etc. do not use the xc mtb style of measurement (seat tube height). 

A Blackmarket MOB for example comes in 21.5, 22, 22.25, and 22.5" actual (NOT "effective") top tube lengths. Top tube is measured from center of head tube to center of seat tube. 

I'm 6'1" and I ride the 22.5". I think the 21.5" MOB is definitely too short for me. My background is bmx as well.


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## Bueller89 (Jul 7, 2012)

Start the search on Craiglist, you might find an entire setup for a decent price similar to that of just a frame. I found a Specialized P3 for $400 on CL with a ton of good components... Just gotta look around for the right deal.


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