# 1994 Specialized Hardrock FS



## lancele (Jun 20, 2007)

This 1994 steel 19-inch Specialized Hardrock FS bike was purchased a couple of weeks ago, and the first thing I did was take it down to the beach. Of course, I washed it down afterwards (not hard spraying). Most notably it has a broken front screw-on brake boss. I guess that the previous owner decided to remove the whole front brake system altogether. Everything looks original. More comments below.

It's not anything really to write home about, but many bicyclists start off with less expensive LBS bikes due to finance and sticker shock (this model I _believe _retailed around $300-400), and I thought this might bring some memories back for them. The Hardrock was Specialized 3rd best mountain frame base model at the time (that may sound impressive as long as people don't know there were only 3 base models for the mountain bike series). (BTW, I'm far from being a Specialized expert.)

Catalog pictures can be viewed at: https://www.mtb-kataloge.de/html/specialized.html

-Lance



















3x7 speed gripshift. The twisters have Specialized logos. I had to put electric tape around the grips because they were melted and sticky- probably left outdoors too long. Rear shifters shifted well, but the front shifting had to be adjusted, but still not changing chainrings very well.










Elastomer front shocks that still rebounds, but there's not much travel. Right brake boss is broken. I believe the previous owner had a computer on on this because the adapter (removed) was still on the fork.










This bike still has the original rims, spokes (not stainless), Specialized 26x1.95 Shockmaster front tire, Specialized 26x1.95 More Extreme rear tire. Here's my criticism of the design: When I look at this mountain bike and see front suspension followed by beefy tires, I would naturally think it can be biked offroad. The problem is the spoke nipples are on the same surface as the interior rim (there's no sublevel to house the nipples on the inside of the rim), and topped off with a moveable rubber cover. From experience, I know that spoke nipples just separated from the tube by a thin piece of rubber is likely to cause flats when a rider does more than just pavement riding. On the other hand, I realize the design is probably due to keeping the price down.

When I saw all the rust on the chain and rear cluster, I thought for sure it was going to squeak, but it was amazingly quiet! I guess the chain pins where still good enough to be silent.

Rear tire tube had a really slow leak, but I only had a replacement presta tube.










The black saddle is the original saddle, and the grey beater saddle on the bike currently is actually a Specialized comfort saddle. I had tape the front end up in duck tape because the cover was gone, and the foam had a tannish color while the plastic shell has a orange colored tip. Well, when riding, it looked like I was exposing my weedwacker. :eekster:










That's the original plastic piece covering the cable along the top tube.


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## pinguwin (Aug 20, 2004)

Myself, I wouldn't ride that bike as is, without a front brake. The front is 70% of your stopping power, so fixing it will be a good thing.

Also, when the brakes engage, they will tend to twist the legs of the shock (moving the inside of the leg forward, each leg a different direction) and that is going to cause you problems and the braking will be very bad. So a brake bridge is a must.

Hey, it's ok if it's the not the best bike out there. It gives you plenty to talk about with stan4bikes.

Pinguwin


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## Rumpfy (Dec 21, 2003)

I'm speechless.


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## hollister (Sep 16, 2005)

*quit lurking stan, you know you want one....*

holy dial up nightmare!


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## stan4bikes (May 24, 2006)

It could be fixed.....but I would donate it to my local BikeWorks program......even I "know when to hold up, know when to fold up....know when to walk away, know when to RUN! "

*DON"T ride it that way..............!!!!!!!!*


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## trailville (Jul 24, 2006)

I'm sensing some elitism on the VRC forum. 
The OP is right in that a lot of us started on bikes like that and it is interesting to see them again. My 1st mtb was a 93 (or possibly 92) hardrock and I only rode it for one summer then sold it for 50 bucks when I got a better bike (I paid about 300 for it). Though I don't remember a lot about the bike, the build was very different than the 94 shown in this post. It was a 6 speed with thumb shifters, fully rigid, riser bars with some big fat cushy foam grips, and really heavy tires that seemed to be impervious to flats.
Though it obviously wasn't a great bike, I had enough fun on it to realize I liked mountain biking, so that bike is why I'm riding today.


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## pinguwin (Aug 20, 2004)

I'm not sure that it's elitism. We have plenty of people post mid-line bikes. I think what is gathering comments in this case is the bike is unsafe to ride in it's current condition. Brakes and no bridge on a suspension fork is a very, very bad idea. Stan has lots of similar bikes but this one scares him (not trying to speak for you Stan). I don't think it's because it's too crappy rather it's unsafe condition. However, looking at the comments, it might appear so. IMHO, of course.

Penguin


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## stan4bikes (May 24, 2006)

It doesn't "scare me", it could be fixed up, I just don't know that it's worth it..I just see bikes in better shape on CL, garage sales etc for less than the proper repairs on this bike would be. New fork, brakes, cables, chain,tubes......

and for twice not trying to speak for me..thank you.


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## trailville (Jul 24, 2006)

stan4bikes said:


> I just don't know that it's worth it...


Stop, stop, you're killing me. This must mean that somehow you have found a way to quantify your compulsion. Just kidding.

Just like to mention that I enjoy lurking around the VRC. I didn't own or ride a bike between 1977 (when I got my 1st car) and 1993 (when I got my hardrock), so I basically missed out on the whole birth of mtn biking thing (the last bike I owned in 77 was what we refered to as a ten-speed so I missed out on BMX as well). So I like checking out VRC to see what I missed during that period and to remind me that mtn biking was fun long before it got as fractured and expensive as it is today.

Anyway, I'm rooting for you Lancelee. Took a quick look on ebay and there is a similar fork (threadless steerer though) that you may (not sure though) be able to use for parts if you want to make that bike rideable. May be more than you want to spend though so you'll need to decide if it's "worth it".

http://cgi.ebay.com/SR-DUOTRACK-700...ryZ36135QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem,


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## pinguwin (Aug 20, 2004)

I had a Sears 5-speed bike from the late 60 or early 70's. I went to the store with $10 and spent $5.94. I saw someone posting a garage sale sign and asked if they had a bike there. They did and I said, "All I have is the $4.06 in change from the store." Sold! Sure it hardly stopped and had a small hop in the rear rim. It was fun to ride around town on it, such a change from my high-end bikes and I used it for a few years.

One day at the store, it was run over by a construction vehicle. It required a new wheel and few other things that the construction company paid for. Then I looked at it and realized that this $4.06 bike, to get it back to being decent, would have been another $104.06 and felt it best to keep the money and not repair it.

I'm not being melodramatic, but it hurt to carry it to the curb onto the garbage heap. I'd look at it and say, "I bet I could..." I saw the garbage man pick it up and throw it into the truck. I didn't like that one bit, the idea of throwing out a bike bothers me.

I'm not making a comment on the Hardrock, rather just telling my story about whether a bike is worth it. Stan, maybe you'll like this Tale O' Yore. Lancele, maybe you'll fix it up, even if it isn't 'worth' it, just for fun, just because.

I had a 1987 Trek 850 that was stolen and trashed. Not worth fixing but I gave it to my bike shop for parts. Turns out they tossed it, nothing worth saving, but it made it easier to get rid of since I tried to reuse the parts.

Anyways Stan, as far as speaking for you, I'll do it anytime. Whether you ask me to or want me to do so. 

Penguin


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## Rumpfy (Dec 21, 2003)

trailville said:


> I'm sensing some elitism on the VRC forum.


I'm guilty of being an elitist and a total snob when it comes to bikes. I won't deny that.

If you don't have the means or money to ride a top shelf bike, there's not a thing wrong with that. How much you pay for the bike does not equal how much you'll enjoy riding it.

...but at the same time, if you want to mountain bike, I really don't think its too difficult to scrap together $100-300 bucks to get something half way decent....and more importantly, safe to ride.

Maybe I'm an assho!e?


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## lancele (Jun 20, 2007)

Hello everyone,

Just wanted to clarify some things. I didn't mean for the thread to be about whether I should ride it or about safety concerns, but more for historical purposes and memories. Maybe I should have been more clear.

When I took it down to the beach, I rode it on semi packed sand on the beach itself (there's still some sand left on tires in the pics) so I wasn't going fast, maybe 8 or 9 mph tops, and braking wasn't a problem. Even Fred Flintstone could have stopped it with a couple of toes. Also I did it in a remote area of Galveston and Freeport beach. I do agree if I had a choice of only one brake set, it would be the front set. I definitely would not ride this bike in the presence of other cyclists or pedestrians or cars. Endangering myself is one thing, but endangering other people is another thing. After two trips to the beach I took it home and replaced it with the beater saddle, and the description of riding with the old beater saddle came from riding another bicycle. 

I'm only planning to fix it up if I can pick up some cheap forks at the Austin, TX, monthly bike swap meet. I saw some cheap threaded forks at the last one, like $10, but didn't own this bike at the time. When I first purchased it, I didn't really plan on keeping it long since I already have a great bike since 1991, so I thought maybe I could post some pics while it was still in my possession.

Lance


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## pinguwin (Aug 20, 2004)

Lancele, go forth and do no more wrong.

And the rest of us, we can stop beating up on him.

'Guin

P.S. Lancele, one one last question, are you wearing a helmet  Just kidding.


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## djmuff (Sep 8, 2004)

That does bring back memories... memories of assembling that very same bike. I started working at the the local shop in my hometown in 1992, so for the next few years I built pretty much everything in the normal Specialized line, and a few S-Works bikes. That Hardrock FS was hefty, but a decent bike in it's day. And definitely better than what I started on- which was a 1990-ish Trek 800.



lancele said:


> The problem is the spoke nipples are on the same surface as the interior rim (there's no sublevel to house the nipples on the inside of the rim), and topped off with a moveable rubber cover. From experience, I know that spoke nipples just separated from the tube by a thin piece of rubber is likely to cause flats when a rider does more than just pavement riding. On the other hand, I realize the design is probably due to keeping the price down.


Based on my experience, single-wall rims don't get more flats than double-wall. If your rim strip is in good condition, then there shouldn't be anything to worry about.


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## sho220 (Aug 3, 2005)

About the only thing that could make that bike look crappier is if it had one of those Tioga tension disk wheel things on the back...:thumbsup: 

j/k 

If you're resourceful, you could easily fix that up for less than $20...especially considering it seems that it's going to be a neighborhood/beach cruiser...


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## Rumpfy (Dec 21, 2003)

sho220 said:


> About the only thing that could make that bike look crappier is if it had one of those Tioga tension disk wheel things on the back...:thumbsup:
> 
> j/k


:incazzato:


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## 02_NRS (Jan 27, 2004)

*fork???*

just sold the exact same model-have the same fork, which I upgraded, if you want to keep yours original.........


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