Twenty year old Ross MTB - upgrade or not?

In article <[email hidden]>,

Badger_South said:

I'm still trying to convince my brother to improve
his ride.

He's got a no-suspension, steel frame Ross bike in good
condition, but needs to upgrade the rear sprocket for
moderate street riding, get a new chain, and true the front
wheel. (Sorry don't have a pic, and can't find the "Ross
bikes" site)

He's afraid that if the bike shop gets started they'll say,
'oh, can't swap the sprocket,
b/c the "inser- expensive-bike-component-here" is bad and
needs replaced first.

I told him that even though the bike is 20 years old, it's
got a good frame (whole bike weighs only 32lbs), and is
worth spending at least what he paid for it, (and in
today's dollars only, I said -$300),

I think when it's got new lightweight wheels, more road-
worthy tires, and a better street- oriented set of gears,
it will fly!

Am I right, or does he really need a new bike? It seems to
pass the test for 'bike's I'd grab at yardsales'.

$300 is way too much to spend on that. You can buy an STI-
equipped used road bike for that much money that would be
1000% better.

Putting smooth tires on the Ross makes sense.

The freewheel and chain I would replace only when worn out.

Buying light wheels for it is nuts.

--Paul

Paul Southworth said:

Buying light wheels for it is nuts.

nuts if you spend too much, you can get an on sale wheelset,
cassette, tires and a fresh chain for about $150. If he
decides to get a newer cycle these can be recycled and he
can have a sturdy set of wheels and a racy set. You'll have
to cold set the dropouts + 10mm to make a modern set work
with his old friction shift and I wouldn't get anything more
than an eight speed cassette which'll work just fine with an
adjusted old derailleur.

From what I remember of eighties Ross bikes--the frames were
servicable but the wheels sucked. So getting components
that'll be recyclable on a newer ride makes sense. But $300
is silly--you can get a quite nice "comfort" bike for that
kind of dough. It's kind of the magic number, give me an old
ride worth upgrading, and $300 can make it into a very fresh
cycle equivalent in feel to something new in the $800 range--
of course for those that prefer or don't mind friction
shifting. Hey, they still make fretless basses...

😄