The time has come to part ways with my high-school love; a 1997 thermoplastic GT STS-2. I've loved this bike for years. It is modern? ... no, certainly not. You're not going to ride this on 'modern' bike trails - although back in the 90's, this could handle most anything around.
I've updated this bike where possible to keep it retro yet modern: I ditched the 3x drivetrain for a 1x11. It rides well, if you understand that 23-year-old full-suspension GT DON'T ride like a 2021 model. The Bomber Z.3 up front certainly feels it's age with the squishy sound of open-bath oil. Whether you can overhaul it or simply buy a better-performing SID is up to you.
The size is tricky; it's 20" center-to-top, but 18" center-to-center. As most bikes back in the day were 20" center-to-center as a large, I'm pretty certain it's a medium. But because there's so little documentation to verify, I just am not sure. I'm 5'11" and it fits me great - but I ride both mediums and larges. So, beware of that.
Value on these is all over the place. They are so rare and certainly retro that there's some collectors value; at the same time, I'm very aware that it's a 23-year-old thermoplastic bike. It's more of a collectors item than anything.
The highlights:
- 18" (M) 1997 GT STS-2 frame
- Rock Shox Deluxe rear shock
- Marzocchi Bomber Z.3 front fork
- Mavic wheels
- Shimano XT 1x crank w/ ovalized ring
- L-TWOO AX 1x11 drivetrain (brand-new)
- SunRace 11x50 11-speed cassette (brand-new)
- ENVE carbon riserbar
- Bontrager XXX carbon stem
- Avid brake levers
- Shimano LX v-brakes
- Pedals not included
SOLD.
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