[OldRidgeback]

Leeroy Silk made a comment on another thread and asked how many riders on this website ride BMX. I do, so does he and so does Matt Eaton but we’re curious how many others do. All three of us do BMX racing and me and Leeroy will be competing at the British BMX Championships next weekend. I ride at the skatepark a bit and so does Matt (Leeroy didn’t say) but racing is my main focus.

There is a strong crossover between BMX and MTB riding as well as CX, but MTB in particular and a lot of BMX racers I know also do MTB riding, downhill particularly. Some of us BMXers ride on the road (where I started all those years ago) and at the velodrome too as both can help endurance, while BMX gives riders the sort of explosive power needed for quick starts.

Topic

[OldRidgeback]

beardyjim wrote:Thanks for

beardyjim wrote:

Thanks for the info guys. Like I said earlier it’s really just a toe in the water/muck around toy (for now anyhow!)

Great to hear it – I started with a muckabout toy BMX and it sort of went from there 🙂

[beardyjim]

Thanks for the info guys.
Thanks for the info guys. Like I said earlier it’s really just a toe in the water/muck around toy (for now anyhow!)

[OldRidgeback]

Actually Quillan came 2nd in
Actually Quillan came 2nd in elite men at the Brits. I said 3rd but that was wrong.
Training tomorrow morning so I’ll maybe ride the 20″ for a change.

[kev-s]

that dyno is a 1995-1998
that dyno is a 1995-1998 one

the 1in headset and canti brake not v brake give it away

top of the range bmx’s in 94/95 start to appear with 1&1/8th headsets and v brakes

lower end brands carried on using 1in headsets and canti brakes for a few years after this

a quick search and it seems they were made from 96 to 97

http://bmxmuseum.com/bikes/dyno/?model=1778

[OldRidgeback]

beardyjim wrote:tyres are as

beardyjim wrote:

tyres are as you stated already (skinny rear) but could do with replacing once I’ve had a play..
not sure how the top tube is measured on bmx’s but front of headstock to rear of seat post (along the tube) is ~21″

I was curious so I did a quick google search. Dyno BMXs were made by an independent CA brand in the 80s but the firm sold out to GT, which continued selling the bikes as a budget priced range. The GT brand then itself became part of Pacific Cycle and the Dyno brand disappeared in 2004. This looks like a later frame as the early ones had a pretty distinctive layout, though I’ve no idea when it’s from. Most likely it’s a 90s vintage bike.

Those multi spoke wheels and tyres look good for the skatepark but not so hot for racing.

For the money it’s an ideal starter bike and would also probably suit a child aged from about 11-14.

[OldRidgeback]

Leeroy_Silk wrote:I actually

Leeroy_Silk wrote:

I actually had Quillan down for the win. Localish track which at Cyclopark is a massive help, plus he’s definitely quick enough.
Which area are you from? I’m assuming Peckham…

I ride for Brixton not Peckham, but since we’re so close I know a lot of the people there and I know both the old track and the new Burgess Park track very well. I’ve spoken to Quillan and Tre (and their brothers) over the years though I can’t say I know them well. I know Tre’s dad, Nigel, who is assistant coach at Peckham quite well and the head coach, CK, is a mate.

Quillan and Tre are both very talented – don’t know if you’ve seen the documentary film 1 Way Up about them yet but it’s worth watching out for. It was screened in full on MTV a few weeks back and will be again. When I find out the date, I’ll let you know.

I’m about the same height as you and my 20″ is a 21 1/2 as well, though I’ve ridden 22 1/2 frames belonging to various people I know as well and I do wonder if I should’ve had one of those instead. Since the cruiser’s my main BMX, it’s not so important though. I did think about entering vets on the 20″ this year as you can if you’ve qualified in cruiser but those guys are fast and my son wasn’t competing this year so I hadn’t intended to be there on the Sunday – next year maybe.

[Leeroy_Silk]

I actually had Quillan down
I actually had Quillan down for the win. Localish track which at Cyclopark is a massive help, plus he’s definitely quick enough.
Which area are you from? I’m assuming Peckham…

[OldRidgeback]

beardyjim wrote:tyres are as

beardyjim wrote:

tyres are as you stated already (skinny rear) but could do with replacing once I’ve had a play..
not sure how the top tube is measured on bmx’s but front of headstock to rear of seat post (along the tube) is ~21″

It might be a 20 1/2 as you measure from the centre of the headstock to the centre of the seat tube. But as a starter bike it’s a bargain and the parts will be useful and possibly transferable if you come across a bigger frame. Wide bars are good on a 20″ and my S&M slam bars are 30″ wide.

[Leeroy_Silk]

The top tube is measured from
The top tube is measured from the centre of the heat tube to centre of the seat tube. For £25 you can’t go wrong! If it does start feeling a little small you should have hopefully caught the bug and won’t feel too stressed about investing in something bigger.

One quick thing to consider, BMX’s look tiny compared to other bikes and feel tiny when you sit on them, by all account you shouldn’t be able to sit and pedal, having said that when you stand up you shouldn’t feel as though your knees are gonna smash your stem when you pedal. Put a BMX next to a mountain bike and you’ll notice the bars and cranks are about the same height.
Size wise, I’m 5:10 and have two 21″ top tube bikes. For racing I should have a 21.5″ but I prefer being slightly compact.

Hope you have a blast!

[beardyjim]

tyres are as you stated
tyres are as you stated already (skinny rear) but could do with replacing once I’ve had a play..
not sure how the top tube is measured on bmx’s but front of headstock to rear of seat post (along the tube) is ~21″

[beardyjim]

farrell wrote:How much did

farrell wrote:

How much did you get that for?

I think you may have got a bargain.

£25 for the bike and then £5 for the spare wheels (spares were spray painted black by the previous owner for that stealth look…)

I figured for that price it was worth a punt although it needs a bit of a strip and clean. Bars are a bit rusty so clearly not ally bars!
The bars are decently wide though.

as n+1 purchases go I’m pretty chuffed at the moment.

[OldRidgeback]

Hard to tell what size of
Hard to tell what size of frame that is – I’ve ridden my son’s 20.6 but it’s a bit small for an adult. For you it should really be an 21.5 or 22.5. But having spare wheels is a plus. The road tyres will be good for skatepark riding. Note that a lot of tracks have tarmac berms these days too. You can remove the front brake as you don’t need that. If you want to check gear ratios, 44:16 is a pretty common choice while a 1 3/4 tyre at the rear and a slightly fatter 2.2 at the front is another popular layout. It’s a good place to start for not much outlay.

[farrell]

How much did you get that
How much did you get that for?

I think you may have got a bargain.

[beardyjim]

Well I stopped at a local
Well I stopped at a local bike recycler and got my first bmx for ~25 years…
A bit of a doer upper but I’m chuffed!
(No idea what it really is but its an ally frame and I got a spare set of wheels so I could have the road tyres off them as well)

Thanks for the pointers and I will see how I get on with this and then look further..

[OldRidgeback]

Morgan700cc wrote:Well,

Morgan700cc wrote:

Well, turning 45 next week, and still ride BMX when I can. Wouldn’t be surprised if I knew most of the Flatlanders you saw, OldRidgeBack. Flatlanders have been the nicest folks I’ve ridden with in BMX. I’ve ridden in competition and used to write for an international Flatland site… Ride until you can’t, I say!

They came from Norfolk – can’t remember now if it was Norwich or Ipswich – one of the wiches anyway. 🙂

I wasn’t riding that day as we had a lot of newbie riders trying out BMXs on the temporary pump track and me and the coach were getting the kids on bikes and sorting them out with club kit. I did talk with some of the flatlanders while we were sheltering from the rain under our gazebo.

[Author]

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