# 1995 trek 1220



## maclover (Jun 29, 2004)

I've finally run across a road bike i can afford, I am sooooo excited.

It has Shimano RSX shifters, are these shifters like the soras where you can't shift from the drops, or are they like the tiagras and 105's where you can shift from the drops?. 

has anybody has experience with this bike? since it is made of aluminum, does that mean it doesn't have much life left? i've read somewhere that aluminum bikes have a lifespan of 5 years. It's already been 9 years.

the specs of the bike:
aluminum frame
chromoly fork
46-36-26 chain rings
11-28 freewheel
new mavic MA3 wheels.

The chain rings has me a little worried. My mountain bicycle has a big ring with 48 teeth, i would figure that a road bike would have a big ring with more teeth than that, at least in the 50's or so. Does anybody know about this?.

i'm 5'7.5" with an inseam of 32".

Thanks for all the info.


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## Kerry Irons (Feb 25, 2002)

*Not enough information*

Whether the frame is shot is an open question. Not likely unless it's been ridden a lot and ridden hard. Anyone who predicts a fixed life for a frame is blowing smoke. Five years sitting in the garage, or 5 years at 10K miles per year with a 250 lb rider pounding down rough roads, including crashes every month? 

46/11 allows you to go over 32 mph at 100 rpm. How fast are you?

Giving us your measurements without giving the bike dimensions doesn't do much good, and I'm guessing that your inseam is a pant size, not one measured for cycling. Am I right? 

Finally, you don't say how much they're asking for the bike, so there's no insight on whether this is worthwhile. I'd say anything much over $300 US would not be a good deal, and maybe $200 makes more sense.


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## Rusty Coggs (Jan 28, 2004)

*Rsx*



maclover said:


> I've finally run across a road bike i can afford, I am sooooo excited.
> 
> It has Shimano RSX shifters, are these shifters like the soras where you can't shift from the drops, or are they like the tiagras and 105's where you can shift from the drops?.
> 
> ...


 RSX levers work like the 105s you mention. It's also 7 speed which is way out of current fashion. The crankset is what shimano marketed with 7 speed RSX:small rings and an 11 tooth small cog. There were alot of gripes about not high enough gearing for strong riders.


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## Al1943 (Jun 23, 2003)

If your measurements are correct you have relatively long legs and short torso (like me). That's less than ideal for riding a Trek which has a long low top tube. You haven't said what size the bike is.
The 1220 was a pretty solid bike, my wife had one. There is no way anyone here can judge its condition without seeing it. Nothing wrong with RSX components in general but the RSX STI shifters are not known for a long lifetime. It's becoming more and more difficult, but not impossible, to find 7-speed replacement parts and you cannot upgrade that frame to 9-speed. I would not spend much on it.
~Al


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## Rusty Coggs (Jan 28, 2004)

*7 speed parts*



Al1943 said:


> It's becoming more and more difficult, but not impossible, to find 7-speed replacement parts and you cannot upgrade that frame to 9-speed. I would not spend much on it.
> ~Al


7 speed Sora shifters are available,and other than the casette which is no issue either,nothing else is really 7 speed specific.The frame could have the comrpomise 128 rear dropout spacing which can safely handle 130 hubs.


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## maclover (Jun 29, 2004)

*the bike is 52cm*

sorry to mention but the bike is 52cm. 

it was being sold for 200$, but unfortunately the bike has been sold.

somebody asked how fast i am? on my current mountain bike, with slick tires, i have a think a 14teeth cog as the smallest in the back and a 48 up front. when going downhill, i'd like to pedal more but i can't. i average about 17mph+ on flats for distances of about 10 miles, the average goes down to about 15+mph with hills thrown on a 17mile trip.

thanks.
Duc


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## coifmo (Jun 19, 2003)

*You can find these on E-Bay*

Lots of 1200s and 1220s turn up there -- typically between $200 and $300 when I was trying to find a price to sell one of mine that had been parked for a while. 

I've upgraded to other bikes a couple of times, but the 1200 I had (93 or 94, fugly yellow) was a fine starter bike. A little heavy, but a solid ride with decent handling. Mine was a double crank up front. 

The RSX shifters and breaks were pretty indestructable, and downtube shifters are not the worst thing in the world to live with.

Also watch E-Bay for other makes of similar vintage - bikes that are not fashionable enough to command premium price today, but that still have plenty of life left in them for the budget-minded rider. Less likely to run into scammers with the older bikes, and more likely to find somebody letting something go really cheap.


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## Al1943 (Jun 23, 2003)

maclover said:


> sorry to mention but the bike is 52cm.
> 
> Duc


If you have a 32" inseam that bike was too small for you anyway. If the measurements you gave us are correct, look for a slightly taller bike with a short top tube, maybe a Spcialized.
~Al


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## Al1943 (Jun 23, 2003)

Rusty Coggs said:


> 7 speed Sora shifters are available,and other than the casette which is no issue either,nothing else is really 7 speed specific.The frame could have the comrpomise 128 rear dropout spacing which can safely handle 130 hubs.


OK, so noted. But it sounds like a bike someone could spend too much money on upgrading.


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## maclover (Jun 29, 2004)

*thanks*

Thanks Al, i feel better now about not being able to get the bike. For the long legs vs. short torso thing, does the Giant Compact Road Frames accomondate this?


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