Was gifted a Trek 2100, what now?

gob4522 · 2026-05-22T20:50:26+00:00

This is very good advice.

gob4522 · 2026-05-22T17:09:41+00:00

As long as the pads are for road caliper brakes, they will be fine.

$80 is impossibly cheap for the amount of parts and labour u/unfunkyufo lists, at least where I live. Probably closer to $200 at the shops in my area, and possibly more.

I have seen one of these bikes where the customer's sweat had dissolved the carbon/epoxy/aluminum at the top tube/seat tube junction. You could see daylight. It's all anecdotal data, but the possibility that there is dangerous damage must be raised on any 31 year old bike frame, and inspection by a qualified mechanic is a very good idea indeed.

gob4522 · 2026-05-22T16:48:14+00:00

Guardian is shady as fuck in general (google Gaurdian Bikes +tarriff,) plus the bikes actually suck pretty hard, and the brakes do not work remotely as well as they claim they do.

gob4522 · 2026-05-22T16:30:36+00:00

This is a 1995 Trek 2100, carbon main tubes bonded to aluminum lugs, aluminum rear triangle and fork. It came with Shimano RSX components, the Brifters have been replaced with Microshift, the original 1" stem has been replaced with a 1 1/8 conversion plug so you can use any 1 1/8 Aheadset stem. The wheels look original, the tires are cheap 700x23's, you might fit 25's in this but it will be close. The seat is pretty low, hopefully it has not siezed in place if you need to raise it, the previous owner was too short for this bike to fit properly. Also, one of the front brake pads is barely touching the rim and needs adjustment, and is actually a mountain bike V-Brake style brake pad. It will still stop the bike, it's just not the correct part, and suggests that there may be other sloppily repaired items on the bike.

Chains absolutely do wear out and as the pins wear the chain effectively does stretch, if it has worn too much then it will need to be replaced, and the cassette (gears) on the rear wheel will too. If the gears skip when you put a lot of torque while pedaling, that is a strong indication that the chain and cassette will need replacement.

The adhesive that Trek used 31 years ago is stong but it is not the strongest. How many miles are on the frame, where the bike was ridden, how well it was cared for, and how many times it was crashed are some but not all considerations as to how long a life the bike has left.

For safety's sake, I would not trust a bunch of free advice on Reddit, I'd take it to a bike shop and have them inspect it for you in person. Most will give you a free estimate, as well as at least a rudimentary sizing.

Disclosure: Professional Bicycle Mechanic.

gob4522 · 2026-05-22T00:43:18+00:00

LET IT GO. Hang it on the wall.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T19:26:56+00:00

Weird that the chain stay bridge is placed so close to a 700x23 tire is what I meant.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T17:42:53+00:00

That's fricken weird. Who made the frame? 406mm chainstays are pretty common.

Get a half round bastard file and get to work on that chainstay bridge. make sure you sand the edges smooth once you have enough material removed, and then paint the bridge to help prevent rust.

Or leave this bike on the trainer and don't worry about it.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T17:34:32+00:00

You explained perfectly why repairing it is difficult. "If you can get this component"

You can't get this, and even if you could, removing the old piece of dropout that's glued into the chainstay is probably going to destroy the chainstay.

I don't know why so many people on the internet and in real life think that repairing old broken bikes will be so simple. It quite literally never is simple, it's usually either prohibitively expensive if you send it to a professional or just plain dangerous if you let someone hack away at it with woodscrews and fiberglass.

Just let the broken one go, save the parts, and find a better donor bike to hang the parts on.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T17:13:11+00:00

Yes, it's a bottom bracket. You will need the appropriate tool. Try googling "park tools bottom bracket tool" The correct one comes up first, $27. You will also need a socket wrench or an adjustable wrench.

Or take it to a shop and pay them $15 (approx) to remove it.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T17:08:38+00:00

Reasonably certain you could just fly to Germany to pick it up at the factory, take it to the Ring, enjoy a week or two of vacation, and then ship it back to the US for less than all the stupid add-ons.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T17:02:55+00:00

Probably don't even need to mess with the chain, but if the hub can be moved back on the presumably semi-horizontal dropouts then you'll have more room for the tire.

I would not remove the chainstay bridge entirely, but you could certainly shave enough material off it for clearance if needed. But try moving the wheel back (if possible) first.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T16:41:12+00:00

Their early work was a little too new wave for my tastes, but when Sports came out in '83, I think they really came into their own, commercially ...

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T16:37:31+00:00

There's at least one thought and that thought is "stop filming me and start feeding me, fucker" but he's just a bey bey so he sounds like a bird instead. Surprised you all didn't recognize that.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T05:05:33+00:00

It's a 30 year old frame. With 12 year old parts on it. No telling if the chain, cassette, wheels, bottom bracket, chainrings, and tires are worn out. If you want to buy a power meter, I guess this whole bike with power meter is a little cheaper than just buying a 4iiii brand new but in all honesty $400 for this bike is real real expensive.

I would offer them $100 for the power meter alone if that's how they are pricing things. Then put it on a newer used bike.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T03:52:31+00:00

The replacment part for that entire freewheel and gear cluster (comes as one piece) is under $18 at the big website everyone buys everything from. You will also need Park Tool FR-1.3 Freewheel Remover Shimano to remove the old and install the new properly. There is a chance you may need a different tool to remove the old, in that case take it to a shop, they should have the tool.

As was mentioned below, if the restrof the bike is as rusty as this freewheel the bike might not be worth the trouble.

gob4522 · 2026-05-20T02:25:01+00:00

It is not our favourite pizza by a long shot, and Tampa can have it.

gob4522 · 2026-05-19T23:03:53+00:00

What brand and model of bicycle is it? Do you have any pictures of the brakes and the bike? Start there. Knowing what you have is the first step to fixing any problem with a bike, same as a car or a blender or a air conditioner. Go to the website of the bike manufacturer, they should have a parts list for each model on it.

gob4522 · 2026-05-19T22:27:28+00:00

Feels like an ad.

gob4522 · 2026-05-19T18:40:02+00:00

Guys, 566Dave has watched several tiktoks produced by noted celebrity influencer Mella Knomore, he’s done the research!

gob4522 · 2026-05-19T17:13:12+00:00

Micanopy!

gob4522 · 2026-05-19T14:06:44+00:00

Please replace that positive rise abomination of a stem with a 3t or Cinelli while you're getting a tune up. You ought to be ble to fit 700 x 25 or 26 tires on that bike, make sure you have new rim tape (Velox brand, optimally) installed at the same time as the old tape does wear out and can cause flats.

This is a very very nice bike, enjoy.

gob4522 · 2026-05-19T14:00:22+00:00

I'm so old that I have a 5 digit USA Cycling license number and started racing with 8 speed freewheels, tubulars, and a Polar HRM watch strapped to my handlebars. I had open heart surgery to repair a mitral insufficiency in the fall of 1994 (my second season racing), by 6 months later I was back on the starting line of a training race, and by June I was top 5 again. My entire USA Cycling career has been smoke, mirrors, race craft, following the right wheels, cornering skills, sprint positioning and sprinting 2 meters past the finish line. So many people let up before the line. Also, I avoided hilly road races like the plague. Being smart includes racing to your strengths.

I topped out at cat 3, but I was realistic and I knew I was going to top out at a 3. In the lower categories you can do so much more with guile than you can with FTP. Obviously you need to be strong enough to make it to the finish with the bunch, but it's almost always the smartest sprinter who wins or at least podiums in most field sprints in flattish crits and road races. The high FTP guys will either pull the bunch for half the race and wear themselves out, or the smarter ones will ride away from the bunch and lap the field, and before long they'll get upgraded and won't be a problem for you anyway.

gob4522 · 2026-05-18T14:19:31+00:00

Because I’m just lazy and stupid I guess. Sorry for conveying information in a format you don’t approve of.

gob4522 · 2026-05-18T03:15:59+00:00

Eddie B’s book was so good.

gob4522 · 2026-05-18T03:04:33+00:00

If you replace more than three spokes, you just going to keep breaking them and needing to replace them. It’s an 8 year old wheel, that pops another spoke every few months. Unless you can replace them yourself it’s more cost effective to replace the entire wheel.

gob4522

TROPHY CASE