A very small Fat Chance Buck Shaver article

from a article in Bike Magazine July/August 1994 about small women's mountainbikes

Nuke Proof parts

From my fellow NP friend i received some original Nuke Proof parts to put on my bike.
It's a Kevlar Bar and an Aluminium stem.

My first real mountainbike : Scott Pro Only 1990

I just mentioned it in the previous post, my first bike was a Scott Pro Only.
I realized that i never told anything about it, i only found 1 picture.

It was a CroMo frame, nice colour scheme in White green purple and a limited edition, was not mentioned in the catalogues from the year.
Equipted with a mixture of XT and LX parts, straight fork, radial spoked front wheel which snapped spontaneously while standing still.
And because it was fashion BITD i put a disc in the rear wheel,..and a seat cover,...my god,..why the hell did i do that!
I remember that the rear wheel made quit the noise and was absolutely nothing like the Tioga disc because this disc had the normal wheel as the base and did not replace the spokes like it was with the Tioga Disc.

When i sold this baby a few years later, i still looked and droe amazing, i always took good care of the bike, and regret selling it.
I think i sold it for the PEARSON.....or the Klein Pinnacle,..yeah,..that was it,..the Pinnacle

Alpinestars CroMega

The first bike i bought was a Scott ProOnly back in 1990, i had like 1250 dutch guilders in my pocket for my bike and was looking for something else then a Giant.
One of the Brands i was interested in was Alpinestars, with the strange bend seatpost tube.
Today i got one afterall ! ;)
Nothing special and heavy but good enough to ride through town without being afraid that someone takes it away from me when i leave it somewhere locked,..it is still Amsterdam so 100% sure that is will happen some time ;)

I doesn't look that good on the photo because the camera in the iPhone is still it's worst feature but in real the pink really looks pink! and the white is pearl metallic.

The One-Off Nuke Proof Tandem

4 years ago Rick H bought this bike from John Muenzenmeyer (former CEO Nuke Proof)
According to Rick this frame was build by Cannondale for JM himself and equipted with all sorts of Nuke Proof prototype parts.

The bike is equipted with a Marzocchi Z3 Bomber, Sun Mammoth Fat Rims, and a Coda Suspension seatpost
Stem's, Handlebars, skewers and hubs are one-off unfinished Nuke Proof testers.

Julia Ingersoll's Nuke Proof Pro Bike

The second scan from Richard...
A picture from Julia Ingersoll her Nuke Proof
It looks to be a Litespeed made frame.

Remarkable is that it is not a Nuke Proof allover equipted bike.


Julia is now a painter

Nuke Proof 1996 MBA test

It is starting to look like a Nuke Proof only Blog but it is not, it is just that i am into NP this week and looking for info and talking to people who have been close to the old company.
When i get my new Serotta i will talk about that too ;)
I just received from Richard (number 156) 2 scans with Nuke Proof info, and this is the Mountain Bike Action test from back in 1996

thanks Richard!



they are talking about a suspension fork aswell,..i have to find out what that is all about,...
Or is that the fork which is build into the bike from David (number 051), that looks like a re-branded RS

The official Nuke Proof serial number database

Hi Guys,

if you own a Nuke Proof bike; Titanium, Carbon/Titanium, or Aluminium Reactor of Full suspension Reactor please email me a good picture and a small description and the serial number.

Thanks

Bas basads(at)gmail(dot)com

****************************************************************************************************************************************
Name owner: Tim W
Location: Shanghai
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium by Litespeed
Size:19"
Year: 1993
Serial number: 20 - 500

****************************************************************************************************************************************
Name owner: David B
Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan, US
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race
Size:18 1/2 (from centre BB - Top seat collar)
Year: 1995
Serial number: 071

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: Bas

Location: Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race (Team Brooklyn A.T.B. Teambike)

Size: 18"

Year: 1995

Serial number: 133

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: David B

Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan, US

Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race

Size:17 1/2" (from centre BB - Top seat collar)

Year: 1995

Serial number: 137

****************************************************************************************************************************************
Name owner: Richard
Location: UK
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race
Size:16"
Year: 1995
Serial number: 156

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: Stephan J.

Location: USA

Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race

Size:18"

Year: 1996 

Serial number: 1054

****************************************************************************************************************************************
Name owner: John H
Location: UK
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race
Size:18"
Year: June 1996 (first owner, still main bike, discbrake conversion)
Serial number: 1072


****************************************************************************************************************************************
Name owner: Bas H
Location: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race
Size:18"
Year: 1996
Serial number: 1083

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: Stéphane H
Location: Geneva, Switzerland
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race
Size:18"
Year: 1996
Serial number: 1108

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: Eli L (Lucifer)
Location: Watkinsville GA US of A
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race
Size:18"
Year: January 1996 (first owner)
Serial number: 1118


****************************************************************************************************************************************
Name owner: NK - picture found on the internet
Location: NK
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium Race
Size:NK
Year: NK
Serial number: NK



there are also some other Nuke Proof types:

****************************************************************************************************************************************
Name owner: Rick H.
Location:
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Tandem (made by Cannondale)
Size:NK
Year: NK
Serial number: no serial number, proto type

****************************************************************************************************************************************
Name owner: NYK
Location: NYK
Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Reactor
Size:NK
Year: NK
Serial number: NYK

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: NYK (picture came from George)

Location: NYK

Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Reactor

Size:NK

Year: NK

Serial number: NYK

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: Bas H,.that's me ;)

Location: Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Reactor

Size: 16,5

Year: 1997

Serial number: have to check

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: George

Location: NYK

Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Reactor FS

Size:NK

Year: NK

Serial number: NYK

not build up yet 

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: (was on ebay recently)

Location: NYK

Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Reactor FS but with the rigid fork

Size:NK

Year: NK

Serial number: NYK

****************************************************************************************************************************************

Name owner: NYK

Location: NYK

Type Nuke Proof: Nuke Proof Titanium/carbon frame

Size: 18"

Year: 1995

Serial number: only 3 made

Again some precious Nuke Proof history

Some time ago i was contacted by someone, David B (full name known by me), a fellow Nuke Proof rider.
He bought the old Nuke Proof bike from John Muesnzenmeyer, the former president of Nuke Proof.
It's a very nice bike which was used by JM as a snowbike and therefore equipted with some very special Snowcat Rims.



That was not the last Nuke Proof he bought:
This is also a beauty,..i do not know what fork it has but it looks allot like the original add as shown below.
I think finding these bikes is the benefit of living in the area where it all began ;)



David also found some old press material and folders which i love:




and also some pictures from the out of this world Nuke Proof Reactor bikes





David, i want to thank you for sharing this great information, and we keep in touche

and for people who are looking for some spare NUKE PROOF parts, let me know by email: Basads@gmail.com
There are some parts left so we might be able to help you out

The Top 10 MIMTBE: Number 7-> FAT CITY FAT CHANCE

While the burgeoning mountainbike scene was growing on the West Coast, Fat City Cycles was doing things its own way on the other side of the country. Much like Charlie Cunningham, Chris Chance looked at off-road riding from a perspective that was in no way influenced by the venerable excelsior.
Soon after starting to build mountainbikes, chance began to TIG-welding but he wasn't the first. Craig Mitchell in Marin did a TIG frame in 1976 or so and Erik Koski did one in 1980. It was a difficult transition for Chance. Gary Helfrich, who worked for Chance at the time, recalls, "Chris was dyed in the wool 'oh my god!, welding will upset the molecular Feng Shui of the steel' sort of guy when I started to work for him in 1983, silver solder or die, Baby"
Important is the family tree that Fat City would end up spawning. Fat City employees Helfrich and Mike Augspurger would go on to found Merlin metalworks. Jeff Federson would start Specialty Racing Products (SRP). The former employees of Fat City would years later regroup as Independent Fabrications (IF)




Augspurger would leave Merlin to found One-Off and Rob Vandemark and some other former Merlin Employees would give birth to Seven Cycles. Had it not been for Fat City and Chris Chance , it is questionable whether the Northeastern bike building industry would have ever coalesced into the diverse and highly regarded scene it is today.
In 1995 Serotta took over his production and after that is died a small death
Nowadays Chris Chance is not working with bikes anymore and does not want to be remembered with this period in his life.
Chris is now working as a massage and Shiatsu techniques therapist


Number 10 -> AMP RESEARCH
Number 9 -> MOUNTAIN CYCLE SAN ANDREAS
Number 8 -> BONTRAGER

The Top 10