Mountain bike info needed

[phone]

So I got a free bike today from my grandpa. It's a trek 3700 without disc brakes. Not sure of the year, but I'd have to guess 2004 - 2010. I haven't looked up the serial number yet.

I don't know much about this bike, other than it being an entry level light trail bike. This is perfect because I've been wanting to get into mountain biking for a while, but only had a late 80s / early 90s lotus road bike yo ride around on.

Any advise would be awesome. Possible upgrades, gear, and beginners trail info is what I'm looking for.

[Doc Holiday]

Gear? Depends on how much your are looking to ride/spend, but the standard padded MTB shorts, gloves and helmet. The padded shorts are life savers, you will thank me later if you ride a lot.

[phone]

Gear? Depends on how much your are looking to ride/spend, but the standard padded MTB shorts, gloves and helmet. The padded shorts are life savers, you will thank me later if you ride a lot.

I live close to uptown cycles so I'll probably swing by there in the next few days when I get back to clt. Figured the gloves and helmet were a given, but I'll look into the shorts as well. I've patched tubes before, but do not have a field kit. Any special items needed?

[Anybodyhome]

I live close to uptown cycles so I'll probably swing by there in the next few days when I get back to clt. Figured the gloves and helmet were a given, but I'll look into the shorts as well. I've patched tubes before, but do not have a field kit. Any special items needed?

 

Just get a frame-fit pump, a couple replacement tubes and a pair of tire levers. If you catch a flat on the road, just put a new tube in and wait til you get home to look for the leak and patch the other tube.

 

[Salvo]

Stick to the smoother trails. Judging from the bike's geometry (frame looks solid, but that fork looks suspect), it wasn't made for rocky singletrack. I know you've already acknowledged that it's entry level, but you don't want to end up going down the wrong trail with it. With a few upgrades, you can take to it up a notch, but with how much upgrades cost nowadays, you'd just be better off buying a new bike later on down the road.

 

Make sure you run the proper tire inflation according to your weight or you'll start getting pinch flats, even on smoother trails. As already mentioned, you're going to want to bring some replacement tubes (at least two), tire levers, and a frame pump. You can buy flat kits practically anywhere, but fixing a flat in the middle of nowhere is a PITA. A fresh tube is a much easier solution. You can fix the old tube up when you get home and have it become another spare....

 

Avoid going through mud or streams with those cantilever brakes. They become useless once they get wet. Just drag them or dry the wheels if getting wet is a must.

 

I'm not familiar with NC trails, but this site would be a good start: http://www.mtbproject.com. Maps the trails according to difficultly. Doesn't list every trail out there, but it will give you a good idea of what's out there. The forums at mtbr.com (http://forums.mtbr.com/forum.php) are also a good resource...

 

Congrats on the new bike! MTBing is a great sport, but safety is the priority!

 

[Doc Holiday]

I live close to uptown cycles so I'll probably swing by there in the next few days when I get back to clt. Figured the gloves and helmet were a given, but I'll look into the shorts as well. I've patched tubes before, but do not have a field kit. Any special items needed?

tubes are cheap enough that I usually just carry a spare with me instead of a patch kit. patch kits arent bad though, but take more time, I also had a bad exp once were all I had was a patch and I couldnt get it to stop the leak and had to walk 7 miles out from where I was and that sucked carrying a bike. so I've been carrying a spare ever since.

 

I ride with a camel pack that has everything in it, bike pump, allen key set, spare and tire hooks. I love my bike pump, it's small but has a HV/HP option for it that works like a charm. 

[phone]

Thanks for all the info so far. I finally got a chance to air the tires and take it out for a ride. All the gears shift smoothly. Turns out it was bought new in 2008 and only ridden a couple of times because my grandpa is getting pretty old (he turns 86 in July).

[PandaPancake]

I'll give you $50 for the dog.