My Dream Bike Just Got Even Better!

[@gcntech]

Brown suede saddle: hot or not? 🔥👀 Let us know in the comments below! 👇

[@matsvancoppenolle5796]

🔥

[@austienbryandemesa5841]

use a brown bar tape and it is fire, when si roasted the brown saddle in the bike vault I was laughing but when I see this video I feel bad for alex and understood his reaction, he's really passionate with the dream build. use a brown bartape and this will be instant classic

[@Jari1973]

🤮😁

[@wsbygt]

👌

[@Adonis-qj1nq]

Sorry Alex, I’m with Si on this one. Black or white would be nicer.

[@Dreamweaver94]

This bike reminds me of when the Discovery channel didn't totally suck and actually had educational content.

[@sparkeyjones6261]

The Discovery network owns something like 20 channels. They still have a lot of highly educational programming, but for some stupid reason most American cable companies don't carry that kind of content. The only way I can watch it is on European channels using an IPTV service.

[@rickmoses5081]

AWESOME VID! Can’t WAIT to see how the COMFORT and OVERALL ride quality is! Do update us.

[@bmwofboganville]

14x cheaper than the 2023 Madone. And the 2004 bike has the flexibility of a separate stem & convenience of external cables.

[@olivier2004]

2005😉 2004 = us postal.

[@gcntech]

It's a pretty sweet machine!

[@michaelcullen4990]

​@@gcntechit's beautiful🙏I have 2 of the 1999 5500 oclv pro us postal treks and they are amazing, love them, best frame ever built in my opinion, ❤ from 🇨🇮

[@christosandreev6392]

These bikes are so nice to work on. None of the modern hydro disc brake, cables inside the steerer and the handlebar nonsense

[@chinabicycle]

a good steering wheel from this company tossek, when I was collecting a gravel pit, I put it there. very durable

[@rickmoses5081]

Oh, LOVE the brown/tan suede saddle with this bike. STUNNING!

[@sci-fyguy7767]

Rim brakes-smart choice! 👍🔥🚴🏻‍♂️🔥

[@BennyOcean]

When you're done with this, please make a comparison video between this one and a modern top of the line bikes. Like one of those A-B tests where you use the same wattage and test your time. Bike looks great. Cheers.

[@duathlete827]

Built some bikes myself over the years. Two favorites are Trek 5200 and Trek 5500. Both are full carbon OCLV with old but excellent running gear. They're all I ride and love them.

[@gcntech]

They're brilliant bikes! We made a film about Trek on GCN+ that you may find interesting! 👉 gcn.eu/Trek

[@Servicevelo]

I had a one piece bar and stem from Toseek. I sold the bike a few weeks ago but the bars were brilliant, they had been on for three years with no issue. They were a rip off of the Canyon ones in shape and were £65.00. I’d have them again.

[@TheBridgee100]

Like the look of the bike. If you get some brown handlebar tape it will look absolutely sick. Brown goes well with blue. Will also stand out against the classic black. Well done!

[@gcntech]

Not a bad shout!

[@croninnicholas9063]

And a brown AG2R bib short 😂

[@TenSapphires]

​@@croninnicholas9063Those are iconic now!

[@CM-fi6tu]

I actually enjoy these kind of builds way more than the fake budget ones. Keep it up guys!

[@1969Rake]

$1500 is definitely not bad to build your personal dream bike. Beautiful bike. Suede sadle? It will be interesting to see how well that perfoms/lasts.

[@johnmorrison8351]

I still ride a 2008 Madone which is still a period-appropriate build except I switched out my RXLs for Enve 4.5s. I still think the 7800 Dura Ace is the peak of groupset aesthetics and the performance is still superb

[@olekmehera7256]

Now THATS a bike more of these kinds of bikes

[@bikermousefrommarz6739]

Love it. Have one very similar from 2006. I love the affordable(ish) approach. Evolve away Alex. I'll be tuning in.

[@Mavrik-60]

Being a Treky I would have to whole hartley agree. Nice to have your dream bike and ride it to. Keepemcoming

[@ioannidesalex]

Where can I find the 'Alex workshop" label that you have back there ? 5:50

[@Zzyyxx22]

“RULE 8 // Saddles, bars, and tires shall be carefully matched. 3Valid options are: Match the saddle to the bars and the tires to black; or Match the bars to the color of the frame at the top of the head tube and the saddle to the color of the frame at the top of the seat tube and the tires to the color where they come closest to the frame; or Match the saddle and the bars to the frame decals; or Black, black, black”

[@gerrymcbride6429]

Rools is rools!

[@chrisscott8362]

This is the way.

[@gcntech]

Or you could just ditch the rules and do your own thing 😉

[@Zzyyxx22]

@@gcntech It’s a slippery slope once you let that first rule slide. First it’s non-matched contact points then before you know it you’re stripping Discovery Channel frames.

[@dominicbritt]

Cracking job Alex. Fantastic understated job- that saddle is the cherry on top 👍

[@oneilwolfe407]

Very nice video gives myself and possibly many others ideas for enjoying current bike with maintenance and upgrades

[@allthebass]

Lightly warm up any stickers you’re going to remove with a hairdryer(not too hot). I sold a ton of those Treks back in the day and sometimes when you would peel off the warning stickers or chain stay guard it would peel off the clearcoat and water slide decal underneath. Cheers.

[@fariseb]

Si's reaction to the brown saddle was just savage. And right.

[@madscycle4290]

I really said “oh no” when I heard it was a Toseek drop bars. Those are not good at all. Ive heard and seen broken toseek bars back in my country. Be careful when using them!

[@mikekelly1771]

Yep. Mine lasted about a week. Just stepping down a curb off the footpath onto the road at walking pace and CRUNCH! Luckily it didn't brake clean off but it was snapped almost all the way through. So lucky I didn't hit a pothole or something at speed.

[@Chimy1423]

I have a friend that change his aluminum bars and seatpost years ago without any problems at all. I know there's shitty products out there. But, don't get in the marketing trap of big brands.

[@vincentbutton5926]

I've got a couple of the 2004 Trek Madone 5.2s. Daily riders - one for indoor, one for out. Beautiful bikes that ride great. Your 5.9 looks amazing. Enjoy.

[@oliveralldridge4385]

Bin those toseek handlebars mate. I've had 2 sets and both sets failed around the clamp area. Checkout trace velo and you'll see luke also had the same issue stay safe

[@apoc341]

That bike needs a front basket to go with the brown saddle then it would be chef’s kiss worthy.

[@gcntech]

I don't see that happening anytime soon 😂

[@sateshmahadeo4366]

Dude, I have that same handlebar. It works great and looks great.

[@richardcmacnamee]

Alex - Wonderful video - well done. I do actually have some Bontrager quick releases that I would be delighted to donate.

[@nicholasfitzgerald1999]

Congrats Alex, looks unreal! Good to see classic bikes being restored and respected like classic cars. True bike enthusiast 👊🏻

[@schrodingerthecat]

Very nice bike, Alex!! I hope you have many miles/kilometers of enjoyable and memorable rides with it, and maybe even share some with us.

[@gcntech]

I'm sure he will!

[@theh2ohammer372]

I love the rebuilding of old bikes.

[@campionjj]

ive got a madone in the shed, thanks for the inspiration for making it great again!

[@01FozzyS]

Love how this turned out,Alex!

[@gemshiddenhistories6575]

Nicely done Alex, Beautiful Build.

[@awviraj]

this is my dream..one day I will build my own bike. Thanks for the inspiration Alex

[@tommasobonvicini7114]

Blue stickers on the wheels would have improved drastically the look of the whole bike I think!

[@Cycle9568]

I wholeheartedly agree with you! Blue wheel stickers for the win!

[@OM-sb2bd]

I disagree … the red sticker contrast is 🔥 … ☮️

[@DonutEndurance]

Watched this right after watching the Tech Show. Awesome to see how excited Alex is after seeing Si giving him such a hard time about it and not having it yet.😆

[@sparkeyjones6261]

A neighbor of mine left a bike exactly like this in my garage when he moved out. Unfortunately, the seat stay was cracked beyond repair. So, I stripped off all the parts, and am using the Ultegra groupset and wheels to build-up a 2004 Colnago C40 frameset I got off Ebay recently. My Dream Bike upgrade. I hope it turns out as nicely as yours has. 🙂

[@techboy86]

Love this video from Alex, taking an older flagship model and giving it a new lease of life, on a tight budget. Would love to see how this 2004 racing model at the start of the Madone series, compares to its latest 2023 evolution. With a comparison of £ per watt gain of Alex £1000 build compared to the Madone SLR 9 at ~£13,000. However can you put a price on owning your dream bike 😉

[@antonioraffa123]

More like this please! Great vid Geoff.

[@sativagirl1885]

Nothing is more fun and exciting than barreling down steep streets in the rain with rim brakes.

[@felixjackson2670]

LOVE IT…although not my taste in bikes,love your passion and care taken over your dream build. Some Amazing S/H bikes out there,especially as so many folk feel the need to upgrade from their custom built rim brake bikes to the race bike being pushed by the bike industry. I hope you ride this great bike and enjoy. Plus,I have to say…whilst I understand why GCN has to promote the latest tech and trends,it is refreshing to come across content such as this. Would be great if each GCN presenter took on a similar project.

[@robertmiles3354]

I love the bike, I just found my dream bike. The 2009 Madone SSLX, blue with flames.

[@jonhcosta]

I have some parts of toseek, good cost x benefits. great trek bike 👍👏

[@Adonis-qj1nq]

Those old cassettes were 🔥 So small and nice small jumps between gears.

[@maLiruM]

as long as you dont have to go up hill for longer than a few minutes

[@TheDolphinator8]

Beautiful, I think the red contrasts really well with the blue

[@gcntech]

It's looking pretty awesome isn't it!

[@FL-ym6hm]

Don’t care what Si thinks, I love it Alex.👏👏👏

[@juststuff3267]

Lovely bike. I have a red/grey version. 9.7kg, but I ride with old school flates rat traps.

[@markpeterson8978]

Love it but I suggest you match the bar tape with the saddle and the tan wall tires. That will give you 3 locations with the same color bringing the design and aesthetic together. Perhaps some nice Brooks leather tape. Beautiful build Alex. Cheers - M

[@wotexpat9367]

Supernice... You should send into the Bike Vault. :)

[@jirdesteva]

Very nice indeed. Lots of old bikes out there need some love.

[@stanley3647]

I've got spare Bontrager QR "thing" from my old Trek (bontrager) rear wheel. Mine is 2012 version (135mm wide). So propably not same as was fitted in 2004. I hope, someone keep somewhere this piece, exactly as You need.

[@petersteadman841]

What a weapon! Looks and sounds like a beast

[@FoxFox-i1c]

That brown saddle is very nice but doesn’t fit this beautiful frame imoo. I like to keep the amount of different colours on my bike low. But that is all a matter of taste.

[@gcntech]

Each to their own!

[@pointbreak2811]

Very beautiful bike. Reminds me of my dream bike which is the USPS Trek OCLV'S. I love the classic look to them.

[@jesseellis3126]

Your Dolan track bike is SICK!!

[@10ktube]

That frame is in butter shape. Great find.

[@andrewmcalister3462]

Alex is the GCN sensei of bike projects. ❤ Even if he is still traumatised by Crankgate. 😅

[@mjokffsgfjs]

and PaintstripGate

[@roberttell1587]

Great bike. I like the brown saddle, but I would do matching brown bar tape. You have tubulars but the brown saddle, brown tape and the pirelli brown sidewalls would look sharp if you ever switched to clinchers.

[@chrisscott8362]

Replace that saddle with the black version and you get Super Nice! I love the chrome DA components. Wish I could get that on new 12sp 105 mech.

[@VinceLongo-pz6ze]

Alex... 11:44.. dude... looks like your brake track is damaged!?😮

[@matsvancoppenolle5796]

What a great video and a great bike

[@gcntech]

Glad you enjoyed it! For a further look at some Trek heritage, we made a film about the brand on GCN+ that you may like! 👉 gcn.eu/Trek

[@highfived]

I would get blue decals instead of red and a black seat The bike could look so much better. As the Frame is so nice

[@alex.s26]

I've got a pair of bontrager skewers that look like the ones from that era if you're still after some - bit scratched up though!

[@thepedallerdoc1763]

Bartape should have been a similar brown suede with the punched out holes, to match the saddle. Apart from that, lovely build.

[@john79rogers]

Love the bike rebuilds ❤

[@evilstars]

Nice build! Forgot to add the cost of the saddle! Great!!!

[@davidadamus177]

Love those discovery channel frames! Grest choice Alex 😊

[@HiltonMoyle]

It looks great. Only thing I would change is the chainring/cranks to black since it has black Stem/bar/seatpost.

[@SkylarsRnD]

Love the saddle!!!

[@chaostravel7169]

That bike is sick. Love it.

[@bubblesezblonde]

Really enjoyed this Felix!!!

[@cptjeff1]

Great bike, great build to ride, but too many logos makes it too busy. You obviously have to keep the frame logos, but if you can get 'em off easily I'd much prefer to see the rims just nice plain black. I also agree with those suggesting brown bar tape to match the seat. Also, nail polish patches paint well.

[@larisonjohnson]

Alex, bike looks great! Saddle is a nice touch! Hope to hear your thoughts on the ride and performance. I have a 1999 5200 frame on its way and will outfit with full 7800. ❤

[@gcntech]

Awesome! Make sure to submit a picture of it to the GCN app so our community can see it!

[@FKnoph]

What about matching the bar tape to the saddle? They could be nice 😊

[@gcntech]

Maybe some day 😉

[@johnstrac]

Nice job on that one Brian.

[@seant666]

Saddlegate....

[@manfrommontreal]

274 Pounds of suede Saddlegate

[@veganpotterthevegan]

Don't yum someone's yuck

[@tyler.london]

Seriously! Didn't he learn??

[@wspmjw]

@Alex. In the video about building your workshop, I noticed your bike storage is something that would serve me well with my own garage conversion. Do you recall and if so would you share the maker/model of those wall-mounted bike racks, please? Thank you.

[@davekashuba4730]

Your homage to Lance is turning out great!

[@pnyholm]

dont slam the stem but take some spacers of the steerertunbe and then cut it, and find a stem with a n angle that makes it horizontal 🙂

[@n22pdf]

Great series Alex love it brilliant you showing what can be achieved with a lovely older bike brilliant just shows you don’t need the latest bikes.. 😊😃👍🚴🏻🥇🥇 Pete

[@M3GRSD]

Very interesting build, and it features lots of personality. I guess I'm more worried about how the suede saddle is gonna to hold up long-term with moisture and my bum on it.

[@OM-sb2bd]

Sweet bike! 🔥🤘🏻

[@benhammersley1153]

Hi Alex, thanks for the video, I am really enjoying it. Please, let me know if the jockey wheels you purchased worked with the derailleur? I have the exact same parts to replace. If so, where did you get them and can you provide a part number? Happy days

[@vquinto84]

I got the original bontrager skewers from the racelite wheels. :)

[@rivercloud32]

Duran rider would be proud IYKYK ✌🏻👁️🚲

[@Richiemouse]

Bike looks stunning, can't wait for the ride video. It's a shame the Giant project is just consigned to the bike rack to be used as parts donor, last winter I built one almost exactly like it that I've been riding this summer.

[@Chris-wf4ws]

Love that retro rear hub sound❤

[@csarcpab]

Lovely build ❤

[@bigwave_dave8468]

There's a reason I hadn't upgraded my Trek 5500 for 22 years -- it's a great bike and a great frame (precursor to the Madone). But since I grew up and raced in the 70's and 80's, mine is all Campy. The bike is still amazing..rider not so much.

[@chrisl7448]

I have the same bike and I love it!!Where can I find the decals? Mine could use a refresh

[@VelosaJr]

Just love it.. Despite the saddle 😍

[@RicardoRocha-lg1xo]

How about a matching suede bar tape? That would be 👌🏽👌🏽

[@jakou31]

11:19 lol the geometry of this bike looks siiik ! And rear brake on left lever makes me uncomfortable .. 😅

[@lesleysmith5623]

He’s here in UK where left is rear and right is front. Makes jumping on a motorbike a no brainier where right is front worldwide

[@edmundhodgson2572]

Fantastic bike and groupo! no the saddle. Its like a roof rack on an e-type?

[@DG-tf9rp]

Alex, Where is your shadow stand?

[@madyogi6164]

Very cool thing! I see, you've stick not just with external cable routing but the one having shifter wires going out from a side. So easy to handle when need a new line. Yay! As for the saddle - alone is COOL AS f-word, but not necessarily fits your build. You have blue-white frame, red paint on rims. Added brown/beige saddle. Not much room left for handlebar tape color. Just don't go for violet one!!! DON"T!!! ;)

[@Slopes_N_Singletrack]

Isn’t this the bike you stripped down to the bare carbon awhile back? Or did you get a second one?

[@caseyclausen2627]

He got a second one. Talks about it a bit in a related video about a month ago.