Is a 90's MTB the New Peugeot UO-8?

22 comments by Scott Gater

For a number of years, the UO-8 was the ubiquitous fixer upper we'd get calls and emails about regarding compatibility, modifications, etc....But as of the past little while, we haven't heard a peep from this bike which was sold by the millions.

We were working on new ideas and projects here at VO HQ and one idea/thought that came up in our discussions was "is a 90's mtb this generation's Peugeot UO-8?"  We say this with the thought that one can go and buy a used 90's mtb from Craigslist or what ever purchase portal you want and in the course of a week or two, spruce it up with Klunker Bars, new pedals, change out some ratty parts, and now you have a useful bike that you can use around the city, as a touring bike, or even (shudder) on a trail as a mountain bike. If you'd like to see a great video we did about sprucing up a 90's bike, check out our video below. 

I think for a lot of our customer base, late 80's/90's mtb's were the bikes they had has kids/teen/twenty somethings. Certainly, I've owned several mtb's from the late 80's/early 90's. Those bikes had a superior level of toughness compared to a touring bike of the time and more versatility in the range of roads one could take them on. One could call it bikepacking, but certainly the "roads" I've taken a mtb on back in the day were a bit rough for a touring bike with 32-35 mm wide tires of the era. We loaded the mtb's of that era with racks and gear and toured on 1.7 - 2 inch wide tires, something that today would be called a gravel bike probably. No issues and loads of fun.

The trend towards 90's mtb also plays out in the media that I/we consume. Every Friday on The Radavist and Bikepacking.com, they feature a riders rig. In a lot of cases, these are mid 90's bikes that folks have built up with more upright bars, baskets and such for useful riding. Which is, bringing it back to the Peugeot, was what the UO-8 was for a lot of folks - a solid, dependable bike that could be converted/modified into a bike that you could use 40 years after it was made for everyday things a bike should be used. All without any worries of having a bike that was too precious to use. 

I think it all comes down to the idea of taking a great base of a frame like a 90's mtb - solid, well built and with normal standards - so you can fix it up/repurpose it to become an everyday bike. As times change, the platform changes, but the thought behind it stays the same. Is anyone else out there repurposing 90's mtb's?


22 comments


  • Douglas M

    It all comes down to what you want to do with a bike. There are modern bikes which are dialed-in for specific types of riding, while many older bikes could be considered general purpose utility bikes. Me? I have been on bikes for several decades as a year-round rider and have long preferred general purpose utility bikes, several of which are parked right here in my living room. Yep, vintage bikes can be great, but for a number of reasons let me endorse a modern version of an old school bike, actually one of the last of its kind and is currently available as a bike frameset, the Velo Orange v.5 Polyvalent frameset. Yeah, it qualifies as modern because it has thru-axle hubs and disc brakes, but otherwise it has so many old school features. Downtube shifter bosses, anybody? Of particular note, its front fork has notably short trail geometry which enables this bike to equally carry both front and rear cargo loads, but also beware that due to its front fork geometry this bike has quick steering and does not handle like an old school touring bike. And this frameset can be built with either road-oriented 26in or gravel-oriented 650bmm/27.5in wheels.


  • Gibby

    All over this!! You guys need make a throwback frame!!!! 🙏🙏🙏

    I’ve used the VO Klunker bars on most of my builds. They are perfection.

    Here’s a story from our local bike coop

    https://bikex.org/home/past-featured-volunteers/203-featured-svbe-volunteer-john-garrish


  • Gibby

    All over this!! You guys need make a throwback frame!!!! 🙏🙏🙏

    I’ve used the VO Klunker bars on most of my builds. They are perfection.

    Here’s a story from our local bike coop

    https://bikex.org/home/past-featured-volunteers/203-featured-svbe-volunteer-john-garrish


  • Glen Gardner

    Inspired by my ‘18 Kona Rove I did a 1×9 MS Advent conversion on a ‘94 Kona FireMountain. I took it one step further and went dirt drop using a Daija FarBar. With 26” wheels and small block tires it rides like cat! Nimble and quick.


  • Korina

    My ‘92 RockHopper has been built into what I call a poor woman’s Rivendell (sorry) with Brooks B17 saddle, V-O Tourist Bar, rear rack, fenders, and Maxxis DTH gumwall tires. She was my commuter bike, and is now my go-everywhere adventure bike/errand runner; I’m her only limiting factor. Also at 5’4" the 26" wheels make for a more comfortable ride with better geometry and zero toe overlap. #26aintdead


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