Thought I would post some pics before I start the cleaning process.

Gary

nice goose, should clean up real nice.

mate thats gonna be an awesome clean up

How much did you buy it for? It's got nice locking levers and a front Nippon brake. +++

dude that's an easy cleanup. she's gonna be rockin' this spring!

I've had it since it was new in 86. It's been in my basement for years. I upgraded the brakes and brake levers right after I bought it.

I've already started the cleaning process. It's all taken apart. I've cleaned and buffed the frame, forks and handle bars. The wheels are going into the bleach in the next couple hours. When I decide to do something, I kind of get obsessed until I get it done! lol

$$$$$$$$$$!!!



Good! Since it's all paid for, you can put your savings toward a new speedometer.

ghess2006,
Sorry man. I didn't mean to make you a pawn of an inside joke in my last post.
FS-1 is a solid bike. Not the most glamourous but I'm a fan.
Welcome to the site!

No problem dude. Actually, I got the inside joke. I saw a guy getting ragged on here because he had a speedometer on all his bikes.
I wish I could remember what I bought it for back in 86 but, I can't. I went in to the bike store back then to buy a Haro but, they didn't have any. I was 13 and as you can imagine I was too impatient to wait so, I got the FS1. Hell, I'm just glad I still have it after all these years!

Gary

Just built this for a friend to give to his brother for Xmas.
He got his brother's purple 86 FS-1 stolen in 1987.
I am usually not a Goose guy, but it was a fun project and the recpient was psyched.
Happy to help with any questions on the parts.

Wow ! SantaAnaMassachusetts that's a real nice faithful restoration right there

And ghess2006 - looking forward to seeing yours brought back to life - it's nice that it's your original bike from BITD

Wish I still had my original minigoose from BITD

I just noticed how similar those were to the Schwinn Free Forms...loop rear stander, centerpulls behind the BB, rotor...

Similar frame design with some out of the box thinking, but the mongoose frame is much beefier than the Schwinn.

I'm a fan of the FS-1...

...and those Jive Handle grips!

I've got the frame/forks cleaned and buffed out by hand with some rubbing compound. Now the decals look really bad compared to everything else. Some of the edges are curled up with dirt stuck to the adhesive. If I could recreate these decals 100% like the originals would you guys replace them?

The wheels are soaking in bleach and are looking pretty good...a few spots I'm worried about not getting as white as the rest but, still better than they were.

Can you post a pic or two of the decals? If they are really thrashed, I say replace them, but make sure you have good, accurate copies to use.

There are a couple schools of thought on this. Some are diehard "survivorists", others like the challenge and thrill of crafting something to make it look original, and others are set on putting the time and money into finding the items they need NOS.

Opinions vary from person to person and often from build to build. Only you know what you want for this bike.

I haven't seen (or looked) lately, but I have seen those decals on eBay, and they usually went for less than it would cost you to make replicas. Good luck.

It's telling me I can't upload anymore photos because there isn't enough available space.

Very cool that you still have your old bike!!! Can't wait to see some updated pix. You'll probably have to use a picture hosting site and link to them from there.

RE: Decals
Chip at C4 Labs has reproductions that are a dead match.
Up to you if you want to keep the originals--personal choice.

Created a Photobucket account. Uploaded some pics of the decals on the bike. Hope this works.

That peeling isn't bad at all in my opinion. It's up to you though if you want to replace the decals. If you're going to replace the decals you might as well get the whole thing re-powdercoated or painted. Clean it up and put it back together before you make a final decision.

Thats exactly what I was thinking and I don't want to re-powdercoat it so, I'm going to leave them as is. I guess it will be a true "survivor" then huh? lol Thanks for the advice.

G

I'd bet you can find a solvent to clean up the backs of the decals where it is peeling and dirty (Goo-Gone?), and some adhesive that'd get them back on there nice and clean...

Dude, is that possible? I think the Goo Gone would do some weird stuff to the old vinyl stickers. I dunno about this idea.

For saving your original precious decals water and mild soap solution works wonders in reviving the old adhesive on the back. But the problem with frame decals is, the original adhesive likes to stick to the frame when you try to peel the stickers off therefore ruining the adhesive layer. You know, if you peel it off, the adhesive will stick here and there but not evenly. Especially on clear decals.

What i would try to do to slightly peeled corners is i'd very carefully (with surgical precision) peel them (slooooowly and patiently) and try to clean the corners and edges with mild soap and water, that might revive the adhesive and make it stick again.

Overall i would definitely keep them all in place, never mind the few scrathes and peels they just add to the character of the bike. The paint is fine, the decals are fine, the componenets are fine. All it needs is cleaning. Once finished add a layer of car wax on to the frame, fork and bars, why not components too, to make them shine like new. It protects the decals too and smoothens some of the smaller scratches and marks on them.

For heaven's sake guys and girls stop this crazy powdercoat obsession and leave some of them original! Dammit. I bet in ten or so years the new bunch of collectors will curse the 2000 era powdercoat craze because there will be less and less of those bikes left untouched. Cleaning, getting rid of rust and grime and polishing everything really works wonders sometimes on a survivor class and is all you need to do.

Agree there is too much re-powdering of rare frames. However, this is not that bike. This is a mass-produced bicycle using cheap Taiwanese componentry.

The finish only matters to the owner--do you want it like the day you brought it home (important days in my bike memories) or do you want it like its is after being thrashed and left for dead for 20+ years (maybe important to others).

Get off your survivor soapbox--it's a Mongoose FS-1.

Does it matter if it's mass produced taiwanese bike if it's cool otherwise? Do you mean mass produced taiwanese bikes are not worth keeping as a "survivor"? Should bikes worth keeping "as is" always be something rare and what "the community" considers desireable?
Where i am from we've never even seen a FS-1 here, if i had that bike i'd definitely keep it as much original as possible. Maybe you guys can pick one up at every street corner but we don't. THAT's the difference i guess.

I'm so glad I joined this forum! It's so interesting to read everyone's views of this. I've decided to just clean up and keep my "mass produced" FS1 as it is. Down the road, I may decide to strip it down and redo it and make it look brand new. Who knows.

As far as the FS1 being a "mass produced" bike. When does one consider a bike "mass produced". Pretty much all bikes are "mass produced". They were in the 80's, 90's and they are now. Correct me if I'm wrong but, I believe the FS1 was only made in 86 right? One year. How many years were the Haro Masters, Haro Sports, GT Pro Performers and several other bikes that fill this forum produced? I know the last twin top tube Haro Master's were pruduced in 1995. So, that being said, how many Mongoose FS1's do you think are out in the world right now compared to ALL the Haro Master's ever produced along with the GT's that were produced for years as well? It only takes common sense to figure that out.

ghess,
Please don't be offended. Not saying the bike is worthless--the one I restored in this thread was a blast. I just feel like the drama about survivor vs. restore should be reserved for irreplaceable, rare items. This bike is not that scarce (except in Finland per this thread). They are for sale on eBay and the big 3 bmx sites as well as craigslist quite often--3 on eBay as we speak.

I hope the bike turns out great whatever you decide.
AC

Dude, I'm not offended at all. No worries. I just find it odd that I've read several posts on here about how the FS-1 is "plentiful" or "not that scarce". If you research this, that's actually not the case from what I've seen. Even if you Google it. You mention above that survivor vs. restore should be reserved for irreplaceable items. I agree with you 100%. I also think that is sound advice for any type of collectible. I'm not a collector of BMX/Freestyle bikes. I just happen to have my original FS-1.

I just did a search on Ebay and found 1 complete FS-1 and 1 FS-1 Frame for sale...nothing else FS-1 related is listed for sale. I also did a search for Haro Master and GT Pro Performer. Talk about "plentiful" bikes. There are way more of those complete bikes and parts for sale on Ebay. I'm not saying the FS-1 is a better bike than the Haro Master or GT at all. I know it's not. We're talking about survivor vs. restore being reserved for irreplaceable, rare items. IF you have a bike (regardless of the make and model) that was produced only 1 year and one year only wouldn't that bike most likely be more "rare" than any other bike (regardless of make and model) that was produced for several years? Even this depends on the number of bikes produced each year by each manufacturer. IF we went solely by what's on Ebay the FS-1 is without a doubt the rarer bike and if I were a collector I would want to collect the rarest of whatever I'm collecting regardless of how or where it's made.

Thanks! I'll keep posting pictures of my progress!

G

I am agreeing with this. The FS-1 is rare and unique, especially in the gray color. It deserves the same treatment as any other quality bike from this era. It was made for ONE year, and there couldn't have been more than a few thousand sold, given Mongoose's near-immediate redesign in 1987, as the Decade. Secondly, how many FS-1's still exist? Perhaps several hundred, just like everything else. Like Timo, I've never seen one, then or now, and I practically lived in my neighborhood bike shop from '86-'90, (Malik's in Scottdale, PA) which had EVERYTHING from Dinky Dyno's and F-1 Bikes to Haro Master Team Models and Redline RL-20II's, both of which were also made in Taiwan, for that matter.

As far as "cheap" components are concerned... what are you talking about? It had the same parts as every other entry-intermediate level Freestyler of the era, with parts from Skyway, ACS, Viscount, Cheng Shin and Lee Chi. The FS-1 is an awesome resto project, one that I was looking for for a couple of months before Christmas, but couldn't fine one, so I decided upon an '87 Free Form Pro EX instead.

Finally, it's the dude's childhood bike. How many of us still have those? Luckily, I do - my '87 Day-Glo Pink Pro Performer. Yes, it's got some scratches and wouldn't pass for a show queen - but you'd better believe it's DIALED in. I understand exactly how he's feeling, getting into this all over again. Same with this guy and his FS-1. I think that we sometimes forget why we got into this, it becomes more about collecting and restoring than getting in touch with who we used to be, 20 some years ago. As soon as dude takes his freshly tuned, cleaned and polished FS-1 for a spin, for the first time in a month or so, he's gonna be 12-14 years old again.

Excellent point Sunburn.

"Survivor soap box"
People surrounded with rare and desireable goodies should not also forget how it is to be a "collector" or just to have the love for bikes somewhere else where even the most common, cheapest or completely unknown "mass produced" bike or part is considered rare. Then again we have stuff here that those surrounded with what's become the norm of "rare and desireable" bikes & parts, have never seen so it works both ways i guess.

Anyway, Ghess, looking forward to see what you come up with you FS-1 be it resto or cleanup.

How long is too long to leave your skyway mags soaking in bleach? They've been soaking for a week and they are just about as white as they are going to get. I just want to make sure the bleach isn't going to have any negative effects on the wheels like making them brittle. I do plan on riding this bike after I put it back together.

G

I think a week is a bit long. They might start to get a fuzzy feel to them if they haven't already. Not sure if it will make them brittle. I think the key to bleaching them is to keep the water super hot so it can open the pours in the mag and let the bleach clean them and get the dirt out.

But yeah, I don't think leaving them in there any longer at this point will do much more.

Once finished bleaching you can apply car wax to keep them nice and white for a long time. Dirt loves pours on clean white mags.

Thanks! Took them out last night. They don't even look like the same wheels. Very white!

Cool! Can't wait to see how they cleaned up.

I'll get some pics up soon. There are a few spots that didn't get totally white but, they look great. I put vaseline on all the metal parts (as recommended) that I couldn't get off. Looks like the bleach etched a couple spots but not bad. Will this get worse? Doesn't look like rust. Getting the vaseline all the way off is a b--ch! lol What dissolves vaseline?

Can someone tell me where I can get two 20" white skinwalls and tubes? Prices? If anyone on here is selling them let me know.

Gary

There's a guy out there that found the location of original molds for Comp ST tires and convinced DURO tire company to start making them. The site is porkchopbmx.com and is a site supporter. That would be a great option if you plan to ride the bike or if you're not really interested in acquiring NOS tires.

Here's a link to the tires...
http://www.porkchopbmx.com/Comp-ST-tread-B...20175-WHITE.htm

Awesome! Thanks!

If you run across any spare parts I need some! I am restoring 86 purple FS-1. I need everything except frame, handlebars, fork and seat post.

Is that the one that was just on Ebay?

Porkchop is tha man! I've been getting a lot of stuff through him lately, he's very fair on pricing, and has really fast shipping. Totally rad, all around.

Pretty ballsey to produce white tires, but not black. But it's cool that Porkchop did it.

He'll have black and many other colors in stock in time.

Well alrighty then, that's good to know.

Hey, this is my 400th post, hooray.