When did Klein start being Trek

[KDM]

As the title really. I am looking for a Klein quantum but am some what fascinated by the mtb's also inparticular the paint.

However I noticed that the goliath that is Trek bought out Klein sometime in the 90's and wondered at what point/year when looking for a mtb Klein does Klein stop being a Klein and started being a Trek?

 

[Chute55uk]

95 if I remember rightly we had a customer who ordered an attitude from us and after waiting nearly 2 months for trek to stop faffing around with promised delivery and constant excuses they eventually told us to tell him they cant honour the sale and he could have a oclv 9800 (I think) which was about 200 quid more for the same price
Which he did........
And he paid cash up front
I felt so bad for him
Could be way out on the date though but I left in 98 and obviously it was before then

 

[errol]

wondered at what point/year when looking for a mtb Klein does Klein stop being a Klein and started being a Trek?

Sometime between Trek buying the operations in 1995, the Adroit becoming a re-badged Attitude (1997) and the operations moving from Klein's Chehalis factory at the end of 2001.

For me, my mountain bike gets ridden hard through all terrain and weather and I am happy with a Treklein Attitude (2000) sitting amongst my early road bikes. Even if some of the purists might disregard it, I was never buying my mtb as an indoor decoration and it was built at the same factory.

 

[Bpool77]

NO dont do this to me!!
Ive got my fingers into a 96 Attitude MC2 getting ''coloured'' etc from the
good old of USA

 

[thesneaker]

I'm sure Trek bought Klein end of 1995, so 1996 models starting going down hill, as mentioned, they used Attitude frames for Adroits, so no 2" downtube on a Adroit in 1996, and then 97/98 standard headset and bottom brackets on most of the models.

 

[Ianus]

The 1996 models were the last real Klein bikes......

 

[thesneaker]

The 1996 models were the last real Klein bikes......

i would disagree, surely its 1995 as it was still under full Klein ownership unitl the end which was when they were making the 1996 models under the Trek ownership, the rebadging of Attitude frames and calling them Adroits was the beginning of the end................

 

[Bpool77]

RIGHT I NEED HELP.
im half into a 96 XL attitude, its getting resprayed nightstorm mc2 judy forks
etc? its in the USA
This is my unicorn (not the year but im happy ish)
Perhaps I need a slap off one of the Klein experts .
Plus ive never had a thing shipped from the USA?
ARRR im stressin now? what if etc....

 

[errol]

http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=87601&highlight=photo+comparison+klein

A good comparison of the changes

 

[Archangel]

The 1996 models were the last real Klein bikes......

i would disagree, surely its 1995 as it was still under full Klein ownership unitl the end which was when they were making the 1996 models under the Trek ownership, the rebadging of Attitude frames and calling them Adroits was the beginning of the end................

Trek couldn't affect too much on Klein designs for 1996 since making the new model year bikes had already started in July/August.
I have an Adroit made in September '95 and it still has 2" downtube.
However, it's one of the last true Adroits and shortly afterwards (November?) they started to turn '95 surplus stock of Attitude frames to Adroits.

One of the first things Trek did was to end the colour coded MC2 bar/stem combos and instead paint them all black and even without MC2 logos.

The Trek influence started to kick in for 1997 model year though it remains to be questionable, had Klein thought about converting to V-brake setup and threaded BB shell itself too (mind you, Octalink BBs were starting to surface).