Charlie’s Green Machine

Charlie built this bike #12 in 1982. The brakes, frame geometry, fork and components are almost identical to his first mountain bike, built in 1978, now on display at the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame and Museum. Green #12 was very light for its time at 23.5 pounds. The heattreated 6061-T6 aluminum frame has been further processed and cold worked in critical areas to make the metal incredibly strong and fatigue resistant. The stem was machined from ZK-60A magnesium billet with a 1.125” hole down the center. While the removable cap allowed fast, easy handlebar changes, it also presented a wide clamping surface to reduce stress on the handlebar. Charlie used 6-4 titanium in the chainguides and pedal toe flips. The seatpost is made from .035” 2024-T3 aluminum with an internal sleeve in the high stress area where it enters the frame. The saddle rail clamps are magnesium.