Restoring a Cheap Facebook GT - Flip Bike 

Let’s do this more often! I must reiterate that spending all week on a bike to make $45 isn’t worthwhile. We sell these bikes to 1) prove the bike increased in value. 2) show you how bikes work. I’m out in Utah right now and numerous families have approached me to say how they work on bikes together because of these videos. College kids have told me how Flip Bike has helped them make cheap bikes rideable. Do they have ultrasonic cleaners? Of course not, but they have plenty of free time and can-do attitudes. That’s why I keep making these videos, NOT to show you how to start a bike flipping business.

13:05 It was great to meet you and buy the bike! It's really cool to see how it was put together, I have had such a great time riding it so far. Thank you!

Where most channels focus on the latest and greatest, most expensive bikes and parts, this is amazingly refreshing and will attract more people to the sport of mountain biking. Well done, sir!

Seth is a national treasure.

I used to volunteer at a nonprofit that refurbished older bikes. This series brings back some good memories. Nothing better than breathing new life into a bike!

So glad to see flip bike back. I have built up two bikes for my daughter using the knowledge and parts reviews from your channel. Can’t thank you enough!

Have you been told yet that you are like the Bob Ross of biking? Watching your videos is a great way to relax at the end of the day. 🚴‍♂️

I bought this bike from Dick's when they cleared it out. Hated, HATED that pogo-stick fork, never stayed planted over roots on the trail. Bought a used rock shock recon, dropped almost 3 lbs and now the bike is fun!

love the return of flip bike. and I agree about cues. it’s a crime that there are a million and 1 videos about sram transmission and i heard about cues from a coworker a couple of months ago, when this is a bigger deal for far more people than transmission ever will be

working at a shop here in the uk, CUES has been the biggest thing to happen in the industry for a VERY long time. 9/10/11 speed cross compatible Ebike ready gears that cost an actually decent amount! the sheer amount of bikes for young kids that we have fixed up and turned into absolute rippers for like £200 inculding labour is insane. and i really hope shimano carries on this looking after the budget end of the market more rather then sram chgarging £3k for gears which objectively aren't even needed.

Watched a documentary about GT bicycles yesterday never knew how big of an impact they had on cycling

When I buy flip bikes I will only buy medium or large frames. Im trying to flip for profit though but if you watch the market smalls are very cheap by comparison as the market is way smaller they also take longer to sell just a hot tip for anyone looking at doing it. Same with xl not as big of a market as M or L

I miss the trail building, but flip bike is a good substitute.

"But first .....we should stare at it".....absolutely. A man loves to admire his work for a moment.

Have I ever said how much I love an episode of flip bike? Well I LOVE watching flip bike. Gives me so many new ideas on directions I can take with my own projects here at home. I thank you for the inspiration!

I've been here since the porch videos and somehow this is the only channel that i never got bored of.

So glad you made a video about this! I’m currently trying to resell my first mtb, I’ve watched the whole series and I can’t be more appreciative of these videos! Thank you so much for making this video and giving plenty of tips!

I just love flip bike so much. So stoked its back. The way parts and bikes are approached on this channel is so refreshing. Such a fan!

I love how you show ways for more people, some without as many resources to enjoy this GREAT sport!

Love seeing these videos! You make restoring, repairing, and maintaining bikes looks deceptively easy!

Seth's editor using every screen wipe in the game!! love the Flip Bike series

wow! This is by far my favourite flip bike. I have learned so much from your videos, I recently found a side of the road Giant xc bike, I replaced most of the parts on it and got Aliexpress mt200s and sold it for $450 aud. using the knowledge I have learned from your channel. thanks so much man!

I always love that all of your videos are so grounded yet so entertaining!

It's great to have this series back. Especially with the current price trends.

These are my favorite videos. I could watch flip bike everyday! Love the content man

I've taken a GT Avalanche that was probably bought and Dick's and changed basically everything over time. The frame is SOLID. Bontrager wheelset with a QR conversion on the back, new 120mm Judy fork (that I'm hoping to replace with a 130 Recon that's cheaper and sell the Judy), new pedals, dropper post, Maxxis tires, new saddle, new stem, Pilgrips, new bars, Box 3 drivetrain I bought for like $120 on sale. All budget type items, but the bike is FUN to ride. With that new fork and subsequent sale of the old one, I'll be in the bike for about $1k, including the initial $400 sale, over 2 1/2 years. A similar $1k hardtail won't be specced as nicely. Some of the stuff I bought I found in this series. It also taught me how to look for budget pricing.

Just wanted to say thanks Seth. I just ordered my first Diamondback bike, an Overdrive 29 1, and your channel helped me do that. Not a ton of trails here in Northern NY but I have plenty of private land to ride on. Thanks again and keep it up

In a day and age of expensive bikes, it’s cool to see that you can put together a decent bike for relatively cheap. That Shimano drivetrain and brakes at their low price point are awesome bang for buck.

This is the best ! Giving new life to bikes is great and feels great , I do my own flip bike and feel realy good when it goes to someone that just wants a good deal and use a good bike , a lot off the times is someone that has no mechanical skill, or knowledge about bikes ,and feels good to know they are getting a refreshed bike , safe , with many hours of fun to have.

happy to have flip bike back!!! thanks Seth!!! big hug from a Mexican in the UK

This is my first time watching one of these (this series). Please do more! This is great!

Thank you for giving this Ricochet new life! I love my Ricochet and would highly advise a dropper post, wider handlebars, and shorter stem. Also, get a better saddle. Such a good bike that is easily upgradable!

LOVE Flip Bike! Sharing the thought process on what you choose to upgrade vs. keeping original components and restoring function through cleaning, lubrication, and replacement of low cost parts is really nice to see. Hopefully what people really get from this is that maintaining their ride can be a way to enjoy time with the bike on and OFF the trail for minimal cost and then on occasion choose the appropriate and worthwhile upgrade. I’d like to see a “top 5” adjustment/ maintenance jobs video that can be done with non-specialty bike tools. At some point you have probably touched this in different videos. By non specialty, I mean common tools affordable and available at places like Home Depot, etc…. I think some folks get put off working on their bike because they think all the tooling needed is just too expensive. With some jobs there’s only one tool to get it done, but in other cases the work can be done using more general/inexpensive tools without undue risk of harming the machine. Thanks again for the great content.

Not a regular commenter but I've been enjoying the Flip Bike series a lot and this was a blessing on an otherwise super hectic day. Plus after watching all these, I'm keen to work on my own MTB that I bought back when I didn't have the best knowledge about bikes and maybe upgrade it from a budget MTB to something I can have more fun on the trails with!

I recently came across your channel and it's absolutely awesome! Your bike flip videos have finally given me inspiration to tackle a an old Trek 8500 SL. I just which I had half of your knowledge!

Love watching flip bike. Fun to see what you'll do with the bike. Keep the series going.

i really appreciate Seth for bringing back the flip bike videos! really and truly a hardworking guy

Nice video, I got a DB overdrive in 2018 right before stuff hit the fan. I built it and it's a solid XC bike. Even though I am an older rider, I got better so now I am looking to upgrade. However, the prices in my area haven't come down as of yet. Great video. Refreshing to see average bikes on the trail.

Enjoyed the video so much. Great to go back to basics fixing up outdated bikes and more focus on work than fancy parts. Btw, happy to hear Seth said square taper is fine.

Thank you for mentioning tools used. I am going to use the information here to learn to work on my old Walmart bike during rainy days this riding season.

love seeing another bike fixed up! this winter i started volunteering with a local charity that accepts donated bikes and brings in volunteers like me to get them back out being ridden again, usually to someone who wouldn't have a bike at all otherwise. went once by myself and now my two elementary-aged kids take turns coming with me. they pick one bike from the hundreds that need work, then we get it up on the stand and look over it together and i show them what's wrong and what to do about it. usually when we're replacing parts it's with other used parts, and we're not necessarily looking to upgrade or modernize anything. it's been great for me getting to work on more bikes without having to buy them and try to rehome them, PLUS i get to share this passion with my kids!

as someone that loves to tinker and wrench I love these videos....

I love how o just watched a video from berm peak express about this bike, and i suddenly find ANOTHER great video about it

Im shopping for my first mountain bike right now and youre absolutely right. Theres a ton of deals out there but very few are ready to ride. I think theres a lot of people who see that a bike needs a chain or tires and skip right to your listing for a good to go ride

Just bought a few year old trek Precaliber for my son. First thing I did was thorough cleaning and lubricating. New grips, and it’s good to go. Like new.

Tapered head tube, DP routing, and boost spacing for around $400 bucks new and you could find it on sale for $300. This GT was a bargain and ahead of the game for big box budget bikes. I have a 2019 GT Pantera which is basically the same thing purchased on sale. I have about $750 into it from marketplace upgrades including a Fox 34, GX 12 spd derailer and shifter, SRAM 4pot brakes, Koozer rear hub and many more upgrades. This bike can handle just about anything. Such a great build! ✌️😎

Great job at the Off-Road games, Seth!! You and Rudy killed it 🫡🫡

After watching your flipbike over over again and now there's new upload thanks

I love this series! Very educational and entertaining at the same time. Keep them coming, Seth. :)

Great job and kind of you sir for both teaching and giving back to your community. I learned a lot too, thanks :)

i love these videos of repairing the old bikes and sell them keep em coming

Tried the air compressor for removing the grips, but find rubbing alcohol easier, both for install and removal. To remove the grips, I stuff in a small screwdriver, pour in a teaspoon or so of alcohol, and the grip slides off. I must be doing the compressor wrong, because I find that to be a struggle. Great video!

The Cues system really is nice. I have the 11 speed version on my Rocky Mountain ebike and I have zero complaints.

Amazing Video Seth and very imformational. Love it when you post.

Great work, Seth ! Thank you.

Yesterday I took the first ride of the season here in Alberta, Canada. Felt great. We are SO back baby.

Love this series thanks for bringing it back!!!!!!

Flip bike is just the best Seth. There are a lot of good older bikes out there and so many options for parts these days. I rescued a really cool steel Raleigh XXIX+G to rebuild for my wife. She doesn't "mountain bike" but I still want her to have something nice to be able to ride around together with me and our son. She doesn't need anything new, expensive, or high tech. I think it will be a great way to learn and build something unique. I hope I can make it as nice as one of yours when I'm able to get to it. Or maybe I can just mail it to you and you can do it!

I simply love it. Thanks for popularizing biking and showing that it's affordable!

Love these and it's cool to see more people getting into riding!

I love that you’re using fan products like the pedal wrench

That heat gun is great for making old plastics look new, like any gray areas on the pedals.

It's so relaxing to see an old bike showered with attention.

This is therapeutic!

Yess love this series! Keep up the restoration man!

Nice to see this back!

Dude that's one sharp looking bike. I've been longing for another flip bike episode, thanks for delivering.

Great episode as always. A suggestion is to use slip joint piers with the teeth biting into the direction you are turning, you had the pliers upside down. I know it sometimes works either direction, but having them in the correct direction gives you way more leverage.

Finally a bike upgrade video 👍

Favorite series, getting a bike for my gf soon looking to build up a older one.

I got the same bike. Nice. Now i know what to upgrade. Thx,

More! Love these flip bike episodes!

Great Job , great video, I just pulled my 2 bikes out of storage and going to start riding again

This is what my early 2000s Fuji thrill needs is an update like this. Doing the work myself makes me nervous though.

So happy to see Flip Bike return. I do wonder what everyone's experience with gray market parts has been. I recently got a gray market Cane Creek headset and it was an obvious QC reject.

Love the Flip Bike series, waiting for some more.

When you pull the aluminum out of the crank with the steel pedal threads, the pedal threads are almost always still in fine shape. Just have to pick the aluminum out of the threads. The crank however, is done for. No amount of tapping will ever replace the aluminum missing. So an insert is the only fix - period. Pedals didn't need to be replaced necessarily.

I really like this series. I've learned so much from it.

Your videos have inspired me to try flipping bikes. My first one is a Trek Wahoo that I picked up for $30. Needs a chain, new shifter, grips and a saddle. The pictures from the seller were horrible, and I plan on taking my pictures at a park, using the tips that you have shown us in a previous video. Hoping to make $150 to 200 on it when its done.

I love the Flip Bike vids. And, as a big GT fan, this was worth a watch. I'd have binned those forks, though.

the one and only guy over the internet who is not into f****n gravel bikes!!!

While I do have a very nice and new 29 inch full suspension Rocky Mountain, I cannot let go of my 1997 Mongoose Rockadile (pre-Walmart); it has too much sentimental value. I would like to restore it to it's former glory but parts are hard to come by. I find myself on e-Bay almost all of the time, which is a 50/50 crap shoot. Your videos have given me hope and motivation to finally do something about my old timer. Glad I found your RU-vid page. Subscribed.

YES I LOVE THESE FLIP PROJECTS my dads done this his whole life

I wish we had people like you in Indy, always been in love with mountain biking and want to get at it again since I left FL. Can't find anything for a good price here in the countryside

I found a Ricochet frame a year ago, I was looking to build an XC parts bin rig. I converted the bike to 29er and it's a cool lil bike

Soooo happy to see the Flip Bike series back ON ! 🚲 ♻️ 💵

I have this exact bike stripped it to frame out full XT converted to 1x and a hero rear hub been grinding for 5 years on it

Nice! I enjoyed the loctite splooge that went by without mentioning.

even though i don't have a bike i love watching your videos their amazing keep up the good work

Oooo thst brake hose heat trick looks useful - im about to upgrade the 160mm cable calipers on my e bike with some 180mm hydraulics and the rear has a rather wonky bend that I was concerned about. This looks perfect for that routing! I'm not into mtb's at all but always seem to learn something interesting when I watch your content and it always seems so much less... preachy than the city bike content creators, who are all about just buying complete bikes and never customizing them beyond bars or a saddle. I've done titanium pedals, hardware, derailleur cage, adjustable stem and carbon swept back bars, sprung seat post and saddle. I'm even considering upgrading the drive train with more than a 7 speed and adding a clutch for how many times I ride it off curbs and am tired of hearing it slap the chain, and am also considering working a cheap suntour fork into it since I don't care about weight. I love modifying and personalizing bikes. It'd be fun to see your take on modding and restoring a city bike like a Dutch style upright in your own way.

8:32 I have Shimano's MT-200 running on all our family bikes, and these brakes are really outstanding.

most beautiful flip bike, so far !!! looks great!

Very interesting sir. Thanks for sharing this with us.

This one was a great episode. Every time Seth is posting something is a great day.

Flip bike is the best! Good job relating to a large majority of riders out there. The real question is where are you finding CUES for $100?! That’s cheaper than my Microshift Advent X!

Also...I have been using these cheap 26x2.35 Schwalbe Tough Tom tires and they are great tire for a cheap upgrade. They are only about $25 Canadian each...so less than $20 USD. I highly recommend them. Best cheap tire, imo.

Yo Seth, I need a bike like that for my 10yo son.. we are going to Tucson for spring break and his BMX bike won't cut it, plus he is outgrowing that bike rapidly... Keep on keeping on.. you rock.. And loved you at the offroad games... Hell ya!

Pro tip for forks: Sr suntours will do bike parks, if you pull the lowers and regrease the seals every day, a little sram butter will do nicely. Give it a better than factory feel.

Love this series wish we would see some more Berm Peak trail work

Always entertaining. I honestly didn't know sq taper cranks were still being used on budget bikes.