#Fat-Chance

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Fork Yeah: John’s 1991 Team Fat Chance Yo Eddy!

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Fork Yeah: John’s 1991 Team Fat Chance Yo Eddy!

Before we jump in, let’s take a look back: This has been such a fun process to undertake over the course of the past nine months. For those who are just tuning in, I bought a frame from Martin, owner of Second Spin Cycles, last year after he had acquired a substantial Fat City Cycles collection. Among his lucky haul was this Yo Eddy! in the team lavender livery with rack mounts, a pump peg, and some frame damage.

While the bike was in Rick’s care at D&D for some repairs and a paint respray, I began collecting period-correct parts from various sources. After re-finishing some of them and getting the bike back, I just finished the build this week. Monday night was the maiden voyage of the new and improved Yo Eddy! and I took some glamour shots here in Santa Fe, so let’s check this beaut out below!

Restoring a Classic MTB Part 01: John’s 1991 Team Yo Eddy!

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Restoring a Classic MTB Part 01: John’s 1991 Team Yo Eddy!

Vintage bikes have always had a home on The Radavist. From shooting Sky’s wonderful collection from Velo Cult, to showcasing stunners in Los Angeles, and basket bike/resto mod conversions in Austin, there’s something about these 26″ wheeled, friction shifting, hand-made beauts that have always caught my eye. Over the past year, there’s been an uptick in the number of vintage bikes we’ve showcased, in part because joining with The Pro’s Closet gave us access to TPC’s Museum bikes, a veritable treasure trove of exciting and influential builds to unpack. Each bike is an earmark in cycling history, each with its unique story to tell. Additionally, I have had the time and resources to work on such restoration projects for the first time in years.

This year, we’ve featured my 1982 Ritchey Tam and my 1984 Mountain Goat, representing what I love about the early 1980s mountain bike design. With flat top tubes, big tire clearance, friction shifting, and geometries still relevant today, the 1980s bikes were more geared toward exploration than the racing geometries the NORBA era brought about. I couldn’t buy one of these classics when I first started riding in the 90s (my first bike was a rigid Gary Fisher Tassajara), but I could always count of Mountain Bike Action and my local bike shop to keep the eye candy in steady supply. Since then, one elusive bike model has remained the apple of my eye: an early 90s Yo Eddy! When Mike Wilk wrote about TPC’s Grello Yo!, it made me nostalgic tailspin.

I casually reached out to Martin at Second Spin Cycles, who had just bought a big Fat Chance collection from out West. I asked if he had a Yo Eddy that would fit me and, as luck would have it, he did. But it needed some work…

Brent’s Fat Chance Chris Cross Makes Him Jump, Jump

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Brent’s Fat Chance Chris Cross Makes Him Jump, Jump

It’s hard not to make that reference on a bike called the Chris Cross. Back when Fat Chance began, I doubt Chris Chance would have foreseen the future, or at least where and how people would be riding these bikes that are a mix of ‘cross and road bikes yet here we are. Brent bought a Chris Cross with the “Team Fade” finish and matching stem to be his all-rounder bike in SoCal and on a recent outing to Los Angeles, I was able to shoot this damn perfect bike.

2018 Philly Bike Expo: Fat Chance Yo Eddy 2.2 – Jarrod Bunk

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2018 Philly Bike Expo: Fat Chance Yo Eddy 2.2 – Jarrod Bunk

2018 Philly Bike Expo: Fat Chance Yo Eddy
Photos and words by Jarrod Bunk

Chris Chance brought a newer Yo Eddy to Philly Bike Expo this year, the new Yo Eddy 2.2 had a triple butted stainless top tube and downtube, as well as some new dropouts, and a clever chainstay yoke. These Yo Eddy framesets are produced by Chris Chance and Steve Potts, and the rest of the Fat Chance line (Slim Chance, Chris Cross) are built by Commotion.  

With the frame and fork being produced in the USA, the next logical step was to ring White Industries for a Headset, Bottom bracket and Cranks with matching blue extractors, Which look great on this bike. It’s rolling on Praxis AL32 wheels, which are stopped by the revered Paul Component Klamper brakes.  Nostalgia aside the Yo Eddy 2.2 checks all of the current MTB boxes, with a finish to make you swoon.

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Follow Jarrod on Instagram, and Fat Chance  on Instagram

The NEW Wicked Fat Chance Enduro is One Rowdy Hardtail

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The NEW Wicked Fat Chance Enduro is One Rowdy Hardtail

With the rebirth of the Fat Chance brand, the success of the Yo Eddy’s Kickstarter reviving the brand, the team has worked on modernizing the vintage catalog. With the Yo Eddy 2.2, Chris and his team updated the hardtail model with clearances for plus tires, a new dropout design, and boost spacing. But what about people who want a rowdier stance in a bike? Well, for them, Chris and his team designed what they’re calling the Wicked Fat Chance Enduro, a bike that sports an aggressive geometry, designed to go downhill. This prototype sports a longer top tube, a 65º head angle, a boost rear spacing, internal dropper routing, and an even lower top tube, thanks to the braced seat tube cluster. The team at Fat Chance said this bike was designed for a 27.5″ tire, yet another version is on the way that will fit the popular 27.5+/29″ platform.

Head to Fat Chance now to place a pre-order for this frame, which is priced at $1,799 in the Yo Eddy colorways.

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Follow Fat Chance on Instagram.

Own a True Temper Slim Chance Road Frame

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Own a True Temper Slim Chance Road Frame

If you’re looking for a new steel road frameset, check out the latest offering from Fat Chance. These True Temper Slim Chance frames come with a number of configuration options. You can choose a steel fork, or an ENVE, color-matched ENVE stem, and even a color-matched Silca frame pump. You can even select if you want a cabled road groupset or SRAM Red eTap. The pricing starts at $2395 for a frame, fork and King headset, allowing you to tack on options as needed. This pre-order is a limited edition offering, and will close out on November 15th with a end of January 2017 delivery.

Head to Fat Chance for the skinny on the new Slim Chance.

The Return of the Slim Chance

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The Return of the Slim Chance

While Chris Chance and Fat City might be known best for their MTB, segmented forks and revolutionizing the tig-welding process for frame building, they also had a very successful road bike, dubbed the Slim Chance 2.0. Well, with the relaunch of the brand and its hardtail MTBs, Fat City has just announces their new Slim Chance frames… Check out these details and head over to Fat Chance to see more!

-Available as a frame, ENVE carbon fork and Chris King headset package for $2295.
-Segmented steel Yo Road Fork will be available as an option in the coming weeks.
-Painted stem upgrade options; Carbon (ENVE) for $355, Alloy for $250.
-Choice of mechanical or electronic shifting options at no extra charge.
-4 colors inspired some of our favorite Slim’s from the past; Blue, Pearl White, Pale Yellow and Red.
-Framesets ship in 4-6 weeks, complete bikes in 6-8 weeks.

Get a Yo Eddy! Frame While They Last

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Get a Yo Eddy! Frame While They Last


(models shown are pre-production prototypes from 2015 NAHBS – changes were made to production models)

Fat Chance has a few extra frames from the 2015 pre-order up for sale with large / xlarge sizing in the 29’r and medium in the 27.5. Unfortunately there are no rigid forks in stock, but all the colors are available for now. Price is $1,699 and frames will ship mid February once the Kickstarter and pre-order frames are shipped. Head to Fat Chance now to see the 29’r and 27.5 hardtails.

1994 Fat Chance Shock-A-Billy Full Suspension MTB

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1994 Fat Chance Shock-A-Billy Full Suspension MTB

This one’s a strange bird for sure. 1994 brought about a sea change in the mountain bike industry. The world was abuzz with full suspension bikes and suddenly manufacturers like Fat City Cycles found their hands forced to embrace this new technology. It was this year that Fat Chance joined forces with Serotta in New York. This manufacturing move allowed bikes like the Shock-A-Billy to be born, as well as increased production in the standard lineup including: a Ti Fat, Buck Shaver, Yo Eddy, Wicked Lite and the brand’s road bike, the Slim Chance. These frames featured quad butting, an aluminum AMP rear swingarm providing 2.75″ of travel and an optional Rock Shox Mag 21 fork.

How bikes like this survive for over 20 years and remain mostly intact continues to baffle me. Especially with builds like this: Ringle skewers, WTB VelociRaptor tires, White Industry hubs, Moto Ace Salsa stem, Syncros post and a working Shimano XTR group.

Fat City Cycles suffered a fatal blow in 2000, only to return in 2014 with a new plan… They’re back and you can own a modern Fat City.

As for vintage Fat City, if you really wanna go down the Fat City rabbit hole, read up at Mombat!

Q&A With Chris Chance at Mission Workshop TONIGHT!

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Q&A With Chris Chance at Mission Workshop TONIGHT!

Tonight at Mission Workshop in SF, I’ll be moderating a discussion with Chris Chance of Fat Chance Bicycles. Here’s the scoop:

“Chris Chance is bringing back Fat Chance Bicycles. Making a killer bike back in the day wasn’t easy and bringing it back to life 15 years after closing down shop can’t be either. Chris will be speaking at Mission Workshop San Francisco Saturday August 15th. John Watson will be leading the questions, but attendees are welcome to ask Chris what’s on their mind. The talk will be live streamed on TheRadavist.com so you can follow along from your garage, but if you’re local, email rsvp@missionworkshop.com to grab a seat. Beers start at 5pm, doors close at 6:30pm. Talk starts at 7pm.”

We hope to see you there!

Jacob’s Vintage Team Fat Chance MTB

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Jacob’s Vintage Team Fat Chance MTB

$600. That’s how much Jacob paid for his Team Fat Chance frame on eBay. It was in pristine condition with the original Yo Eddy! fork and a brand new paint job. Here’s when the collector would begin to scrounge up all the NOS parts to restore it to its original glory, yet all Jacob wanted was a bike he could ride Austin’s Greenbelt trails on. Even with the rebirth of a Fat Chance brand, there’s something to be said about 20-year steel frames. Especially with a legacy like Fat City.

While most of the build is straightforward, the Bullmoose bars and Velocity Cliffhanger rims, laced to Deore hubs are the standout details. Now his Onza tires are tubeless, which means he can run lower pressure and not worry about snakebikes on limestone ledges and the Deore hubs will be easily serviceable after the rain brings creek crossings.

His 1x setup was made possible by a clutch Deore derailleur and a Wolf Tooth ring, mounted to vintage Shimano cranks and braking is being taken care of by Chico’s finest, Paul Components.

For around $1,500, Jacob built up a vintage mountain bike with style and while it might not tackle a rock garden as fast as a modern full sus bike, sometimes the ride isn’t about being timed.

Cole and Jonathan at Mellow Johnny’s did a great job on the build and this bike looks so good covered in limestone dust. Shred on, buddy.

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The Pro’s Closet Talks to Chris Chance

You’re gonna be seeing a lot of Chris Chance and Fat Chance over the next few weeks:

The Pro’s Closet caught up with Chris Chance at the “Mountain Bike Hall of Fame” in the spring of 2015. In this mini-doc, Chris describes the early days of Fat Chance, the forces that pulled him away from the bicycle world, and the passion that led him back!”

Fat Chance: 2015 Yo Eddy 29r and 27.5 Hardtails up for Pre-Order

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Fat Chance: 2015 Yo Eddy 29r and 27.5 Hardtails up for Pre-Order

After debuting the two signature Yo Eddy hardtails at NAHBS this year, Fat Chance Bicycles has opened up their production run for pre-order. Since we last saw the bikes here on the Radavist, a few details have been tidied up. The 29’r now has a curved seat tube, which gave it more tire clearance while keeping the rear end rowdy. There are other improvements from the prototypes to production, which are all outlined at the below links. These frames are made in California and retail for $1,699 with a $699 deposit due upon pre-order.

Head over to Fat Chance Bicycles for more details and information on pre-ordering the Yo Eddy 29’r and Yo Eddy 27.5.

Dammit, these bikes look good!