This is a
picture of a my bike around 1989 (before I bought my more recent MTBs).
Note the generator-type bell behind the right fork leg to scare pedestrians
out of the way. I have gotten more civilized since...
My commuter
bike in its current configuration.
You are right if you say that my bike does not look like a stock 1988 MongooseAlta (even though in the old picture on the right it still does). It is not. In fact, the only parts on this bike that have not been replaced are the frame (on which I relocated some of the braze-ons, though, before I had it repainted) and the front derailleur.
Everything else is newer: Scott AT-4 Pro bars and a new stem to make me comfortable, the horrible original Dia Compe 983 cantis had to give way to 986s and later to Suntour XC Pros, I am on my second set of hubs, my fourth fork, my fourth rear derailleur, etc. etc.
Even though most people complain that newer bike components are not compatible, my bike serves as proof to the contrary: The rear deraileur went from Shimano 'Light Action' long cage to Shimano 'Light Action' short cage (after a stick broke the first one) to Shimano 'Deore XT II' short cage (after that one developed too much play) to Shimano '105 SC' (same reason, but the XT lived MUCH longer). The shifters changed from Shimano 'Light Action' 6-speed thumbshifters to Sachs 'Twist Grip' 7-speed to Shimano 'Deore II' 7-speed thumbshifters.
I
paid special attention to making the bike suitable to all-weather riding
and night riding. I combined two front fenders to form one looong fender
for the front wheel and stil added a mud flap at the bottom. And I used
a B&M Lumotec plus headlight and
a B&M DToplight plus taillight.
Both feature an integrated curcuit which keeps the LEDs lit for several
minutes after I stop. See Peter
Jon White's lighting
page for a description of these excellent lighting systems in English
and a distribution source in the U.S..
To log my milage on this bike, I use a Sachs-Huret Multitronic Road-Monitor 1 cyclocomputer. It it the best cyclocomputer for night riding, as its display is lit by the headlight. It is also so odd that nobody would be keen on stealing it.