Hello I've just bought what I think is a 1998 GT Fueler off ebay. Probably not one of the rarest/coolest bmx's around but the Fueler is a bike that I wanted back in the mid-1990s but never had the money. I might have paid over the odds on it but it seemed a reasonable price to me. Can anyone confirm that it is actually a Fueler please? And if it isn't, what have I bought
All my Google research points to it being a 1998 as it has the brakes bosses on the chainstay and the piston stem, and the stickers seem to be consistent with 1998. However I've never seen one with black forks and black bars - maybe that was something GT started doing towards the end, or maybe they've been swapped out? The chainring isn't the one I've seen either, although the cranks seem to look like the ones that were being fitted to Fuelers in 1998. I haven't picked up the bike yet so haven't checked the serial number. If it is a 1998 Fueler, I think that means it was USA-made, is that right? I can't find the exact date when GT moved there bmx production to Taiwan - any info on that would be appreciated as well!
Anyway my plan is to restore it to as close to period as I can, but I always preferred the older GT logo with the wings so I might see if I can get some of those stickers for it. This will be my first BMX build and I'm looking forward to getting started on it and getting riding it. The first thing I'll probably look for is a set of decent chrome bars, grips, seat clamp and maybe the back brake (I'll just get rid of the front one). The photos aren't great but the chrome seems in decent nick as far as I can see - the forks are maybe a bit worse for wear mind.
Anyway I plan to keep this thread updated as I build it up
