I found the frame of the Voodoo Hoodoo Mysrtical Folk Magic hanging on the wall of my local bike shop. According to the owner, he had it for the last 8 years. He had wanted to build it up and sell it as a complete bike but never got down to doing it. Talk about procrastination! It was all dusty and unless you had a keen eye, you would never know that such a valuable bike was hanging there. After a short round of negotiation, I took the frame home and the magic began. I knew I had to have it because Voodoo bikes are quite awesome. They are famous for their steel bikes so an aluminium Voodoo is certainly a rare find. Even Google did not turn up much information about this model. After hours of washing, compounding, waxing and polishing, the frame was reinstated to its former glory. Hard work, no doubt but well worth the effort.
Now that the magic has been restored, the dilemma began. As there were no references I could find regarding the set-up of the bike, I decided the bike should have a mix of old and new. As usual, my parts bin never failed me and I was able to dig out some 'old' stuff like the Deore 9-speed brake and shifter combo. They look old-school with the big brake levers.
Next decision; rigid or suspension fork? I decided to go with suspension as the bike seems to be built with suspension in mind. The frame also had disc brake mountings and so naturally, disc brakes were used instead of V or caliper brakes. However, mechanical disc brakes by Shimano was used instead since hydraulic brakes might not have been invented at that time when the bike was build.
A Suntour XCR fork was selected. It is not high-end stuff but it does it job. Besides, this bike is not going to see much trails or downhills!
The Voodoo logo is so enchanting and gives character to the bike.
The handlebar is from Concept and it came off the Vitus Dee 29er. The straight handlebar somehow looks right on the bike. The Cannondale C1 stem matches the handlebar nicely and again, makes the bike look right.
Voodoo has a way of naming their bikes. Mystical Folk Magic is certainly a mouthful and the wordings looks a bit evil but again, this gives character to the bike.
Voodoo is owned by Joe Murray who used to race ATB (all terrain bicycle). I actually dropped him an email to get more information regarding the frame but I did not hear from him.
Deore 3-speed cranks and Deore front derailleur takes care of the front transmission. Again, these are not high-end stuff but they do their job efficiently and effectively.
Matching the front transmission is the Deore rear derailleur coupled to a 9-speed cassette. I think an 8-speed rear cassette would be more period correct but it would mean lots of sourcing for the various parts. As you know, anything less than 10 speed nowadays are hard to find.
Deore XT hubs provide smooth running and little problems. Some people mentioned that the bearings need to be taken out after some time for maintenance.
What else but a Ferrari leather seat for the comfort zone. This has to be one of the most comfortable saddle and my only regret is that I did not buy up the whole lot of them when they were on sale.
So, there it is, the Voodoo Hoodoo Mystical Folk Magic. A very special bike with plenty of character. Its not a 'hey look at me' kind of bike but real bike folks will appreciate the heritage of the brand and the man who build and design it.
After months of sitting around looking good, the bike went for its first maiden ride. As you can see, the fork, stem and handlebar has been swopped for lighter components. Its a real joy to ride. Effortless, smooth, predictable handling, nimble and all the other nice things you can think of. This is one bike to keep for life.
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