A proper shakedown ride and some misc. tinkering

awaiting the ride

My daughter and I did a quick trip to Portland, basically 24 hours, to visit friends and catch the last Sunday Parkways of the 2018 season.  This was my second year in a row and I hope I can start a nice long streak.  It was also an opportunity to do an extended ride on the Cresta GT.

There was Shakespeare in one park and Opera in another along with lots people and bikes and food.

resting

I think I used every gear on the Cresta, there was a decent hill to start and lots of rolling and I certainly got to practice my low speed handling skills in traffic.  The more I ride this bike the more I love it.

We had a lovely late September day for riding and at almost 10 miles this was my longest ride on the Cresta GT to date.  I am already scheming about how to cram in more rides before the end of October.

Misc.  Tinkering

It may already be too late to sell a bike this year, but I figured I would get the Schwinn Le Tour ready so I could give it shot in October and worst case it will be all ready to go come Spring.  Onto the work stand it went.

I had thought about just doing a wipe down and replacing the brake cables and chain but it didn't come to me exactly clean and being on the porch through a smoky summer didn't help matters any so getting it down to the frame is probably the best way to go.  I am not planning on any bearing work unless it obviously needs it but its easier to clean and wax the frame with all the bits off and the drive train can take a trip through the Sonic bath.

Since finishing the clunker challenge I have been thinking about Barney and the changes I want to make, the first being a front wheel to match the rear and hopefully reduce the slightly squirrely handling of a narrow front rim/tire.  A new front wheel on Amazon is about $40 and one from the Co-Op is $15.  I also wondered about a salvage option...

And I ran across this 1987 Trek Antelope 800 on CL in my neighborhood for $40,  

The front wheel is an exact match to the rear wheel on Barney.

And metal thumb shifters with intact shifter covers and their Suntour like the rest of Barney's drive-train.

I also think there is a good chance that the stem will solve the fit issue I am having with the stock stem on Barney.

The derailleurs I can either clean up and sell or add to my parts bin along with the Dia Compe canti brakes.

And the paint and decals are in nice shape so I might see if I can sell the frame for cheap and recoup some of my outlay but if it doesn't sell I'll donate it and the rear wheel and to bike works.  It would have been perfect if it also had a rack and bottle cage but I am pretty happy with front wheel, thumb shifters and drive train, it also has an SR triple crank, for the money.

Ride. Smile. Repeat.