Brakes (levers), Bikes and Beer; another Lazy Sunday

Today I thought I would remove the DiaCompe brake levers from the handlebars the Cresta GT came with, so I could clean them.

What a PIA, and a mess to boot.  The bars were double wrapped and very sticky between layers which meant the old bar tape came off in tiny bits not one big strip.  It took far longer than anticipated just to free one bleeping brake lever.

The hood, though filthy, was in pretty good shape and supple,

I started out with warm water and hand soap, just using my fingers to work the soap into the hood,  I followed up with more hand spap and a tooth brush for the stubborn stuff and finished off with a spritz of WD-40 and one more go with the tooth brush.

Pretty big difference huh?  As I was cleaning the hood I was thinking two things.  First man these hoods are small as in how comfortable will they be when my hands are on the hoods?  And second that white hoods like white bar tape look great... for about 5 seconds, with any riding they become dirty and dingy and show it more readily than other colors.  It's possible there is an Amazon cart filled with; bars, stem and brake levers as a result of the brake lever exercise this morning. The cart hasn't approached checkout yet but its ready if needed and because of some judicious choices is just under a $100 before tax rather than close to $150. (EDIT: itchy trigger finger- Ordered)

1985 Schwinn LeTour

In checking my craigslist ads for the Mirage and Rapide, I was looking at the bike listings (market research you know -yeah right) and came across an 84 Schwinn Le Tour (catalog shot above).  I was drawn in by the top mounted Suntour down tube shifters.  I have wanted to work on a bike with these since 2013, when I wrote the post: the secret life of friction shifters, my second most popular post ever according to Blogger.  The bike was also my size, fairly stock judging by the one picture  and reasonably priced since the seller is moving, and it already had one price drop.  My mind raced with how it would be cool to play with those shifters and how the 4130 chromoly frame would be a great commuter platform, and how it would fit the NIB 7 speed wide range FW I have in the parts bin and.....  Then I sobered up and got real, I have two bikes still unsold on CL, with a 3rd about to be finished and put up for sale.  And I have two other bikes in need of rehab and my daily rider.  That makes six bikes still in the apartment and two full overhauls to come, I DON"T NEED MORE!!  And for what I would pay for the Le Tour I can check out the cart on Amazon for the Cresta GT (which in fact I just did).  Down boy.  I also know that many bikes, from many makers,  were made in the mid 80s with these shifters and I can find one when I am ready, maybe even on a Schwinn with Tenax tubing.  And if I need a commuter platform I have lots of choices in house.  I know this will be news to you all, but I might have a bike acquisition addiction.

Craigslist crisis averted it was off to the beer Junction.  I choose the Moto_GT in part because I don't mind if its cheap, place holder, saddle gets rained on.  It's not that the Brooks can't take rain, they make them in England after all, but I try not to go out of my way to get it wet.  I also like that Moto_GT reminds me it needs the full restoration treatment with every ride, I noticed the front brake is mushy so it may need to go to dry dock.

I also like the Grand Touring because it has a chainguard and therefore saves me the 5, agonizing, seconds of rolling up my pant leg and then 5 more, excruciating, seconds of rolling it back down again.   Let's taste some beer.

I started off with the Holy Trinity IPA from Skookum Brewery in Arlington WA.  Jaysus, Mary and Joseph -that's good boyo.

Followed by the Notorious Imperial IPA from Boneyard in Bend, OR.

And I finished up with an Irish Death Stout from Iron Horse in Ellensburg, WA.

After tasting beer and watching baseball, they have MLB network going on Sunday's, I couldn't leave the Beer Junction without some beer and Peanuts.  Ride.Smile. Don't hoard bikes.Repeat.

Nishiki Cresta GT Part I: the tear down

You may recall I ordered a handlebar shim for the Campus bike, well I forgot the golden rule of measure twice, order once.   I ordered a shim to make a 25.4 diameter handlebar fit a 26.0 diameter stem, one problem, my handlebar is 22.2.  I sighed, said a few choice words and ordered the correct shim, sunlite, from Amazon.  It will be here Tuesday, which left me with a bit of time Friday night.

So the Schwinn came out of the stand and the Nishiki went in.  I have been resisting the urge to fill a basket from Amazon or Velo Orange or Rivendell with all sorts of goodies for this bike.  I want to get it overhauled and then ride it to see how I like the fit and ride before I go too nuts on upgrades.

I do have the very nice Swift tire Sand Canyon's in 27 X 1 3/8 waiting for the rebuild, I did splurge a bit on them but I think they may be supple and smooth enough to justify that premium over a pair of much less expensive but stiffer Kenda K40s.  I hope to ride them enough to give a review.

I also have a pair of new in box tubes ready to go for the rebuild.

I had three cantilever brake pads in the parts bin, why 3?  I have no earthly idea!  I ordered a pair from Amazon and I'm sure once they arrive I will find a single canti brake pad kicking around somewhere but new pads will be ready for the rebuild.

I know from experience with the Schwinn Passage that the stock pedals on the Nishiki aren't my cup of tea, so I did spend some $$ and ordered my favorite pedals the MKS RMX "sneakers".  They will arrive next week.  I went from two bikes with these pedals to zero so I will be happy to have them back in the quiver.

I have a nice Jagwire shift cable set in the parts bin, not sure if the red will work, or make the bike too 4th of July but I have other housing bits I could use too so we'll see,

I have not one, but two boxes of Cinelli cork bar tape in the parts bin so one will go on the Nishiki.  I think it will look good with the bike, and with the initial rebuild I want to mostly use what I have on hand and not spend too freely out of the gate.

The Cresta came with the worlds shortest reach stem and stock 40mm handlebars which I find too narrow, so I am going to the parts bin for wider bars and longer reach stem and I'll move the stock brake levers over.  I envision that if I like this bike as much I think I will that it will eventually get a cockpit upgrade but between a set of Nitto Rando handlebars, Technomic stem and some Origin 8 drilled areo brake levers (I like how they feel in my hand) that is $140 I don't need to spend right now.   I also have my eye on a Brooks saddle, of course,  but will go with the stock Vetta for the rebuild.

I took a bunch of photos of the bike before starting the tear down, how the brakes are set up, the shift levers, the rear derailleur, brake adjusters in the brake bridge etc. so I can refer to them later if I need to.

After about 40 minutes work, mostly with Y wrenches, I was down to a frame with just the BB and headset left to deal with later and...

...a  box of parts, it mostly went smooth, the drive side pedal was stubborn but the cheater bar on the end of the pedal wrench convinced it to budge, all in all a good Friday nights work.

The Suntour Accushift downtube shifters have even more innards than most DT shifters, so I used the zip tie trick to keep it all together until I can carefully and deliberately take them apart, one at a time, to clean and lube them.

Today, Saturday, the bottom bracket came out, the fixed cup barely caused a fuss and I was pleased to see grease and not the Sahara inside the cups.

The headset on the other hand is a bit of a stinker.  I encountered threaded spacers like these before on a 74 Nishiki, but they had deep enough indentations that I could use a pin spanner to get them loose, that doesn't work in this instance.  I have a few ideas but I am deliberately taking it slow, first do no harm, is a motto I've heard somewhere.  I always have the bail out of the bike shop and I have a few in my area that work on vintage bikes.

That leaves me with a frame, fork and headset.  I am hoping for another ride to the Beer junction tomorrow, until next time. Ride,Smile, do no harm, Repeat.

Lazy Sunday

Yesterday I said I would ride to the Market and have some beers, I like to keep my word.

Moto_GT got the nod today, every time I take this bike out for a short ride I think this beauty needs the full overhaul/spa treatment.  That day is getting closer, the Campus bike is very close to being done, the Cresta GT is in the on deck circle and then it will be time for the Moto_GT.

It wasn't the most inviting day for the farmers market, 47 degrees and overcast, but it didn't rain on me.  My main goal for this ride was to visit the beer Junction.

I started out with a Built to Sell IPA from Cloudburst brewing, Seattle WA.

Then graduated to a double IPA, the Queen of the Skies, from Airways brewing in Kent WA, very nice.

And I finished off a Stout, Final Departure also from Airways.  The nice thing about a 4 oz pour is that I can sample 3 beers and still ride my bike home in a straight line, for not a lot more than the cost of a regular pint.

I also moved some bike furniture today.  When I first moved in my two bike stand was in the bathroom because it had this odd alcove that was perfect for the stand.  It occurred to me a few years in that a steel bike in a room that gets regular moisture is not a great idea, I'm slow but I can be taught, so its been a clothes rack for the last 3 years.  Today I made some room in the guest room/daughters room (she stays about 4 nights a month) and the rack is currently showing off my collection of 1970s Motobecanes; the soon to be gone (hopefully) Mirage on top and the Moto_GT on the bottom.

Pro Tip:  are you looking at a late 70s Schwinn and wondering where it was made?  Well if it has the words Schwinn approved its made in Japan, and the badge on the head tube and the sticker on the seat tube will also say Made in Japan.  Schwinn name and heritage, Japanese craftsmanship and attention to detail, a great mix IMHO.

I hope that my next post will involve a finished Campus bike.  Ride.Drink Beer.Smile.Repeat.

Campus Bike Part III, My Kingdom for a shim (1978 Schwinn Traveler III)

I thought I could build a bike out of my parts bin with zero funds out of pocket and I thought I could put it together quickly.  I was wrong on both counts.

I was able to make it to Bike Works one evening after work and found the stem I needed.

As I was looking through a box of stems one of the staff came over and asked what I was looking for, I mentioned a 70's Schwinn and he asked "is that like 21.1 (.833 inch) mm?" yes it is I replied and he laughed.  He was building up a bike earlier that day and couldn't understand why the normal looking stem was so skinny and then realized it was 21.1 not 22.2, he knew exactly where it was and with $5.50 out of pocket I was on my way.

I got it greased and mounted, it was looking good.  Now for the Handlebars...

So guess I was wrong about all .833 stems having 25.4 handlebar openings, I am going to need a shim.  I have some shims in the parts bin but turns out there are for more modern stems and aren't going to work in this instance.  Screw it, I went on Amazon and ordered a 25.4 to 26.0 shim, which should here late next week.   Sigh, I am now up to about $10 about of pocket on this no cost bike.

I wasn't going to be able to finish the bike this weekend without  a shim but there was plenty I could do like apply clear-coat (nail polish) to those rust areas I treated.

And mount the bottle cage I had lying around, I took this off the Raleigh Rapide Mixte and didn't put it back on so it was available for the Schwinn.

I also mounted the wheels, the rear when on fine but the front didn't want to go, I got out the calipers and noticed the outside nut distance on the axle was a smidge wider than the drop out width,  Then I noticed the nuts on axle were kind of chunky.

I had a Specialized 32h front that has been rattling around in the parts bin for a decade.  I had a bad habit of haunting the Bike Nashbar bargain bin online on '07 and '08, it resulted in a $40 Brooks b17 that is on the Handsome Devil but also allot of stuff I didn't really need including the hub.

I took a look at the new hub and realized it had slim outside nuts, noticeably narrower than the ones on the front wheel, so I swapped them.

I used the specialized hub to "cold set" the front width for a while and then mounted the front wheel, it wasn't easy but I finally got it on the bike.

My final challenge was the rear rack, which also came from the Raleigh Rapide mixte.  The hardware I had set aside for the seat stay bracket ended up being too short and the ones I had that were long enough were too fat for the holes in the bracket,  Off to Tru-Value and a few more $$$ out of pocket and the rack was mounted. Oh and I put on the pedals too, I went with the plastic ones.

With any luck the shim will work and I can get the handlebars mounted and put the finishing touches on the Campus bike.

Tomorrow I think I'll ride to the farmers market and drink beers,  Ride, Smile, Repeat.

Campus bike project part II: Progress and road blocks (1978 Schwinn Traveler III)

Last weekend I started on cleaning the brakes for this project which had some rusty bits and I thought I would try Oxalic acid.

Oxalic acid bath

It wasn't warm enough outside, only about 50 degrees F, and I wasn't able to soak them for more than a couple hours but I gave it a shot anyway.

It wasn't perfect but I did see enough improvement in my abortive attempt to want to try again when its warmer and I can do a proper soak.  It was fine for this project as I don't want things too shiny.

The barrel adjusters were still frozen even after the acid bath so I soaked them in some liquid wrench and then went to True Value to get a small adjustable wrench as the nuts on the adjuster bolt were smaller than 9mm which was my smallest open end wrench.  I have sockets and box end wrenches that are smaller than 9mm but I needed an open end.

Using pliers as a vice and my new tiny wrench I did get the adjusting nut freed up so that the barrel adjusters are once again fully functional.

And that meant I could reassemble the brakes, I did make the mistake of taking both brakes apart at the same time when I should have really left one intact to use as a template, but I was able to get everything back together.

I used my headset cup remover to get the crusty headset cups out of the frame.

And then they got a long soak in the sonic cleaner to loosen and soften the decades old grease.

Which made them easy to clean up.

I didn't bother to remove the lower crown race but I did get it cleaned up in place.

To keep this bike ugly and therefore unappealing to campus bike thieves I am leaving the paint scratched, and scraped and rust spotted, however there were a few major rust spots I wanted to deal with.  I treated them with naval jelly and then after the frame dried I rubbed in some 3 in 1 oil, later I will either wax those frame sections or use some clear nail polish to slow down the rust returning.  In addition to naval jelly the bb shell also got a brass wire brush dremel session and then got a thin coat of grease.

I did a quick check of the wheels in the truing stand and then put the "new" rubber on and in doing so discovered that the front rim was a somewhat rare 27" rim drilled for a presta valve.  I could have drilled it out to accomdodate a schrader valve but I had a presta tube and it really goes with the mismatched theme of this bike, the wheels, tires and now tubes are all mismatched.  The tires are Boontrager and Specialized, the hubs are Shimano and generic, the rims are alloy and steel and the tubes are presta and schrader.

My work on the frame, headset cups and bb shell meant that by end of day Saturday I had the headset back together and the cartridge bb installed.  You may notice the bb pictured is different than the one  I showed last week, its what I always intended to use on this project since it is used but I couldn't find it last week!  Rummaging for other things in the parts bin turned it up so the new one will be saved for some other project, I also find using the half inch socket driver gives nice leverage when installing the bb cups.

It was all going well yesterday until I got around to dry fitting the stem.  I know about French bikes having an odd headtube size and stem (22.0) but it had slipped my mind that a majority of 70's Schwinns used an American standard of .833 inches for their stems or 21.15 in metric which is why my 22.2 stem wasn't going anywhere.  It wasn't a total loss as the handle bars I want to use were too small for that 22.2 stem without a shim, which I don.t have, but will work perfectly with the 25.4 opening (1 inch) on a standard .833 stem.  I made a mental note to visit bike works on Sunday as I didn't want to pay $16 to have a new stem shipped on Amazon for this low budget project.

Since bike works doesn't open until eleven, I went about my day before driving over...and found them closed!  I stood dumbfounded for a moment as it clearly says they have hours on Sunday and its 1 pm, and then I noticed the poster at the top of the door and recalled getting an email that they had an event today and realized I should have put 2 and 2 together earlier and saved myself a trip.  I consoled myself at the nearby Columbia City bakery with a blondie and a macaroon.  Next week I will come back for a stem and try to avoid the temptation of the warehouse and all the potential project bikes that lurk there.

The weekend wasn't a total loss, the derailleurs, brakes and cranks are mounted, I have a wheelset ready to mount and when I get the right stem I can unblock this project.

There is even a seat post and saddle secured to this frame.  Hopefully there will be more to come next week, until then Ride.Smile.Repeat.