duffer1960

Hi Mashu,

I'm working on a Continental right now, sounds like it's in similar condition. Take your time. I suggest you give it a complete overhaul. The bearings on my Continental were absolutely dry, would have been ruined in short order if I'd ridden it.

The Schwinns are amenable to a relatively simple toolkit. They're simple & rugged, about the easiest bikes to work on. Here are the tools I can think of. Not cheap, but some of the tools are general-purpose and useful for other things, and maybe you can borrow or beg some tools or services & don't have to spend a lot. For bike-specific tools, 'High Street' shops will charge a lot for top-of-the-line tools, but there are online stores with cheaper, lower-quality stuff that works fine for occasional use.

Tools -
-Medium-size straight-slot screwdriver. Brake levers, unscrewing the bottom bracket adjustable cup
-Assortment of english & metric combination wrenches. Many of the accessories (brakes, derailleurs) are metric. The axle nuts, stem bolt, and seatpost bolt are english, and maybe some others too.
-Adjustable wrenches, esp. a large one for the headset and bottom bracket locknut. Smaller ones will be helpful esp. when you must have two wrenches of the same size.
-(Optional?) Pedal wrench. I'm using a cheapo 'Pyramid' brand with 15 mm jaws, this seems to work. You'll need to get the non-drive-side pedal off to take out the crank & ease maintenance of the bottom bracket bearings. You might get by w/o taking the pedals off if you're patient and can work on the bearings while they're still on the bike, but this would be an unpleasant and tedious task. Be aware that the non-drive-side pedals, bearing cup, and locknut are left-threaded; they unscrew by turning to the right.
-Spoke wrench. You probably should tighten the spokes and true the wheels. Several sizes, not sure which. Schwinn wheels are very strong. My guess is they'll hold up pretty well even if your work isn't perfect, but you should try your best to get even tension and a straight wheel anyway.
-Cone wrenches. The wheel bearing cones & locknuts have very narrow lands, and you need very thin wrenches to remove & adjust them. Not sure of the sizes. They come in 13,14,15,16 mm.
-(Optional?) Special splined tool to get the freewheel off. Several kinds, not sure which, may vary from year to year. I just took a look at the Continental's wheel, and I think it may be unpleasant and slow-going, but not impossible, to service the drive-side wheel bearings without removing the freewheel. I recall servicing my Varsity's bearings without removing the freewheel. Memory is hazy since it was 30 years ago.
-Cutters for the cable housing and cables. Expensive. There are probably less-expensive methods (ordinary wire cutters for the cable? hacksaw for the housing?) Not sure.
-Chain pin remover tool if removing & replacing the chain

When they're apart, clean the bearings and races well. To put it back together - Marine waterproof wheel bearing grease for the bearings, seatpost, and handlebar stem. Almost any grease would be good enough, but the marine-type will last a long time. Bearings should spin freely without play, will take some time to get this right, take your time. Motor oil for the cables, brake mechanisms, derailleurs and pulleys, pedals. Special chain lube for the chain, plain motor oil ok in a pinch.

Good luck, it'll be ready to run for 30 more years. Be sure to post a lot & let us know if you need help & how you're doing! Sheldon's pages have a wealth of information and there are other good sites too. Maybe there are some clubs or co-ops in your area, you could take your wheels to for advice on truing, etc. Check the libraries for maintenance books. If you're an earnest, hungry-looking kid, just maybe the right bike shop mechanic would do simple things like take the pedals off for next-to-no money. I hope this doesn't sound like too much or is unaffordable. It's rewarding when done & you're riding a perfectly-tuned and restored old bike, functionally good as new.

Whew! I guess I was tired of working on the Continental. I hope it goes well for you, good luck!

-Rich