Commuting - "New" Bike!

A friend just dropped off my new mini-van. :). Been sitting in his parents shed or years and they generously gave it to me to fix up. Super excited about it. Never had a Tandem before. Hope to have lots of fun on it. :)

http://yfrog.com/j3lhdj

Awesome. Looks like a Schwinn? I've always wondered what it is like to ride a tandem.

Yup it is a Schwinn from the '60s. It is in remarkably good condition.

My wife and I took it n a very short ride and managed not to crash but barely. It needs some serious grease. Turning requires a lot of force. Need to tear it apart, clean it up, lube it, replace the chains, cables, break pads, and tires and I think it will be in ride condition. Yay!

Carpool! I mean bikepool!

Is there anything cooler than stainless steel fenders? Look at them, they =gleam=! Also, you are honor bound to save those grips. I cut off a pair like them from an old Raleigh, and I've regretted it since. They don't sell 'em new, and they are surprisingly comfy, and they match the paint! You are equally honor bound to preserve that visored headlight... they sell kits that will turn it into a halogen or LED light. The seats are pretty sweet, but may not be to modern taste (or waistlines). Sell them to appreciative bike nerds on ebay if that is the case.

The turning issue is probably fossilized grease in the headset. VeloOrange has replacement sealed-bearing headsets and quills fo' cheep, and Chris King still makes 1" threaded headsets, too... in anodized green, no less.

Oh yes! I fully intend on keeping the grips, lights, saddles. The rear saddle is a little torn up but I think with a needle and thread can be fixed up. I don't know yet if the generator for the lights work or not. The wires are disconnected right now.

And I totally agree about the fenders. For about 10 seconds I toted with the idea of trying to move them to my commuter. :)

But man is this bike a beast! It weighs an absolute ton!

The turning issue is probably fossilized grease in the headset. VeloOrange has replacement sealed-bearing headsets and quills fo' cheep, and Chris King still makes 1" threaded headsets, too... in anodized green, no less.

Thanks a bunch for the tips here. I've never restored anything like this before and I really want to do a good job. This is something that I hope to see my kids riding around the neighborhood on someday. :)

I am all about the Rolling Resto - I had a '69 Caddy I brought back to showroom new, save for the leather, which was softer than stock, and the drivetrain, which was loaded with MTS hop-up parts that destroyed the local 'Stangs, Firehawks and Ferraris of the time (late '90s.) I'm now nursing a Raleigh Record Ace back into fighting trim from a C'muuter perspective, so I feel you on the modern-resto-vibe.

Along those lines, the wheels on your bike have got to go, as they're probably steel. Upgrade to modern alloy - stronger, stop much better, especially in wet weather, and they won't rust. CR-18 or Velocity Aeroheat rim, and the front hub should be a nice generator hub, from Shimano or SA, and out back, spend a little for a super-sweet freewheel hub that will take a super-sweet 5sp IRD Mega-Range freewheel, or an 8sp or better IGH. (Hard to see from that angle if you have a derailleur or IGH. There's an awfully cute kid in the way...) Likewise the tires... modern tires are lighter, are nigh impervious to flats, and do better in wet weather. I like Conti T&C's and Panaracer RiBiMo's.

The brakes are OK, just take them apart, de-grease and then and lube judiciously with modern lube (Tri-Flow FTW), and swap out the pads (Koolstop Salmon FTW) and the cables and their housings while you're at it(Invest in a housing clipper). The rear derailleur, likewise with the de-grease and re-lube and cable. Chuck the chain, it's toast, but the driver and the stoker cranks are likely steel, and can be de-greased, cleaned of rust with steel wool and lots of effort, and put back into action with a new chain (which come pre-lubed these days).

The bars are steel, and hunting down alloy replacements will be a chore, but worth your while if you can. If you can't, SimiChrome will remove the rust and restore the shine to the chromed bits, like those bars and that light. It worked on the bumpers of my '69 Caddy droptop, it will work on those bars. Get a new Nitto stem from V.O., tho, and also swap out those seat posts... Wallingford has quality modern replacements that will work with your vintage seats.

Also on the Honor-Bound list - that chain guard. Covers two cranks, how cool is that! Degrease, clean, and spray on some automotive undercoat sealant on the underside of the guard and the supports.

Pedals? Chuck 'em. Get better and new rubber-block ones by MKS from V.O., or just put quality BMX platforms on there if you intend to ride it someplace when it rains in dress shoes/boots.

Nice mini van. We had one just like it. As a kid, I'd sometimes ride it solo from the rear seat--stretching over the front to steer. I'm a little bit smarter now. :innocent:

Along those lines, the wheels on your bike have got to go, as they're probably steel. Upgrade to modern alloy - stronger, stop much better, especially in wet weather, and they won't rust. CR-18 or Velocity Aeroheat rim, and the front hub should be a nice generator hub, from Shimano or SA, and out back, spend a little for a super-sweet freewheel hub that will take a super-sweet 5sp IRD Mega-Range freewheel, or an 8sp or better IGH. (Hard to see from that angle if you have a derailleur or IGH. There's an awfully cute kid in the way...) Likewise the tires... modern tires are lighter, are nigh impervious to flats, and do better in wet weather. I like Conti T&C's and Panaracer RiBiMo's.

I was actually thinking about swapping out the wheels. For just starting out I was going to swap with a decade old Huffy cruiser that I have laying around. The wheels on it seem to be in pretty good shape as do the tires. Hoping to not spend *too* much money on this bike right off the bat, so I'll throw these wheels on and keep an eye on Craigslist for a good deal on something nicer.

As for the generator hub.. I dunno. I don't see me ever actually riding this bike at night, so the lights are there for character at this point. I surely do want to get them running, but I really, really like the charm of the tire mounted generator on the back tire. The bike actually has a tail light that is powered by the generator as well. I'd like to get all of that cleaned up and working. It will likely never get used other than for show, which I'm just fine with. The bike is a 10 speed with a derailleur. I was thinking a bit about going IGH. Have to look in to that a bit more.

And yes, the awfully cute kid naturally assumes that every time daddy is getting the camera out then it must be time for him to get his picture taken. He automatically runs in front of the camera.. :)


The brakes are OK, just take them apart, de-grease and then and lube judiciously with modern lube (Tri-Flow FTW), and swap out the pads (Koolstop Salmon FTW) and the cables and their housings while you're at it(Invest in a housing clipper). The rear derailleur, likewise with the de-grease and re-lube and cable. Chuck the chain, it's toast, but the driver and the stoker cranks are likely steel, and can be de-greased, cleaned of rust with steel wool and lots of effort, and put back into action with a new chain (which come pre-lubed these days).

Yeah, the chains and cables are definitely done for. Turning the cranks seemed just as likely to cause the chain to disintegrate as it was to make the tire turn.


Also on the Honor-Bound list - that chain guard. Covers two cranks, how cool is that! Degrease, clean, and spray on some automotive undercoat sealant on the underside of the guard and the supports.

Pedals? Chuck 'em. Get better and new rubber-block ones by MKS from V.O., or just put quality BMX platforms on there if you intend to ride it someplace when it rains in dress shoes/boots.

The chain guard itself probably ways 20 pounds, but it is awesome. :) Must make it shine.

Why chuck the pedals? They seem to be in pretty good condition and also have some character to 'em. Do feel they are unsafe?

The bike has some neat features on it that I really like.. It has a bicycle license sticker on it and a "build and maintained by Harrit's bike shop" sticker which was gone long before I was born, but I'm going to look it up and figure out where it used to be. I love stuff like that.

Thanks an absolute ton for the advice! I know that this stuff is better suited for the mechanics forum, but I consider the commuting form to be my bicycle discussion home. :)

Actually, steel rims are a safety issue, especially with such a heavy bike. Brake pads can't get much "bite" on steel, and in the rain, or after riding through a puddle, they pretty much stop working altogether. The Huffy wheels might be OK if they're alloy but otherwise, get a second-hand pair from a bike co-op or somesuch. I suggested the pedals, because I've never seen pedals like those hold up too well, especially after sitting fo so long. If they seem OK, they may just need their bearings re-lubed.

If you decide to keep the derailleur set-up, Interloc Racing Development makes a very high-quality 5-speed freewheel replacement that will give you some range without having to bend the frame to accept a 6 or 7sp freewheel - I have the 13-32t on the old Raleigh.

If you decide to keep the derailleur set-up, Interloc Racing Development makes a very high-quality 5-speed freewheel replacement that will give you some range without having to bend the frame to accept a 6 or 7sp freewheel - I have the 13-32t on the old Raleigh.


That's exactly what I was looking for! Couldn't find a freewheel for purchase anywhere. Thank you!