JimHatfield

I'm a cycling newbie with a '74 Schwinn Continental that I'm thinking about upgrading. I know many will say it's nuts to pour money into a bike that's worth maybe a hundred bucks as is, but I really like the old guy. It's built like fireplug but, unfortunately, is almost as heavy. So I'm thinking about asking a LBS to put some aluminum rims on it. Have I lost my mind? Is it kosher to buy a cheap donor bike with aluminum rims and ask the LBS to do the surgery? Should I look for rims on eBay?

rhenning

Just buy a bike with 27 inch aluminum rimed wheels and bolt them onto your Continental. You don't need a bike shop for that to happen. If you do need a shop to do the work then don't go any further. You would have a small fortune have a shop lace the wheels for you. Cost of the rims and 72 spokes you are talking the worth of the bike. No shop will build you a set of wheels using old spokes again. Do the first thing I said and find a cheap dead bike with 27 inch aluminum rims and swap the wheels to your bike. Roger

NormanF

The advice is sound.

Varsinentals as they're affectionately known around C&V, tend to be heavy like tanks. You can lighten the ride with alumimum wheels and lighter parts like stems, handlebars, seatposts and the crank - but it will never be a light road bike.

EF Chicago Schwinns make good beater bikes. Don't try to put too much money into yours.

10 Wheels

Take you wheels to a shop and have the hubs overhauled..Why do think you need different wheels?

NormanF

OP poster wants a lighter Varsinental. And steel rims stop badly in the rain.

JimHatfield

Good advice all - thanks! Weight savings and rain stoppability are my objectives. I was all set to leave the bike with my LBS while my wife and I and eight others head for France Tuesday for a bike 'n barge vacation. Now I think I'll wait and reassess the upgrade plan when I get back. Who knows, I may be so butt sore and sick of cycling I'll donate the bike to the Boy Scouts and take up bonsai instead. Or I might be so jacked about biking I'll pop for a Cannondale Bad Boy. Time will tell!

dweenk

Continentals and Varsities are so lame that they're cool. If you can find a decent ( and cheap) set of aluminum wheels, go for it. Oh, while you are in France, you may want to catch a glimpse of a little bike race that's taking place.

Bandera

When that question came up > 40 years ago our answer in the LBS was:
"Don't waste your money, sell it & buy a Super Sport."

Today: Same, Same.

-Bandera

John E

... if you can find one. Super Sports and other fillet-brazed CrMo Schwinn frames have been discovered by the collectors and the enthusiasts. I commuted for a couple of years on a 1974 Varsity, complete with side pull brakes and that horrid flat-bladed fork, but upgrading to aluminum rims, downtube shifters (with shim around the undersized tube), 6-speed freewheel, and KoolStop brake pads made it tolerable. I eventually replaced it with a Peugeot UO-8 of similar vintage (with aluminum crank and rim upgrades), which eventually cracked at the drive side chainstay. The Schwinn, I am sure, would not have done so.

Bandera

With good reason.
"Back When" Varsitys & Continentals were recognized as a dead end for further performance modifications.
Today: Same, same.

The CRMO Schwinns were/are a whole other deal. Nothing surprising about that given the quality & weight.
They may be rarer now (as they were when new), but a not waste of time, effort & money to keep on the road.
Drop the Schwinn Approved boat-anchor kickstand and proceed.

-Bandera

dddd

As far as wheels, these Varsinentals have extremely high bottom brackets, so a switch to lower-profile tires on slightly-smaller 700c rims would be ok. I did this to my green Varsity, and the calipers had enough reach for the pads to meet the rims squarely. (see first photo)

You will want the frame width to match the axle width of your chosen wheel hubs. I usually start by accurately spreading the rear frame to 126mm or so. Fork spacing may be only 96mm btw.

These electroforged bikes are very, very heavy, but I built up a couple of Varsities several years ago and have already gotten my time/money's worth so to speak.
I happen to like the ride of these bikes if the frame is a good "large" fit for the rider (select the largest electroforged frame size that you can straddle, since they run short front-to-back). (see 2nd photo)

Double-emphasis on selecting a Continental that looks good to you, and fits well. Otherwise the significant effort in building a good, solid rider will be wasted imo.

I happen to like the look of these bikes with their solid steel cranksets, kickstands and even solid steel forks.

John Hood

I would just accept it for what it is. They're not bad bikes, but they're not lightweight anywhere. They're heavy tanks that can take a lot of abuse and they're great to have around when you need a bike that you can afford to lose. I rode mine to the local 4th of July festival today and locked it up on the periphery. I wouldn't have felt comfortable doing that with a nice bike.

Buy another lighter, faster bike and keep the Schwinn. Then, as you collect or upgrade better bikes, play the hand-me-down game. Here's how it works. When you score a pair of really nice wheels for your really nice bike, you take the good wheels that were on it and put them on your decent bike, then you take the decent wheels that were on your decent bike and put them on your beater. Eventually you'll find your beater isn't a total beater anymore and since every bike nut should have at least one total beater, you'll have to pick up another bike.

JimHatfield

A ton of good advice from all, thanks! I've been scouring the Chicago Craigslist for a Super Sport but haven't found any that look good. Meantime, I'm researching new hybrids. Our nearest LBS carries Raleigh, Diamondback, GT and others. I'd like to give them my business if I can because they've served the community for a long time. But there's a Trek dealer nearby and an REI not much farther so budget may win out. I'm sure I'll have better perspective in two weeks when we return from our mini-Tour de France. The tour operator, EuroSail, is equipping us all with new Giant hybrids. The trip involves six days of easy, 30 mile rides along the Moselle through France and Germany. That should help me decide what to do with my Schwinn!

oddjob2

A week of bike touring in France? You'll be jonesing for one of these when you return to the Windy City!
Sounds wonderful, have a great adventure!

Peugeot PX10



Motobecane Grand Touring

dddd

Nice Motobecane! Now I'm wishing I still had a bike with the entertainment value of shifting a half-step triple.

And funny how the "touring" bike has the straighter fork of those two bikes(?).

I'll just have to go take a ride on my PX10 now.

JimHatfield

Back from our 180 mile bike and barge trip along the Mosel through French and German wine country. We rode Giant brand step throughs. Nice bikes but mine seemed too light and unstable. I missed my Schwinn Continental so, today, I dropped it off at my LBS to have aluminum wheels installed. I know there's a lot of advice out there against upgrading a tank but, at age 72, I'm more into comfort than speed and I do like the way my vintage Schwinn smooths out the road.

Essthreetee

Good for you. I enjoyed mine, and actually it was the bike that starts this whole cycling mess. Ride what you like and enjoy. I sort of wish I hadn't sold it...just because.

Uncle Randy

Good advice. Don't sink a lot of $$$ into this project. There are better deals out there.
The frame won't absorb much shock from the road and that could be one reason why Schwinn sold it with steel rims.

michael k

I'm feel the same way.Lightweight is nice but they don't feel anchored to the road and unstable.

dddd

Hopefully, whatever brake pads that you have on the Continental will go quietly about their business of gripping the new alloy rims effectively.

Any anodize on the new rims might also cause poor braking in the rain, so be prepared for safely testing the brakes the first time that the rims get wet.

That said, I think that the Continental should be an excellent rider for many years of reliable use, and stable as a rock.

sonatageek

Post a picture after you get the bike back with the new hoops on it.

JimHatfield

My 1974 Continental has new KoolStop brake pads. When I get it back I'll post a pic of it with my other vintage treasures, a 1914 York PerfecTone and a 1912 HN White King Improved Perfecto, two of the best Bb cornets ever made.

dddd

Would you believe I was a Cornet player in Jr. High?

I can't remember the brand though. I sold it and bought a baritone.