I decided to start a thread that will serve as a chronological catalogue of events for my 1972 Scwinn Varsity 10-speed.

Purchase on 08/15/2011

I have always wanted a 70's Schwinn 10-speed, and I thought I would never find one in brown. Well, I did! So, I suppose this is considered a grail bike.

The bicycle was had for probably a little more than any of you would pay for a used bicycle of this type, but it was well worth it in my mind. And it was my size! Being 5'6/7" (depending who you ask), it is rather difficult to find bicycles for my... erm, stature. Ha. I have a few plans for this thing.

How it sits now:












This Varsity is in pretty good shape. Had a pro cyclist have a look at it today and he says it is a road-worthy machine.

There are a few things needing done this baby boomer. Here is an ongoing list (that I will update).

Repair List
- Fix issue with not being able to shift to 2nd or 3rd gears.
- Replace rear gear cable.
- Replace tires (front showing age by way of separation)
- Brake Shoes (Salmons)

Gear List
- 8mm wrench x2
- 10mm wrench x2
- 14mm wrench x2
- 15mm wrench x2
- Allen wrench set (metric)
- Lube (acquired 8/20/2011)
- Tire Levers (acquired 8/20/2011)
- Helmet (acquired 8/20/2011)
- Hand pump (acquired 8/20/2011)
- Spare tubes (Presta valves?)
- Pliers
- Work gloves
- Rust remover
- Repair Stand (DIY)
- Storage hook for wall (acquired 8/21/2011)
- Tool bag
- Head lamp (acquired 8/20/2011)
- Rear lamp (acquired 8/20/2011)
- Pedal cages
- New seat?
- Baby/sky blue perforated bar tape
- Baby/sky blue nipples (DIY?)
- Baby/sky blue seat (maybe)
- Fenders?
- Rear rack (wood)

As you can see, I am starting with NOTHING. If you have any additions that you think I should add to my list, please let me know! It is possible that I am forgetting something or simply just do not know what all I need.

Here is what I scored today.



- used Bontrager seat (free)
- Road Rage road lube
- Power Beam head lamp x2
- Rear lamp x2
- Reumafonds patch kit w/ 2 tire levers
- Sette 100 psi mini hand pump
- Schwinn helmet

Total of $67.

Gotta love local retired cyclists!

Glad it works for you! Have fun with it.

Looks like it's in nice shape. Take care of it and it will be around for another 40 years!

Pledge furniture polish will do wonders for the paint.

Regrease all the bearings...it's a snap on a Schwinn like this. The bottom bracket requires only everyday tools to work on...can't beat that! They are good for shorter rides and commutes, although people were known to have ridden them on cross country bike trips "back in the day". Good bike for commuting...dependable and indestructable. BTW, I have the same bike in a different color and size. Mine works great. I can actually get up some real speed on it, and I like the fact I don't have to worry about every little hole, bump, and imperfection in the road surface. These are the Sherman tanks of the bicycle world. They look pretty nice, also. As far as prices B.F. members would pay, don't fret over it. Some members have a sixth sense that borders on the supernatural when it comes to getting good deals. You never know, however, when you will stumble across an amazing deal ...when you least expect it.

Not to torture you, but this thread shows just how far a vintage Varsity can be dressed up. While most of us think of it as "lipstick on a pig", some pigs are very endearing. . .

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...arsity-is-cool

I actually do not like that Varsity. Heh. Don't like the colour, handlebars, fender, seat, rack, lights, lock... But it is in nice shape.

There is only two sets of bearings, correct? Front hub and rear? Not sure how to get them off, but I do plan to grease up the hubs. I want to be able to do a complete go-through, as the cheapest tune-up I have found here that is complete, is $80.

Very important - Front and rear hub bearings, bottom bracket bearings, headset bearings, true & tension wheels. Need only standard mechanics' tools for the bottom bracket and headset. Need specialized tools for the rest: spoke wrench, freewheel removal chuck, cone wrenches. Helps to have a pair of each size cone wrench. You can take the rear wheel to the bike shop & they'll charge you maybe $5 to remove the freewheel. If you get the hub bearings put back right, you'll only need to remove the freewheel that one time. If it's the freewheel with the extra-wide opening (they used several in those years & I forgot the brand name), you can service the bearings w/o removing it, but it is difficult to clean the hub then.

Also, disassemble (as possible) & clean & lube the brake pivots, derailleur pivots & wheels, control levers, cables.

(Edit) - Good idea to do the pedals too. Cup and cone, like the hubs.

It'll go, stop, and turn like new

Phew. Sounds like a job! Looks like I've got to get to looking at Park Tools' repair blog! Also will be getting the SK-1 tool set, most likely.

I've always said that the right size is the most important aspect of a bike. After that is the color.. This bike will make you happy.

Thank you, sailorbenjamin. I believe it will treat me well so long as I treat it even better. I have a LOT of learning to do, but with going to school and working, having a six month old that acts like a nine month old, what else am I gonna do besides read about and work on my bicycle? All the time in the world.

Good luck with the build. One of the easier bikes I have worked on. Only trouble I had was getting a shifter cable I had to cut because of rust, they use a different end than is standard nowadays. My daughter's '72 below. She loves it because of the color and could care less about it's pedigree.

As you may have noticed, the title of the OP has changed. And much to our excitement. Today, we scored a great deal on a bicycle for my wife - a 1974 Schwinn Suburban in green colour, with a 10-speed! I have never seen a 10-speed Suburban, so we were quite excited to nab this one. Also, I am pretty jealous, because we got this one for $50 less than we got mine, and it is in better shape, mechanically!









We also picked up two wall-hanging bicycle hooks today, off Craigslist, for $20. Woot!
Also picked up a cleaner that we will use on the paint and non-mechanical metals.


Please don't mind the mess. We are in the process of clearing some things out. But we spent this weekend on bicycle stuff.

Upcoming Purchases
Helmet for wifey
Kid carriage trailer
Helmet for six-month old (are these available?)
Tune up my bicycle
Tool set
Repair stand (DIY most likely)

I think the paint just needs any good brand of mildly abrasive automotive wax. Rub it in good and you will polish away the dull outer layer.

I have two cone wrenches in which each end has two sizes. I forget who makes them but you have 13-16mm on one wrench.

I would replace the brake pads w/ KoolStop salmons and, budget permitting, the rims w/ aluminum. That will give you a bike that actually accelerates and decelerates. Those heavy steel rims are the Varsity's worst feature.

I made a few other mods, including a 6-speed freewheel (plenty of room if you delete the pie plate), downtube shifters (shim required), and toeclips (slight pedal mod. required).

Those rims are very strong and they brake fine when dry.

I guess you don't want my input on your project then...

It's alright though... Mrs. Kingsting thinks it's ugly too...

I don't think I will be replacing the wheels. Brake shoes, maybe. Definitely in time, probably soon. The current ones are pretty good. Need to be tightened though, I think. Will the Salmons work in my sidepulls?

kingsting - As long as it's what YOU like.

You are going to really enjoy these bikes...I grew up on a 70's Varsity (red) and a collegiate (gold).
Spend the money on the brake pads and the tires-tubes-rim tape. Getting an extra set of aluminum rims later is a good Idea.
I rode the red varsity into the side of an all brick house at about 10 mile an hour. Did not even phase the bike or the steel rims!
Good Luck & Enjoy !

Chances are good that your brake pads are still the 35+ year old original pads and are hard as rocks. Brake pads are cheap and a very worthy upgrade. The Raleigh three speed crowd likes the Kool Stop salmon pads for their sidepull brakes and steel rims. Harris Cyclery seems to be a good source for these and they have a lot of different types.
You can still find inexpensive donor bikes for quality alloy wheels at yard sales and flea markets. 27" or 700's will work.

It's all about having fun...

Figured I'd drop by your build thread and see how you've been progressing I probably won't ever understand your fascination with that rootbeer brown, but I love the green on that suburban, I think my 67 racer deluxe is the same green (not surprising similar era schwinns). Looks like everythings coming great, get your hooks mounted right side up yet?

Haha root beer brown? Gross, I hate root beer! You'll like it when I paint the nipples, and get brake and gear housings, and retape the bars, all in sky/baby blue. You willbe happy to hear that I cannot find touch-up paint in my brown. Ha.

Nope - I said screw it for last night on those hooks. Haha. I am having to screw them in by hand - no power drill. Haha!

That green sure is nice. It's sad though - it's got whitish paint flecks on it. Looks like someone painted their garage with a sprayer and left their bicycle in there. Ha

My rear LED lamp keeps rotating downward (stays tight to post though). The nut that the screw screws into will not tighten. Instead, it spins with the screw. On the lamp that I put on my wife's bicycle, the plastic housing that the nut goes into, holds the nut in place. Not so with mine. Any ideas?

Oh that sucks! I was thinking for a moment it might be the issue I'm having with the racer, but I don't think the suburbans had white hand painted accents on it's green (LoL try tracking down a paint pen to match the white so you can clear coat the whole damn thing and preserve it if you want a headache). I'd really get those hooks switched over, it looks like those guard plates are meant to protect the wall from the wheel but yeah I don't blame you if you don't have any power drills etc.

RaleighSport, the hooks aren't holding the bicycles right now. I'm switching them tonight when I am off work.

Any ideas on that LED lamp?

Also, which Salmons should I get for my side-pulls both front and rear?

Still wondering about those Salmons...

I mounted the storage hooks last night with the mollies, but they ripped right out of the wall. Only have one other place I could put them, that actually has studs to drill into, but the bicycles' handlebars and seats would be protruding into traffic space. So we are going to try to clear out some closet space this weekend. While the wife is a stay-at-home mom, she hardly gets any sleep, so she never has energy. Hasn't even been able to do yoga or run in about a month... Our baby is quite the sleep thief...

Anyways, here is what is in my Amazon shopping cart currently:
- 2x Kryptonite U-Locks w/ 4' cables - $29.53 each
- 4x Sunlite tubes $6.01 each (for spares)
- 1x Park Tool CBW-1 $5.86
- 1x Park Tool CBW-4 $5.76
- 1x Park Tool DCW-2 $5.02
- 1x Park Tool DCW-1 $7.02
- 1x Park Tool SK-1 $75 (for some stupid reason, this kit only comes with 1x of the aforementioned wrenches, hence having to order 1x more of each)
Total: $181.76

Most of them have free shipping.

Other than these items, we still need to find a matte black helmet for my wife, a kid trailer, and I need to build a repair stand. So we are looking at at least another $150 after getting what is currently in the Amazon cart. Haha. Who ever said this hobby was cheap?

For the LED lamps that are a bit loose, I found a solution. My brother was throwing out the rubber wrapping that went on his raft oar, so I took that. I'll cut it up into pieces of corresponding sizes for the lamps' clamps. Should work. Hoping so.