manuelgabriel

I recently got this old Bridgestone Roadman from a surplus shop and I want to convert it to a durable, long-distance touring bike. The size is 53ST and the tires are 27x1 1/8 Any ideas on what I should change/upgrade? Thank you.

EDIT: Is it advisable that I upgrade my brakes/shifter to STI(brifters)?

robow

Just from the photo, I'm guessing you might want a crankset with smaller chainrings in order to obtain a lower low, a triple up front would be nice if you intend to carry any loads uphill.

manuelgabriel

How about the brake calipers? The current caliper brakes installed in this bike has unbelievably weak braking power. ? I want to use cantilever brakes but unfortunately, there aren't any cantilever mounts. Is it worth it if I had my local bike builder weld cantilever brake bosses?

fietsbob

If you can ride it all day and carry your stuff any bike can be a touring bike..

braking is friction, buy new brake pads* replace the cables and housing

*Kool stop and Swiss stop are 2 premium brands .


as internal wear, condition, is Unknown take all bearings apart clean, inspect, re grease and put it back together.





...

bikemig 

Side pull brakes are fine. I would not spend money on brazing on canti posts. Get some better brake shoes and make sure they are properly adjusted.

Brian25

I could not tell if the bike has seat tube waterbottle mounts, those plus under the downtube ones would be nice.

When you say long distance touring, not sure if you mean fully loaded? Low rider fork mounts on the fork would be nice, if you intend on using front panniers.
The wheels look to have super low end bolt on types. you could either plan to tour with the necessary wrenches or upgrade to q.r. wheels.

manuelgabriel

I bought new brake pads and brake cable and brake calipers (Side-pull brakes) but I still have the same problem. I'm not quite sure what the problem is.

manuelgabriel

Only one bottle mount and I don't think that would be enough. And yes, I mean fully loaded. Still looking around for good racks and pannier bags.

bikemig 

Have you worked on bikes before? Put up some pictures of the bike in the mechanics section and ask for some advice on how to adjust them properly.

fietsbob

Seek Hands On help at a co op or the local bike shop ? Read some Books on bike repair in the public library..

andrewclaus

27" wheels may limit you in tire choices. And it's probably a freewheel hub, not as strong as a modern cassette hub. I'd look for a bargain on 700c wheels with an 8 speed cassette. You might have to spread the rear dropouts a bit, not a big problem.

I agree a front triple would be nice for loaded touring. And that may require a new bottom bracket.

I like touring with brifters, but some don't think they're reliable enough. I just priced some used low-end Shimano Sora 3x8 brifters at $50 on eBay. And you may need a new compatible rear derailleur.

You can upgrade to dual-pivot side-pull calipers, maybe the best choice in rim brakes.

robow

The only problem with most side pull brakes is they will limit the size of the tire that you will be riding with and many tourist prefer a fairly wide tire to even out the bumps and support a heavier load but it looks like you might be able to get a 1 1/4" tire on there so I say keep the brakes you have and get them working. Adding bottle cages is easy, check the recent thread. Really the gearing is the main thing I would focus on. What size are those chainrings up front and your cassette in the rear?

CliffordK

The bike can do whatever you wish with it.



I've only done rear loading. And, need to reduce my load more before next time.

My bike has gone through a number of upgrades over the years, more due to my personal riding preferences than anything else. I am generally careful of what I run over, so I've "toured" on sewups and freewheels, although the above configuration is 9s with an OC rim (126mm spacing). Everything feels a little flexy with a heavy load, and one quickly learns to keep the bike 100% centered when standing and pedalling.

I don't do a lot of touring, but I do a lot of riding. The above trip was 4 days of riding and 3 days of camping, self supported (one more than I had planned). And a heck of a lot of climbing. Thank goodness for the 41T chainring... almost Compact

Both bottle cages are clamp-on. My rack is connected with the Blackburn Campy adapters + P-Clips. There never was any adjustment in the style of rack, and thus the odd rack angle.

I still use downtube shifters on that bike. There is a lot of debate about shifters and brakes for touring. DT shifters are functional. Bar End shifters are also popular. But there are good brifters too.

I sill run 700c x 25 tires.

I will say that I've been impressed by my Ultegra 6800 calliper brakes on my other bike. Perhaps that will be the next upgrade on the old beast.

manuelgabriel

The problem with the calipers is that I need long reach calipers because the normal ones are too short. And the only long reach calipers I see are side pulls

shipwreck

Is this the same bike you posted about last year, that you were dissolving the seat post? The color is different. https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...e-roadman.html

The bike you have pictured in this thread looks to have a single pivot front brake and a dual pivot rear. If you could find a dual pivot for the front it would increase your braking power a bit. I tour loaded on bikes as old as this, but replace the brakes with something like a tektro dual pivot. Works fine.

I would leave the shifters alone, or else get some bar ends with a strap on cable stop. You will need a cable stop since the existing shifter mount will not work for that.

You might think about getting a better wheelset for it, a far better expense than new shifters. When going from 27" to 700, check to see if the brakes you have or any you might get will fit the slightly smaller diameter, only a couple of centimeters. Some will say that a new rear wheel will be to wide, but a 130mm rear axle should work. Measure the rear dropouts, if they are 125mm its not a huge problem, but if its 120mm, you would have to spread the rear. There are multiple internet tutorials on how to do this. A new wheelset should take a cassette rather than a freewheel, and there are far more options for better gearing with a cassette.
If you are determined to keep the 27" wheels, then make sure you can find them where you will be touring. I don't know the availability of 27's in the Philippines. Here in the states they can be hard to find, but I still use a couple of bikes that have them. Also if you keep the 27's and need a freewheel for lower gearing, you can get the Mega range freewheel with a jump from a 28 tooth to a 32 or even 34 pretty cheap. There are freewheels still made with better jumps to 32 teeth, but they are harder to find and pricier.

You really do want to get the gearing lower with a triple front, but thats going to involve a lot of work. A Shimano square taper bb https://www.amazon.com/Shimano-BB-UN.../dp/B007FP6NB8 with a cheap mountain bike triple is the most economical option. Of course you may need new derailleurs, its hard to tell from the pics what is on it now. The rear may work, but the front may need to be changed if you put a triple on it. The easiest way to get some lower gears may be to just get a bigger freewheel like the mega range, and simply walk up any hills you cant pedal up.

There are lots of options for extra water bottles, one thread active on this forum has a link for mounts. I have used the old hose clamp technique myself with no real complaints, its a lower budget option.

Its a cool bike, and it could be made into a tourer, but it may be expensive to do it well, unless you have access to knowledgeable people with cheap or used parts. It may be best to ride this without going to to much hassle, and just constantly keep on the lookout for an old mountain bike or something that will take less work.

manuelgabriel

Those are 50/42 cranks. The cassette is 28/24/21/18/19/14. I tried riding uphill and I admit I had a pretty hard time doing it. What more if I used it for long-distance touring. What gearing would you recommend?

manuelgabriel

That would be very unlikely because I need long reach calipers for this bike. That's the main reason why I'm having such a hard time making the brakes work.

shipwreck

I know I more or less suggested the same thing about wheels, but thought I would throw out that I have broken and equal amount of freehubs or cassette over the years. Two of each. The freewheel hubs held together and got me home, and the cassette hubs torqued to much after breaking just inside the drive side cone and left me stranded!

manuelgabriel

Yes same bike I just stored it for a while then had it repainted. Seatpost problem is all good now though.

The reason why I'm using different brakes is because the brakes installed in this bike were really relatively weak. I bought a dual pivot but the reach was not enough so I used an adapter in the rear so I could make it work. Couldn't install it in the front though.

I want to switch to 700c tires because there are more choices but the biggest problem is the brake reach. I'm afraid I'm going to need very long reach calipers just to make it work

robow

Surprisingly there are still a bunch of 27" tires out there by reputable makers so no reason to go that route unless you have the cash and really want to.
https://www.biketiresdirect.com/search/27in-road-tires

And don't give up on the freewheels too quickly, they were a staple for decades, still available and can work quite well. Have you given the hubs an overhaul and the wheels a good truing and dish?

As far as lower gearing, I would say look into some of the mountain bike triples or several makers such as Sugino make a 46-36-26 crank that will do quite nicely.

saddlesores

how much do you want to spend? to get this the way you
want it, to do what you want it to, may cost more than
just buying a "new" craigslist tour-ready bike.

brakes still not working? did you polish the rims?

how 'bout a 22-32-44 triple off ebay, and a 13:34 shimano
megarange freewheel.....assuming those derailers can handle
the capacity. keep the downtube friction shifters.

get some 27x1-1/4 tires.

measure your chainstays, maybe too short for saddlebags.
might get a bolt-on style single-wheel trailer....but be aware
of the weight on the brakes.

and finally, what are those thingamabobs halfway down the
fork?

CliffordK

There are long reach dual pivot brakes.
https://www.amazon.com/TEKTRO-Bicycl...lpo_200_bs_t_2

https://www.amazon.com/Shimano-Reach...f=pd_sbs_468_1

I presume the longer the reach the less power, but they should still be able to stop you. However, that may be a reason not to go with smaller wheels if you're already having troubles with the brake reach.

If you have shop access, you could braze on your own canti bosses, but it gets to be a lot of work.
CANTI AND "U" BRAKE BOSSES :: STEEL SMALL PARTS :: BRAZON/SMALL PARTS :: Nova Cycles Supply Inc.

There are also canti adapters... I'm not sure about them, but it may be possible to rig something up.
https://www.danscomp.com/products/48...ake_Plate.html

Doug64

Were you headed up to the rim? If I remeber right it is about 9 miles of up.

CliffordK

Oh, it was a good ride, but a long trip.

I can't wait for the "car free" day at Crater Lake again next year.

9 miles from WHERE? Fortunately the mountain blew its top about 7000 years ago, otherwise it would have been taller. But, I had 4 to 5 vertical miles of climbing over the four days of riding. Whew.

That photo was taken the morning of day 2 (Pumice Desert on the way up to the Crater Lake rim), so about 150 miles into the ride. The 50 or so miles from Steamboat to the rim wasn't too steep, but was pretty unrelenting. Actually, the rim ride was nice because it broke up the climbing. The worst climbing was actually up Sharps Creek, between Dorena and Steamboat. Too much weight and not enough gears to do several miles of sustained 8 to 10% climbing.

Of course... after all the climbing... I had a 70 mile descent on day 3.

thumpism 

No offense, but if you are serious about touring the best solution might be a different bike more suitable to the task. I have toured on a basic ten speed less nice than the one you have and spent much of the ride imagining what kind of bike and features I'd want to have on that ride.

If you are considering spending money on a new crankset, different brakes, possibly new wheels, and you are paying someone to install all these things for you, you are well on the way to the purchase price of a decent used touring bike. They're out there, if you know what to look for, though perhaps your location might make finding one more difficult.

I'm not saying you can't make your bike into what you want, but the cost/benefit ratio of following that path may not be the best.