Originally Posted by
tinypurple
Yeah, I got them for $22 a piece. I didn't have any clue what I was buying, I just wanted a bike to ride and these were right down the street. I bought the woman's to begin with and left the mens but I went back and got the other because I just couldn't see splitting up the pair. Well, when I started looking around online and found out they were actually pretty cool bikes to have! I'm really interested in learning more about vintage bikes. Its been really neat to read all of the history and to see everyone's finds. My brother is a big biking guy and works for Trailnet in St. Louis. I'm going to have to get him up here to look at these for me and tell me what to do with them LOL
Those are very nice bikes, tinypurple. Good score.
The brake shoes Tom mentions are Kool Stop Continentals, in Salmon color. (You'll probably spend as much on brake pads as you did on the bikes. But you got such a good deal, just about everything you need you will spend more for than you did on the bikes).
As rhm points out, they're easier to pedal if you put on a bigger cog. But they work just fine in relatively flat places, such as the Twin Cities.
My wife and I pull my 4-year-old daughter in a trailer all the time, so no worries. My issue was finding the right hitch to work with the bike.