Originally Posted by
tjspiel
You may ultimately want to get a new bike but since I like working on old things and don't like to sell something that's not working right, I'd be inclined to fix the old bike regardless.
Good point. Even if I wind up selling/donating this bike I should probably at least do enough work on it to fix the major issues for the next owner.
Originally Posted by
tjspiel
I wouldn't buy new parts though unless you're just going to replace the jockey wheels and not the whole derailleur. If you don't have a bike shop in your area with a "salvage yard", post a "wanted" add on your local craigslist. No need to wait until someone posts something you're looking for. Go ahead and ask. Post wanted adds in neighboring cities as well.
And there is always Ebay.
As far as what to fix, you may not need a bottom bracket at all unless the races are shot. I have an '86 Univega and the BB started to creak. I just pulled it apart, replaced the bearings and along with the bearings put grease on every metal to metal contact point, - like the face of the BB shell. I also removed the chain rings and greased the bolts. When I put it all back together the creaking was gone. Creaks from that area can also be from the pedals so be sure to lightly grease the face of the crank arms near the pedal threads.
My thought on replacing the bottom bracket went along with the idea of replacing the crankset, as a new crankset may not work with the old BB. If I did find a compatible crankset or just decided to live with the old one then I agree I should just have to service the current BB.
Originally Posted by
tjspiel
You could really have some fun and upgrade to indexed shifting. You'd need new cables, shifters and a hyperglide freewheel along with the derailleurs. But all that (aside from the cables) can be found used pretty cheap. Get new cables.
A few years ago I went through and converted the bike to use bar-end shifting. I replaced the cables at that time, and I loved how that modification turned out. The barcons are 100 times better than the old stem shifters. They still are friction though, and (at least at this time) I'm not motivated enough to re-do it again to go with indexed shifting.
Originally Posted by
tjspiel
You could also go the other direction. Any desire to try a fixed gear? Now's a great opportunity. I confess to being a fixie sceptic a few years ago, but now I'm fairly enamored with them. I'm not saying you've got to saw off all the cable guides and everything. Leave those in place in case you want to convert it back.
You posted this while I was busy responding to Clifford above.
Yes, I already have a fixed gear bike in the stable. In fact when I bought that one I had been considering converting the Panasonic. Instead I went with the above mentioned barcon upgrade.