Originally Posted by
Andy_K
Did you pull that out of my recycling bin?
The thing that really shocked me with this frame was just how unrefined the rear dropouts were. They look like something I would have made in shop class in high school. I initially harbored dreams of "restoring" mine into a sub-beater, but I wasn't able to get the stem out of the head tube (even after cutting it multiple times with a hack saw) and the rear wheel (which if I remember correctly was 26x1-3/8") was beyond saving.
Not your bin - this one, literally, came gratis from a friends barn here near the "Dutch Country" of PA. Yes!!! - quite crude and well below bottom end. That's why I have no concern about slobbering it with corrosive salt brine and dust. That barn was dry though so all the bearings were fine when cleaned and the stem and post were free. No rust to speak of. 27" steel wheels so I don't try even try to stop the thing. No aerobic exercise in stopping. One good feature is the 39t small ring - good for getting "Babe: the big blue oxen of a bike" up our hills.