The thing to know about this bike is I got it to be a beater that could get me to hiking trails, where I could lock it up and leave it for a few hours. It couldn't be an expensive bike because I'd worry about it the whole time which wouldn't be any fun at all. It had to be a cheapie, so I got a used bike off Craigslist for $50 and then did the work to fix it up.
I also decided it was time to learn about maintenance, another reason to start with an old bike. I had a good bike shop bike in the past, but it never needed work and I didn't learn much. I took on this bike as a learning opportunity.
So far:
- cleaned and lubed both hubs, the headset, and the bottom bracket
- replaced one pitted cone in the rear hub
- cleaned and lubed the inside of the freewheel
- cleaned the drivetrain and added a SRAM missing link so it opens up
- made custom padded grips out of a puffy doormat and some zip ties
- replaced the rear brake at the wheel and cable
- trued and dished the front wheel, replacing some spokes and spoke-prepping all the nipples to get them to thread freely
- trued (but not dishing yet) the rear wheel
- with a metal engraver, added ridges to the seatpost so it stays up (separate problem, it's bending under my weight, not good)
- added pedal extenders to fit my big feet
- added a little "fender" under the seat to keep rocks from bouncing into the seat post and going down into the bottom bracket (for real! it was like a little terrarium in there)
- and some other stuff, but basically a complete overhaul
What's funny is that even though I got this to not care about, at this point I'm attached to the thing. It's been an odyssey, lots of challenges met and overcome. Got all the tools (made some tools), watched a hundred hours of YouTube tutorials, learned more than I even knew there was to learn. Now I know the bike inside and out, and it feels like an extension of me.
I don't think there's any way after all this I can just say "chuck it all" and buy a new bike. This story can't end that way. That's not how the Hero's Journey* ends. I have to get to my hike (I haven't yet, only about halfway there) and it has to be on this bike. And if I have to do mental gymnastics to call it the same bike with a new frame, well, I can flex that much.
* Joseph Campbell reference