Originally Posted by
onyerleft
It's definitely worth pulling out all the stops to restore. It's a piece of cycling history - our heritage if you will - and you can't put a monetary value on something like that. Don't take away our vaunted past.
I agree with you, up to a point. The bike has not been pampered. It looked like they'd repeatedly oiled the chain with motor oil. There was dried caked greasy dirt on the chain and up to 3/8" thick on the rings. I went at this with brake cleaner and a toothbrush. The bike was already covered with this grit; I added to it before blasting it at the car wash. It still needs a good cleaning/detail, which I won't do if I don't end up keeping it. It already looks far better than it did when I got it.
The paint on the frame is bumped and scraped and the decals are not the best, either. If I do keep it, it will be a bit of a rat rod, as I'm not going to have it stripped and repainted. I will stamp out the little bit of rust it has and do some touch up.
The more I look at it, the less original it looks to me. It has a sleek Italian saddle, although not a high end one. Are these the original rims? IDK...
I like the tires that are on it. As I was closing the garage today, I swear the white walls were reflective. That's awesome. There's something about this bike that I really like. But I am more concerned with having it be functional than doing a complete restoration. I am a do no harm type, though...