so I came across an abandonned carcass of a schwinn varsity today. I assume some of you are probably familiar with these old bikes. I'd guess this particular one might date back to the easly 70s (just a guess). It looked like someone had stolen it (it still has a kryptonite U lock on it) and then left it for dead. The wheels, stem, bars, seatpost, BB and cranks were all gone. It looked like about my saize, so I grabbed it.
Once I got it home, I took the brakes and cables off, got the kickstand off (though there is still a big housing welded to the chainstays just behind the BB shell), took off the old chain and derailleur and gave it a quick wipe down.
This is by no means a light bike. Nor does it have remotely tight geometry (the rear triangle is pretty long), but it has a certain potential. I think it might make a decent SS cruiser. it may be too heavy to rided fixed... i dont know.
I'm debating whether or not to use this as my first build-up project... is it worthwhile?
if I do decide to have a go at it, I need to figure out a few things:

1. The BB shell is larger than my 2 bikes. It seems to be roughly 45mm wide (diameter) What sort of BB do I need to install? Actually, I just looked again and it there are no threads inside the BB shell... I'm confused by this. Do I need to install a threaded BB shell AND actual BB inside this wide housing?

2. How do I get the cable guides off? Do I have to torch them or can I get them off with a hacksaw/file? And if I DO need to torch them, can I use a regular (butane?) torch that I can buy at a hardware store? (pardon my ignorance - I've obviously never done this before)

3. How do I get this u lock off the frame? I tried a bic pen, but I"ve never been able to get that to work. what are the other methods?

4. the paint on this beast was once a cool, metallic green but it is scratched, chipped and rusted to hell. Should I strip the paint and sand it and then repaint it? what do I need to use to strip the paint?

if I decide to follow through, I'll post some pics of my progress. thanks in advance.

Matt