TommyTwoTone

I did it, I took a 1988 Schwinn Impact Mountain bike and converted it into a Urban/ Commuter/ Comfort/ Hybrid bike.
An adjustable stem
Upright handlebars
Cruiser saddle from an Electra
Fenders and bags
Wide whitewall tires
Lights, speedometer
Wider pedals
Fold up double kickstand so your bike won't topple while loading groceries
New derailleur, Shimano mega tooth, click shifters
New brake pads, cables, housings

It's very comfortable to me and I sometimes ride well over 30 miles at a time, it's a lot different when you're older and start getting arthritis in your neck and back so I like an upright riding position, I changed to the click shifters because the levers to change gears was hurting my thumbs. The cruiser saddle, well, because I like the comfort.

I also pull an Instep trailer sometimes, filled with stuff from the store or yard sales, I've never had any kids in it though.

This bike, out of all that I have is the workhorse and my main ride for doing anything that needs to be carried, I use my Giant Sedona DX Hybrid for a lot of my rec riding and it's comfortable as well, but it doesn't have as many accouterments on it as the Schwinn.

Tim_Iowa

I recently picked up a 88 Schwinn KOM and converted it into a townie/cruiser. I used Wald cruiser bars (cheap, and lots of styles) and new hand grips. You can keep the original brake levers and shifters (but you'll probably need longer cables and housing). You can find quill stems with really tall extensions and/or an upsloping stem to get the bars higher.

I found some nice ITS DJ Mk2 2.1" micro-knobby tires; a Schwalbe big apple or any of their other cruiser tires would work well.

Before:

After:

Mr. Graceful

I just did this to my 1994 Specialized Hardrock. I swapped out the straight bar (which I always hated) for Velo Orange Montmartre bars. I had to redo the brake cables because they weren't long enough for the rise in the new bars. I also had to swap out the shifters because the Rapid Fires were a no-go on the new bars. I got a set of Sun Race friction thumbies for a whopping sum of about $7. It's now a very nice, comfortable upright townie I use to ride to brunch on the weekends. The WTB Race V saddle is the next to go!

photo by rich_gersh, on Flickr

cocoabeachcrab 

The Frankengoose

I recently inherited my grand daughter’s wrecked Mongoose 21 speed Walmart full suspension ledge 2.1 MTB … it came complete with the rear derailleur wrapped into the mangled spokes after a Walmart misadjusted derailleur overshift, and a blown rear tire. (the pic above is "pre wreck!) The dropout and hanger were also bent, so I thought, screw it, take it to the dump and be rid of it. (That model bike was on sale at Walmart for $57, so that tells you all you need to know about the quality of the thing) So I stripped it down for an easy fit into the scrap metal dumpster, but when I looked at the frame, it was actually kinda nice; aluminum and nice enough for a project bike (like I needed another bike!). So, I kept the frame after cold setting the dropout and hanger by eye, and tossed everything else, lightly sanded and repainted my future clunker with army green flat camo paint and some new decals for the bike’s new role as my neighborhood beer cruiser. I decided to try a single speed conversion and go with replacement parts from my spare parts bin and some eBay finds. Wheel master QR wheels from eBay with double wall rims, cream colored Fat Frank tires, a used eBay crankset, a headset and sealed bearing bottom bracket to replace the never been greased near frozen stock crapola setups, some barefoot friendly pedals, and we are getting somewhere. Swapped out the rear shock with a better one, a DNM 165x35mm. 38 chainring x 18 single speed rear originally planned for gearing, but after pondering my hilly neighborhood, I opted for a 3 speed rear setup with a few more cogs and spacers on the freehub body.. 12, 16, 18t spaced to the outside end of the hub, with a 38t chain ring, and an oldie but goodie rebuilt 1972 vintage Campagnolo NR derailleur to handle the short throw over 3 cogs. replaced one travel adjustment screw with a longer one so I could get the inside limit set on the derailleur for only 3 cogs. An inexpensive handlebar mounted friction type thumb shifter by Falcon handles the shifting job nicely. A massive vintage brass squeeze bulb horn from Garret Wade mounted on the handlebar adds some neighborhood panache. A parts bin alloy seat post and a well used Selle Royal Respiro Moderate saddle with a repaired hole in the seat cover, and an Origin 8 Pro Fit ATB 90mm quill type stem that accepts a 31.8mm bar completed the cockpit.

It’s not going to be fast, but for fun hops around the back streets and to the beer store, it will be fine.

BrocLuno

Jeez, that is all I ride. MTB's demoted to trail and street duty. If you plan them out well enough they are great fun. They are great chassis to build stuff on.

Your Gary Fischer will come out great. Post some pics of the top of the rear triangle so we can help with tire clearance suggestions. Same for the top of the fork. But it should not be an issue ... I'd put some Schwalbe Marathons on it for an easy rolling tread that will handle the odd gravel or sand bit on the pavement. Reflective white stripes so folks in cars can see you easily. Don't want challenges with the kids on board.

I'd bling it up some and try to save weight where you can. I just did this for my wife's new bike. An REI Novara. Took it from 29 lbs to 24 lbs and set it up as you like. She likes her bars higher and she had it out yesterday for the first time. Now she wants to go again today

MTB's are an unpainted canvass. You can do anything you want. They can relaxed and hybrid/cruiser, or they can be aggressive and aero (say a gravel bike with drop bars). It's all up to you

Upright alloy stem. Sunlight (brand) alloy 5" riser bars. Light adjustable seatpost with a rear offset to give you a bit more room to adjust in the fit. Inbike (brand) memory foam medium saddle. All available all day on eBay. I'd try this saddle before going full blown wide cruiser as it'll deliver comfort w/o chafe and/or leading edge binding into you leg. You have a load on board, so get some leg extension for efficiency ...

If you want more bar rise (try these first) you can go toward ape hangers. As long as your stem does 1" bar mounts (24.5mm), all the old sting ray style stuff will fit. So you can go from mild to wild as you progress.

Neighborhood cruisers are cool. No bike snobbery here

Big congrats to cocoabeachcrab on some great rebuilds. Nicely done

mixteup

THAT'S amazing - A most excellent inspiration !

JanMM

Interesting thread but it's a Zombie Thread! OP hasn't posted on BF since 2014. Thread had been asleep since then until the day before yesterday.

Thumpic

And why is this relevant?

JanMM

One issue with Zombie Threads: Just to let folks know that they may be attempting to have a conversation with someone who is long gone from BF.

cocoabeachcrab 

actually, i just wanted to find a relevant thread to post on... didn't matter to me if the original poster was still around.

Thumpic

This is a resource, not a TV channel. Old threads are great for mining info; I love them!!

JanMM

Someone else responded directly to the long-gone OP yesterday.
No harm done. The dates of each post are there for all to see.

cocoabeachcrab 

sigh... i'm out.