jimmie65

My daughter is starting to enjoy bike riding, but isn't ready to spend any money and wants a vintage looking bike. (She's riding an inexpensive folding bike I had right now).
I've found this bike on Craigslist for $25 and am going to go see it tonight.


Free Spirit, probably a 10-speed. Not sure if it's indexed or friction shifters.
Worth buying for a cruise-around town bike? It looks to be in good condition (and of course I'll test everything) and the price seems right.

texaspandj

Pretty cool bike. I like it. Yes , worth buying. Free spirit, was that a sears bike?

jimmie65

Yes, it was from Sears.

oddjob2

Friction shifters. One of the cleaner FS I have seen at a very friendly price. Enjoy it!

T-Mar

Normally, it's hard to get exctred over a Free Spirit but like the others, I have to agree that this one appears to be in exceptionally good condition and at a very good price. It looks to be early to mid 1980s and could be 10 or 12 speeds given the apparent era. Agreed, it is almost certainly friction shifting.

lostarchitect 

Yeah, I agree. These are low end but this one looks like it's in great shape. Worth $25 for your kid.

jimmie65

Went ahead and bought it.
It does need some adjustment on the brakes, but shouldn't be too difficult. And if she doesn't like it, I'm going to snatch the seat and handlebars, and sell the frame.

oddjob2

Some grease or at least lubricant on the cables would help. If the cables are rusty or housing is worn, a new set for $9 is a wise investment.

Bell Sports 7015913 PITCREW 500 CABLESET Black - Walmart.com

D1andonlyDman

If you paint it like a Masi, you can chase down Colnagos with it.

D1andonlyDman

If you paint it like a Masi, you can chase down Colnagos with it. But watch out for the Colnago rider sticking their pump in your wheel.

jimmie65

Front brake just needed tightening. Rear brake is locked up. The lever works (if I squeeze the caliper to get some play) and the caliper seems fine. I don't see any rust so I'll try lubing everything that's exposed. If that doesn't work, I'll replace the cable.

Shifting's tight, but it works; I'm pretty certain lubing will fix it. Then I get to teach a millennial how to use a friction shifter. Hopefully, it will be more productive than when I tried to teach her to use a clutch.

mongol777

I had Miyata Quickcross or similar and at some point decided to built bulletproof low profile commuter for my younger brother. I set it up as 1x6 with stem mounted shifter. Did not think at all to tell him that it is friction.
He called me 3 days later, thanked for the bike, said he loves how it rides and fit is good but he can't figure out the shifting - no clicks and shifter does not return after he shifts His only experience with shifters before was trigger shifters on his MTB :-) But once I explained it to him - he got it pretty fast and still enjoying it years later

jimmie65

She's decided she doesn't like the color.
Now the decision - take off the seat and bars and call it even (I only have $25 in this), resell it and get my money back (maybe a few dollars more), or fix it up nice and resell it for more.