Chicago Schwinn To Commuter/City. Spec Help
 

Hello esteemed bike people,

So I have this rhino of a bike—1979 Schwinn Varsity—which I received fully tuned-up and had been enjoying riding around, until some doofus maloofus stole both my wheels:(
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=474094
(wheels=gone-zo)

The general opinion has been to cut my losses, donate the rest to recycle-a-cycle, and hit up craigslist for a whole new rig. But I was just getting all comfy with the Varsity...I'm attached :twitchy:

Given these facts about my riding style:
- I ride super slow
- Never encounter hills
- Will be leaving the bike in the street (maybe investing in a cable lock for the wheels this time)

Maybe this is not the worst bike for me...? Have been happy with it so far.

So here's what I'm thinking and where I would love some input:
It's a dainty little 17" frame, and came with the Schwinn S-6 steel rims (now stolen). I learned on here, that the closest modern equivalent is the 26 x 1 3/8 rim, but they seem pesky to track down and are more common in steel. Soooo, what if I slapped some wider 26 x 1.5 alloy rims on there? They seem more readily available in an alloy with a 5/6/7 speed freewheel hub.
I did consider sticking 27 x 1 1/4 rims on, but I feel like my toe will catch them, and the 26s on before felt pretty good. The wider wheels might be a good fit for all the potholes and junk in the city.
The narrowest part of the fork is 60mm. Will a not too knobbly ("city" style) tire fit in there?

Anyone tried wider wheels on any of the old bikes?

As a newb I have so many questions...will hit up the LBS on Mon, but wanted to hear some opinions.

Thanks!:love:

velorinka,

Welcome to the Classic and Vintage forum. Glad you stopped in! :D

Unbelievable that in this day and age, that anyone would steal Schwinn steel wheels! :eek:

IIRC, one of our members at some point installed MTB wheels on a Varsity which required 27" wheels, so it can be done. But, again IIRC, he had to use hub brakes because calipers could not reach the smaller diameter rims. I'm guessing you will have the same issue.

Another issue you will probably encounter is that the Varsity front hub is not spaced at a standard 100mm. Instead it is something like 95mm. That might not seem like much but it does impact how the front hub fits in the fork.

So I hate to discourage you, but your best bet might be to begin a search on CL and see what you can find.

S-6 = 597mm diameter. MTB = 559mm. So 38mm smaller diameter, or 19mm smaller radius. That is A LOT. Brakes are not going to reach, you will need to cold set rear and front fork, and probably file front fork dropouts to fit larger diameter axle.

Better bet is to find another Schwinn with S-6 wheels and make a swap.

Another choice is the 26 - 1 3/8 inch wheel found on old department store 10 speeds (590mm). Yes, those rims would be steel. Should be able to get the brakes to reach, and take a more common tire size. May even be able to find a set of them at a co-op, in the form of a cheap bike.

I picked up a coaster brake cruiser with that size wheel recently. And I picked up a 3 speed yesterday.

If you were near me, I have some great options for you with minimal cost.

velorinka,

Deferring to PB and Thrifty Bill, because decades of experience on all things bicycle, I find to be a wise choice. If South BK, stands for South Brooklyn here are a couple of recent offerings on CL:
Motobecane Road Bike - $200 (myrtle broadway)


19" VINTAGE NISHIKI MIXTE 1983 Custom Sport CROMOLY Like New BLACK - $360(Greenwich Village)The Motobecane may be a little large, and the Nishiki may be a little spendy. My intent is purely to get you back in the saddle, happy hunting!

I have a good set of Steel Schwinn 27 inch wheels that came off of a 1970`s Le Tour in my garage that you can have for the cost of shipping if you want them?

The 26" wheels you're considering would be 559mm diameter - meaning that the brake reach would be an issue. You could compensate for that by building up some drop bolts, assuming you have access to decent tools (drill, drill-press, a good bench vise) and can fabricate. Conversion to 650B is another option, with reasonably good tire options available and low rolling resistance vs. the old mountain bike specification.

The other approach (probably the best one) is to locate a junker Varsity and swap-over the parts you need.

If you go for the conversion - be prepared to spend a lot more than that Varsity is worth, unless you have better-than-average mechanical skills and/or are willing to dig around for stuff that works. eBay, Craigslist and the local coop will be your best friends should you decide to take this project on.

Cool cool cool! All this info is great. Thanks everyone!

Yeah definitely weird that someone would knick old Schwinn wheels, especially with some nicer rides on the same street. I watched the cctv video from my building, and dude showed up with a backpack and tools, so seems like a planned attack. When vintage bike geeks go bad ;)
Could of been worse. Growing up in the city, I was always told to ride a good distance away from the parked cars, not just to avoid getting doored, but because it was common for people to pop out from between two cars, shoulder you off your bike, and take off with it.
Maybe on a heavy Varsity I could just plow right over them. haha

Despite the Varsity frame sitting across from me, giving forlorn looks, I have been checking out Craigslist. That Motobecane ChicAgo steel posted is super nice! And only about $50 more than the LBS quoted to get the Schwinn rolling again. Definitely tempted.
I'm 5'7" so am kind of wussing out on my 17" frame—I like to be able to put my feet down easily at lights.

Did see a couple of cheap Ross 10 speeds on CL similar to my bike, but checking Ross here on the forums informed me that they'd kind of just be a cheaper version of the heavy Schwinn. Whoo hoo, go insider info on bikeforums!

If I stay stubborn and keep obsessing over the Varsity....I did find this online, which checks a few more boxes. My dropout spacing is 130mm though.

Will definitely be keeping my limitations and budget in mind. I love getting stuck in on little projects and learning about all the bits and pieces. Sometimes it works in my favor, like repairing broken faucets, but most the time I end up like:
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=474177

Whole new bike or somehow, someway new wheels for Varsity, I'll update on the outcome. (and possibly ask for more advice) :o

Ohhh figured I'd throw this in with the thread, as I recently found it, and is on topic:
26 Inch Bicycle Tires

Now I get what you guys are saying! So many definitions of 26"! Holy moly.

Confusing isn't it?

For sure it is! I'm having fun nerding out on all these specs and details though.

Of course now I want to get a new bike off craigslist AND restore the Schwinn haha....I see how the bike addiction is started.