RobertUI 

Not that it matters to anyone but me, but I think (almost conclusively) that this is a 1987 model based on the catalog (https://waterfordbikes.com/SchwinnCa...0/1987_08.html).

This popped up on the local Facebook Marketplace, and apparently I'm now collecting older lugged Schwinns from my youth/teen years ( recently picked up a BioPace equipped CrossCut as well ). I got a deal. Based on the logos and colorway, it seems like it must be a 1987, but the groupo doesn't make much sense to me as it's got BioPace with Suntour components. Anyone have any thoughts on this? The previous owner said he "had it tuned up" and then blew a tire and bent the rim ( the rim is def repairable by maybe 5-10 minutes on my truing stand ). The tires are flat, and the rear tire tread has a HUGE slash in it... if I had to guess, someone tried pumping it up at the gas station and BLEW it!

3speedslow

That’s in nice shape. As to the components it make perfect sense. Schwinn was looking to meet a price point for their models and picked components accordingly.

Give it a good lube, grease and wipe down, you should be on your way. It’s a 21” sized frame.

RobertUI 

I was thinking that this would be a good candidate for a clunker challenge. The frame size is a tad small for me, but probably a good choice, so I should be able to put many miles on this. I'm planning to leave it mostly in tact as is for a while, though the BioPace rings might have to go, we'll see. The wheels are really heavy, so I may go ahead and swap them out with my spares, I'll just have to pick up some spacers (all of my spares have 10 speed cassettes).

hokiefyd 

The bike looks nice! Why do the rear dropout slots appear to be filled? It looks like you can slide the axle in only a third of the way before it hits white painted metal. Was this common?

The Golden Boy 

There's a whole lot of parts blending on that bike- looks like Maillard skewers (I'd guess Maillard hubs then?) You can also see it doesn't have the "lawyer CLIPS" on the front hub. (I knew of the "lawyer clips" on this era of Schwinns- and it made sense, they were clips and mandated to be put on by lawyers. But it was confusing to me to read people talking about "lawyer LIPS." It was years before I actually saw lawyer lips and then it made sense to me.)

The Shimano crankset paired with the indexing Suntour RD, a non-matching Suntour FD and like Simplex shifters....

There's a lot going on- and it wasn't from Schwinn.

repechage

provided the illusion of a forged dropout, stamped of thick enough material to allow an integrated derailleur hangar. Higher perceived value.

RobertUI 

This is precisely why I posted here... my guess is that someone (at some point in time) 'upgraded' the components with stuff they had lying around? Who knows? I am considering wiping it all out and going with something more common across my other bikes.

The lawyer clips were definitely there on my crosscut, but it looks like someone removed the clips form the wheels, I was kinda surprised they were 'missing' (I didn't miss them when pulling the front wheel). And yes, I do think they're Mallard hubs (haven't spent too much time on it, as I have other priorities right now). For what I paid, I can definitely get my money back by selling a part or two, but I was trying to figure out if this is how it was originally sold (in which case, I'd keep it together). I worked in repair shops during this time period ~87-94 and don't recall ever seeing Suntour & Shimano mixed like this, with the simplex shifters... definitely an odd duck here!

-- I guess the upside is that it's roughly my size, and the frames in excellent condition, with barely any scratches on the decals.

This caught my eye as well.

The Golden Boy 

Not that the LeTour was particularly high on the food chain, but I think "upgraded" is not the word you'd use for what happened here.

It looks like you've got an FC124 and FC6206- I can't tell the difference between them right off hand- but either way- they're both good cranksets (with the 6206 being way better than "good")

RobertUI 

Good call, I'll take a look tonight and see what I'm dealing with. I'm also debating rotating the biopace rings based on a thread (elsewhere) that talked about getting 'oval'-like efficiencies out of your old biopace rings (I've also got a couple sets with the crosscut)

RobertUI 

I checked and of course I didn't luck out with the 6206 The crank set is Shimano FC-B124, which is nice enough, really no need to change. I've got some tires on the way that'll help get this one on the road (actually rotating tires around 2 of my other bikes, giving this an older set). After replacing the cables, I think I'm just going to ride it as is and see if I like it, maybe it'll take over for my training (with cyclops trainer) setup?

denaffen

I just picked up an 85, detailed elsewhere. I think most of your components are original, but I don’t think the triple crank is, and I wonder about the rear derailleur.

the malliard hubs mentioned earlier are original, I believe.

rustystrings61 

Maillard hubs lasted on LeTours through '89 - they went to SunTour Blaze for 1990.

RobertUI 

I've been following your other thread... and now I'm more convinced that the crankset and front derailleur were changed at some point in this bike's life (with other parts left in tact). I haven't decided what to do with it (yet) but I may try and track down the original derailleurs because that's how my brain works.

EDIT: A quick searching on ebay for the following:
- Shimano FD Z204 (Front Der)
- Shimano RDL-523 (Rear Der)
- Shimano SLL-434 (Shifters)
- Sugino DVP-130 (Crankset)
... tells me I will NOT be 'restoring' this to original. I think I will ride it AS-IS and if I like the frame, I'll do a resto-mod and put some spare 105 (~2014) components on it and ride the snot out of it. It's also very possible that this will make it back to the market place as a rideable bike.

RobertUI 

I'm obviously becoming obsessed, but I zoomed in to the picture on the catalog I linked, and it looks like the Suntour X 5000 rear derailleur may be original. This shot shows that it's obviously NOT the shimano because of the black line.. and you can kinda make out Suntour

denaffen

My 85 has a suntour ar or arx front derailleur, so it would make sense that it would be suntour ar or arx in the rear too. Which is what that pic looks like to me.

RobertUI 

Thanks, that's really great info! I am guessing that it probably changed from month to month with which (Suntour or Shimano) could get you parts cheaper. What crankset do you have on your '85?

Pompiere

I've used my '88 LeTour as a test platform for various drive trains including an SR OvalTech Triple, a Shimano round triple, and various doubles. The frame fits me and is comfortable to ride on rough rural roads, so I keep playing around with different combinations. Currently it is wearing Shimano tri-color 600.


1988 Le Tour with Shimano Tri color and Brooks

1988 LeTour w/ triple and fenders

1988 Le Tour, as purchased with Sun Tour AccuShift.

Lazyass

About four years ago I bought that exact model. Did an easy restoration on it and had it looking new. The second ride I took it on the freewheel, which was original, locked up for a split second. It threw the chain off so hard that the rear derailleur ripped completely off and the hanger twisted almost in a complete 360 beyond repair. Never saw or heard anything like that happening before. I pulled out my chain breaker and set it up as a single speed to limp home and the frame had to go in the trash. I was so pissed because it was a very nice ride.

But yeah mine had lower end components.

denaffen

Sufi no cranks on mine. Sorry it’s not a better pic

BikingViking793 

NIce bike.

RobertUI 

I got it tuned up this weekend, but wound up not being able to ride it because I STUPIDLY didn't think about the fact that the wheels are not 700c!!!! I felt like a total newbie moron when I looked at the rim (as the tire wouldn't go on) and saw 27 1??" and said out loud "oh yeah, that's a thing". I completely forgot as it's been a few years since I dealt with 27s. The wheels cleaned up pretty well, but now I need to find a tire. I stopped at my closest (not favorite) LBS, and the mechanic convinced me that I needed a Schwinn specific tire (I also remember that was a thing) but I told him the rims were marked 27 1??" Weinmann and he told me that wasn't good enough, that I needed to bring them the original tire (I had ridden another bike there). I then came home and got more confused when I couldn't find what he was talking about on the tire... there IS a marking that says SCHWINN after the 16x630 ISO and 27 something. So.. I am asking here to see if anyone can recommend tires. I do NOT believe these are "hookless" and am planning to get something like this: (https://www.ebay.com/itm/29269151691...r=592593031726) Kenda K36 27 x 1-1/8" . Does anyone else have another suggestion? The original tire had a 7" slice along centerline of the tread. The previous owner had lined the tire with duct tape, which obviously didn't hold :-)

FWIW, I did take a nice 19 mile ride on my other lugged Schwinn (resto-mod)!

daverup 

You do not need any Schwinn specific tire for those rims.
I would suggest buying wire bead instead of folding, just in case the rims don't have hooks. The wire beaded will work on both, folding no.
I like the Pansela Panaracer tires, they are not the fastest, but they ride nice.

RobertUI 

Thanks so much! From my bike shop days (almost 30 years ago) I remember there being some odd-Schwinn specific things, but I really did think that it was for late 70s stuff, you've confirmed my thoughts. I'll try out the Pansela's!

daverup 

As long as you stay away from the old Schwinn 20 and 26 inch stuff, you should be fine.

RobertUI 

I had a very happy discovery last night ( as I am patiently awaiting a cheap-ish tire to get this rideable ) as I put a 700C wheel on the front to just do a quick gear-changing test ride. The original Dia-Compe brakes have PLENTY of adjustment, and the 700C works without any changes beyond the brake pad position. What's really crazy is that the tire on the wheel ( only wheel that was within reach ) is a Kenda 40mm and it FITS with a little wiggle room. I certainly couldn't run these with a fender, but it worked perfectly!!! I am now VERY glad that I opted for a single replacement tire b/c I think I'm going to wind up riding this with a different wheelset all together. I'll hold onto the originals for the day I decide to sell, but that was a very happy discovery!

*****EDIT: I didn't look when I did my experiment with the 700C wheel on the front. The rear brake is already maxed out for the back wheel, so I'd need so do some kind of offset (pads or binder bolt) to make the frame work with a 700C rear wheel. I'm leaving this edit here in case anyone else cares.