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rustystrings61's Lighthouse build thread
The bike budget is very very thin and small these days, but when this Tim Neenan/Lighthouse surfaced in the for sale section, I started selling stuff off and clearing the decks.
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4007a09a07.jpg It appears to be roughly comparable to the Sequoia, but in mostly lugless fillet-brazed form, with the exception of the bottom bracket shell. I'm glad the Reynolds 531 decal remains, or at least a good chunk of it. The only stampings I can find on the frame are a serial number (1631) and what looks like M&M on the inside of the drive side dropout. This is a very interesting bike, and my first fillet-brazed one. There are a lot of touches I really like, and some that raise my eyebrows a little. I love how refined and simple everything is. There are braze-ons for racks on the seatstays both at the top and bottom, there is a rear lamp boss on the left seatstay, threaded bosses for through-bolting the rear fender, two sets of bottle bosses, and a pump peg - all very neatly done with elegant simplicity. Oddly enough, it's built for nutted brake calipers, which makes me think this is an earlier bike. It's spaced at 127 mm OLD in the back, which suits me just fine - I don't plan on running more than 7 cogs in the back anyway. One of the cool things is the amount of clearance, at least at first blush. A quick check indicates the fork would easily accomodate a 38 mm hybrid tire, possibly bigger. At the same time, everything looks clean and simple and uncluttered, but with gobs of room. Not quite sure about how I feel regarding the head tube. I am so accustomed to seeing reinforcement in the form of lugs, or even reinforcing rings on lugless frames, at the top and bottom of the tube where the headset rings are pressed in. I suspect he used a Reynolds head tube here and relied on the strength of good steel to keep the shape. The seat tube, also, has no external reinforcement, just beautifully brazed binder bolt lugs. It came to me with the Shimano bottom bracket still in place. I will probably attempt to remove it soon, unless I just leave it in place for some initial test rides. The current plan is to kill all the rust and touch it up, assemble it as I locate bits, then ride it for a while to determine what I think it needs. This includes seeing if I really, really like it or not. Odds are pretty good I will, which would then call for a professional repaint and new decals. I did not weigh it yet, but I might get around to that. I note that it's 59 cm c-t, with a 57 cm top tube, 43 cm chainstays, and 73-degrees parallel head and seat tubes. The fork rake is right at 50 mm, so I figure trail will run around 54 mm on 32 mm tires. The geometry is very, very close to that of my 1976 Puch Royal X. I'm looking forward to riding it, eventually. About the only parts I have on hand for it at the moment are a pair of T.A. Alize cranks I bought off this forum, a 27.2 seatpost, and a set of Rivendell Silver downtube shifters. I know, this thread is worthless without pictures. I took these last night in the shop after an initial cleaning with Meguiar's polish and rags - https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...2ad9b1549.jpeg https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...84894e5de.jpeg https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c6ad21e2d.jpeg https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3ee8faa90.jpeg https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...ec235d1da.jpeg https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...70504661d.jpeg https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...9f025d3cd.jpeg https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...57d233dd3.jpeg |
Cool frame.
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I was considering buying that frame, glad you did! Looking forward to your build. You're right, it has some really nice touches. How big of a tyre can you cram in the rear?
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One of the few Central California builders.
Often these bike fly under the radar. Diamond and Celmins are two others, there is another building bikes now in Goleta. Mod stuff. |
Originally Posted by romperrr
(Post 22241146)
How big of a tyre can you cram in the rear?
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Very cool. I love lugs, but I also love the clean look of a lug-less steel frame. I don't think I've seen rear lower rack mounts like that. Having fenders and racks terminate in the same or nearly the same point can look a bit busy. This approach would make for a nice clean rear end, even with a rack attached.
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What's that braze-on on the rear left of the seat tube?
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Too funny on how he spelled Lompoc, California.
People that pronounce it wrong say "lom-pock" and those in the know say "lom-poke", or the "poke" for short. |
Originally Posted by tricky
(Post 22241211)
Very cool. I love lugs, but I also love the clean look of a lug-less steel frame. I don't think I've seen rear lower rack mounts like that. Having fenders and racks terminate in the same or nearly the same point can look a bit busy. This approach would make for a nice clean rear end, even with a rack attached.
Originally Posted by philpeugeot
(Post 22241380)
What's that braze-on on the rear left of the seat tube?
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So beautiful!
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Yay! I'm glad it's found its new home. Your right about it being such a unique frame, even with it not fitting me quite right, I was tempted to keep it as a wall hanger, but I knew it deserved to be ridden. Besides, now I've got room or something new!
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This evening’s quick check reveals that, yes, the fork DOES permit tires as large as 38mm. Unfortunately the chain stay width maxed out around the 35 mm mark or so, at least if I want some clearance. In all honesty I’ll probably run 32s and fenders and call it good.
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slow progress
Life is more than kinda full right now, so my progress has been slow. My first task was to clean up rust and touch it up. The red I used is close but not an exact match - though it DOES precisely match a 1988 Sirrus. There was nothing scary under the rust, so I slathered on some red Rustoleum and called that done - for now.
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...65d57d304.jpeg https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...1c3c303da.jpeg https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...84df6ccd7.jpeg Then it was time to tackle the hidden problem. There’s a considerable chunk of aluminum alloy stem quill buried down inside the steerer. I had sprayed its juncture with the steerer interior with Corrosion Block but it still resisted being driven out from below. https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...c578c5aa3.jpeg So I decided to cut it out from the inside. At the moment I have one cut that goes almost all the way through to the steerer and I am about 3/4 through about 180 degrees away. The plan is to make several more cuts as deep as I dare and then see if I can break it up and remove it. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...f96b37f48.jpeg https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...5b3657c36.jpeg Fingers crossed! |
Victory!
I made more sawcuts this morning, which may have helped matters. Then I concluded that what I really needed was some sort of cylinder I could insert into the underside of the steerer and smack with my 2-lb hammer to drive the stem remnants out. I dug around in the tool chest filled with inherited tools and found a long 1/2-in deep wall socket and the appropriate extension piece to use it with a 1/4-in socket. I rested the top of the steerer (wearing a locknut to protect threads and roundness!) on a massive wood block and commenced to wailin’ away on it. When I saw it had indeed moved I sprayed in some Liquid Wrench, gave it a moment, and resumed wailin’ until I was rewarded by the nasty bit of stem emerging. I’ll seriously want to clean up the steerer interior with a brake cylinder hone, but I think the hard part is done!
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...6ab5b75ce.jpeg The offending stem remnant with the apparatus that drove it out. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...118a8c249.jpeg Steerer awaiting the brake cylinder hone. https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...218b084ad.jpeg I tell myself that all that sawing helped. |
Oh I bet that felt good.
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Please note that if you use this method, wrap or cover or otherwise protect the fork blades! Despite my care while smacking away, I still managed to nick the finish on the inside surfaces of the fork legs. They’re now touched up.
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Progress at last!
Life gets in the way of rehabbing old bikes, and my life especially! Still, in recent weeks I’ve gathered assorted bits and bobs and have an update at long last!
The first order of business was to break out the brake cylinder hone and smooth out the corrosion in the steerer and seat tubes. That done I raided the parts I pulled from the bitsa ‘86 Cannondale (frame listed in the for sale forum) for the 27.2 SR LaPrade seat post and an old Vetta saddle. I was going to use the Shimano 600 headset but ran out of room on the steerer. Fortunately Tange Levin 26.4 headsets are cheap and last night I installed one. This morning I used the day off to start bearing repack party 2023 and went to work on the mismatched but serviceable wheel set that came on a $40 ‘93 Bianchi Eros (that frame is also for sale!). I pulled both hubs apart and scrubbed them out and reassembled them with fresh grease (purchased today because the tub of grease I’ve been using for at least 20 years finally ran out!). A quick rim and spoke cleaning and a few minutes with a spoke wrench and they were ready for use. I pulled the 32mm Paselas formerly on the C’dale and mounted them, aired them up and did a quick mock up. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...143639c07.jpeg As I looked at it I realized it looked more than a little familiar. I stood it next to my ‘88 Specialized Sirrus. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...759ba5dad.jpeg Hmm. Here I thought i had acquired something akin to a Sequoia - but this geometry is a lot more like an Allez or a Sirrus. It takes 32mm tires, maybe even with fenders - but it’s a steep little beast. As in, the catalog spec for the Sirrus is 74x74 seat and head angles, and I swear the Lighthouse seat tube is more like 75. (edit - it’s 74 x 74) The wheelbase is a whopping 1/4-in longer on the Lighthouse than the Sirrus. I think I will be hunting for a saddle I can get further back … https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...5f3651bbd.jpeg |
This is a cool thread. Love the method of removing the stem. Much smarter than what I tried.
how long was Tim at specialized? I found an older (82/83??) stump jumper in orange and I wondered if he had a hand in it. robert |
What a killer frame. Are you still feeling iffy about the lack of substance at the headtube joints? If so, I shall ask you to compare it to my Le Grande, which has about 1/10th the substance of those lovely fillets haha.
Can't wait to see this one done! |
Slow and steady win the race ;) Great find! I'll have to keep my eyes out for Lighthouse frames in the future, had no idea there were any frame builders in central california, let alone Lompoc.
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Lompoc once home to the Vandenberg Airforce Base, now re-named the Vandenberg SPACEforce Base. Wonder what the next name will be...?
Lots of talented missle-scientist types and engineers in that isolated little burgh, and in addition to the extremely talented Central Coast frame builders already mentioned, up the coast (in SB and nearby) there was also one Chris Pauley who deserves the same high praise |
Moving forward
I spent $22 or so yesterday on a Harbor Freight right angle drill adapter and a 5/16-in titanium bit to fit it -
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...6d91f3ea2.jpeg - and successfully drilled out the rear brake bridge and the back of the fork crown. On went the RX-100 57mm reach calipers from the ‘93 Eros donor, followed by dialing in the brake pads reach. I had bought a used SunTour Cyclone II braze in front derailleur a while back. It was missing a limit screw and a mount screw. I raised a later cheaper SunTour unit for both. The limit screw is too long, so someday I’ll shorten it. The bolt was also a bit long, but a concave brake washer works for now to line things up. Bars and stem loomed. Nitto stuff has gotten even pricier. I went back to the parts bin and pulled a set of SR 42 cm Road Champions, then discovered a matching 10 cm stem. I mocked it up and measured - and it’s right, putting the bar tops less than 1.5-in below the saddle height. I knew about the bars because earlier this week I dug through every box of bike parts in the store room on a vain search for the Tektro levers I bought a while back. This morning I remembered where I put them. I installed them along with the RX-100 bar end shifters and their matching long cage derailleur. So what’s left? I hope to score a 113 JIS bottom bracket on the ‘bay; I will probably go there as well for a 28 or 30T 74 bcd granny ring; a 9-speed chain to play nice with the TA Alize chainset; bar tape, cables and housings … How it looks now - https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4fdfa1a5d.jpeg https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...2208d73c0.jpeg https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...10d8068f8.jpeg https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...fe0a2fe5f.jpeg Just for fun, here it is next to its cousin the ‘88 Specialized Sirrus. I suspect this is going to be a lot of fun to ride! https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b40cff888.jpeg |
Looking good!
I lived in Los Olivos for a few years and ran into Tim Neenan a few times when out riding on the roads. The first time, I passed him on a long straight stretch and immediately slowed down when I saw that he was riding a Lighthouse and I had to comment on it. "Nice Lighthouse! I hear really great things about them." His response? "Thanks, I'm the guy who builds them." |
Originally Posted by mhespenheide
(Post 22982172)
Looking good!
… I had to comment on it. "Nice Lighthouse! I hear really great things about them." His response? "Thanks, I'm the guy who builds them." |
the world’s most stubborn fixed cup
I finally got the stuck fixed cup out. In the end it required using a Campagnolo pedal wrench as part of a clamping setup to hold the Park fixed cup wrench in place while I wailed on it with a big-a$$ 2-lb hammer. But it’s out and now to clean up the grunge and PB Powerblaster residue from the shell, purchase and install a new bottom bracket assembly.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...f4f0b1490.jpeg Whole lotta toolin’ goin’ on …. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...69f80c250.jpeg The tenacious fixed cup |
Up and running!
I burned the midnight oil the last two nights and got the Lighthouse assembled.
Sunday evening I swung by Grille 246, the new enterprise of the owner of the now shuttered LBS Bikes & Boards. I had earlier asked him if he could round up brake and shift cables and housings for each, because I'd rather give him the money instead of some corporate behemoth. Coleman did not disappoint, and later that evening after dinner and family time I went to work. The biggest hassle of the evening was threading the cables into the Tektro levers and getting the wire through the deeply-buried ferrules left behind by their previous owner. But I managed. Then I cut the front brake housing too short as well as the cable, so into the stash of useable cables I went for a replacement. That done, I added a two-inch bit of housing and fitted it right out of the lever, ran the cable through it and the too-short bit, butted and taped them together inline and lashed it all to the bars with packing tape. It works nicely now. The shifter cables were next, and they went reasonably smoothly. Threading the front cable through the three-segmented tunnel under the BB could have been smoother, and there's a kink in the wire where it's visible right before it goes into the cable clamp, but it works and I'll live with it. I might have done better to have added one more inch to the loop of housing from the chainstay stop to the rear derailleur, but it works smoothly and I should stop second-guessing myself. I haven't bought bar tape yet, so I dug into big bin of recycled bar tape and emerged with enough white stuff from the '93 Eros that provided parts, wiped off the worst of the dirt and started wrapping. There are a couple of voids I will live with until I get some new tape and start over. That done, I sat back and admired the bike for a moment. This was how it looked Monday morning before I went to work - https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...15b315d68f.jpg Monday afternoon's mailbox was a jackpot - a new KMC 9-speed chain and a new, unused, unmounted Stronglight JP 400 ISO 113mm bottom bracket. The latter was a score, a gentleman bought it, opened the box and realized he'd bought the wrong one, so $11 and shipping and it was mine. I was delighted to see it is a Made in France Stronglight, and the spindle color had that purplish cast I remember from some old Stronglights in years past. I used a nylon bristle brush and some citrus cleaner to get the last of the crud out of the BB threads, coated them with fresh grease and screwed the Stronglight into place. It was very smooth feeling going in, and I feel good about it. Next up were the cranks, a set of T.A. Alize arms that came to me with a 48T ring in trade to our own [MENTION=20876]hazetguy[/MENTION]. I'd snagged a 44T T.A. ring and a 30T Shimano granny off the 'Bay and fitted them earlier. They went on smoothly, and then I ran into my first snag. The SunTour Cyclone Mk. II braze-on front derailleur assumes a 72 degree or so seat tube angle. On this bike with a 74 degree seat tube, the front of the cage was fine, but the towards the back it kept kissing the teeth of the big ring. I tried adjusting it, making sure I had the whole thing shoved up as high on the mount as I could get it to go. Finally, I took a shifter cable remnant, wrapped the last 1/2-in of it with tape to hold it together, snipped it off and taped it to the bottom front edge of where the derailleur engaged the mount. When I screwed it all back together my impromptu shim worked to even out the line of the cage with the chainring, and everything was good. I had to Google setting chain length and found several citations of St. Sheldon, so I did his big-to-big-with-one-link-more thing, threaded and joined the chain with the magic link. My cheap and cheesy bike stand's bottom bracket rest interferes with the bolts on triples, so I worked for a while using the little Nitto stand seen above and tinkered. I used the barrel adjuster at the shift boss-mounted cable stop and with three clicks dialed in the rear derailleur, silencing the chatter. I went over everything, tightening and adjusting. Then I rested it on its stand in front of my couch, sat down and gazed up on it for a few minutes. This morning after walking the dog I pumped the 32 mm Paselas up to 70 psi each, shoved my bare feet into my cycling shoes and took it out for a spin around the parking lots. Oh. Oh, my. It feels a lot like the Specialized Sirrus I sold Sunday, but cushier. It just glided along, it handled intuitively, it changed gears cleanly and quickly, the brakes worked ... it felt stable and calm at slow speeds while making tight turns, and it felt like it just fits, just right. Finding time to ride it and shake it all out may be challenging, but I will work my way around the hottest week so far this year and do all of those things and more. It needs new bar tape, and I think I'll go white, unless I decide on red or a red and white pattern. I'll want white bottle cages, just because. Maybe raise the saddle 1 cm. That's it. And now that you've suffered through all these words, here are the obligatory pix! https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...ddd960c514.jpg The sun wasn't entirely up when I took these but you can still get a sense of the lines of the bike. https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...441e1bb065.jpg It makes my heart happy to have a French crank and a French bottom bracket at the heart of this bike's drivetrain. https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...736bedf810.jpg I love the angles of this bike. https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4a024c4a8b.jpg I ran the same sort of levers, shifters and cable routings on my Rivendell in 2000. https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...6c29497780.jpg I bought this saddle in 2000 for my old Rivendell, and it has graced several bikes through the years. I may decide to add red paint to the seatpost flutes. https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...123a05cd90.jpg If you look really closely you can see my cable fragment shim and the red tape holding it to be clamped down. The original low limit screw, mounting screw and hardware were also missing, so I raided the front derailleur bin for parts and added a brake caliper shaped washer to boot. https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...fd0dcb481d.jpg I'm very pleased with how it turned out. |
Originally Posted by rustystrings61
(Post 22983717)
I finally got the stuck fixed cup out. In the end it required using a Campagnolo pedal wrench as part of a clamping setup to hold the Park fixed cup wrench in place while I wailed on it with a big-a$$ 2-lb hammer. But it’s out and now to clean up the grunge and PB Powerblaster residue from the shell, purchase and install a new bottom bracket assembly.
Whole lotta toolin’ goin’ on …. The tenacious fixed cup A very impressive build! Thanks for sharing |
this is a real special bike and well worth saving ! Glad you got it back on the road.
I mean LOOK at that thing in the side view. It just looks "right". /markp |
Originally Posted by Mr. 66
(Post 22992024)
These days I'm using an old Aluminum LL bat from 66 jr's team as my cheater.
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It’s a very cool frame. I like how the stripping away of all superfluous details allows the functionality to exist as an elegant design. Maybe if the Shakers had built bikes, they would have looked like this.
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