Plus one. What do you need...? Might even have an original drillium bar from a 1971 International... ::eyeroll::

Dave #3 on the case.... What do you need? Smiles, CrapMaster Honk

Gentlemen, thank you all for your generosity! I am having to move slowly due to both time and budget constraints, to the point that even shipping charges may be on hold for a bit! Not to worry, things should improve soon enough! I know that I will need some dropped handlebars, a decent quill stem, a 27.2 seat post, cranks (preferably 130bcd so I can use a ring I have on hand) and a bottom bracket. I have the aforementioned wheels, a set of Weinmann calipers that were on this frame before, some RX-100 aero levers, pedals, and some other sundries ... but when I get active on this I will definitely put out the appeal!

Strings,
Try these on for size! All of this is destined to leave and would be better in your hands than here in mine. I have to look for a stem but maybe Dave#1 might have an appropriate size for you. Lemme know shipping addy, Remember no cost to you, I want the space. Smiles, MH

A triple crank with sealed bb. A take off from a mountain bike. Also a weird FD for oversize tubing that clamps through the BB.

I think it is from a known parts supplier.

A cool pair of bars that say made in Italy. Feels like 64/40 to me.

The other side of the bars marked Fiamme.

A 27.2 SR seat post.

Two restorations: 1947 Schwinn Continental 3 speed and 1953 Raleigh Lenton 3 speed. I've been riding these two bikes heavily this season because they're just so well-sorted out at this point. They have that "sporty utility bike" type feel that I enjoy.

I'll start with the Schwinn. This bike was robbed of parts by a previous owner/parts dealer who sold them off to balloon tire collectors. Some later parts were added by him to make up for the missing stuff. But with good paint and a good core, the bike was a good candidate to be brought back to life. The bike was totally taken apart, all bearings and hubs rebuilt. Paint and decals were matched and patched up where needed. Rubber bushings in the fenders replaced, fender dents removed and fenders polished. All perishables replaced with appropriate parts: grips, brake pads, cables/housings, tires and tubes. Saddle is a Gyes triple spring roadster type. Quadrant shifter disassembled, cleaned and rebuilt. Lights are retro but have LED bulbs for riding in traffic. Has a new brass bell on the stem.

Before:





After:









Old 1947 era bike shop sticker from NYC is still there:

Here's a second restoration - the 1953 Raleigh Lenton. This bike came from a fellow collector who had to move to a new apartment, so sold some projects off. It originally was owned by a gentleman from Maryland. It started out as typical 1950s Raleigh project - a good core, but lots needed to get it back on the road.



The usual was done - take it down completely to the bearings, clean everything, replace everything that had gone bad, and then start the clean up. Missing parts were sourced from online and from my stocks of stuff. The fenders were a challenge. I'm not a huge fan of celluloid fenders because they're so brittle after 70 years. So I decided to go with some 1950s Raleigh steel fenders. Initially I had chrome-plated fenders on the bike, but earlier this season I went back over the bike for further adjustments and a set of really nice, white fenders. The white is much closer to the old configuration of green with white fenders (albeit steel Raleigh rather than celluloid Raleigh). The cranks also were a challenge because they would not index correctly. I ultimately found some 1950s era Raleigh fluted heron cranks and went with those. But when the core of the bike is good, a lot can still be done to save it. This is a nice, 531 main tubes frame with a good, straight fork. Lights are retro types with LED bulbs for riding in traffic. Perishables are replaced - brake pads, tires/tubes, grips, etc. The brake cables are old stock Raleighs with cream-colored housings, which go nicely with the green color. Saddle is a new Brooks B67. Bag is the Acorn small canvas type (same as on the Schwinn in the last post). A new fender decal was sourced from H.Lloyd in England. The pump is an old Raleigh aluminum-bodied type. It was totally disassembled, a mandrel was used to remove the dents, and a new seal and grease applied. I even sprung for Schwalbe tubes with screw-down Schrader valves on this one. Rims are dunlop club steels. It rides a lot like a Raleigh Sports but lighter and faster.

Really sharp bike (and so is the Schwinn but I’m more of a Raleigh fan) and great write up. It’s not as if the parts for these builds are readily available. That’s true obviously for any C&V project but these bikes go farther back in time than most and parts are just harder to come by. I’ll bet you have quite the collection of old parts.

Great point. Nor am I above pandering to suggestions from the guy deciding on all the great awards we get from this "competition."

So I made real progress on the Fuji S12S LTD build. The front wheel had a bad bearing and it will take me a while to source the right sealed bearings. But I did have a great set of used 27 inch wheels with Shimano 333 hi flange hubs laced to Sun CR 18 rims. The hubs are obviously period correct and there is just something that looks right about an old bike with hi flange hubs. I replaced the Dia Compe brake levers with an old and used set of Shimano Exage aero levers I had in my parts bin. I like the braking action you get with modern aero levers and I like have two quick release mechanisms (brake lever and brake caliper) for ease of getting a front wheel off. I also replaced the beautiful Sugino mighty tour crank and bottom bracket with a Shimano Deore set up as a double with 50/34 rings and the proper Shimano bottom bracket. The Sugino crank is in great shape as is the BB and it will go on another project (or I'll sell it to knock the price of the Fuji down a bit). I replaced the MKS quill pedals that came on the bike (and they're in great shape) with a cheap set of platform pedals that have moved around from one commuter bike to another over the years. They're a bit rough but they turn freely and they're not worth overhauling.

I did a lot of clean up work on the bike. I overhauled the headset (the Shimano hubs were overhauled some time ago) and bottom bracket. I used tin foil and salt water to deal with a bit of rust on the chrome. There was rust on one of the top tube eyelets. I dealt with that by dipping a rag in rustoleum and inserting it through the eyelet over night. That took around 2 days but it finally cleaned up with rust. I also dealt with a bit of rust on the frame. Then I touched everything up with clear nail polish. I also cleaned the chain, rehabbed the stock freewheel with a bit of Phil Wood oil, and cleaned up the cogs. I also took apart the derailleur pulleys to clean them off and drop some oil on the bushings. A bit of mag polish did wonders on the crank arms. After doing the clean up work on the frame, I applied turtle wax to it and buffed it out so it looks nice and shiny.

I like the gearing with a 50/34 crank and the 14-30 6 speed freewheel. That gives me a high of 97 inches and a low of 32 inches with 8 usable gears and dead simple crossover gearing. The chain is a bit long as the bike originally had 52/42 rings but I suspect that won't be a problem once I install the cables. If it is, I'll shorten the chain a bit.

Oh yeah and back to USAZorro 's pt about smooth tires, I'm running Schwalbe 27 x 1 and 1/4 marathon green guard tires which are smoother than the 27 inch nobbies that came on the bike but easily just as heavy. I used these tires on my old commuter (a mid 70s Sekine SHS 271) which is also a 27 inch wheel bike and they have a lot of life left in them.

Well here's the proof I did actually get the Diamondback rideable but I did not like it one bit. I'll throw it on Marketplace for cheap and see if some college kids wants it to get around on. Probably not though.



Weird thing is the frame looks nearly identical to it's one year older cousin which I absolutely love but they sure don't ride anywhere near alike.

Are the tires different?

Conti Gatorskins on the red one, don't remember exact tires on the other but they are Contis. Both 700c X 25. It's the low speed handling that' so different. Think it's a bar / stem difference after looking it over. Not a keeper though so no point in swapping them.

rustystrings61 ,
So you need something that will take a 130bcd pattern. My research sez that you need some sort of Shimano cranks. After a trip to the co-op and digging through two large boxes of arms that had been separated, I came up with these. I have no plans to keep any of this stuff so I will plan on sending it all to you with he bars and seat post. I kinda lucked out picking up a Blackburn rear rack, and a Vetta Box with a Shimano BB and front derailleur and a Wrights saddle. I didn't luck out having to work for an hour to fix a lady's bike, putting on a new seat post and a Terry seat, and repairing the cheap department store bike brake system. A least she was happy and thanked me for helping her work on her bike and learn some maintenance.

Taller guy cranks set. 172.5, but fits your request.

Some Shimano arms that also fits the 130bcd.

Thank you, Dave! Those should work nicely! Oddly enough, in true bike junkie fashion, I can see those 172.5 cranks going on another bike, which will free the current cranks on that bike to go on this one ... and its the domino effect in the bike stable once more!

Daves and Rusty

I went to see my mother in Charlottesville (up your way Zorro!), and planning on going to my favorite bike co-op today. What is still needed??

Saddle, calipers, levers? Cables? Pedals? Bar Tape?

I’ve got cable, bar tape at home. What saddle will you need?

O jdawginsc, thank you! PM sent - and Charlottesville used to have great bike shops in the 70s!

So a few bits arrived … a new rim for the front wheel, nine replacement DT 294mm spikes for the rear, and a 17T freewheel which may or may not be going on this one ….

And here I was thinking you would be calling me to figure out how to put a single cog on a freehub! This looks a lot like a flip flop hub build. I went back to the co-op today because when there getting your cranks, a few new Panaracer 1X27 tires that were donated. So I picked those up for a future build using some Weinmann LPS18 rims. My thinking is that the wheel change will make huge differences in riding quality. And the future build of a Mixte town bike is a possibility later his winter. Smiles, MH

Took this out for a ride and it didn't end well. About a mile from home I was mashing up a short but really steep hill. This happened:



I think these are supposed to be flat.

WTH!?!? That’s crazy.

Looks like a chainring bolt was missing or got sheared.

Yeah, best guess is one rattled out and then a second one ripped out. Threads are toast on the hole of one of the missing bolts.

The gift of the Mad Honk arrived - thank you! - and after sorting things out, it looks like the lovely 172.5 105 cranks will go on my '82 Mercian Colorado. The Raleigh GS project will get this mismatched but perfect for this bike set-up of the early 105 drive side and early RSX left side cranks combined with the replacement ST 39T ring from the longer 105s and the 42T I had in the parts stash. That should simultaneously get me mad scientist points for adding minor gearing changes to what is essentially a single-speed with options AND make it so I don't have to track down short chainring bolts. A win all the way 'round.



The SR seatpost should be ideal for this one as well, but I will have to find the right stem for those Fiamme handlebars ...

Yesterday afternoon I sat down on the back porch and went to work on the wheels. First I replaced the nine gouged spokes on the rear wheel -




- then I taped the new Sun M13II rim to the ruined Mavic MA and went to work transferring the spokes -



- until I had a good wheel - though still in need of tensioning and truing.



So now to get on with the business of getting the frameset acquired and to start building. I'm actually kind of excited - I envision this bike as doing all the things my Mercian can't. Because of how I spec'ed that one, I can't run more than a 2-3 jump in rear cogs and still have a rear brake, I can't run 32mm tires with mudguards and I can't run more than one chainring - and these are all things I have learned I kind of like on bikes with multiple single-speed options.

I finished my mucho-cheapo bike, a 1981 Fuji S-12S LTD that I picked up for $60. The bike didn't shift when I picked it up as the bar cons had issues and the front wheel was wonky as some "mechanic" managed to damage the sealed bearings by adding a few weirdly unnecessary parts to the front axle. But the paint job was in fine shape and the bike had a fine saddle. I paid $60 for the bike and that is exactly what it cost me to get it on the road again as all of the parts (including the consumables such as tires, brake pads, derailleur and brake housing, cables, and handlebar tape) (and the replacement parts such as a 27 inch wheel set, crank and bottom bracket, pedals, shifters, and brake levers) (and even the rear rack) were on hand as of the beginning of the year. The derailleurs, brake calipers, seatpost, saddle, handlebar and stem, headset, freewheel, and chain are all original to the bike. Now it's time to put some commuting miles on the bike as I fixed it up with an eye towards using it as a lock up/commuter bike.

No pix this time, just an observation - there are few things in life quite as satisfying as seeing what had been a cluster of hub, spokes and rim come into shape are a true, free spinning bicycle wheel. The rear wheel with nine new spokes was easy, and took only moments to get adjusted. The front wheel, with a new rim laced up to spokes and a hub I had first assembled more than 20 years ago, shocked me with how quickly it came together. I'm eager to finish gathering everything and having to be patient as I manage other priorities first.

Thanks go out again to Mad Honk and jdawginsc for their assistance and contributions to the cause!

I couldn't stand looking at the "Dollar Bike" in its beat up condition any more. After I finished spraying the clear coat on my FW Evans, I did a quick coat of primer and paint of the Univega. In keeping with the spirit of using what was on hand, I used a can of paint that has been in the cupboard for several years. I'll let it bake in the giant oven (pole barn) for a couple weeks and reassemble it for a final ride before the contest deadline.


1977 Univega Grand Rally


How it looked when I brought it home.

I hit 100 km on my 1981 Fuji S12S LTD. I swapped out the original wheels for a set of 27 inch wheels with Shimano 333 hubs and Sun CR 18 rims as the original front wheel has a bad bearing. It turns out that the Sun rim wheels which came to me on a trade a few years back have issues as well as the rear wheel has to be one of the more poorly tensioned wheels I have ever dealt with. I'll fix the 2 27 inch wheelsets shortly but first I wanted to get some miles in. I have a set of 700c wheels that I stole from a different bike (Mavic MA 40 rims laced to Suntour hubs that have nicely flaking anodization which makes them look C&V "appropriate"). The bike actually works a bit better with 700c wheels as you gain some clearance and the anodized rims looks good, IMO, on the black and gold Fuji S12S LTD. These are the pics from the last 2 days of riding.

The first pic is on the Wakonsa bridge on the Des Moines River which is less than 2 miles from my house. Once you cross the bridge, you get to the Neal Smith trail which connects to all the MUPs in the area (and there is an extensive system if MUPs in the area). The next two pics are heading south on the path which goes to downtown Des Moines. The last two are heading north which gets you an area of rollers, a few climbs, water views, and wild prairie restoration. My pics are crummy but the area is beautiful especially when the wildflowers are in bloom or when the fall colors come in. The water views are excellent. In the past there weren't that many cyclists in that area as most people didn't want to deal with the rollers and climbs but with e-bikes that has all changed.