So a LBS mentioned 2 big improvements he can make for my '70s - era Schwinn LeTour.

First would be wheels. (yes I still have the old steel ones). Anyone know a good place to get inexpensive but sturdy aluminum 27" wheels?

Second would be the bottom bracket. What do I have to gain by upgrading this? Does anyone sell a kit for my bike?

On the obscure side - in eyeballing my bikes it looked like my 700c wheels would fit on the old steel bike since the brakes seem to have room to move down some more. Am I wrong?

harris cyclery in west newton sells new 27" wheels that accept a freewheel.

i doubt upgrading the bottom bracket would get you much ... i'd just clean it out and re-lube. change out the bearings if they show any wear.

Swapping steel for aluminum wheels will make a noticeable difference. Bottom bracket won't, my impression is that most LBS that are not C&V friendly consider loose ball bottom brackets hopelessly obsolete and that they should all be changed out as a matter of course. I agree w/the previous poster, unless you are setting off unsupported for Tierra Del Fuego, engaged in hi-level competition, etc, just grease it up. A lot of the bicycle industry sells to people's need to view themselves that while perhaps they aren't actually engaged in such extreme activities, they are suitable candidates for doing so if they chose.

Anyhow, as a matter of course, I usually just change out the bearings, they are pretty cheap at loosescrews.com, on most loose bearing components when I open them up to relube. Get grade 25 bearings, it is a cheap luxury, much cheaper than a sealed bottom bracket.

Girls love a nice firm bottom bracket.

I've not upgraded either on my Le Tours. The original BBs are fine and they don't get ridden enough to warrant new wheelsets. I did see a post by someone regarding the 27" alloys from Niagara Cycle Works. They start at under $50 + S+H per set.

I just repacked a 28 year old bottom bracket that hadn't been touched in at least 27 of those years and was amazed at how much smoother it was. Don't replace it.

Often you can replace 27" with 700c. Just a matter of brake reach.

+1 Check out Niagara. You can get alloy rim wheels, with stainless spokes and quick release skewers, for around $26 each. Tough to beat.

+1 for Harris Cyclery...depending on where you are you could probably bike down there...or shipping would be fast as hell

They do sell a kit for your bike to convert it to a modern Bottom Bracket https://sheldonbrown.com/harris/opc.html#opc - scroll down and look for the "Tru-Vativ American-to-Euro conversion Kit"

Its 20 bux and you'll need to get a Bottom Bracket (25-30bux) to go in it, then Cranks and Chainwheels (75-100) and maybe pedals (30-50). Or 6 dollars worth of Bearings and a tube of grease

I beleive all the Le Tours came with 3 peice cranksets so the BB could be changed without replacing cranks or using adapters. That being said, I still prefer loose bearing BBs myself.

Plus you get a wider selection of tires and higher tire pressures.

I've seen these wheels and the price looks tempting, but I always have to wonder how long they would last. Would they stand up to a daily commute to work? Or better for the occasional rider?

If you are looking at 700c, you can find some pretty good deals on Ebay.
This sale just completed for less the $100 counting shipping.
Can't buy the rims new for that. Then the hubs would run half that. Of course these won't fit an LeTour (dropout width), but
you get the idea. Deals are around if you look.

The question on replacing versus rebuilding the bottom bracket is one of labor cost. Personally, I find rebuilding an adjustable bottom bracket a relaxing way to spend an evening. That said, I just replaced the bottom bracket and cranks on my '88 Trek 520, with a modern external bearing combination. It does seem stiffer and smoother, but not enough to justify the cost, if that was the only reason I was replacing it. I don't consider this to be a C&V bike, so I don't worry about keeping it original.

So you go to the LBS. Ask their advice. Then, ask us where to buy the parts. The least you could do is buy something from the store who spent time with you.

I give all the LBS I visit plenty of business because I value their knowledge experience and information and because they have products of quality at competitive prices. I do not stop people from offering me advice after they ask me what kind of bike I have. Before I spend money I do research from multiple sources. I am conscious of LBS time and I am considerate enough not to hold onto someone if I see a paying customer who also needs help.

I resent having to explain myself to someone who had no advice to share. Save your attitude for someone else punk.

In this instance, I'd definately go with a serviceable bottom bracket.

I reccomend you keep the 27" wheels, maybe buy aluminum ones, though. There may be less tire selection, but how much are you really going to spend on tires anyway? Selection is not important unless you're going to be doing more than riding around, and to be honest, I don't think old Schwinns are really suited for racing.

27" wheels are superb for commuting and fun riding, fast riding, etc. They may no longer be the de facto standard of racing, but they are extremely comfortable and are much more pleasant to ride on both downhill and uphill, IMO.

And no, don't switch the bottom bracket. The sealed ones are a newfangled "throw away part" craze, "buy and replace." Well, in [x] years, when Shimano isn't using that style or sizing or whatever of BB cartridge, you'll just be at square one, starting all over again buying a new sealed BB unit.

It's quite a sinister effing marketing scheme.

Keep the old BB. If it starts acting up, open it, re-grease it, and keep riding, indefinitely. You'll never be obsoleted, until bike shops stop using grease and forget how to take apart BB's. ("Introducting Shimano's new self-installing and removing BB! Remember those tired old threads? Don't even do the work yourself!")

Anyway... Switch for Aluminum 27" rims and keep (but regrease, etc) your current BB. That's just fine.

Good advice. Thank you.

BTW: ... just got back from one of my LBS and paid $30 for a part I could get on-line for $20. But they've been real helpful so I don't mind giving them some business. I also spent $30 on 2 rolls of bar tape.

It all depends on BB condition. My two recent used acquisitions had badly galled spindles so needed new bottom brackets. Both bikes had been used in the dirt, one a road bike converted for cyclocross.

If disassembly and inspection reveals damaged parts then replace it. If not replace the bearings and reassemble.

My BB was on a bike that I had custom built for me 28 years ago. It was a Zeus crank/BB and I was trying to swap it out, but I couldn't get the fixed cup off so I gave up. I decided instead to try the square taper Chorus 10sp crank on the old spindle so I put it back together. It works just fine that way, but I was even more impressed by how smooth it felt. I only remember buying the tools to work on BBs before I bought this bike, but then never opened this one up, or maybe I did once or twice. I do know that it has been a very long time since I may have done it when I lived in Seattle over 20 years ago.

I just overhauled my Campagnolo Nouvo Record bottom-bracket on my Super Record cranks. All first installed new in 1983. I cleaned it all meticulously with charcoal lighter-fluid (works great!) and I'm pleased to report there is no signs of wear. Running smooth as clockwork with 22 new 1/4-inch ball-bearings and Teflon-grease.

If someone walked off the street with an old 10 speed with a loose ball and cup BB which probably does not have a sleeve I am going to tell them "you NEED a new BB".

As they stand there asking me "how much to fix my bike" my options are to charge them $30 to spend half and hour opening up their BB and putting it back together with new bearings and grease and it is probably pitted anyway, or to charge them $15 labour plus $17.99 for a new cartridge unit which I can guarantee will last at least a couple years. I cannot guarantee them anything regarding the old one because I have no idea what it looks like inside, but I can guess it's not good, and I have to charge them to open it up to check condition in the first place. Once you think about it makes a lot of sense. I am guessing if the OP had his bike in the shop looking to have work done he does not have the tools or know how to overhaul his BB in which case I support his LBS mechanic in the recommendation that a new cartridge unit is his best option.

Something(s) worse happened to me. First off, my tools were stolen last year, and I needed some overhaul work done on my vintage Reynold's 531 Puch A-D - which is in perfect mechanical condition. So I took it to the bike-shop downtown and told them I needed an overhaul of the Campy bottom-bracket (described above), The Campy Record hubs, and the Tange Levin headset. They charged me $190 up-front. Fine - I left.

They called me to come pick up my Puch a few days later. They had washed the bicycle and installed yellow-foamy handlebar tape. I got it home and removed the tape. New tools were coming in. And the front hub was sort of loose feeling. With my new Park cone-wrenches, I opened the hub. There was the same old pink Bullshot grease I'd used long ago. They hadn't even opened the hubs. My tools poured in - and I checked the bottom-bracket and headset - same story: Pink Bullshot grease. Never even opened.

I overhauled them myself. When I complained, their pet-monkey "mechanic" said I needed a new bottom-bracket - my Campy was junk. He wanted to sell me a cheap Octalink and replace my mint-condition Super Record cranks as well.

I doubt he's ever seen a Campagnolo vintage part before, or he threw them out. I'm glad that spivv didn't work on my Puch.

Absolutely ridiculous. What a fool, what foolishness. And they charged you an ungodly $190 for that? That's over-the-top. I could probably get all my headset/BB/hubs overhauled for $30-40 here at most... And it really isn't that hard to do in the first place. My LBS knows that I know how to do most of the stuff myself and I understand how diffcult (or easy) it is to do most repairs, and won't charge me crazy prices.

For example, $10 to fix a flat that I and a $0.90 patch kit can fix in 10 minutes.