Greetings and a request for advice!
 

Greetings C&V,

I'm a newbie to the forums and biking, but I'm finding these forums as a great resource. I hope you're all well!

I recently purchased an old Panasonic Sport-500 from a contact of a contact. I paid $100 for it and just had a couple of questions for you guys. Sorry if I've posted this in the wrong place.

1. Did I get a good deal? It came with "Look" Clipless Pedals, an Axiom Computer, an additional sprocket on the rear cassette, Aero bars, and an Old Leather Saddle.
2. What's the best way to go about Rust Removal? I tried some Steel wool and I felt like I made little to no progress

The former owner said he used the bike in college, had a friend complete a duoathalon (sp) on it, and used it as a trainer during the winter. Essentially it was a beater. But he supposedly put a lot of work into it as well.

Here are a handful of pictures:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3307/...8141bb43_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2051/...84f5985874.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3593/...4a4bae39_m.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3560/...1b7cd42088.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2465/...1122a98104.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3346/...4acbeb8641.jpg

That is one strange mess of parts!! The frame looks like it is probably near entry level and most of the parts look like they are probably original. I don't get the brifters at all, are they only being used as brake levers? The stem shifters are still there, so I assume the brifters don't function... I don't see how they would anyhow?

I'm not ripping on your bike honestly, it's just a strange strange build. Welcome to the forum!
I think the price was fair, the brifters and leather saddle cover the buying cost.

Definitely a unique "build"... Oxylic Acid (wood bleach?) is discussed often on BF as a rust remover...you can also scrub away with a toothbrush and Naval Jelly. If needed, Neat's Foot compound may help freshen up the saddle if the leather is dry. Ride it, but when you sell go to sell it...you may want to swap out the saddle, peddles, stem, bars, aero bars, and maybe even the new (?) tires. You can probably then resell it for $60 to $75 ... retaining a nice collection of parts upgrades & having some use of it for awhile. Retaped bars? With cloth tape? If so, nice. The "builder's plan" IMHO...a comfy urban "training" bike nobody would steal.

Brifters...haha I had to look up what you meant. In response, they definitely don't function and are soley used as brakes.

Thanks for the welcome and reply!

You guys both mentioned stuff about the saddle, and the previous owner also said the saddle was custom ordered and shipped from the UK. I enjoy the saddle, but its a little crackly and seems to be wearing at my bike shorts (also recently purchased).

In your opinion should I try reconditioning it as you, cycleheimer, mentioned? The previous owner actually offered to put a new regular run of the mill saddle on it, but said that the leather saddle fit the bike better. I kept it, as you can see, but he kept the offer on the table...which I am considering taking him up on.

I figured the brifters were pressed into service as brake levers because they were worn out, but they may not be. The former owner may have simply upgraded to a ten speed from a nine.

Of course they're not going to function with the shift cables attached to the stem shifters. They are also tuned for a different number of speeds.

What does it say on them?

Other than the brifters, that's a freewheel not a cassette and the old one may have had six speeds too. You had to be a bit better about unweighting the saddle when going over bumps and pavement irregularities with a freewheel rear hub. I have seen a lot of those with bent axles though I look at bigger frames hence more weight's been on the axle. Grab the rear rim and see if it easily rattles from side to side a bit as if it were loose on the axle.

Old road bikes are high these days because of the fad to convert them into fixed gear bikes. You might have gotten another beater for fifty or so if you just wanted a bike with serviceable but obsolete components.

I would scrape the loose rust a bit with the back of a hacksaw blade or other sharp steel item, then try chemical removal methods such as naval jelly.

Many road bikers don't use that type of pedals but prefer the mountain-style spd's because you can walk in the shoes and they are supposedly easier to clip in to.

Heck no, Keep the leather saddle! Is it a brooks saddle? If so it is probably worth more than the other one he offered. Just search ebay for leather saddles and you will see what I am talking about. The leather may be a little dry, there are tons of different views on the proper treatment. I would just do a search on the topic.

If you decide you don't like the saddle you can always sell it.

Long discussion about soaking leather saddles on the CR list. Conclusion: Dunk your saddle in a bucket of water for about 24 hours. Remove and let it air dry, then dress it lightly, top only, with a conditioner of your choice.

Try pushing the brake levers inwards, and then pressing that little tab on the inside down. Hear the clicks?

Let me know if you decide to part with them too...

-Kurt

under what circumstances do you do this? When it's new or when it's old and hard as a rock?

They were mostly talking about rejuvenation, both of hard and of overly sagged saddles, but at least one chimed in that they had dunked a new saddle, too.

Welcome to the forums. That is an interesting accumulation of components on that frame. The brifters and saddle should cover your investment as stated earlier.

What are your plans for the bike? A keeper or something to move along? Is there a sticker on it that says what kind of tubing it has?

If your intention is to totally strip it to the frame for a full restoration then go ahead and use the oxalic acid / navel jelly on the steel parts. If you want to shine things up and see what you've got then get a can of Eagle One Never Dull polishing wadding from your local auto parts store or wal-mart. It will set you back about $4. Shine up what you can, remove what has value and put more time and $ into a frame that will be a better overall ride. It looks like a great place to start learning about bikes though!

I think this is the first bike I've ever seen with tri-bars and a "Brooks-esque" saddle.

Welcome to the forum. I look forward to what you'll do with this project.

Welcome to C&V. As stated above, you did get your money's worth for that $100. Those brifters are Shimano Sora with the small grey thumb levers, probably for not-so-vintage 8-speed rear cassettes.

Thanks for all the replies and welcomes!

Good to hear that I got my investment's worth. Its raining today, and I've heard bad things about old steel rims and older brakes. Hence my bike will stay in the closet hanging.

I'll take some more pics of the Brifters and actually make sure they don't work next time I go out for a ride. Though I'm pretty confident they don't function as I've fiddled with them before on previous rides.

I'd have to confirm whether or not its a Brooks saddle from the previous owner, but like I mentioned he said he purchased online and shipped it from the UK, its dated from the 50's-60's.

I'm thinking its something for me to get conditioned and comfortable into riding. The previous owner said that if I was going to sell it, call him cause he'd love to buy it back. As for the tubing, any specific places I should be looking for this sticker?

One more thing, where can I pick up Naval Jelly at?

Do the brifters have their own return spring, though? Maybe they depend on derailleur cable tension to work.

Yup they have their own return spring.

It's high tensile steel, AKA hi-ten, AKA gas pipe. I've got a taller Sport 500 in my garage at the moment.

They're not connected to the derailleurs, notice the stem shifters.

I wasn't sure what garage sale GT was getting at, just replying to his query. But Chris, you're right. They are not connected to the derailleurs. I'm not sure why the previous owner ended up adding them. He said he used this bike in the winter on his trainer, therefore I must deduct that he put the Brifters on for a familiar feel.

When I met him to purchase the bike, he had two other road bikes. Both Kleins, and they were real nice, just way out of my poor college kid budget; not to mention I probably don't want to start on something that advanced. I guess he may have the same Brifters on his other two bikes and wanted a the same feel?

Your guess is probably better than mine. :)

Thats not a bad guess at all, comfort could have been a factor. Regardless, it's worked out in your favor that they are there as long as they aren't broken. What does the stamp on the side of your saddle say?

OK, I actually mentioned they weren't connected several posts up.

I assumed you thought they didn't work because you couldn't hear the mechanism clicking as you depressed the thumb levers or pushed the brake handles inward.

Just to be absolutely clear, this is what I mean: Even though the thumb levers may spring back up when pressed, and even though the brake levers may spring back outward when pushed inward, they may need the cable to return the ratcheting mechanism inside the shifter. Or, how do you know it has all the return spring it needs, if the cable's not conected?

Your friend may simply have upgraded one of his newer bikes, leaving him with an extra set of brifters, and that's why they're on an old bike which isn't set up to use them.

Probably not broken, but I won't know until/if I ever make the changes.

The saddle is so old and worn I can't make out what the stamp says, on either side I might add. It definitely starts with an S and might end in "ic" I really cannot tell though.