There was a mid-70s basket case Schwinn Sprint in my local CL near where my wife works so I asked her to slide by & pick it up. Not entirely surprisingly, it appeared to be in better condition in the little pictures on line than it really is. Too much rust. I wouldn't have picked it up, but she did what I asked, in picking it up, so I can't complain. I've seen references to the use of oil & steel wool to clean rusty steel rims. Can anybody elaborate on that technique. Is there anything I can soak a rusty chain in to loosen it up or is it a lost cause?

The good news is the dropouts measure 120 mm so I could build a 3-speed or a single speed out of it.

As an aside, I read that the bent seat tube was to place more of the rider's weight over the rear wheel and to shorten the wheelbase. Well, the weight distribution thing might work, but the wheelbase is only a half an inch shorter than my Lotus.

I'd suggest that you get rid of the steel rims instead of spending time cleaning them...

That goes double for a rusty chain.....

Search is your friend. There are endless threads on rust and how to get rid of it. Be sure to check the box: Sort by Relevance.

That being said, steel rim wheels are about worthless if you want to do any serious riding with the bike. But it would be fine as a neighborhood/recreational ride.

Steel wool, along with any abrasive, does not know the difference between rust and chrome. It removes both.