The parts finally came in from Flying Pigeon LA today. Miraculously, the cotter pin fit properly without having to shave it down. I hammered it into place and I'm about to ride it 3 miles over to my parent's house. I'll post some pics and an update when I get there.

Back on the Pigeon today! I've been riding the ten speed I set up for my sister in law the past week to give it a shakedown.

The repair went great and the cranks/pedals haven't given me any more trouble since then. Flying Pigeon LA set me a new crank arm, pedals, and cotter pins free of charge. The pedals they sent are Union rubber blocks.

They match the bike and seem better made than the originals, not that that means much. Plus they were free. Don't know if I'm going to keep them, though. I'd like something with provisions for toe clips. MKS Sylvan Touring pedals look nice.

The only issue I'm having at the moment are the brakes - they don't like to stay in adjustment. I'm going to take some sandpaper and rough up the clamping surfaces to try and keep them from moving.

So far here are the totals:
Bike..........$328
Parts...........$0
Maintenance....$43
Labor...........22 hrs

Availability..9/17 commutes (53%)
Breakdowns....1
Mileage.......45 mi.

The MKS Touring pedals are really nice - I have the shorter version (MKS Sylvan Stream) with Power Grips on them. That works perfectly for riding around Boston.

So, I'm a moron. Note to anyone out there with a frame lock like mine: don't lock it in between the spokes where the valve is. And if you do, don't proceed to forget that you locked it and try to ride off. You will break the valve off of the tube.

Unfortunately my idiocy doesn't end there as I never got around to ordering a spare inner tube and none of the local bike shops carry 28" tubes. I've ordered 2 from Flying Pigeon LA so I'll have a spare from now on.

Current totals:
Bike..........$328
Parts..........$26
Maintenance....$43
Labor...........22 hrs

Availability..17/26 commutes (65%)
Breakdowns....2
Mileage.......80 mi.

I think I found 27 x 1 3/8 tubes locally that I use for the 28 x 1 1/2 tires on my Raleigh DL-1. With the popularity of 29ers, you should be able to find something locally.

IMHO - give it up. Approx $400 in 80 mi, plus 22 hrs labor ?
Go for the Worksman cycle !

Well, $328 of that was the purchase price of the bike itself, including shipping. Also, to be fair, that's 22 hrs of labor from me, an untrained amateur, and most of it was the initial assembly. I'm guessing I still would have had to put the Worksman together had I ordered one, and I really doubt it would have taken me that much less time.

I specced out a similarly equipped Worksman and after shipping it would have been well over $700. Even with the parts I've bought I'm still way ahead financially, and I'll bet that even by the time I have every questionable component on the Pigeon replaced with something durable I'll still come out ahead. That's a large part of why I started this thread; to find out how much it would cost to make a Flying Pigeon as reliable as a much more expensive bike. I didn't go into this unaware of its shortcomings, I just believe they can be overcome.

As to why I would choose to go this route instead of just buying a reliable bike from the get go, well, look, the Worksman is unquestionably a much more durable and mechanically sophisticated bike, but those aren't the only things that matter. Case in point: we have two cars, a 1989 Ford Probe and a 1968 VW Beetle. The Probe is the superior vehicle in every way; it's faster, quieter, more reliable, more comfortable, more efficient. But when I pick which car I'm going to drive I almost always take the Beetle, because it's interesting and the Probe bores me to tears.

Same deal with the Worksman. I genuinely considered one when I was looking for a bike but I just couldn't bring myself to drop that kind of cash on yet another coaster brake equipped cruiser with 26" wheels in a virtual sea of the things. It's boring. The Pigeon, for all its mechanical flaws, is a gorgeous bike. I could sit there with a glass of wine and just look at it. It gives me a fun and interesting riding experience, too. The Worksman is the kind of bike that I could forget what I'm riding if I didn't look down, and that's just not worth it for increased reliability, IMO. Interestingness is worth a lot to me. I figure I've only got one life to live, why spend it on the safe, reasonable option when I can do something fun?

Also, I could out and buy a nice reliable modern bike, but where's the challenge in that? There are no obstacles to overcome, the battle's already won before I can begin to fight. I like to have to put in some work for a good possession. It gives it a certain meaning and soul, it has a story. Otherwise it's never really mine, it's just something that I happen to own.

Try a 700c tube in a suitable width,available everywhere and you get to choose which vavle you prefer.Harris,Presta or schrader.I used to order a spare,now have one that fits a few bikes.

Subscribed. I have always wanted a Flying Pigeon, and I 'd really like to see how your experiment fares.
This:
"The Pigeon, for all its mechanical flaws, is a gorgeous bike. I could sit there with a glass of wine and just look at it."
and this:
"There are no obstacles to overcome, the battle's already won before I can begin to fight. I like to have to put in some work for a good possession. It gives it a certain meaning and soul, it has a story. Otherwise it's never really mine, it's just something that I happen to own."

Both of these statements appeal to me. In fact, I think I'll head out to the garage now with an adult beverage and admire what is mine...

Got the new inner tube on Wednesday night and rode the Pigeon to work yesterday. Smooth sailing so far.

We've had a rainy week and unfortunately I have to park in the backyard at home. I've seen no signs of rust as of yet but I'll keep an eye out. I've heard that they rust easily when they get wet.

Apparently the headlight doesn't want to work in the rain, either. Does anyone know of a good generator/light that will fit the Pigeon's bracket? The one that came with it sucks.

Current totals:
Bike..........$328
Parts..........$26
Maintenance....$43
Labor...........24 hrs

Availability..18/33 commutes (55%)
Breakdowns....2
Mileage.......87 mi.

I have a similar new PA-06 with what is probably the same generator. It was loud and added a lot of drag, but a couple drops of 3-in1 oil to the underside of the roller (applied upside down) helped a lot. In fact, adding a drop of oil to every joint and moving part of the rod brakes made a huge difference in the quietness and smooth feel of the brakes.

And if your lights don't work in the rain, it could be a problem with how it's wired. It uses the frame for one of the conductors.

Well, this'll be the last post, since my Pigeon has been stolen. I'll try to sum up my final thoughts on the experience.

The Good:
I rode it for a total of 830 miles. It never broke down again on me. It was a very dependable ride once the pedals were sorted out.
People would stop to ask about it all the time. It really turned heads and got folks interested.
The ride was always smooth and it handled Abilene's poor streets with aplomb. I've seen cheap walmart bikes that didn't last a month when put up against our cracked, potholed roads.
I'm in much better shape now after riding a heavy single speed everywhere. When I get on my wife's bike I can just fly down the road. The Pigeon never really felt heavy, though. The gearing and long crank arms made it hard to notice that I was essentially pedaling a bag of concrete around.
Although the brakes didn't have a lot of stopping power, they always worked. Even when out of adjustment they stopped the bike well enough.

The Bad:
We've had an unusually wet summer this year. The Pigeon's painted surfaces never showed any sign of rust, but surface rust was beginning to appear on the chrome components, particularly on the rear rack and various bolts/nuts. The rims were beginning to get a bit of rust around the spoke holes, which is exactly the worst place to get it, and I suspect there would have been more inside the rims had I taken the tires off.
I never did get the brakes to stay adjusted. The cheap hardware used just couldn't stand up to the kind of torque necessary to prevent slippage. This probably could have been rectified by using Raleigh components, but I never got around to it.
As the miles went on the bike became more and more rattly. The rear rack was a big source of this due to its design. The brake hardware was another offender.
The seat didn't break in particularly well, stretching so far in one spot that I was sitting on one of the rails. This was exacerbated by its tendency to lose the nuts that hold the springs on.

Would I buy another one? I don't know. Most of its issues could have been easily rectified. With better hardware, pedals, a seat, and rear rack from the beginning most of the things that bugged me wouldn't have been a problem, and the price was low enough that even taking those things into account it's a bargain. The one sticking point is the rims, though. I doubt they would have lasted longer than a few years at most and better quality replacements are not readily available in a westwood rim. Converting to a clincher type rim and modern brakes would solve this issue but cause the bike to lose much of its character.

It was a great experience, and I don't regret buying it. If I had to go back in time I'd definitely buy it again, and if it hadn't been stolen I'd still be riding it. I don't think I'll buy it twice, though. If by some miracle it turns up and I get it back, I'll continue the quest to improve it. It's fundamentally a great bike, even if some of the components let it down.

For now, though, it looks like the story ends here.

Do bikes get recovered?

Stealing a Flying Pigeon? Now that's low.

So maybe you can answer this for me - I'm going to get a bicycle next time I'm in China (I'm hoping to get the MIL to pay for it so $$$ may not be a huge deal). I'm trying to decide whether I'd want a modern Giant hybrid/offroady sort of bike for running around town buying beer and snacks, or if I want to go full China dork and try out a Flying Pigeon. I guess I'd have to say from reading your thread that I'd be better off getting something reliable...

Bummer on your Pigeon!

Shart, check out the Flying Pigeon Project blog. Might give you some leads.

M.

Depends where you're living. In a city that's flat as a pancake like Shanghai is, a Pigeon would be a fine runabout, since you wouldn't have to worry about hills. But if it's a hilly place like Chongqing, then you'd definitely want some gears. As for me, even though I live in Shanghai, I've gone the Giant hybrid route, as I don't like to go as slow as I'd have to on a Pigeon. If I had room for a second bike (which I don't ) I'd probably pick up a Pigeon or a Forever as a cruiser, as they're definitely a big part of the Chinese city landscape.

Good advice... They have a place in Chengdu and that place is pretty flat. But maybe then I want something fast Their hometown is sort of up in the mountains though so I'll need something with some gears.

Cotter pins - oh my, that brings back memories of the mid-70s. I remember having to tap them in (or out) with a wooden dowel and a hammer when I had my first 10 speed. The dowel went on the end of the pin, a hammer tapped the dowel, and that held it for a while until you started feeling the crank loosen again. Don't miss those one bit, but I'm sure I still have one somewhere.

Once you grind your way through the chrome plating to the under laying steel and the steel starts rusting
the braking may improve

Yes,Bob is right.Once the chrome is gone the braking improves no-end.Also,Kool-stop make a set of inserts especiallyfor rod brakes,that should help even more. You don`t have to grind through the chrome,mine blew away in the first strong wind.

This is my Forever, brand new from the factory, outside my apartment in Chengdu 8 years ago. It's still in Sichuan (not Chengdu), and now is rusty and creaky as could be, but this is proof that it was new and looked like this for about two weeks. I spent just as much time fixing this thing as I spent riding it, but I do miss it.

I remember people being surprised those first couple weeks, because they hadn't seen a new 28" black Forever in...forever.

Traditional brake pad was (said to be) Leather..

Sweet bike! I think in the end I'll probably be looking at Giants... I especially don't trust the brakes on these old Chinese bikes to stop 260 pound me

That sucks, tdsherman325. I'm sorry it happened. I hope you get back on the horse one way or another, commuting by bike, any bike.

Bummer. That was a cool looking ride.