Echo5Lima

Hey, everyone. I'm new to cycling (well, since I was about 12). I've been riding my girlfriend's Miyata for the last couple of months, and I love it. I just purchased an old Lotus Challenger SX on the cheap from a local sale. It's a good bike, but it's clearly been sitting for a long time. There's a good amount of rust on some of the fasteners, the quick release wheel levers, chain and sprockets. The frame, fork, wheels, crank and derailleurs are all in good shape. I just dropped her off at the local shop to get a tune up, new cables, tubes, tires and bar tape.

I'm thinking about changing the chain and sprockets myself. I have plenty of mechanical experience on motorcycles and diesel equipment... but none on bikes. Are the sprockets (gears) fairly universal? It is reasonable to try something like this on my own? I would also like to replace small bits like bolts and wheel levers...

Below is a photo of the bike (as it was new) from www.vintagelotusbicycles.com. Mine is the same color and setup, though not nearly as new looking. Any help with parts/maintenance ideas would be well appreciated. I'm hoping to bring this bike back to her original splendor (or at least as close as possible) as I ride it.

10 Wheels

Welcome to Bike Forums.

The good folks in The Classic and Vintage Forum can help you.

1nterceptor

Howdy, nice bike. If you've changed the chain on a motorcycle,
the tool and procedure is similar. Use a chain tool to push on a
pin to break the chain. Then depending on the chain you're using,
you'll use the chain tool again to push on a pin to close the chain.
Or just like on motorbikes there are "master links" that just clip in
without manually pushing in a pin.

Echo5Lima

Thanks, guys. I've been reading up on rust removal and I'm thinking I'll try to keep as many of the original parts as possible.