markwesti

Today is a good day to watch my new to me Bianchi , with a stuck stem and stuck seat post magically unstick it's self . With the help of PB Blaster , I think I'll be watching for a few more days . Also I thought I would take this opportunity to share pics of my shop and a funny story . Mswesti and I moved into this small town house (guess you could call it that) about 10 yrs. ago so we could retire . It's working out well , but there is no garage . There is a 8'X5' storage space , Mswesti has agreed to let me have it to keep my stuff . I'm so happy . OK funny story , at Robbie Tunes suggestion PB Blaster was purchased to spray the offending parts on the Bianchi to get them unstuck . Because the 8'X5' is attached to our "town house" now the whole place smells like PB Blaster . Sheepishly this morning I asked Mswesti if she smelled anything different , she just smiled laughed a little and said "don't worry about it" .




IMG_0265 by mark westi, on Flickr

IMG_0266 by mark westi, on Flickr

IMG_0267 by mark westi, on Flickr

dweenk

Quoting myself here - they got it done this pm and called me to pick it up. I love those guys.

curbtender

Traded a Schwinn High Sierra...

malcala622 

@markwesti Sometimes removing the internal bolt from the atem, sticking a long flathead inside and tapping with a hammer will dislodge the whole stem.

Ive gotten frames with "stuck" stems and this method worked.

markwesti

Thanks for the heads up on the stuck stem malcala622 , I actually got the stem unstuck , so now I'm dealing with the seat post . I would really like to save that post as it's a nice one . So far I started with Liquid Wrench and then PB Blaster . I was trying to find a can of Kroil but it looks like if I want that I will have to order it . Looking around on the internet I found that a 50/50 mixture of ATF and acetone is supposed to be better then anything . Funny thing , me , this being my first Italian bike I'm finding things different from my Japanese bikes . Like on the BB both sides are right hand .

3speedslow

Jason845

We use aerokroil at work, it is amazing stuff

nollo9871

Working on a yellow 1987 Schwinn High Sierra, with roller cam brakes. Frame is a beauty with the chrome crowned fork. A lot of chipped areas, so I've been painted those exposed areas with a fine brush. Luckily, there's no rust.

The frame came with the original Deore parts, and once the weather gets warmer, I'll be taking it for rides the rest of the year

curbtender

After it's soaked, I've had luck with an extra large crescent wrench and a mallet. With someone to hold the frame down, put the wrench on the square section under an old seat and pound up and turn at the same time. Good luck

markwesti

Jason thanks for the tip on the AeroKroil .

curbtender , thanks for the words I'll keep on it .

Slightspeed

Trying to revive and polish the gold "patina" on my '78 Super Course".

RiddleOfSteel

Last weekend I spent--instead of touring with a bunch of guys to Eugene--with family and also de-anodizing two very nice cranksets that were in quite sorry visual state. This is my first attempt at de-anodizing after a good amount of research (and gloving up). Their anodizing had been reduced to matte light grey with many a scratch. Between the Oven Off!, new-to-me 6" buffing wheel and various compounds (rookie on this machine I will say!), and Mother's Mag & Aluminum polish, I was able to get them looking a lot better. They are 'five footers' for sure, and still have some pitting from their years of existence and use. I want to see if I can get some of the thicker scratches reduced slightly with some wet sanding with, say 1500 and 2000 grit. I may have to go to 1000 grit, but I don't want to take much at all off. Polish back up all the surfaces. The "undersides" of the crank arms need a little more work, but thankfully the outsides/surfaces you do see are coming along well.

In the background/at top are Suntour Superbe Pro cranks measuring 175mm, which is my size. Very rare to come across (they came attached to a bike), and with a 130mm BCD. They will, in a surprise twist, go back on the bike they came on (a 1982/3 Guerciotti Super Record) along with more Superbe Pro (indexed or Accushift era). Finally those polished components will have a matching polished crankset to go with them!

In the foreground/at bottom are 175mm Sugino AT cranks. Again, another rare size offering from a crankset of this vintage. Got these for a pittance, and I am slowly getting them better. I will re-ink fill the engraved lettering for maximum visual deliciousness and contrast, fit up a set of rings, and plan on--at this moment--putting it on my all-original 1981 Trek 716 (710 frame). It has fully restored 600 Arabesque on it, and nearly all of that would be slated for replacement. RX100 dual pivot calipers, 7700 Dura-Ace downtube shifters, a 7700 triple FD, a 6600 Ultegra RD, the Sugino AT cranks of course, a 9-speed chain, and 7-speed freehub'ed RX100 wheels (MA/MA2 polished rims) swapped to 8-10-speed freehub (from a newer RX100 hub). Same tan wall tires, same bar and stem, seat post and saddle, and as of now, the same 600 Arabesque brake levers with the cables coming out of the top, just to keep the vintage spirit. I LOVE the look of the Arabesque pieces, but I dislike the inherently weak brakes and fidgety friction shifting (old shift levers and washers combine with a 7-speed Hyperglide cassette instead of a more stay-in-your-gear 6-speed Uniglide cassette like it ran originally). So I will keep the classiness of polished silver bits and tan wall tires, but upgrade the running gear so as to not have this be a "Sunday Rider" because this frameset is dynamite and I just want to enjoy it more without worrying about hills and traffic. More work this weekend!

carbomb

3speedslow

horatio 

Slightspeed

Thanks, but it's still a 10 foot bike. Looks good from 10 feet away. Debating on a few new decals.

canklecat

New brake shoes on the Centurion Ironman. For two years I've been riding it with the original 1989 Suntour pads. Surprised they still worked at all but were still pliable -- must have been in storage away from sun and ozone. But they've hardened over the past couple of years and recently they only sort of hint at braking.

Might swap handlebars to Cinelli compact drops, new brake cable housing and bar wrap if I feel like it.

And swapping tires on the '92 Univega. Tried 700x32 Continental Sport Contact II over the winter for rainy rides. Plenty of grip and puncture resistant -- I've plucked out shards of glass that didn't puncture the tube -- but they feel sluggish and it shows consistently in my ride times. Like, 2 mph slower. That thicker tread comes at a cost. Switching back to Conti SpeedRides, the best hybrid tires I've ridden. Same weight as the Sport Contact II, but totally different ride -- faster, more comfortable on gravel and rough pavement, and still reasonably puncture resistant.

deux jambes

Slightspeed

Hanging parts on the $20 Super Course. This one is a "78 without the chainring clearance indent on the chainstay. I was hoping to use a triple crank like on the '73 that I also have. I played with several BB spindles, and if it cleared the frame, the Suntour Cyclone II wouldn't reach out to the outer ring. So it now works as a double. The chain line is right at 2" or around 45mm. I don't have shifters, cables or chain on it yet, but it seems to line up, fingers crossed. I have the same FD on my '73 and a Sugino AT triple with a 125mm spindle. The chainline looks similar and the '73 rides great.

Sakae SR (now double ) crank



My Super Course collection.

3speedslow

deux jambes

nesteel 

Packing up a frameset to send to its new home.
Looking over the bike room to decide which bike/s go next.

malcala622 

Installed crank set for the Gios

deux jambes

horatio 

Finished the Basso... mostly.