robin-d

hello,

[begin lame life story]
recently moved to midwest. the day before moving trucks came, my partner and i had our bicycles stolen. that sucked. anyway. i'm finished with move now and got interested in riding again. i've always toyed with idea of touring but... i don't want to take that much time off work so.. bikepacking/overnight touring to nearby national forests with the dog seems neat.[/end lame life story]

so anyway i bought a nishiki alien off craigslist.



everything looks stock. wasn't in the best of shape.. some issues with original condition...

bought bike stand and bikehand tool set to tinker... wanted to post things i was working on here.

• things in bold below are concerns that are weighing on my mind. if you have any advice to share on these or any other subjects, i would very much appreciate it.
• the bracketed comments is my present status with item.

build journal:

• front wheel - cup was loose, took apart and cleaned, regreased and replaced original bearings, bought new bearings, [pending rebuild with new bearings]
• brakes - cantilevers, straddle wires fraying, 'hard to adjust'... seems like this is common issue, bought new v-brake brakeset (cheap $14 set off amazon), [pending replacement], ? - need tips on how to route cables... should i use the existing centered brake guides? should i match the brake cable housing to the previous canti lengths?
• bottom bracket - so...when i opened this to overhaul, one of the wheel bearing ring things was totally mangled. i brought it to my lbs to get a replacement. thinking about it now, i don't remember if i just asked for one or two replacement bearing rings. -_-... ? should i go through trouble of getting another pair of bb bearings and rebuilding this again? it seems to be working fine/well so far
• rear wheel - attempted rebuild, discovered bent axle, lbs advised same cost to build new wheel vs repair my existing wheel, paid lbs to take cassette and install on new single-wall wheel., regret and thinking perhaps i should have shelled out for the newer double wall?, ? - please help me with my buyer's remorse... will my future adventures now be doomed to deflate because of this cheapskate decision? also, had to call lbs to get my original wheel back.. and they tossed my original shimano quick release... not a big deal but wish they consulted... perhaps my parts were beneath them/worthless? i'm not going there again anyway :\
• bottle cage/s - had to junk one, screw was stripped/rusted and had to bottle cage to remove, threaded some screws to holes, [pending some 5mm replacement screws in mail], planning to relocate good bottle cage to underside of frame and make a custom frame bag to store a water bladder in
• pending installation - butterfly bar, white bar tape, super bright headlight, some thrifty shimano brake/shifter combo, airzounds bike horn, powergrips straps to bolt on pedals, rear bicycle rack, [all pending installation this week/end]
• considering purchase - nomad burley trailer (getting for $160+barter), walky dog vs bike tow leash (omfg expensive?), umbrella holder, brooks saddle (cambium vs leather?)

was initially trying to keep this economical.. but.. it's quickly escalated to point where i'm considering if i had just bought the brompton/montague folder i had initially wanted and saved the effort... eh.. i had fun tooling around/learning too i guess. this way i'll have a fairly solid build that i know and have enough to spring for the whole set vice just a bike i guess. gotta keep telling myself that.

robin-d

off topic/venting:

so the significant other got a new terra trike rover + 1 year free maintenance

not as enamored of the outdoors and expedition that i desire in my trips.. totally just for day tripping. i guess i'm happy that she is happy and we can be happy together. us and the dog.

Tourist in MSN

I would have just bought new straddle cables, I got a pair a couple months ago for minimal cost on Ebay, from a USA seller so shipping was less than a week.

If you are saying that you have an older cup and cone bottom bracket, and the ball bearings were held in a sheet metal cage, and that sheet metal cage got mangled, putting in a new on like you did is not a problem.

A neighbor put an old 1980s low mileage Bianchi mixte frame bike in the trash a few years ago. I grabbed it to put on a trainer for indoor exercise. It also had eaten that sheet metal cage in the bottom bracket. I instead just rebuilt it with loose ball bearings (needed two more more balls, thus bought new balls at a bike shop) on the drive side, am using the older bearing on the left side.

***

M5 bolts are stocked at good hardware stores like Ace or True Value.

mstateglfr 

First off, AWESOME bike! I lost out on picking up a 22” Alien with the Tange Prestige tubing a couple months ago and miss what I never had!
Really, it’s a cool bike due to the history of the design, who worked with Nishiki to create it, and its place in MTB history due to the chainstay placement.


Anyways, a single walled rim is probably fine. I am guessing it was a machine built rim with a hub that is too tight. This is how many entry level single walled wheels seem to be set up. Since you know how to overhaul a hub, open it up and add a bunch of grease(these are also very often short on grease) and adjust the hub so it spins freely without wobble. Assuming you will be on roads, gravel, and hardpack- the wheel will almost for sure be OK. If it isnt, you will find out with a broken spoke or two. Itll be lame, but not the worst thing in the world as the wheel can be properly tensioned at a shop and be good to go.
Something to give you peace of mind- Robot Check stash this away when you ride in case a spoke does break so you can keep enjoying your ride.

I have multiple road bikes with single walled rims from the 80s and 90s and ride them without issue. I am 230# so not exactly featherweight. I don’t slam the wheels into potholes and curbs, so if you do, thatll change things. But those are 700c/27” wheels and yours is a 26” which being smaller is inherently stronger.


Bottom bracket cages arent needed, but are helpful for install. Remove them and add 11 loose balls to each side(Im guessing there are 9 in the cage? Or use cages. Or get a sealed cartridge bottom bracket and spend time installing it.
All 3 options are good decisions and there is no actual correct option. They all work great, as long as they are properly tensioned and adjusted.



Brake cable routing…for miniV brakes, just route the cable and housing down to the curved noodle. Don’t match the length to the old canti housing.

robin-d

Thank you for replies... With regard to v brake routing, should I thread the cable through the center canti brake guides? Otherwise I will need to rig some sort of brake housing boss.

Opted to replace with v brakes because new lever shifters came with derailleur cables... And I wanted nicer shift/brake levers

Thanks for tip with bb and wheel set.

I do like the design a lot... Should I consider getting it sand blasted and powder coated?

What would average cost of that be?

jonc123

Where are all your bikes getting stolen at, robin-d? That's a bunch of bikes!

mstateglfr 

There is a place in KC called Groody which powder coats frames for about $140 which is the cost of media blast, powder coat, and applying powder coat. You would need to completely strip the bike and ship the frame and fork. There are probably plenty of places in STL, probably more expensive too, or unsure of quality work.
Positives- new looking frame and fork with the color of your choosing. Negatives- in total itll be $180ish and you have a bike lacking decals and the original look. You can get some decals from velocals, not sure what Nishiki types they have, but an Alien would be a surprise since it was not exactly a big seller 25 years ago.

Unless its really scraped up and rusty, I wouldnt powder coat, but I also wouldnt think twice if someone did. Its all preference.



As for your brakes- I dont totally understand the question. V brakes operate differently from Cantis. A canti has a yoke(the metal triangle hanger which holds the cable connecting both brake arms. V brakes dont use that yoke. When you say 'center canti brake guide', do you mean the yoke?

Take a close pic of your setup if what I am asking isnt even close to what you are talking about.

grubetown

I know I have minimal posts, but worked in a bike shop for a few years after college.
Agree with sentiments concerning wheel and bottom bracket. Ride it until it breaks and use your money on other gear.
For brake cable routing. Front brake housing/cable will go directly from lever to noodle on the v brake. Rear will have housing from lever to frame and then again at the back from frame directly to noodle on the brake. Generally the 90 degree noodle is up front and the small angle is for the rear. The canti guides will not be used. Let me know if this makes sense.

robin-d

Some were at uni many years ago... Last two from our condo in Panama city, fl. There was a storage area under a stairwell (no anchor, had just placed there after sunset ride following wedding, wasn't locked, discovered stolen when moving trucks came a week later)..

robin-d

These canti cable passes... Through stem and along top tube to brazed on noodle in rear. So I don't use these?

Do I then need to use zip ties on frame or something for the cables?

Thank you for all the replies and validation ha...

katzenfinch

Great dog, cool bike! I’m trying to work out how you could mount racks on it....

robin-d

thanks katzenfinch,

shouldn't be an issue. there seems to be a hole that i could use a mounting point on the rear triangle.. probably will have to mcguyver method to attach upper mount to top of triangle. have done something like this before.

Miele Man

P-clips to hold the upper arms of the rack to the seatstays; looks like there are eyelets on the dropouts.

Cheers

nora1

hok hulk buy now man nice discount

Miele Man

V-brake aka Direct pull cantlever are shown about halfway down this page Sheldon Brown's Bicycle Glossary Da - Do

Cheers

robin-d

miele, thanks for that reference.

since i will not have a rear cable boss to hold the top tube length of brake cable/housing... this probably will require a clamp on cable boss stop right?

also... i now want to saw off that little cantilever noodle guide >_>

r

saddlesores

you can run housing from the brake levers to the front/rear noodles.
you don't NEED lengths of exposed cable.

front is easy.....the curve naturally bends into the noodle.
the rear? zip ties are your friends.

i wouldn't saw off that noodle guide just yet.....if it's not in the way.
cause you know the day after you'll realize it's just what you need now!

Arvadaman

You can make a cable guide for the housing out of vinyl tube and a zip tie. See this link.

Zip tie as cable-guide trick- Mtbr.com

Arvadaman

Leave the brake noodle on. You never know when your will need to improvise a repair and need it.

saddlesores

imagine.....half meter of vinyl tubing, two zipties.

never need to stop for a pee break again!

robin-d

So... lucky i followed your advice.

Not all the bolts for my rear rack were included so I just zip tied the top attachments there... got a bit excited and took her out for her maiden voyage tonight and the zip ties sheared after i hit a pothole a good 20 miles away...

luckily, i had tied the extra pannier strapping to that noodle braze on... kept my rack from swinging down and royally ruining my evening.

to all; thank you for your comments to this thread. i've got a good start now i think.

just need to work out what tent to get and i think i'll be ready for my first overnight next weekend! (anyone know of a good tent under $200? ?