Schwinn World Tourist

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Above: I recently finished this Schwinn World Tourist. It has a "Giant" built lugged frame. It was a little rough when I found it. The original rear fender had a home-made rear strut on one side. While it did function well, it looked a little rough. Fortunately I had a copper colored fender set left over from an old conversion (commuter to racer). This bike is kind of odd. It has a front FF Crank set with a rear 6 speed freewheel sprocket group. And a Normal friction rear derailleur. Not the hard-wire cable operated positron derailleur you would expect. Kind of a mixed bag for sure. Oddly enough it seems to work fine.

Above: You might recognize the Avanti rear bicycle rack. It was on the Fuji S10S that I restored not too long ago. The rack did not fit into the plans I had for the Fuji. But it sure looks "right at home" on this classic style commuter bike.

Above: This is the Brooks touring saddle removed from the Ivory colored Raleigh Sprite. Why would I take the Brooks saddle off the Sprite? What happened is this. Another old Raleigh came in. Kind of rough, but sporting a brown Brooks leather touring saddle circa 1973. After cleaning-up the rails and springs and Saddle-Soap cleaning the leather four times. And then after a good buffing, I put it on the Sprite. (also circa 1973) It was a match made in heaven. It was what the Sprite lacked evidently, as it sold quickly after I made the switch.

Above: The rust on the front derailleur was bad and was even worse on the rear. Because I had two almost identical derailleurs on hand, I decided to replace them. I will clean-up the originals and use them on some latter project or repair. Unfortunately I was unable to save the rear wheel. I did "true it up" but there were some severe curb dents that I was unable to hammer-out properly. This is the part when I was glad it had the weird set-up. A 27 inch rear wheel with the five speed fixed set up would have been much tougher to locate. That`s how a normal FF front free-wheel works. The rear gears are fixed and the crank free wheels. Pretty amazing the first time you see one. So I just borrowed a matching rear wheel from a Schwinn Varsity.(future project) I did however swap the free-wheels.

Above: I was able to save the original touring handlebars using Turtle Wax Chrome Polish & Rust Remover and a brass detail brush. You may notice the handlebar chrome is not the best, but it is acceptable. I love the old style Schwinn grips. Always nice to find those in great shape.

Above: I added a new Schwinn water bottle cage and new Schwinn alloy quill pedals and also a new Schwinn chain. It also got all new Jag Wire Basics cables and Jag wire X Caliper brake shoes. The brake calipers were removed and polished. The threaded headset was re-built and the front free-wheel bearings were lubed. And the frame and fenders were cleaned up as well.

above: Due to different mount-hole positions (from the original) This fender had to be extended in the front. I used part of the original fender to make the extension. The result was a very custom looking wrap around fender. I also replaced the tombstone tail reflector with a more retro looking round reflector. Then I mounted the same type reflector to the rack. I rode this bike into town for coffee with friends Tuesday. It performed flawlessly. However being a couple of sizes too small for me my upper legs got an awesome (and painful) work-out.
Before I close I would like to thank Everett K for letting me post his road-bike project on my blog. I have never blogged about someone else`s project before "and it showed". I found myself answering comments that I should have let Everett answer. I apologize for that, I was treading on new ground. I will not repeat that mistake in the future. So sorry pal, I screwed up. I will try to delete my response (if I can) and post Everett`s response if and when I receive them. Till Next Time, Ride Safe :) and remember to always RESCUE,RESTORE & RECYCLE
Cheers,Hugh

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