Schwinn Varsity / Cleaning-up the Frame

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This is typical cracking of late 70`s early 80's old Schwinn decals. The Gold decals seem to be the worst (for cracking). At least I thought so, until I saw these. After striping the bike down to the frame, it`s time to remove these badly cracked decals.
Some people think the cracked decals give a bike character, I respectfully disagree.

Above: The bike stripped down to the frame. I did relocate some of the clutter so I could "get to work". Look for me on a future episode of "Hoarders"

Above: This is "The Stuff" I like to use to remove all kinds of crud. I love Goo-Gone, almost as much as I love Mother`s Mag and Aluminum Polish. This won`t remove the decal by itself. But it will soften it up a bit. I put some on a rag or paper towel and rub the decal and surrounding area down real good.

Above: After wiping off the excess Goo-Gone I warm-up the first 5 or six inches of the decal with the heat-gun. You want to keep the heat-gun moving all the time to avoid cooking the paint. Try heating the decal for a short time and then try to scrape the decal off. I like to use my thumb-nail with a paper towel over it. You might want to use a plastic scraper. If the decal is hot enough it should break-up easily when scraping.

Above: This is me demonstrating my paper-towel over the thumb-nail method. After I scrape an area it will leave some flecks behind.

Above: Here is the first 5 or 6 inches of the decal removed. Afterwards I put some Goo-Gone on a clean paper-towel and wipe off the flecks. They will slide around a little, so you will have to fold the towel and hit it a few times.

Above; It should look something like this when you are finished. Now it`s time to clean-up those bearing-cups and races.

Above: After wiping-off the grease I cover the race with a good coat of Mother`s.
After it sets for a minute I wipe it off and buff with a paper towel. I usually have to repeat this two or three times before it really shines.

Above: I think this looks fine and it feels smooth. If I am still not satisfied
with the results. I sometimes sand it down (just a little) with # 600 automotive grade wet-sand paper, then re-polish.

Above; The head set bearing-cups get the same treatment. Sometimes I will use a brass-bristle detail brush on the inside of these. After all the bad decals are removed and all the races /cups are clean I wipe the frame down with Armor-All "Cleaning" Wipes.

Above; Now we have a nice clean frame to work with. Note: This bike is actually finished now. I will be posting the restoration in pictures in a few days. I think you will like it. Till next time, PLEASE RIDE SAFE and remember to always RESCUE,RESTORE&RECYCLE Cheers,Hugh

Brake-Lever hoods for old Schwinn`s

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Above: This brake-lever was used on the Schwinn Continental and some Le-Tours and most likely several other bikes (circa 1980). It does not look like a good candidate for brake-lever hoods. As you can see the suicide lever on this one has already been removed. For removal see August 8th 2010 (We don`t need no Stinking Suicide Levers!) I chose to remove the cap screw on the side of the lever frame. This gives the hood a better fit. If you do this, make sure that you can not manipulate the post to come out of the housing after installing the hood. If you can replace the cap screw and continue.

Above: To remove the lever loosen the clamp using the slotted screw located in side the lever body. On some levers you will need to use an an Allen wrench. After you slide the clamp off the bars then remove the screw and remove the clamp. This will make it easier to install the hood. Take notice of how this came apart, as you will need to re-assemble it later.

Above: I have already removed the tip/adjuster from the lever. It screws off by turning it counter clock-wise by hand. You may need pliers to get it started. I like to insert the lever body into the hood as shown. Be careful using the "Cane Creek" hoods they are not as pliable as the old gum hoods. Do NOT insert the
lever body all the way just yet.

Above: Depending on the climate, You might want to warm-up the hoods "a little" using a heat-gun (set on low)or hair dryer gun. This will make the hood somewhat more pliable and easier to stretch over the lever body or frame. The key words here are "a little" You still have to handle the (insert swear word here) thing!

Above: This is what it should look like when you have worked it into place. Now you are ready to do come cutting. You will need a razor knife with a fresh blade and a small pair of sharp scissors. Use EXTREME CAUTION when working with SHARP TOOLS not
a job for children. If you don`t feel confident find someone with experience to do the cutting for you.

Above: You can feel where the post meets the frame of the lever you might even see a slight ridge. When cutting it is better to come up a little short that to cut too much off. If you cut it close enough, the tip will push the excess out of the way when you screw it back on.

Above: When screwed back on the tip / adjuster should make contact with the hood.
This one is not screwed-on all the way in this pic.

Above: Here I cut-out the channel for the lever using the razor knife. After cutting out the channel you can touch-up the edges with the small scissors.

Above: After trimming the channel cut, I screwed the tip/adjuster down all the way.
Then re-attached the clamp to the lever frame and mounted it on the handlebars. The top cut can now be touched-up with a single edge razor blade if necessary. I decided to leave well enough alone.

Yeah Baby! That`s what I`m talking about!

Till Next Time, Please RIDE SAFE and Remember to Always RESCUE,RESTORE&RECYCLE
Cheers, Hugh

1980 Continental finished

Hello and Welcome,
I put the finishing touches on the 1980 Continental Sat am. It was cloudy so the pics don`t really do it justice. Also, a bike I built last winter came back for repairs /changes

This pic got the Bare-Bones Continental featured on oldtenspeedgallery.com for Halloween! SWEET!

The skin-walls look like white-walls. But are actually a tad darker than a white-wall

Going back to the Phat  SAKE Road-Champion bars was a good choice

This is always a good pic to include in your ads. It shows attention to detail

The hoods required some razor cutting and removal of the "suicide levers"

The Track-Saddle goes well with the tape and hoods and the bare-bones look

Chain-stay guard made with 3-M detail tape.  There is a  little rust spot, at just past  12 : 00 on  the chain-ring guard.

An old friend came back this week  for some changes / repairs.

Damaged levers replaced with re-furbished two-way levers. Extra padding was added to the bars on the flats and inside the curl.

Above: Work has resumed on the Red Varsity. I found some near-mint and very correct looking wheels for it today for 15.00 (and some change). I might be going with road-tires after all. I have a set of black-walls that I think will look great on this bike. Updates coming soon. In the mean-time Please Ride Safe and remember to always RESCUE,RESTORE&RECYCLE
Cheers,Hugh

Schwinn Continental Part 3

Hello and Welcome, I hope everyone got through the storm OK. We were very fortunate. The power here never went out. And the Oak trees shed very little lumber in the high winds. Here is my latest update on the Continental.
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Above: The front wheel finished and back on the bike sporting a new Kenda K35 Skin-Wall. Also front center-pull caliper refurbished with new Jag-Wire Shoes.

Above: The rear wheel cleaned-up nice. It took a while to "true-up" the wheel as several of the spokes were loose. I took this pic before I removed a few links from the chain. The rear derailleur cleaned up nice. It took a little longer than usual as I was out of White-Lightning Clean-Streak. I used Q-tips to get at all the little nooks and crannys. I did use some Green Bio-Degradable de-greaser along with mothers (Mag and Aluminum Polish) and Turtle-Wax (Chrome cleaner/Polish). In the end I think it came out just as clean. I used the very last of the Clean-Streak on the free-wheel. I gave it a good scraping and brushing (between the gears)before spraying.

Above: Here the bike is starting to take shape. I did end-up changing the handlebars. The Fuji bars were a little too small of a diameter. I can`t imagine anyone riding this monster having small hands. So I robbed Peter (La-Tour) to pay Paul (Continental). So now it is sporting a sweet set of light weight Road-Champions. (pic coming soon) As you can see it still has the temporary saddle.
The new Saddle was delivered late today with the new brake-lever hoods.

Above: The pedals on the Continental were cheap replacements, and did not even match 100%. So I took these pedals from the Varsity`s parts box (which appear to be Continental upgrades) and refurbished them. I used every thing to clean them up.
This would include a Brass-brush and a Brass Power brush, Turtle-Wax Chrome Cleaner/Polish/Rust-Remover and Mother`s Mag and Aluminum Polish. I did see a beautiful 1980 Continental on you-tube. The restorer listed Mother`s as his Chrome Polish of choice. And the chrome looked fantastic. I have been using Turtle-Wax Chrome Cleaner Polish since the 1970`s on cars and motorcycles. Maybe it is time for a change.

Above: A close-up of the "Schwinn Approved" rear derailleur. Sounds kind of silly now SCHWINN APPROVED! But back in the day, that really meant something. Because before the light-weights, Schwinn ruled the roads of America.

Above; The front derailleur all cleaned up and ready to go to town! I don`t about you but.. I just cant get enough of that "Schwinn Approved" engraving (:

Above: Here is a shot of those Phat Road-Champion bars. I think that was a good switch. Also a shot of the rear brake-lever with a new Cane-Creek hood installed.
Of course the suicide levers were removed earlier and the mount post cut-off almost flush with the lever frame or body. I think I`m going to do a post (soon) about making these hoods work with the standard Continental levers.

Well, That`s about it for tonight. I will be finishing this bike tomorrow. Actually it`s almost done now. But I did not want to take any more pics till the new cork tape is on. So check back soon, I think you are going to like the way it turned out. In the mean time, Ride Safe and remember to always RESCUE,RESTORE&RECYCLE Cheers,Hugh

Schwinn Deja Vu Continental Update

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Above: The One Piece "Ashtabula" Crank before refurbishing

Above: I removed the Ashtabula 1 Piece Crank and de greased the bearings and cleaned and polished the cups. I lightly sanded the cups with # 600 automotive wet-sanding paper before re-polishing. I removed the ring-guard and large chain-ring for brass brushing and polishing with Turtle-Wax Chrome Cleaner Polish & Rust Remover.

Above: The fork had lots of surface rust and the sticker (graphics) were peeling off. I was a little concerned that it might not clean-up well. The lower head-set bearings had no grease what-so-ever and barely a trace that there ever was any.
I did notice the tires appeared to be original and still had plenty of tread. This tells me the bike was not ridden much and the bearings would probably be ok after a good soaking. I used white-Lightning Clean-Streak" on the head-set bearings. Quick Tip: After I dry-off the bearings, I like to shake them. If I don`t hear the bearings rattling around in the jacket, I know they are not clean yet. Be careful that they are completely dry and wear safety glasses. You do not want to get de greaser in your eyes.

Above: The fork after cleaning and polishing. I was able to peel-off the stickers by hand with a little help from a razor blade. Next I used Goo-Gone to remove the adhesive residue from the stickers. After that I went over the fork and crown with Turtle-Wax Chrome Cleaner Polish / Rust-Remover. After polishing I touched -up the bad spots with a Brass detail brush, then re-polished. I had to do that twice to get it this good.

Above: The original stem and shifters. The stem looks pretty good, it just needs a little cleaning and polishing. The shifters are very savable but just too bulky. I decided to replace them with some more compact Sun-Tour stem shifters. I will also be eliminating the suicide-Levers for the same reason. This will also allow me to install some vintage looking brake-lever hoods.

Above: The stem re-mounted after cleaning and polishing with the refurbished Sun-Tour stem shifters. The handlebars are FUJI NITTO engraved. The originals are on my MotoBecane Special Sport. If you enlarge the photo it looks like there is a little residue still on the bars from the original tape. What you are actually seeing is where the adhesive ate through the finish on the bars. I don`t think I have ever seen this before.(at least not this bad) The bars will be re-taped and it will not be visible, I`m not too concerned about it.

Above: This pic shows the original saddle. It will be replaced eventually with a much nicer brown racing saddle. The seat-post was in excellent condition. That is "no doubt" due to the fact that it has never seen the light of day (:

Above: This is not the saddle I am going to use. I just wanted to see how it would look. I did polish the post and collar (Turtle-Wax) and clean-up the seat mount hardware. I think this saddle will look good on the red Schwinn though.


Below: A few more self explanatory pics from the restoration

Till Next Time, Ride Safe and Remember to always RESCUE,RESTORE&RECYCLE
Cheers,Hugh