Here is the 'before' picture of the recumbent I bought last week (actually it is the 'almost before', when it was delivered it had so much dust I could not even see the 'Linear' on the side. I went to work on it immediately.) Guy said it had been in his garage for a long time. It is an old Iowa Linear. I am learning as I go and I dare say it will teach me more than any other bike I've ever had.. So far I removed the rusty chain, cleaned and aired up the tires, and spent literally hours cleaning the dust and muck off of every surface, and about 10+ hours reading various sites including the amazing Park Tool site and the various sites and descriptions and videos of both Iowa Linears and modern day linears. Spent two hours just reading about chains and why they are different from one another and why some can be used for several speeds of bike. I think I'll set aside an entire week to read about shifters. Mine say 'Accushift' and index and friction and I have-not seen anything like them before. I have not put the new chain on yet because some chains are apparently not compatible with some shifters, so I have to know about shifters before the chain goes on.
