TXsailor

What should I do with it? It's pretty rough but everything works. Tires look like they are new. Its bigger than I normally ride but other than not having much seat post sticking out it actually felt petty good. I just rode it down the block and back but it feels like it might be a fun bike.

markk900

Big Block

2cam16

Tear it down and build it back up. Polish and wax frame and fork. Polish silver. Regrease. Replace consumables. Ride and enjoy!

pastorbobnlnh 

Fantastic choice! Way to score a classic MTB. I have an '88 High Sierra. Mine is set up with fenders, racks, trekking bars and smooth tires to easily go from packed gravel on the rail trail, to pavement or dirt roads.

tiredhands 

If it's that big on you, judging by the seatpost, I'd go full Rivendell on it. Get some long swept back bars, MKS GripKing pedals, cork grips, a leather saddle, and an enormous saddle bag.

TXsailor

That sounds like a fun idea! I think the first thing I will do is 2Cam & Mark said clean it up then tear it down and repack everything replace the cables etc and see how I like it. It will have to go on the back burner for a little bit as I have other projects going on right now I thought for the grand sum of $32.50 I couldn't go too wrong.

GrainBrain

How do you feel about 100km rides?

That's a sweet find, I love the stem.

TXsailor

I have done lots of 100K rides but not on a MTB in fact not even on a classic steel road bike. I am working on that though. I rode my Purple Haze Ironman 40 miles yesterday and 30 today. I would be pretty proud of myself if I did 100K on that old girl!

canklecat

It's not dirty enough yet. We just got some rain. Go get really muddy. Then it'll feel like more of an accomplishment after cleaning it up.

Seriously, though, that's a sweet looking old school MTB. I keep being tempted by one of those. Got my eye on a 1990s Kona Lava Dome.

BTW, have fun with those cantilever brakes. PITA to adjust. But they work. Kool Stop Eagle 2 salmon pads are great for canti brakes. Ditto Jagwire long and thin black pads -- they match the rim curve better and seem to brake just as well, and will clear front forks better with some rim/tire combos.

Rollfast

Ride her son, she trusts you.

TXsailor

Who knows what year it is? The SN is GN738077. I am guessing 88 or so since it has indexed shifting and Biopace chainrings.

2cam16

If you've never worked on the Cunningham designed roller brakes, just search the internet for how-to's. It's not that difficult. I have and under chainstay one on my '87 Muddy Fox and was able to take it apart, polish, and put it back all adjusted. Just be patient.

pastorbobnlnh 

The '88 did not come equipped with Roller Cam brakes. Look for a four digit number stamped into the head badge. The last number is the year of production. In your case a "6" would be 1986. The first three numbers are the day of that year. Thus "0326" would be February 1, 1986. This is the best way to date a Schwinn of this era. I can also tell you that the "G" signifies "Giant" so it is made in Taiwan. "N" could be the month, which is December ("I" was skipped in order that it was not confused with a "1").

degan

I rode an earlier High Sierra with cantilevers that I converted to drop bars across the country. I also picked up a roller-cam model and have sold two other that I converted to drops. Great sturdy bikes IMO.

The Golden Boy 

It's an 87- I have one. The 86s had welded head tube joints and the 88s didn't have roller cams. These are really unique bikes- As if the black chrome finish isn't enough- the fillet brazed head tube just slams the domination- but it also has the lugged unicrown fork- back in the day they didn't *totally* trust TIG welding with the forces a fork would be under- so someone created a lug- so you could have a unicrown fork... go figure. You've mid-fork front rack bosses, dual rack/fender mounts on each fork end/dropout, you've got rack mounts on the seat stays, 2 bottle mounts, a pump peg mount behind the seat tube, and 6 speed SIS Deore (back when Deore was the 2nd from top of the line equipment). Then to top it off- the Roller Cams... You've got Joytech sealed bearing hubs and I think really nice Araya rims. The 87 High Sierra was no joke. Heck, how many other models of bikes had their own head badge?

It looks like yours has spent some time outside- the stem used to be anodized black- these stems weather to bronze- and it's a cool look with the black chrome frame.

I'll say be careful of the black chrome finish- when it scratches- the chrome underneath GLEAMS through. So even if it's in nice shape- a little scratch shows. The other thing I'd be kind of cognizant about- take careful note of where your cam plate is in regards to the rollers- after you redo cables and stuff- if you don't have your cam plate in the right spot, your braking either doesn't pull enough or it bottoms out too fast. Do a bunch of reading about the roller cams.

Most everything you have will clean up and polish up really nice.

My High Sierra was my first adult bike- I think it shaped a lot of what I like about bikes- it's basically a heavy duty touring bike on 26" wheels. Right now I have mine built up with trekking bars and 1.75" Paselas on it.

Good luck and enjoy it!!!


1987 Schwinn High Sierra by Dave The Golden Boy, on Flickr


Trekking Bars Cockpit. by Dave The Golden Boy, on Flickr

Deal4Fuji

I like that bike ! What did you do about the occasional scratch on the black chrome finish? You've probably found a better fix than this, but I've been surprised how well a Sharpie's ink will adhere to metal while being somewhat translucent where paint would not. I had some really scratched up Nitto Olympiade handlebars that held the Sharpie ink really well.

TXsailor

Dave is right its a 87. I didn't see the 4 tiny numbers on the head badge at first cause they are so tiny and sort of faint. The brakes actually stop it dirty oily and out of adjustment as they are, The front ones are toed OUT about a 1/4 of a inch and the rear has one that is riding on the wheel and the other a long ways from it. If they were caliper brakes they would squeal like a tom cat with his tail under a rocking chair and wouldn't even slow you down. These things actually are quiet and work. The finish has lots of little scratches and some of the bolts are rusted. The lower headset cup and seat quick release are very badly rusted. The pump peg looks bent to me. Its still a cool fascinating bike. To a road bike guy it seems heavy and built like a tank but when I got on it and rode a little it felt like a good bike should even though it obviously needs some TLC. I don't know what I will do with it or if I am even going to keep it but its going to be a fun and very different project until I decide.

T-Mar

The subject frame was manufactured by Giant of Taiwan during weeks 25-26 of 1987. This one is definitely the 1987 model.

jlaw

Why'd you buy that?

I think your new ride has lots of possibilities. After you clean and grease you could add fenders - all sorts of bags/racks - you could do a drop bar conversion, etc. That bike is a great all-around/go anywhere rider and can be built-up in various ways until you find what suits you best.

Plus, those brake calipers are fascinating!

Good luck.

The Golden Boy 

I've done nothing.

The bronze-ish color is pretty ...unique- the tinting doesn't appear to look "black."

I've used Sharpies to color in anodized things- like you mention- and I've covered up freewheel branding.

The Golden Boy 

It is heavy and built like a tank.

I really do find these bikes (the 86-88 High Sierra and Cimarron) fascinating. For all intensive porpoises they're touring bikes- where the tourers of the day were designed to be around 26 pounds, I think these were 29-30 lbs- triple butted tubing, and classy. It's interesting that the expedition touring bikes of now are more like these bikes than they are of the Trek 720/Miyata 1000.

BTW- to correct the rear brake thing- I think you'd just need to increase the tension on the arm that's farther away from the rim- the Suntour/Dia Compe system makes it pretty easy- grab the outside nut with a 13mm wrench with one hand, and loosen the Allen screw with the other hand, tighten the wrench a touch so the arms even out, then tighten the Allen screw to lock it down. The Dia Compe 986/987, Suntour XC Pro and Ritchey cantilevers used the same system. For as cool as the roller cams look- I'd rather have cantilevers.

TXsailor

Why? You nailed it. Its different its a Schwinn and when I posted a picture of those roller cam brakes on here a while back I was told they only came on higher end bikes. Alsoit was at our monthly trades day for $32.50 I didn't see how I could go too far wrong I can't even take my wife out for a sit down meal for that.

jlaw

I think you did well with that bike - just a little joke about the title of your original post - wasn't trying to be snarky.

Post some pics as you bring it back to life.

TXsailor

I didn't take it at snarky in the least. I am still a little surprised that I bought it but its growing on me and I haven't even started the fun of doing CPR on the old girl.