curbtender

I'm pretty sure if the OP decides to restore this bike he'll get everyone's support. The negative remarks are from the wisdom acquired by those who went this route.

non-fixie 

In Amsterdam, there's a company that takes old bikes like these - dredged from the canal bottoms and such - and make them into brand new ones. And not cheap or shabby ones either. I've visited their "works" and came away suitably impressed: Roetz Bikes.

A typical Roetz customer with his refurbished bike:

dddd

Looks like a 1977-1978 UO8 model.

A few tight zip ties ought to secure the PLUNGER-style front derailer pretty solidly.

Bottom bracket bearings can be adjusted without messing with the cottered crankarms.
Do not mess with the cottered crankarms, it is a can of worms since these parts almost never come apart damage-free without high heat applied!

The axles, freewheel and bottom bracket spindle can be oiled from each end and should then give a good length of service. Check axle bearings and headset for any signs of over-tightness.

Be gentle with this bike's brake calipers, do not heavily tighten the pivot bolts, and do not forcibly twist brake pads into alignment with the rim.

This bike's chain is much newer than the bike. Brake pads may be rock-hard, or may possibly be still-good.

I see a lot of superficial corrosion but little indication of mechanical unworthiness, so simply getting everything lubed up might have this bike riding on the road in an hour or so, from where a more meaningful evaluation can be effected.
Be sure to allow lubricants time to penetrate, and I would at least loosen up the shift levers to get some spray lube fully inside of their pseudo-ratcheting internal mechanism.

Don't trust the tires, tubes or rim strips to be in good condition without careful inspection. Turning any spoke nipples with tires still inflated invites cutting the inner tube.
Apply penetrant and wait a day before trying to tighten any of the spoke nipples.

Steel seatposts rarely get stuck like alloy seatposts do.

SurferRosa

There's little money to be made anymore, and almost everyone here knows this.

We do know, however, what kind of bike warrants our time.

merziac

Like I said, I rarely say scrap it and yes of course it presents a valuable learning experience with very little value in the end.

The OP asked for opinions and I gave him one of mine that was partially based on his wanting to save an already assploded FD, not a sound starting point IMO and many of us know all to well how "fun" a French project like this can be even when you know the challenges, never mind the cottered crank that is often a struggle in itself when experienced.

I guess I should have prefaced it with "I would probably or if it was me".

BFisher

I completely understand. I'm not even saying I have a desire to tackle such a project right now. Everybody's got preferences, and that's cool.
And I agree. A cracked plastic derailleur is no good. But there are more than enough cheap parts out there to get bikes like this back to a useful state.
We've seen more miraculous rescues around here. Doesn't have to end up as someone's pride and joy. But knockaround status? Everyone loves a good beater.

Dump money into it? That's up to the individual. But it isn't necessary by any means. I've got low-end Suntour Honor on my own Peugeot. Cheap and works great.
I guess my point is that with the right combination of frugality and resourcefulness, bikes like this become a vehicle, rather than another piece of garbage.

merziac

Agreed, and of course we know all that and while it may have been presumptuous I did not get that from the OP who seemed to me to be jumping straight in to the deep end.

dedhed

It's more about by the time you replace needed consumables such as cables, tires, brake pads, tubes, bar tape, seat, chain, bearings, and in this case FD, maybe RD, you have more invested than you could go buy a different used one ready to roll.

It's one thing for some of these guys who would have all that stuff "in stock", but if you are going out and purchasing, especially new, you are way underwater. Often you are even better off buying another "donor bike" for the parts.

dddd

From the photos of this bike, I dare say that it appears rideable as-is, with just the addition of four medium-strength zip-ties tightly wrapped diagonally across the derailer body and seat tube. I would leave a quarter-inch of each zip-tie's excess length still there, so that a tug with a plier each of the first couple of days might keep the attachment super-solid until everything settles down.
Plastic is like that, you can't really tighten it sufficiently on the first go, like bottle cage bolts that should always be tightened again a day after installation, after the paint and plastic have yielded a bit.

Tires appear to be holding air. Chain perhaps in need of oil, but this looks like a working bike to me.

From there, a user would then have at whatever needs fixing (or is in any way aesthetically incongruous with this bike's purpose). A little oil-can TLC can go a loooong way!

dddd

The way I see it, the world needs a whole lot more bikes like this one on everybody's front porch. Bikes with natural theft-deterrence that can present an attractive alternative to so many short trips in a car, cold-motor trips that spew more un-burnt hydrocarbon and foul an engine's interior with condensed moisture and fuel that seriously shortens the service life of the oil and of the engine and exhaust system.

If it's this or a $100 Walmart bike, I would choose a bike like this for road riding, since the bike is of higher material quality, lighter weight and timeless style.

My own porch bike has yet to be stolen and I use only a sidearm barrel safety lock that cost $1 (probably because it was subsidized).

dddd

One more thing is that (just as has been done on the OP's bike), an old bike with steel rims can be upgraded with an alloy rim front wheel to give safer braking in the rain.

Front wheels are so much more common to find at the co-ops than rear wheels, there really is a great surplus of them that can be had cheeeep(!).

Credit all of the low-spoke-count wheelsets that suffer rim fatigue cracks like clockwork at the rear driveside spoke nipples, and that leave an "orphan" wheel behind when the owner buy's a newer replacement wheelset. These will of course usually be 700c, but for errand riders it is not much of an issue and most bike's brakes can be easily adjusted 4mm down at the pads.

BFisher

Hell, maybe I was being presumptuous.

ryansu

I wasn't trying to be negative just practical. Speaking for myself I tend to make plans and fill amazon shopping carts too soon in the process. I would just suggest taking it all apart first access what is there and what is needed and Then make plans I could have easily sunk many hours and $$ into a free on the sidewalk Raleigh before realizing it had a fatal flaw in the seat tube binder area. And learning is great but so is avoiding quick-sand On the other hand I love awful to awesome builds

Hudson308 

cudak888 

Pretty sure that upgrade is already on this bike.

-Kurt

Murray Missile 

Past experience and logic would dictate I tell you to throw it back but I'm going to go against conventional wisdom and tell you to go for it but do it as low buck as possible and just make it functional. Why not? It's all there. Some white vinegar, WD-40 and #0000 steel wool will clean up most of the rust. Once the rust on the frame is removed or at least neutralized get some Rustoleum clear enamel and give it a couple of coats to protect the frame from further corrosion. You'll be amazed how much better even the old paint and decals will look with the clearcoat. In fact I'd give everything else the clearcoat treatment too once it's cleaned up. Watch the classifieds and curb for parts bikes or check out bike co-ops if there are any close by for things like tubes and tires. I'm always amazed at what bikes and bike stuff people throw out to the curb.

Yeah, go for it! It will be a great learning experience. I was given one nearly as bad I was going to junk but now I'm having second thoughts....... I may do what I just suggested to this one just because I can.

riva

Agree its probably smarter to scrap it.

Also agree with those who wouldn't scrap it. I'd probably not either.

curbtender

Nubra 

EXACTLY! I'll just make it fully functional with all bearings attended to (again, I am worried about the cotter pins on the crank, but will see), leave all the rust in its glory and call it "oceanic patina". I figure it will cost, with used parts, about $30 to rehab, including used rubber in a little better condition than these tires.
Thanks Wildwood, you understand that a bike like this can get a lot of action here in Santa Cruz.
Cheers,
Nubra

Murray Missile 

Are we related by any chance?

Nubra 

Thanks Surfer Rosa,
Good to know about the FD. There is a local coop, and I actually have a small collection of parts, and a FD I can use. It was just so cool looking!!!

cudak888 

There's always the Campagnolo Valentino FD (which is a cheaply plated version of the 1960's Gran Sport) which works with the same plunger design. They're not expensive either.

-Kurt

Nubra 

Indeed, some of the remarks were a tiny bit offputting, but I really appreciated the followup and support by other members encouraging me to go ahead and make this a beater bike. Of course decency is in the eye of the beholder.

.

Nubra 

Thanks dddd,
That is an excellent game plan. THANKS so much for the time you spent in thoughtful and thorough approach!
I will not try to remove the cotters.
And, I will post updates to the process. Right now, it is really cold and wet, and I work outside in my back yard. But this is California, and the sun will be out soon.

cudak888 

No worries, I keep this picture around for the naysayers:



It worked like a charm, looked like the Ugly Stick itself, and was one of the most amusing beaters I've ever built.

-Kurt