oldbikenewbike

I had posted these in another Thread, but figured maybe a few of you missed them...

Darth Lefty 

The listing expired so I lowballed him. Condition: sans front wheel (shown with the front from my Paramount so it would stand up), otherwise pretty complete. Paint in amazingly good shape considering the seller found it behind a barn. Rear wheel chalupa'd and might be a basket case, so is the RD; I think they might have been crushed together at some point. First impression: it's HEAVY. Plan for now is to get some wheels and get it running with an RD that I have on hand, and try it for a while. If I like it I'll start upgrading to alloy parts or keep looking for a higher model.

oldbikenewbike

Compared to todays bikes, it weighs a ton.
But...I had a Schwinn Continental in the same size and orange color as my Sports Tourer. If I had friends lift the Continental first, the Sports Tourer then seemed like a featherweight, lol.

-holiday76

hmm. So I picked up my very first Schwinn today. A March '72 Super Sport as far as I can tell.



more pics

https://picasaweb.google.com/1133647...innSuperSport#


My plan was to get it functional but keep it ratty so I could take it to my NYC office and leave it there. I still might do that, but reading this thread kinda makes me want to do something different with it. I like the blank canvas-ness of an American made frame. I like how the lack of lugs means a decent powder coat will look great. And honestly, this $30 frame is so ugly and beat up I'd love to see it have a new life.

Not sure what I'm going to do yet, but it will likely involve Bilenky.

Perhaps canti studs with a 650b conversion?

Hmm.

I'm open to ideas.

Hudson308 

The nice thing about early-70's Super Sports is there's enough of em around that you're not destroying history by making huge changes to them. A number of guys here have really gone crazy with a resto-mod or neo-classic build. Cantis, a 3-piece crank conversion and 650B's would make a great bike that could handle more abuse than one made with thinwall triple-butted tubing.

ScheissSchiess

I am currently upgrading a Super Sport (that I got sort of ripped off on because I am a newb, but that's another story). What wheels would you suggest? The current wheels are too bent. They are 27" x 1&1/4", I assume steel. Anything I need to consider other than the 27" x 1&1/4" size? Thanks in advance.

Darth Lefty 

Well, I haven't dug into mine yet. But...

The rear wheel is a 5-speed so it will be 120mm wide. If I couldn't find one, I was planning to just cram in a 126mm-wide 6/7 speed wheel, since that seems to be what's available today in new 27" wheelsets like this one.

I haven't checked yet to see if 700c wheels will work. The brake shoes would need to have another 4mm of adjustment down. The slots in the caliper arms are huge, so it might be possible. In order to use a modern wheel with a freehub it would need to be 130mm for road wheels, or 135mm for hybrid wheels, which use MTB hubs, and the frame would need to be respaced.

I think a hybrid or compact double drive train would go great on this bike. There are adapters for putting square taper bottom brackets in the one-piece shell. However it's a lot of parts to buy or transplant.

Hudson308 

Rear spacing on early 70's SS & ST is 126mm. Most 5 & 6 speed freewheels will work with no rear triangle spacing changes necessary. 27x1-1/2" aluminum wheels were standard equipment, with quick release 36 spoke high flange hubs. Many 5- or 6-speed 700C wheels will work if the hub spacing is narrow enough, and if there's enough adjustment on the calipers, as mentioned.

m3rle

Here are two Super Sports I've been working on.

1973 built as a city bike

1970 restored stock

Hudson308 

Very nice! We don't see many pre- '71 SS's with the chrome fork. Does that one also have the forged rear dropouts with integral derailleur hanger? If so, how about a closeup?

Rabid Koala

I picked up a $25 Sports Tourer in Kool Lemon a couple of years ago. It was in really poor condition, the worst of it being a rusted fork crown. The paint was so thin you could see through it, so if I were forming an impression of Schwinn quality based on this one bike I would say their quality was bad. It seemed very unlike other Schwinns that passed through my hands. I eventually parted it out due to my lack of ambition for another project!

m3rle

Here's a close up of the Huret dropout. Apparently to put on, say, a vintage SunTour derailleur, you'd have to fab a washer to fit the hanger.

These forums helped me a great deal in restoring this bike and learning the history of this particular model year. This bike is such a pleasure to ride.

Darth Lefty 

Having now taken my Super Sport apart, it is definitely spaced 120mm for 5-speed. With help from @Metacortex , the S/N says it was brazed in '71, the green color says it was built in '72.

Jeff Wills

There's been a couple threads about how to make an adapter washer. It's not terribly tough. Fortunately, my Superior came with the correct washer:

toavii

I picked up a '77 Schwinn Superior today for practically nothing. I've previously restored a '72 SS so when this came up I had to get it. It's extremely rough, so I have a few questions.

Somewhere along the line, the front derailleur was lost. With this tubing size, any suggestions as to what to look for? I want friction.

I'm not going to bother going with the original seat post. It's rusted and heavy. I'll chase down a better candidate (26.8 correct?) and save time. Again, any suggestions?

The paint is pretty much shot and the decals nonexistent, so I have a decision to make here. It has surface rust in spots throughout the frame and if I address this and want it to be more than a beater, I'm just going to follow through with sanding it down to bare metal. People who have tried to spray bomb their bikes, is it just a waste of time and should I just get a proper paint and be done with it?

Part of me wants to keep this around as a long term project and go all modern with the components. I'm a big fan of the way the SS rides and it's my size. Outside of the obvious money issue, any reason as to why I should avoid this?

Thanks in advance.

Darth Lefty 

If my paint was shot I'd drop it off at a powdercoater and pay them to deal with the paint removal. Powdercoat seems to have the same sort of slightly flat color as the originals. How is the chrome on your fork? Want to keep it or paint over it?

I'd love to do the same, like @Scooper: 1973 61cm Schwinn Super Sport with 2009 Campy Comp Triple on velospace, the place for bikes. I guess the question is how whole-hog do you go? He has basically replaced everything except the frame, fork, and headset.

pastorbobnlnh 

Just my 2 cents.

I recently upgraded my '93 Cannondale R600 to 9 speed Nashbar/Microshift brifters and derailleurs and a Nashbar compact crankset (50-34). I'm running a SRAM 11-34 cassette. I did this mostly on the cheap for about $250 including the ISIS BB. I had the wheels so I was set there, but if you can find some decent used wheels, you could convert the classy Superior to a modern ride for a minimum amount of dollars.



I should mention the RD and FD shown are not what I'm now running. I should also say that the shifting is spot on and this is my first compact double and I really like it.

P.S. Those are Nashbar wheels that I had picked up for another project a few years back. IIRC I paid about $130. Checked Nashbar and this is a current sale for these Vuelta wheels which for $120 would look sweet on the Superior.

toavii

At first blush, the chrome on the fork isn't great, flaking in one spot. If I was to powder coat, I'd just have the whole thing done and not have to worry about it later down the line. I'm just not a huge fan of the thicker and duller look of powder coat though.

So, anyone have any suggestions about what to do for a front derailleur?

Metacortex

The seat tube OD is 1-5/32" (29.4mm), however most 1-1/8" (28.6mm) derailleurs should fit. I know you aren't looking for an original, but in '77 the Superior would have come with a Schwinn Approved (Huret) GT-285. That unit was slightly updated for '78 as the GT-295, there is a GT-295 currently on eBay: 28 6 Huret Schwinn Approved Front Derailleur | eBay

The original steel seatpost is indeed 26.8mm in diameter and 9" long, and weighs about 5.8oz. I purchased this Kalloy aluminum replacement and it weighs about 5.4oz, so there is not much of a weight savings there. But the price is right and it looks nicer than rusted steel. <g>

toavii

Thank you.

I ordered it as I wanted a friction FD. Regardless of which direction I go down the line, I much prefer friction up front so I can trim. Felt a little weird paying more for that than I did the bike though... Ha

Metacortex

Cool, it should fit perfectly. Note that I incorrectly stated it was a GT-290, that would have a 1" clamp, the one you got is a GT-295 with the larger 1-1/8" clamp.

toavii

Since I referenced it, here's my SS. It mostly pulls spare bike duties or is borrowed to a friend for a ride from time to time.

m3rle

Speaking of front derailleurs, mine is having trouble shifting to the large chain ring. The arm on the FD 'bottoms out' before the chain is engaged. The adjustment screw is open all the way. One thing I was going to try was rotating the FD so the back end will possibly swing wider and get the chain on. Any suggestions?

And great picture of the washer. Thanks. I could almost trace that and make a template.

Metacortex

You can see the official Schwinn service manual information on properly setting up your front derailleur here: SLDB 1969-70 Repair Manual - Derailleurs pg 517

Jeff Wills

I would do as you suggest and rotate the derailleur. Once that's done, you can bend the front lip of the inner cage outward with pliers to get a little more push. Don't worry about it- that's how we did it back in the day.