dddd

Thanks for the update Velo Mule.

All this reminds me of how difficult that a good coat or three of spray paint can be.

Looks great from what I can see, far nicer than factory.
I can't wait to see the assembled bike, it now almost needs a chrome-plated kickstand and seatpost(?).

branko_76 

Beautiful job !

Did you do it yourself? What kind of paint gun did you use?

Velo Mule

Thanks @branko_76 it was a Sharpe Finex. I am no pro, so I can't really tell you if it is a worthy gun or not, but I am happy with it. I also have a Harbor Freight $17 gun that I bought for primer. I think it might be pretty good for color and clear coat too. Both guns clean up easily. The Finex has a small plastic diffuser that I worry about either breaking or loosing. The HF gun is has no small parts like this. I think I get a better finish from the Finex, and that little diffuser could be part of what makes it better.

Velo Mule

Thanks. Here is a picture of the fork crown. Gotta love chrome. There is a reason that it was so well liked. It is tough and hard to stand up to wear and it looks great. Of course, there is a good reason that it is no longer used as well. Long Island has more than it's share of ground water contamination and other places where manufacturing took place have similar issues.

Velo Mule

I might have the kickstand and seatpost in chrome.

cudak888 

Wow. Not only is that a beautiful paint job, that fork crown looks beautiful. Very nice idea to paint it like the earlier forks, but to use the full-chrome fork to imitate the stamped steel crown of the earlier bikes. Looks so much better than the production Continentals at the time.

-Kurt

Velo Mule

I can't take credit for the fork or even the direction that the bike is going. That goes to @dddd . I think that is the value of this forum.

dddd

Thanks, VeloMule. I'm going to have to do that mod to my 1962-1/2 Continental, if I ever learn my way around paint!

Fissile

Thanks so much for the link. It offers proof of what I've been saying for years, the Chicago Schwinn bikes were NOT junk. Chicago Schwinn bikes were built for durability. That's why so many gas-pipe Schwinn frames are still being used to this day. The people running Schwinn knew that the average Schwinn customer was young and was going to be ham-fisted with how they handled the bike. This meant that the bikes were heavy. Unfortunately, Schwinn failed to adapt quickly enough when the public began to demand true light-weight bikes. This was one in a long list of failures to adapt to new market realities which lead to the demise of the Schwinn Bike Company.

BTW, that 'radiant' paint was in fact a 'candy', a trick paint that had been used by hot-riders and other custom car enthusiasts for a years. Candy uses a metallic or pearl base-coat...silver is the most common color, but could be gold or almost any color...and a translucent top-coat. A candy creates the illusion of depth to the paint job, like a candied apple, which is where the term originated.

Velo Mule

There was a time that when you spent your money, you wanted to be sure you bought something that would last. Singer sewing machines and Schwinn bicycles were from that era.

I was able to get some pictures in bright sunlight this weekend. I found out the that the clear coat is still a little soft after a week.

dddd

That slowness to harden is very common if there is much in the way of humidity or if the temperature isn't good and warm.
Also much more of an issue as the paint thickness increases.
Way up in the rafters of a hot garage is a great place to hang a freshly-painted frame.

sovende

This thread brings back a great many fond memories of my "younger days"! I had several bikes as a kid. A ballon tired Schwinn, a (can't remember the brand) "English" 3 speed racer and in the mid-60s, a Schwinn Continental! During my Jr High Schhol days, I used to hang out at the Hazel Park bike shop on the East side of St Paul MN (later to morph into the Park Tool Co!) and pine over the 10-speed bikes in the Schwinn lineup. Of the guys I hung out with regularly, one had a Super Sport (his dad owned a bar, so they had money) the other had a brand new Varsity. The HPBS had a 15 speed Sierra that I would have given my left nut for but my Dad found me a used Continental (?1965?) to save me the sacrifice! It immediately became my favorite bike. Not quite as nice as the "rich kid's" bike but a notch above my other friend's Varsity! I was in a happy place!
I could be wrong but I want to say it had alloy wheels and a nice leather (not Brooks) saddle. Weinmann brakes and other aluminum components. I had this bike into the late '80s when I sold it . For nostalgic reasons, I wish that I still had it.
As the OP stated, these things are boat anchors but they are clearly a part of Americana and I believe, an important part of the bike heyday of America's history! If I ever see one that's been kicked to the curb, I'll be compelled to rescue it. I hope that the OP doesn't "upgrade" his Conti too much!

bblair

I rode my first couple of centuries on a Continental back in the mid 70's. Jean shorts, T-shirt.....

My attempt at restoration involved stripping it and taking it to Earl Scheib (home of the $19.95 paint job!). They had no idea how much to charge, so they just kept it around until they had a job with a similar color and sprayed it similar to your green.

Eventually, it became my campus bike and sat outside in the rain and snow. Maybe I need to get another one.

roadsnakes

"couple of centuries on a Continental back in the mid 70's. Jean shorts, T-shirt.....

My attempt at restoration involved stripping it and taking it to Earl Scheib (home of the $19.95 paint job!). They had no idea how much to charge, so they just kept it around until they had a job with a similar color and sprayed it similar to your green."

CLASSIC !

You Tube

I had, (still have it in my son`s garage) a 1973 Continental. I did 80 miles on it as a smoker wearing sweat pants and t shirt on a 85degree Very windy day. Lost my wallet on the ride when I failed to zip up my seat bag, and damaged nerves in my hand from leaning on top of bars heavily all day .



I had some good times on that bike.

Velo Mule

I was able to get some time to start reassembling the bike. The wheels are 27" with 1-1/4" tires from a 1983 Fuji Espree. Interesting, because the front is a quick release and the rear is a nutted axle, the same as a Continental. The rims are aluminum Ukai's.

I normally ride a 23" frame. This is a 24" frame. Although when I measure, it is 23" from the center of the bottom bracket to the top of the seat tube. I figured that the fit would be good, considering the slack frame geometry, however, it is a little tighter fit than I would like. @dddd suggestion was to go to 700c wheel size. It is only a 4mm difference, but it is going the right direction and gets that high bottom bracket closer to the ground. I have some 700c wheels that I can use to trial fit.


Sorry for the night photo. I will get another picture this weekend in the daylight.

dddd

Good so far, and looking forward to some scenic-surroundings photos of the completed bike!

Velo Mule

Some daytime pictures.





It is taking some time because I have other projects and work. Slowly, it is getting there.

I am thinking about using upright bars because I have two dropped bar 27" wheeled Schwinn bikes already, and this should make a good upright conversion.

Trying to find the right upright bars for me can be challenge. I am curious about Mustache bars, however, I think that my hands and weight will be more forward than I would like. On the other hand, I don't want to get something that is too swept back. The bars that are on there now are Wald 8xx something. I have to look back at my order. They are shaped like a "W". I thought that this would be a good compromise. It is a Continental, so it has lots of chrome.

How much is too much? If I like the bars, I may try to get the same shape in aluminum.

yeldogt

Brings back memories -- my first "10 speed" was a baby blue Continental back in the earlier 70's ... it was stolen and I got a red Le tour. Missed the big upright shifters of the Continental. Ended up having two Le tours as the first was taken as well. The Japanese frame of the Le tour was lighter ... but in flat NJ and NYC the Continental was a better bike. Weight -- well before the 10 speed I had an Orange Krate and a Lemmon Peeler -- they were heavy.

noglider 

I have mustache bars on one bike. They are OK. They really only offer two hand positions, and they aren't very different. Two positions are enough for my commuter bike. The difference between the positions is in reach rather than height, so that suits me well. Brake levers and shifters offered for upright bars are generally better, so consider that. With mustache bars, it often works best if the stem is tall and has a short (forward) extension.

Velo Mule

Thanks. That makes sense. My plan is to keep the original stem, which is short in terms of both height and reach and also keep the original stem shifters. Although the traditional upright bar gives you one position. this is all I might need. I am probably not going to ride it 50 miles like @jackbomay. And if I ever ride it 50 miles it will take substantially longer than 3 - 1/2 hours.

It is weird, with the allow wheels on the bike and most of the components it doesn't feel too heavy. Yes, I have to add the chain, derailleurs and pedals, but it feels better than the original steel wheeled Continental.

Oh yea, the kickstand has to go on too. That feels like it weighs a pound by it's self. I'll have to weigh it.

I though I would start off with the original GT100 Huret derailleur, however, I have a SunTour ARX that will go on. I hate to think it, but I don't see the point of trying out the Huret rear derailleur. I will be using the Huret GT200 front derailleur, at least to start off with.

merziac

I have a friend that I have known since he was 12, world class painter, mechanic, remodeler and everything in between, one of most talented guys I have ever known.

He runs the wind tunnel, does some painting, fabricating and many other things for Freightliner.

He is truly a rockstar at anything he puts his hands to but no bicycles, he just laughs and walks away when I talk about painting them, will probably have to learn the basics for myself and then try to get him to help.

I was amazed when he said the HF guns work great and seem to hold up well, he has a couple.

Velo Mule

My first intention was to change it quite a bit. Except my thought was to go backward and make it more of a turn of the century style. However, I asked on Bike Forums what to do and got many responses. The one that seemed to resonate was "It is a Schwinn Continental, don't try to make it something it is not, keep the things that make it a Continental." So, I did.

My plans are to change the wheels to alloy rims, the handlebars to upright, the rear derailleur to something better shifting, the pedals to something better than the original stamped steel rat traps, and the seat to something appropriate.

My ultimate though on the seat is a Brooks B72. I had one from a tossed out Raleigh 3 speed that I used on my Schwinn Cruiser. It was comfortable and looked great. I then sold it with a Raleigh DL-1.

Velo Mule

I always wondered where Billy Joel got that line from. "Your best bet's a true baby-blue Continental" He was talking about a bicycle!

I thought about painting it Schwinn Opaque blue, however, the campus green was embedded in my mind's eye.

merziac

Not to hijack but here is the Twinn Stick candidate, I know they are an oddity at best but these did come with them so.....

Its in great shape aside from the paint, looks good but about 10% of it is falling off, massive touchup just done for 29th anniversary to Ms. merziac.

dddd

The kickstand is reported to weigh 0.9lb, but it's a really good kickstand, probably the world's best. It makes more sense for heavy bikes to have kickstands, since they won't tip over if something brushes against it.