(Starting a new thread for a frame I outed recently...)
I got an email recently from UPS saying a box was going to be delivered, weighing 15lbs. I didn't recall ordering anything, then mostly forgot about it. I was out or busy with some other stuff at home and missed the actual delivery. Ellen came home and said, "There's a big box taking up the entire entryway. Jessica won't be able to get out." (Jessica is our garden unit tenant.) I went down and grabbed it. It was a bike box, not too heavy, certainly not a bike. I opened it to find this:
It came from a fellow I met from The Paceline. He was in town a couple months ago getting his niece settled in for grad school at the University of Chicago. He brought a bike and we rode a couple times. He mentioned having a beat up Weigle that he thought was my size. While I didn't forget the conversation, I thought he'd ping me to see if I wanted it. Then we'd discuss price, etc etc. I dropped him a note, thanking him for it and asking what he wanted for it. "Nothing. You showed me around when I was in Chicago, and you are doing the GoFundMe for Doug Fattic. I want you to have it."
It does have a pretty serious crimp in the downtube. I contacted Peter Weigle who reported that it is a 1981, so it should feel right at home with my other American bikes from that era. I think I can probably build it up from decent parts just to see how well it fits (likely pretty well
). Then I will have to figure out how to repair it. So, NFD for me...
(Can we get banana guy added to our smilies?)
(so much for the repeat of my
earlier post)
I spent more time inspecting it this morning. In addition to the obvious downtube damage, it has an odd dent in the back of the seattube just above the chainstay sockets:
and it seems the drive side chainstay did battle with a crank at some point in the past:
Not surprisingly, the frame isn't exactly "in alignment" (a couple millimeters to one side). I suppose I should be glad it's as straight as it is. I won't bother dealing with that until the downtube is repaired.
I threw random stuff at it I had laying around this morning. Thanks to
Barrettscv for the wheels and cockpit.
I still need to cable up the derailleur and brakes, add a chain and pedals, and swap some tires around before I can take it out for a spin.
Given the hard knock life it's lived, I doubt it will ever be a beauty queen, but it is a Weigle. It's got that much going for it.
Flickr album with a couple more pix is
here.