I still haven’t found the “Keep Me Signed In” button, so if anyone can enlighten me, I’d appreciate it.
Where was I? Yes, The lady said that her husband and son had ridden the 1976 Bikecentennial route. After that, it looks like this thing was hung up to gather dust. One of the owners preparations for the trip was to engrave his initials and social security number into the down tube just above the rear shifter. I fuzzed most of the numbers out in the photos, but I think this is a cool detail. No plans to refinish; I love the patina! I asked if they had seen the rear wheel anywhere, and she said that her son had looked, and not found it. The extra front wheel is a Weinmann clincher 27 X 1 1/4, so I bet the owner had a set of clinchers built for his cross country trip. It is also built on a high-flange Nuovo Record, and has a Schwinn Le Tour tire. The spokes are not stainless on the extra wheel.
I got it home and realized it was my size (approx 58cm) and my age. A little research revealed that I had found a great bike. I felt a little guilty, but at least I didn’t try to lowball her $30 asking price.
After a month of Craigslist searching for a replacement rear wheel, or even a hub I could use, I found a set of Mavic Open Pros laced to high-flange Nuovo Record hubs with Compass Jon Bon Pass tires and a Shimano 5 speed freewheel. $120. I saw high-flange 36H rear hubs for sale for this price, so I felt like it was a pretty good score. Heck, for $145 total, I feel like this was the score of the century.
A restoration awaits, and then maybe some tweaking. I wish I could still ride without a granny, but that’s just not the case anymore!
Any suggestions?
Who wouldn't fall in love!
One of the big shops in Portland back in the old days. NE Broadway and NE 7th.
Probably the original front tire. These bikes came with 27" tubulars. The wheel in the background is a 27 x 1 1/4 which he probably had built so he could use clinchers. It's sporting a Schwinn Le Tour.
Craigslist wheels.
Ahhhhh