AdventureManCO 

Haha, nah this is the chill build. The worst is definitely yet to come!

AdventureManCO 

Why yes! Yes you do! Time to sign up!

AdventureManCO 

Oooh, I did not. Although I did pick up a pile of leather dust hoping that it contributed to shaving a bit off that 28lbs haha

I really sanded far less than any of the pictures speak to. The cracks were very superficial, thankfully. I had to feather them though, if they were close to one of the rivets.

I'm strangely excited about this build. Probably because we're starting at 28lbs rather than 36lbs, so I'm getting a free 8lbs right off the bat

stoneageyosh

Nah. This is just a warmup for our humble maharashi. Like a newsreel or cartoon (remember those?) before the feature. More of a spit shine than the complete tranformational conversion travesty that will be perpetrated on the next Big H Project.

nlerner

Nice work rejuvenating that saddle, and a reminder to wear black shorts while riding it.

dddd

Also now is the time to have already begun soaking the cottered joints of the bottom bracket with a good penetrant!

AdventureManCO 

Having fun relaxing while doing some therapy cleaning. Happy Fathers Fay!












I’m very happy that what I thought was rust on that RD ended up cleaning off without a fuss. And now that I think about it, DD and I were having a convo about this derailleur on a different bike and I recall him saying it was brass. Sure enough, looking closely at the scuffs reveal a golden yellow hue. Sweet!

Now, I like this RD, seems solid. But it is a boat anchor! Are these RDs rare? Do they have parity with the value of a Nuovo Record RD? Because I would happily trade with someone for a NR if they want to, if they need this version for a period correct resto.

The FD is a gem however, and it will be cleaned next.

AdventureManCO 

Quoted for truth

AdventureManCO 

Mad Honk 

AMCO,
Glad to see you have started thinking outside the " Huffy" box! I'm about to start a junk box build that should be in the On the Road Again thread. Still pondering the build process, but it should be kinda fun. Smiles, MH

stoneageyosh

[QUOTE=AdventureManCO;22927482]Having fun relaxing while doing some therapy cleaning. Happy Fathers Fay!










I’m very happy that what I thought was rust on that RD ended up cleaning off without a fuss. And now that I think about it, DD and I were having a convo about this derailleur on a different bike and I recall him saying it was brass. Sure enough, looking closely at the scuffs reveal a golden yellow hue. Sweet!

Now, I like this RD, seems solid. But it is a boat anchor! Are these RDs rare? Do they have parity with the value of a Nuovo Record RD? Because I would happily trade with someone for a NR if they want to, if they need this version for a period correct resto.
/QUOTE]

Hey, you are bad mouthing the original “Record” derailleur calling it a brass boat anchor. Actually, it could be bronze, which would be stronger and more corrosion resistant, therefore better suited for anchor duty. Had one on my Bianchi Speciallisima. Might have been made for about four years 1963 - 67?). Relatively short run compared to other groups. Nuovo Record group came out in ‘67 before the Mexico City Olympics.

pastorbobnlnh 

I'm 99.9% certain, my Sears 10-speed was the one in the top, right-hand corner. It had the cottered crankset and was silver with pedal clips and cages. Thanks for posting this Neal.

It's interesting they didn't come in different sizes. I guess I could claim that I owned the mid-range Sears racing bike.

Rocket-Sauce 

AdventureManCO You are sick in the best possible way. I can't believe how much interest you are driving for "junky" bikes. These threads are so much fun!

Imagine if you put your restoration skills towards something that "normal" people actually want? Like vintage guitars or muscle cars...

GeezyRider 

I hope AdventureManCO doesn't do anything foolish enough to void the frame warranty for the "usable" life of the bike.

AdventureManCO 

You ride a decently taller bike, yes? Was that Sears a bit scrunched for you back then?

Ahh...'Sears Racing Bike'...it's got a nice ring to it. I can just imagine the jersey...'Sears Racing Team' or 'Montgomery Wards Racing Team'

Would be a fantastic jersey to fab up

AdventureManCO 

Don't count on it!

Although trying to Pantograph S.R.&C. on the bottom bracket might be a bit challenging. At least it's not ashtabula sized!

AdventureManCO 

Here is how the head lugs are looking after soaking about a day and a half -





They are cleaning up, but you can tell the chrome is wrecked. Should be interesting to see what’s left when I pull it out.

stoneageyosh

[QUOTE=AdventureManCO;22927940]Don't count on it!/QUOTE]

I believe that this would be considered as evidence that an alleged potential perpetrator, AdventureManCO, fully intends to modify the frame of subject human(?) powered two-wheeled vehicular device with total disregard of loss of warranty by the seller.
Don’t know that it will be an issue as it appears that the subject bike and we’uns have outlived the seller.

AdventureManCO 

The best part about this whole thing is the 'cheap thrills' aspect of it all. I mean, vintage bikes, except for maybe the top 5%, have really taken a deflationary hit, even independently of regular inflation. When you look at threads from 10-15 years ago, I've seen prices on the whole were higher, at least in many cases. So much so that when I look at a valuation thread and see a price that seems a little 'high' for what I'm used to seeing, 9 times out of 10 the thread is 10+ years old. So, with regard to 'cheapo' bikes, one can pick up something for relatively cheap, or even free, and get a huge kick out of it.

And it has been loads of fun finding the sweet spot of junky-but-promising. I really should make a Venn diagram of my findings. This old Sears is definitely in the center, where nobody that I know of is specifically seeking out this old bike, but look closely and you start to see the finer details, the cool lugs, and what is starting to look like a more lightweight frameset. I have no idea what steel its made from, but we are going to try to squeeze out every last inch of performance out of it. Where the rubber hits the road, however, is...well, where the rubber hits the road, literally lol. It's the ride quality and enjoyment. I don't expect it to ride like an Italian race bike, but I don't really want it to, either! I think it may actually come close to what may have been considered a race bike of the early-to-mid 1960s, but say 'Italian Race Bike', and I automatically fill my mind with definitions that include aggressive geometry, super agile steering, steep angles, stiff frame, etc., which fits more of a later style of race bikes, not necessarily from the 60s.

I'm also into vintage guitars, but they have had a huge boom since Covid - people stuck at home, bored, or scared. That had a big impact on prices. I remember looking at a '65 SG Standard w/ a larger neck, stock w/ no repairs, and I think it was 9k pre-covid. Try finding those prices now! ES-335s? Forget it! I remember seeing a '64 335, factory left-handed (I'm a lefty) for 14k...which is just crazy to think about now. Then again, it was on Denmark St...so I don't necessarily trust that all the parts weren't replaced to get the price that low

I think prices on 'player grade' stuff is coming down here and there, but it is still very sporadic. 10-20k for a sweet vintage guitar, or $50 for a cheap, junky-but-interesting bike from the classic road bike period? It's no wonder why I have several cheap junky bikes in the garage and no $20k guitars in the house

AdventureManCO 

Pulled the head tube from the rust treatment…




And we are now at an impasse. There is a lot of bare metal, and I had an idea to do some DIY homebrew nickel plating, but the whole 'hydrogen embrittlement' has me a bit spooked...definitely need to do a lot more research on that subject.

Stripped the rest of the components off, save for the cottered cranks. Looks like I'm going to need that cotter press tool!



This is a decently lightweight frame. I can tell, even with the cottered crank on there. You can rap on the tubes and it's definitely more like a 'ting ting', compared to the Huffy's 'thud thud' haha.

Moved on to the chainstay rust treatment:


With the head tub lugs, we have 3 options:

1. Do nothing, and try to protect it as best as possible, and steel-wool every now and then and let it patina naturally.
2. Paint the lugs - silver? White? Because we've got chrome socks on the stays and the fork, it would still look balanced even with the chrome on the head tube covered up.
3. Electrolytic nickel plating. I really like this idea, but is the lug susceptible to embrittlement? Can I bake it? What will it do to the paint if I try to bake? Lots of questions around this.


The frame is FAR from perfect, so maybe the 'patina' is the route to go, and if I want a nicer bike, keep an eye out for one in nicer shape. So far, I'm seeing nothing that is condemning anything on this one, even though the saddle is hardening up a bit again.

Open to your ideas on the lugs!

stoneageyosh

My (inflation driven) nickel’s worth:
Get rid of all decals
Keep head tube badge and down tube striping
Paint head, seat cluster lugs and BB shell white
Maybe include fork crown.

GeezyRider 

I like this approach and think it would look really good.

AdventureManCO 

These are great ideas, thanks for your suggestions. I did some further research and found a few pictures of this same bike and the headtube lugs were painted the same gold color as the frame. So that is a possibility as well.

I'll have to see what shape the fork crown is in once the rust treatment is done. If you can find one of these bikes before the rust gets to it...I'm pretty impressed with it. It is pretty unique and a very attractive setup.

And now I get to go see how the chainstay looks!

jetboy 

its not a 10 speed, its a speed 10. those are like diamonds

Mad Honk 

AMCO,
I think I would clean the lugs and clear coat them to keep rust away. Now about that exchange for a NR for your original Record I might be a candidate. Lemme know, MH 812-336-3283