Bianchigirll 

As we all know procrastination or uh rather contemplation is an important first step to any task at hand. I picked up the newly rebuilt, albeit from a used rim, the shop for my Bianchi “Cherry Tomato” SBX, so it’s time to get that squared away and do a few other tasks.

So I’m going to contemplate this job while I enjoy my covfefe and a little treat, plus watch the news


The repurposed Campanutella Lambda Strada is an OK match for the aged Montherly Sport on front, so hopefully not too obvious.



While the SBX is in the stand I’m going to swap out the current RD and shifters for this Suntour Sprint I got at Auburn, along with these beautiful Simplex Retrofriction shifters. I was going to save them for another, somewhat unplanned project but I going to use a NOS Centaur I’ve been sitting on (or maybe a Regina 1992). I’m also pretty sure I have set of Campanutella Doppler shifters for that.

VintageSteelEU

I'm working on a frame without rear derailleur mounting and had to use a mounting claw for that, but I didn't have a suitable centering spacer for the non-drive side. Of course, the wheel can still be centered alright, but I just don't like the fiddling every time I take the wheel off and put it on.
I made these before for another frame using pieces of aluminium, but this time didn't have a bench vice, which would make the whole process a bit of a pain in the backside. Old Huret Eco in non-working condition came to the rescue. The derailleur itself was busted beyond repair, but the dropout claw was intact. I drilled out the rivet connecting it with the derailleur and then sawn off now obsolete derailleur dropout so it doesn't interfere with mudguard eyelets on the dropouts. Looks actually ok and does the job.
The bicycle is slowly coming together. Next stage will be removing some rear hub spacers on the rear wheel to shift the chainline more towards the drive side and re-dish the wheel. I still need some brakes for this frame as centre pulls I was planning to use won't do (cables can't be arranged in a way that would be acceptable with centre pulls) and waiting for the pedals for it.


Huret derailleur claw

Modified

And on the bicycle

jamesdak 

Yesterday I finally got to the wheels that came with the Bianchi Triofea, The Miche Primato hub on the front set felt aweful when I got the bike. Took the axle out yesterday and found some kind of sealed bearings inside. It was a simple task to pull off the dust covers and seals to reveal the bearings. I could see no sign of any grease in them at all! They did look shiny and new though. These hubs have real oil ports on them but still you'd think there'd be some sign of grease in them. Anyway, cleaned them best I could and then repacked them with with grease. They feel excellent now. The rear hub felt buttery smooth and the freewheels is smooth and quiet. Opened up the rear anyway and found them nicely greased. Not sure what gives here but anyway, back in service. I doubt I'll use these for anything so they will probably go the Coop next time I take a load of parts down there.

DQRider 

(File this one under: "Well, You Asked For It".)

Yeah, I pushed that over to the "Where'd You Ride Today" thread. Here's a link: Where'd You Ride Today? (New & Improved) - Page 790 - Bike Forums

Posts # 19733&4.

I didn't talk much there about how she rode. I'm not used to lightweights, having only built one other: a Viner SpecialTouring. Since I don't wear lycra and pretty much ride like a kid, I've never really had a use for them. So Sophia was a special treat, and she felt almost magical in the way she just glides along on smooth pavement. Until you hit a bump <BANG!> But other than that, I really enjoyed the experience.

The rest of this is painful to write. Now, you'll notice that I'm writing most of this in the past tense. That is because she is currently laid-up in the back of my van with a taco'd rear wheel and what looks like an unrecoverable injury to her RD hanger. You'll also notice, in the photo below, how loose the RD was when I transferred the drivetrain from Celeste to Sophia.



The chainstays on the Squadra are about 6 or 7cm shorter than those on the Sport SX. After this photo was taken, I pulled 4 links from the chain and put it back together. I've done this in the past with other chains without any problems, but this one didn't go back together as easily as I expected. Still, I did finally manage to get it done; it was moving nice and consistent with the other links when I put everything back together.



Then, while climbing a hill near my house the next day, out-of-the-saddle like a pro, I shifted down a cog and got a bit of stutter in the driveline. I should have STOPPED IMMEDIATELY, but didn't. One full pedal stroke later and the bike stopped me. I looked down and found the RD entangled in the rear spokes, and the hanger bent back almost double, like this:


Sorry about the crap-quality photo - I just went outside and grabbed this, and I see that the auto-focus picked up on the adjuster screw instead of the hanger. And THAT is why I usually don't use auto-focus.

I'm sure the chain-link that I rejoined after removing those links failed here. So now what? I've no idea, no answers, I mean, the infamous "Drew Procedure" comes to mind immediately, but I don't think I want or need another single-speed, and I damned sure don't want a fixie. Remove and replace the whole dropout? That's beyond my skillset, and would end up Item # 3,456,789,012 on my To-Do List.

I stand 5-feet eight-inches, weigh 205 lbs, and I ride like a kid. I definitely qualify as a Clydesdale, and have no business playing around with these pretty, expen$ive, lightweight roadbikes. I guess I should be glad I've gotten them out of my system.

Eventually, this frameset and wheels, plus the Shimano 105 derailleurs that came with the bike, will go up for sale. But right now I've got to concentrate on my job search - winter is here and it's time to go back to work.
*
*
*

Bianchigirll 

DQRider OH NO! I’m sorry to hear this. I’m certain this can be repaired but you need to find the right guy. I was lucky enough to work for/with a guy who was previously a machinist and he could do wonderful things. I’ve straightened a few myself but it takes lots of time and patience. I’ve even seen some with the wheel slot splayed open made useable again. The next step might be finding a frame builder (maybe even a motorcycle guy and perhaps a gunsmith?) to grind off the old hanger and replace it.

I suspect an overshift was the culprit here rather than the chain, unless your chain was too short to go in ‘big n big’ but that likely wouldn’t have bent the hanger that way. While I take some grief for it “Derailleur Protectors” are showing up on my bikes. I’d rather take some ribbing for having a dork disc on my fancy ‘80 Batavus Professional than suffer through this issue.




Do you ride with a group? When I got my first good bike I constantly buggering up the rear wheel but after I started going on group and training rides I sort of learned how ‘ride light’ if you will. Avoiding obstacles in the road goes without saying but learning to get out of the saddle and shift your weight rear to front as you go over a bump takes a little, or for me a lot, of practice. I know a lot of guys who can bunny hop over lots of stuff with an incredibly smooth landing but they usually have lots of BMX experience.

Hopefully someone can suggest a place close by to get this repaired.

Dylansbob 

At this point, I'd say you don't have anything to lose by putting a big crescent wrench on it and start bending it back. I actually saved one about that bad by getting it relatively close with the crescent, and finishing with a shimano rear wheel. Not a bad idea to put a donor RD bolt through when you can to keep the hole from distorting too much. Worst case scenario, put an old claw on it or splurge on a $25 Wheels Manufacturing universal hanger.

VintageSteelEU

That really sucks. If you have any workshop, you might try putting the dropout into a vice, spare derailleur bolt through the hanger and then try to get it back into shape. Other options: framebuilder should be able to replace the whole thing though it will cost you quite a bit (price I found in the UK is £125) and that would be probably the best option. Another, which is a bit painful, is removing the bent hanger and fitting a derailler claw. Though it's a forged dropout, so the width of the right one will be significantly thicker and you might require a longer hub axle. If the frame is rare / valuable, I'd go with the framebuilder option. You will at the least need to have that dropout repainted in any case. The most cost effective option would probably be selling the frame to someone who might be able to fix it / wants to convert it into a fixie and buying another, non-damaged one.
As for lightweight steel bicycles, they are not necessarily more delicate than your standard, single butted frames. There's plenty bicycles with Reynolds or Columbus steel out there which lasted decades without issues. The reason why you won't see many heavy frames with damage on the market is most likely because they got discarded as junk the moment something went wrong.

Bianchigirll 

SUCCESS!! Or should I say SIMPLEX!! Aren’t these beautiful? I mean those Rival shifters have a graceful elegance to them but these scream VINTAGE. as they say in Boston it shifts like buttah.



The Sachs Rival shifters are very elegant looking and the same space as shipmano 7spd. They worked great with the 600 RD I had on this bike but I started running them in micro friction mode. so when I found that beautiful Sprint derailleur I decided to use these to go friction.

VintageSteelEU

You mean the indexing works correctly with something like RD-6208 EX or RD-6400? That's interesting. I like the shape and overall look of these Rival shifters, if they could be used with Shimano derailleurs, that's great news when in comes to getting spares.

hankamania

Pretty sure that's a Stronglight 93. The corners of its arms are sharply squared, and the 105's arms are more rounded. I still have scars on the nubs of my ankles from when I was 13 or 14 and had my first set of slotted cleats for my PX10 with a 93. I'd have loved to have had a 105.

VintageSteelEU

I've never seen one next to another, but of course these are two different models. I have 105 ter (black driullium chainrings) on one bicycle. Or at least I think it's 105 based on typical specifications for Motobecane it came with and on the engravings on the backs of the cranks, though the crank arms themselves look identical to what Velobase shows as 93. What I love about these is that the spider looks delicate and gives the whole design an air of lightness. It's like an embodiment of the company name

curbtender

I didn't have much faith in how this would turn out but am pleasantly surprised. I even broke out the NOS Schwinn branded saddle.

Pompiere

I have a LeTour from the same era. It's not fancy, but it is stable and reliable. I find myself grabbing it quite often.

1988 Schwinn LeTour

VintageSteelEU

My Motobecane is getting new mudguards. Oxford chromoplastics in silver went to another bicycle which I'm planning to sell and where they look better. Moto got Bluemels Olympic Racer 35mm in shiny black. One thing I like about skinny black Bluemels is that they blend in with the tyres and hug them very closely. Of course, they are not vintage, but in my opinion don't look off on the 70's bicycle. And are much lighter than the steel mudguards.
Yes, these are P-clips. I have some Dia Compe mudguard mounting washers / spacers for the hub axle and don't like them (too long for no reason I can think of). Short of brazing on mudguard eyelets on the frame (not an option on this one), unfortunately P-clips are the most strudy and reliable option there is. And can be easily removed if necessary. I have an idea for a different, custom solution, but haven't had the time to work on it yet.

mrv 

Got a stem from jdawginsc
degreased and 600 grit smoothed the black paint a bit.
then rattle can enamel flat black

Question - would a clear coat reduce the chance of the stem bonding to the steerer tube?

jdawginsc 

That came out nicely. I don't think a clear coat and polish would hurt anything for sure. The only problem I have had with painted stems is you have to start high to test height then inch down to adjust (otherwise the scraped paint shows).

mrv 

Right! - I would have preferred a polished stem - heck still might do that to this one - but it’ll start black. The frame it’s going into has a short head tube, so it’ll be at max height. Not sure what bars yet. Nitto albatross or Soma Sparrow most likely. This bodge project does not warrant $210 Nitto BullMoose bars!! Thanks for your help

jdawginsc 

Thats sort of what I thought you might do actually...strip the finish and polish it up. Like the picture you posted ISO.

Bianchigirll 

Im sorry I should have replied sooner. Yes they work very well as I believe the whole Sachs index system was based on the Shipmano spaced freewheels. As soon as get my lazy butt to work finding a reasonable price to ask I have a pair or two I’m going to be selling. I snatched up a few sets years ago when I decided on the shipmano 7spd HG as a “standard” for most of my bikes, but I seem to devolved to friction and retro friction shifting.

Schweinhund

This, but heat it up good first. it'll be fine. I've straightened a few that were as bad as this. if it were aluminum instead of steel it would be far worse to fix..

Schweinhund

The six and seven speed index shifters worked with pre-shimano tourney too.

Mr. 66

The Performance gets rebuilt with a 105 makeover. I've had this a number of years, originally 2x8 Shimano 600, with a ti stem a mile long. The 600 just did not do it for me, the color of the brakes and calipers was a clash in my mind. I had it built with shiny bits, even with the best of the best, the Focus did not float the boat.

Last week I saw a Black Widow Marin at price point favorable, instantly I thought frame swap. And swap I did. From Marin to Focus.


The hubs are the only non 105 of the grouping, they are cartridge bearing Xero branded. I'll eventually replace the Xero for 105, bit for now this is how it sits.

The pedals are Cyclone pista.

thinktubes 

It’s like looking in a mirror…

Classtime 

The last several wheel builds were also with previously used spokes and sometimes used nipples also. The spokes were a little short or a little long — a real pita. I lucked out with this one. The Aerohead was available to BFers but there were no takers and that worked out perfectly with these briefly used spokes, left over new nipples, and my first Dyno hub — an SP..


Better than the bottle? We’ll see.

SurferRosa

Been really busy overhauling a couple bikes to flip, which is fun, but there's not that sort of rewarding feeling like I'm going to be able to use the thing. Then I got these hubs yesterday for my own bike. First thing I did is open them up to make sure that the races and cones were perfect before I purchased a pair of black Sun m13ii rims. All good. Then I polished the spoke hole rash with a file, 600 grit, and Mother's. They then got fresh grease and bearings.

The only problem I ran into is the drive-side rear cone/spacer/locknut were stuck together. I let the axle sit in a shot glass of acetone and ATF for a couple hours and then went back at it with two cone wrenches, working on the floor this time and trying the wrenches in different positions to get the best mechanical advantage. Puuussshhh!!! Whew! Success!


.