beng1

This is my first single-speed or coaster-braked bike to ride since the mid-1970s. Built up from a 1979 Schwinn LeTour frame/rims, a coaster hub from a Schwinn Breeze, a stem and seat-post from a World-Sport, and drop-bars, tires and tubes from a Schwinn Sprint. The cranks are off a Motobecane I used to race in the 1990s. Bike works great running 52/20 gearing. This is a video of it's first big ride; https://www.*****ute.com/video/EWbCvir8L56T/

beng1

Switched to a 1/8" single-speed specific 50t front sprocket a few weeks ago, replacing the 52T ten-speed style chain-wheel. I noticed no difference in riding the bike, but thought with it's longer teeth the chain may have less chance of coming off;




Bendix 70 after I took it apart and cleaned it, looks like zero wear inside;

Gresp15C

Looks nice. I also ride a single speed on an old Schwinn lug frame with Bendix coaster hub, for knocking around town, recreational rides, etc. What fun!

I strongly advise getting a front hand brake for a number of reasons. First of all, those Bendix hubs don't really brake all that well, and require more pedal force as you increase your gear ratio. Second, coaster-only has quite a few subtle failure modes that are not worth learning about the hard way, such as if your feet are not securely on the pedals when you need to stop, and having to stop on a steep down slope.

I'm sure that having raced, you can handle a bike better than I can, but it also means that you'll be going a lot faster than me, on a bike that's practically brake-less.

rustystrings61 

I rode a similar lugged steel Asian-built Schwinn as my college commuter bike. I'll add my voice to the call for a front brake, mine certainly saved my bacon a time or two.

beng1

I lowered the gear ratio with the 50t front, so have more braking power now. I weigh well over 200 pounds so have lots of weight to throw on the rear brake, and I have already torture-tested it down some really steep grades from 5% to 8% in the wet and rain even, and had no problems. I do not plan on any more torture tests, just easy riding. I am a baby-boomer, and we grew up riding coaster brake bikes, maybe younger generations that did not are less comfortable with them?

joesch

Nice to see you try a SS using that 1979 Schwinn LeTour
Perhaps try centering the seat more over the post.
I could not see the link you provided, did not resolve.

I recently revived a Schwinn Steel 1020 lugged tubing called X-tra light which is probably about a decade later.
My SS has Sugino Super Maxi crankset and Weinmann 605 brakes.
I also did a spray job.

beng1

Nice Schwinn. As far as my riding position goes, it is always funny-strange when people look at photos of bikes on the internet and suggest riding position changes for the owners, and they do it all the time. I would not like the position of your seat and bars for my bikes, but I am certainly not going to assume that what I like would work for someone I don't know and never will know.

Gresp15C

I'm a baby boomer too, and grew up with coaster brakes. What's changed? At least in my life, I moved from a sleepy suburb to a more dense urban area with more car traffic, so there's less margin for error. And we now have access to better information.

But of course on the Internet, we can only guess as to each other's situations, and I'm not going to be a scold about it.

joesch

Yes I understand its a sensitive issue.
Did you use the seat post in reverse position on purpose to help your ride position?

veganbikes

There are also people who legitimately don't know about fit or don't know that things are incorrect. There are ways to achieve a good fit but putting a seatpost on backwards or a saddle slammed too far forward or backwards can cause safety issues. It might not be about your fit but about safety or something else. Not everyone knows everything and I have run across plenty of people who know nothing about bikes and need some help (not calling you out or anything just stating those people exist)

SkinGriz

I don’t know much about bikes.
A friend of mine knows even less.
”My kids bike won’t move at all.”
Me, “Is the brake cable twisted around the headset?”
”No.”

Next time I was at his house sure enough the brake cable had 5 wraps around the headset.

Coaster brakes do have a purpose.

TugaDude

I think experienced riders should ask questions when they see bike photos that contain questionable conditions. Notice I didn't say wrong, I said questionable. I'm the first one to suggest that whatever makes someone want to ride their bike is good. But, and Veganbikes pointed this out, sometimes it comes down to safety.

Aesthetic issues are subjective. I have never liked the appearance of a backwards seat post for example. Whether it is a safety issue it unclear to me but it certainly isn't designed to be used that way as far as I'm aware. So for that reason alone I'd seek out other options to obtain a comfortable fit.

beng1

Seat position is not a sensitive issue nor a mystery. Everyone sets their seats how they want for comfort and/or fun. I have had hundreds of comfortable fun miles on this bike just the way it is.

joesch

RE: Everyone sets their seats how they want ...
Agree, I have not seen anyone use the "backwards" seat post alignment either and my question regarding this choice were ignored.

TugaDude

Reversing seat posts is actually fairly common, especially among the triathlete community. Or it used to be anyway. it is amazing how many "regular people" ride their bikes that way because it is a cheap (i.e. free) means to an end.

One article I saw indicated Thomson is OK with using their seat posts "backwards". I didn't verify that, but I'm sure it could be easily. Liability being what it is, I doubt many manufacturers would agree to it unless they had tested it for safety.

I just can't get by the look of it. But they're not my bikes so it doesn't matter.

joesch

Interesting and I was not aware of this practice in the tri comm.
Still I would think a more centered placement on the rails would provide a more secure and thus safer setup.
Im surprised it has worked for this case "hundreds of comfortable fun miles on this bike just the way it is".

beng1

The weight on the seat of a bicycle is on the wide part of the seat at the very back, this is why having the rear of the seat directly over the seatpost, or at least closer to it, is always going to put less stress on the parts than having the back of the seat further from the center of the seatpost. The only drawback is that because the seatpost is not in the center of the seat rails, which are the seats suspension spring, the ride more harsh in theory, but I have not been bothered enough by it at all. My guess is that at some point having the seat in this position on older bikes will become common and accepted, especially after the hipsters latch onto it as one of their exercises in fashion.

Senrab62 

👀.....

th3realmckay

"My guess is that at some point having the seat in this position on older bikes will become common and accepted, especially after the hipsters latch onto it as one of their exercises in fashion."

I can't even with this guy.

beng1

Added some alloy rims to the Toaster because someone gave them to me, and drilled out an 18T rear sprocket for it to replace the current 19t, Also have come up with a set of 180mm cranks for it that have a 53t big wheel, but it is not a 1/8" specific big wheel so I do not know how it will behave. Moved the seat back 1/2" as an experiment, bike is working as good as ever.

bwilli88 

That whole thing looks Sketchy to me. Drillium is nice when done to exacting measures, that looks
Why keep the 2 chainrings?
Seat post has already been mentioned but why not use a shorter stem and move the seat back a bit and save your knees?
Drilling a Steel cog to reduce weight on a 30+ Lb bike.

SkinGriz

It’s cool enough by me.

For a margin of safety I’d put the holes 1.5 x hole diameter from the edge or from the other holes.

Eric F 

From what I understand, he lacks short chainring bolts to run a single ring, and is not a fan of purchasing...anything. The outer/small ring is only serving as a spacer for 2x length bolts. It's unconventional, but practical.

bwilli88 

15 minutes spent drilling off center holes could have been spent with a file and trimmed the existing chainring bolt to length for a single chainring.
Would have looked neater and enhanced the look of the bike.

grant40