VegasTriker

40 minus 10 equals 30. By that calculation you got 30 years of riding the hike out of the set that is on the bike. Time to get a new set. This is especially true if you stored the bike upright with the weight on flat tires. That damages the tire cord where the tire rests on the ground.

You probably will have to buy tires online since manufacturers switched to 700C instead of 27" in the 1980s. Most bike shops do not carry any 27" tires because there is little demand for them. The selection available online is pretty slim too. I see Kenda, Panaracer, and CST on eBay. I've used the Kenda K35 tire to refurbish old bikes for kids. They are a lot more expensive that they used to be. It's a decent tire for road use. $41 a pair with free shipping from Wheel and Sprocket in WI. It's a reputable shop. https://www.ebay.com/itm/193857809686

JIMMIEM

The Kenda K35 tires finally arrived. I have installed them along with new rim strips and tubes.
Thank You for the recommendation.
P.S. The SUNTOUR HONOR Derailleur spring no longer works......trying to figure out what I did wrong.

Pop N Wood

Glad you replaced the rim strips as well. My road bike that I still ride regularly will be 40 years old next year. I once had the rubber rim strips disintegrate during a ride leaving me 12 miles from home with one tube and every spoke nipple exposed. Not something people think to check, but rubber degrades from ground level ozone.

terrymorse 

Yes, ozone and UV radiation are the main rubber killers. Especially when the rubber is just sitting there unused.

I keep my supply of new tires and tubes in a plastic bin with a lid, but a tied-up plastic garbage bag will work just as well.

I protect my winter and rain boots the same way.

VegasTriker

If the spring isn't broken, try lubricating the derailleur at the places where it pivots. If the spring or the ends where it fixes to the RD are broken, then you will need to replace the derailleur. Just google on "5 speed derailleur" to see what is available. It's not an expensive replacement but you need to get one that will work with your shifters. The "cable pull" varies a lot with different brands but yours are so old it is hard to predict which RD has a compatible pull ratio. You likely don't have indexed shifters so at least that us one factor you can ignore.

PeteHski

Do you find them to be THAT sensitive? As long as I keep them out of direct sunlight nothing bad happens in the sort of timescales I keep this sort of gear. I had some old unused 26" mtb tyres kicking around in the garage from about 15 years ago and they looked totally fine. They were just sat on a shelf in the dark.

terrymorse 

I've had tires on spare wheels in a garage degrade to the point they were unusable. I've also had rubber boots stored in a closet crack enough that they no longer were waterproof.

It might be overly conservative to store them in a plastic bag, but I'd rather not take the chance.

JIMMIEM

The spring was not broken. Everything was gunked up and restricting the spring action. I did some cleanup and lubing. Everything is working but I may take everything apart again and do a more thorough cleaning and lube job.
I started looking for springs on-line and found the exact one on Ebay.

JIMMIEM

I was going to buy rim strips but they came included with the tubes.
12 miles from home? Did you have to walk the 12 miles home?

jgedwa

This would be news to me. Are you suggesting that 27 x 1 1/4 is code for hooked rim? I really do not think that is true.

Jim

Pop N Wood

No I put the tube in and rode like hell to get home. Last mile was pretty squishy with low air, but I made it. In hindsight I could probably have lined the rim with newspaper or even some vegetation.