bikemig 

So @Narhay let me keep my bike in the contest even though I had it mainly fixed up shortly before the contest started. It's amazing what a bit of flattery can do when it comes to this contest. I bought this bike earlier this year thinking I'd enter it into the clunker 100 contest. Plus I'm a fan of UO 10s as my first good bike was a red UO 10.

I had three issues with this bike. I couldn't salvage the shifters as the cable wouldn't come out. The head on most derailleur cables is a little too large for a simplex shifter and this was unfixable.

The second issue was that the plastic dust cup had melted permanently into the threads of the crank arm. A few small tools and a heat gun took care of that.

The third is that the saddle was just terrible. I don't plan to do what Andy_K did which is to try to win the award for riding 100 KM with the worst possible saddle. So that will need to be replaced.

Other than that, I overhauled the bike and replaced all the ball bearings plus the consumables (cable housing, cables). I used old but good quality brake shoes and old but decent 27 inch tires. I'll have to figure out the costs for all of this but since I only paid $40 for the bike, I'm under $100 unless I go crazy with the saddle or tires. All the bearing surfaces were nice and smooth and the wheels remarkably true for a 40 plus year old bike that clearly has seen some action.

Unca_Sam

That's a shame about the shifters. If they were the plastic levers, hot water, dish soap, and needle-nose pliers is all you need to get shimano-sized heads back out. You might still be able to exploit the different expansion rates to free the cable end though.

bikemig 

They're good shifters and specific to that braze on but yeah they're toast. So replacement time.

Oldsledz

Here is my entry Araya it has a high tensile frame with Shimano 600 derailleurs and brakes. The township north of me has a Recycling / trash compactor site, the old guy that runs it sets things out the he thinks may sell. I got this bike for 2.00 it is all here other than the seat and post. It obviously has spent a lot of time out side but all break and shift cables still work.

bikemig 

What are your plans for the rust? Or are you planning on keeping it all original so you can win the (a) cheapest bike category and (b) overall clunker challenge. I think you may have a winner in both categories.

non-fixie 

I spent the afternoon disassembling the France Sport. Given all the rust and the fact that it was used as a garden ornament, things went reasonably well.

The original color seems to have been a rather vibrant orange (the phone pic doesn't do it justice):



I had broken the spindle of my vise a while back removing a cotter pin from another bike , so today seemed a good day to get a new vise. I am glad I did, as it enabled me to get the pins out of this bike with little fuss. Those cranks and chain rings should clean up reasonably well:



The MAFAC brakes will be OK, but the chrome on that cute little front rack is gone. What to do? I may have some orange paint left over from a previous project:



I managed to get the bottom bracket out. Looks to be a REG (?). Stamped "135 54":

EDIT: second thought: it might also be RFG ...

clubman 

Winner winner chicken dinner. I can't make it out but it looks like an SR Royal stem? Fluted? Add the bars, the high flange hubs...I'll bet that's going to be a fine bike.

tyler_fred

I’ve never entered a Clunker challenge before but have decided to try. I submit this Peugeot... PGN10 (I think).. My buddy picked it from his neighbor’s trash. It appears to be at least two sizes smaller than I ride.

Dylansbob 

The things you see on Klunker challenges.....


I knew you could crack a headset, but I hadn't seen one before. This puts my Raleigh at 1 cracked seatpost and 1 cracked headset cup, along with a crescent wrench-straightened derailleur hanger.

nlerner

Hmm, might have found my entry:

https://boston.craigslist.org/gbs/bi...314270084.html

Now I need to come up with a concept. Fake Confente?

clubman 

I like the razor cut along the handle bar to get the foam off. I think a Confente tribute bike will reap all the accolades you deserve. I'll kick in $5 just to see it.

uncle uncle

With that 42 inch frame paired with 16 inch wheels.... that is going to take a special sorta rider.

nlerner

My proportions are kinda freakish.

Ayeobe

i am quite tempted to enter my 40$ purchase from today..

i got it for 40CAD, so 32.50USD.. off to a good start, except it needs tires riiight now, and the rims are not happy at all..that alone could put me over budget. Hopefully i can find a sweet deal before the deadline. Ill ride it as is anyway though hah i just gotta adjust the derailleurs and stuff

Oldsledz

It is a SR Royal stem, I don't know much about better parts , if the flutes are on the part down in side it is not fluted. I had the bike out for a 18 mile ride today it rides nice even with the rough looking tires.

Oldsledz

I have started cleaning the rust with a Sos soap pad and water, I don't plan to paint the bike.

rustystrings61 

Oh my! Alas, THE coolest clunker in town got away from me - there as a roughly 23-in framed old UJB that had hung above the front porch of the LBS for about 25 years, and when the shop changed hands I did my best to nab it. The new owners moved the location, though, and the bike remained the property of the old owner, who wanted way too much for it. Then the other day I see he's sold the building and the bike (and the porch it hung above!) are both gone. Dang. A bike that had been a sign would have been an excellent clunker candidate.

I write this knowing full well that my time is limited; I still have a Liberia, a Mercier 200 and a Raleigh Gran Sport from previous Clunker Challenge 100s sitting in my workshop; I have assorted bikes and frames kicking around cluttering the place; it would be far better for me to spend more time with my family.

On the other hand, I know where there's a UO-10 in my size that I bet I could get cheap ...

tyler_fred

Well dang, I have a frozen seatpost. I have it clamped in the bench vise with WD40 sprayed down the weep hole in the bottom bracket. I will test this afternoon to see if it budges.

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Dylansbob 

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Good thing that seatpost has an integrated head. I learned the hard way about bonded-in seatpost heads having a weaker connection than the stuck part.

bikemig 

All great clunker candidates but my vote goes for a UO 10 as long as it's not nicer than the one I'm working on for this contest! I paid $40 for mine.

juvela

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AND it has a vertically drilled brake bridge = bonus points


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Narhay

[/QUOTE]

After soaking in penetrative oil put the seatpost head into a sewer grate and twist. Sometimes this is enough to break it free and start the slow extraction out.

curbtender

If anyone in the Bay Area, Pinole, needs a clunker project I have some trash saves to get you started. Free admission. Local pickup.

tyler_fred

After soaking in penetrative oil put the seatpost head into a sewer grate and twist. Sometimes this is enough to break it free and start the slow extraction out.[/QUOTE]

@Narhay, Seems like it would make more sense to remove the sewer grate, drop the bike in, replace the grate, then walk away..

non-fixie 

My France Sport seems to have suffered more from just sitting outside than from actual use. Everything is rusty, but the bearings and races are surprisingly clean and smooth.