Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Classic & Vintage
Reload this Page >

Best of the "Worst" bikes? Bike Boom and BSO's

Notices
Classic & Vintage This forum is to discuss the many aspects of classic and vintage bicycles, including musclebikes, lightweights, middleweights, hi-wheelers, bone-shakers, safety bikes and much more.

Best of the "Worst" bikes? Bike Boom and BSO's

Old 02-02-21, 04:29 PM
  #1  
guy1138
Senior member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times in 51 Posts
Best of the "Worst" bikes? Bike Boom and BSO's

What's the worst bike that you still went ahead and fixed up? Here's mine: A Columbia Arlington bike-boom "road bike" with one piece cranks and steel wheels. Replaced the rear with an aluminum rim out of the pile, adjusted the brakes and derailleurs and put on some new gumwalls. The paint, color, and overall aesthetic seemed too cool to just trash. Hopefully someone gets some use out of it!





guy1138 is offline  
Likes For guy1138:
Old 02-02-21, 04:39 PM
  #2  
3speedslow
Senior Member
 
3speedslow's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Jacksonville, NC
Posts: 9,337

Bikes: A few

Mentioned: 117 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1936 Post(s)
Liked 1,043 Times in 627 Posts
I fixed up a Huffy Aero frame bike for a shop to sell. It never did.
3speedslow is offline  
Likes For 3speedslow:
Old 02-02-21, 04:57 PM
  #3  
cbrstar
BMX Connoisseur
 
cbrstar's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Canada
Posts: 774

Bikes: 1988 Kuwahara Newport, 1983 Nishiki, 1984 Diamond Back Viper, 1991 Dyno Compe

Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 399 Post(s)
Liked 108 Times in 69 Posts

1984 Kuwahara before cleaning and polishing.


After a CA bath and alot of elbow grease.

1984 Kuwahara Apollo. I used to really dislike these because it had a lugged frame and steel wheels. But it's still a "Kuwahara" though the cheapest one they ever made. I passed up many of these over the years but the chrome got my attention and it also had most of it's OG parts. Glad I saved it now.
cbrstar is offline  
Likes For cbrstar:
Old 02-02-21, 05:10 PM
  #4  
non-fixie 
Shifting is fun!
 
non-fixie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: South Holland, NL
Posts: 10,985

Bikes: Yes, please.

Mentioned: 275 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2178 Post(s)
Liked 4,479 Times in 1,731 Posts
The worst?

This. Thought it'd be fun. It wasn't. It was horrible. At 25kph it would begin to resonate with my pedaling cadence and oscillate totally out of control. Terrifying.

Did one ride around the block, took this picture, and put it straight into the dumpster when I got home.

__________________
I wanna be like you!


non-fixie is offline  
Likes For non-fixie:
Old 02-02-21, 05:27 PM
  #5  
guy1138
Senior member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by cbrstar
... chrome got my attention and it also had most of it's OG parts. Glad I saved it now.
Wow! Good thing, that frame is sweet loooking, certainly worth upgrading the wheels!
guy1138 is offline  
Likes For guy1138:
Old 02-02-21, 08:48 PM
  #6  
Pompiere
Senior Member
 
Pompiere's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: NW Ohio
Posts: 3,417

Bikes: 1984 Miyata 310, 1986 Schwinn Sierra, 2011 Jamis Quest, 1980 Peugeot TH8 Tandem, 1992 Performance Parabola, 1987 Ross Mt. Hood, 1988 Schwinn LeTour, 1988 Trek 400T, 1981 Fuji S12-S LTD, 197? FW Evans

Mentioned: 24 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 516 Post(s)
Liked 925 Times in 488 Posts
I bought this Huffy for $5, mainly because it looked like it had hardly any miles on it. I put a well worn pair of Pasela tires on it and it wasn't bad, although it was a bit small for me. Switching to Northroad style bars made it better. I ended up donating it last spring when everyone was looking for bikes.

late 1980's Huffy Tectra

I bought this Kabuki for nostalgic reasons, my first ten-speed was a Kabuki. I have replaced the steel components and rims with alloy stuff from the parts bin, so it is down a few pounds from its original weight. I would love to find a Submariner or a Super Light some day, but this one works for now.

1970-something Kabuki Super Speed
Pompiere is offline  
Likes For Pompiere:
Old 02-02-21, 09:07 PM
  #7  
Chuck M 
Happy With My Bikes
 
Chuck M's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2020
Location: Oklahoma
Posts: 2,172

Bikes: Hi-Ten bike boomers, a Trek Domane and some projects

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 861 Post(s)
Liked 2,263 Times in 1,092 Posts
Takara was right there in the bike boom. I have more money in this thing than it will ever be worth, but for nostalgia purposes, it is worth more than I have in it.


Takara 950 Deluxe 12
__________________
"It is the unknown around the corner that turns my wheels." -- Heinz Stücke

Chuck M is offline  
Likes For Chuck M:
Old 02-02-21, 09:09 PM
  #8  
nlerner
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 17,112
Mentioned: 479 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3780 Post(s)
Liked 6,528 Times in 2,568 Posts
Definitely this Phillips Manhattan. Still makes me shudder:
nlerner is offline  
Old 02-02-21, 09:55 PM
  #9  
ShannonM
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Location: Humboldt County, CA
Posts: 848
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 405 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 429 Times in 285 Posts
Dude, that Columbia is like a body-off restoration of a Datsun B-210 "Honey Bee".... I freakin' love it!!!

--Shannon

PS: The black Takara is rad.
ShannonM is offline  
Likes For ShannonM:
Old 02-02-21, 11:34 PM
  #10  
guy1138
Senior member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by ShannonM
Dude, that Columbia is like a body-off restoration of a Datsun B-210 "Honey Bee".... I freakin' love it!!!.
Lol, thanks, but it was way easier than that. Somehow that bike has been kicking around mostly inside for the last ~50 years. Other than trashing the rear (steel) wheel, it was a clean up and re-grease, add tires and it was GTG

Originally Posted by Pompiere
I bought this Huffy for $5I ended up donating it last spring when everyone was looking for bikes.
That's nice, and I'm sure it was appreciated! Ashtabula gang unite!

Originally Posted by 3speedslow
I fixed up a Huffy Aero frame bike for a shop to sell. It never did.
Such a strange bike, but proof that during the boom years, even Huffy employees could afford cocaine.

Originally Posted by Chuck M
Takara was right there in the bike boom.
Wow, that's a good looking bike! Reminds me of the Takara Horizon Mixte I bought. When I picked it up I thought someone put lead shot in the seat tube as a joke. Every component was steel. Swapped over aluminum components from another bike with a rotted frame, and it turned out OK, but still probably the heaviest small frame I've ever had.

guy1138 is offline  
Likes For guy1138:
Old 02-02-21, 11:52 PM
  #11  
Het Volk
Full Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 334
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 192 Post(s)
Liked 145 Times in 78 Posts

This....potentially. While Made in France, and kind of a historical artifact to the Denver bike business (it was only sold in Denver), the drivetrain is shot due to the fact the plastic in the components ages quickly and the front derailleur already is cracked. However, the chromed fork crown I found out after getting it home is actually plastic. Cottered crank, but original bar tape, no rust, decals in mint condition.

So now I either need to try to keep is period specific, or just say screw it, and use modern components. Or - leave as is as a piece of history. If it were not for the pristine condition, I would turn it into a commuter, but something tells me this, while being a heavy Hi-Ten 10-Speed bike, there is something about retaining this for its condition at this point.





Het Volk is offline  
Likes For Het Volk:
Old 02-03-21, 12:32 AM
  #12  
SalsaShark
Senior Member
 
SalsaShark's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Eastern Iowa
Posts: 631

Bikes: 2014 Trek Allant drop bar conversion, modified Schwinn MTN commuter, 2015 Trek 520, Soma ES, Salsa Journeyman, 1980 Trek 414

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 178 Post(s)
Liked 355 Times in 166 Posts
Fixed up a cheap Ross road bike for a buddy a couple years back. Hi-ten frame, stem shifters, steel-rim 27" wheels, turkey levers, etc....
Ended up being a pretty fun bike when it was all said and done, so long as it isn't raining out!
SalsaShark is offline  
Likes For SalsaShark:
Old 02-03-21, 09:02 AM
  #13  
Mr. 66
Senior Member
 
Mr. 66's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 3,433
Mentioned: 39 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1124 Post(s)
Liked 1,700 Times in 940 Posts
OMG, this thing rides dreamy. Horrible color.




BOOM, Azuki is actually pretty good the worst is the cranks, the Maxi gap in between the chainrings is chain suck waiting to happen
Mr. 66 is offline  
Likes For Mr. 66:
Old 02-03-21, 09:46 AM
  #14  
Miradaman
Full Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: Greater Chicago Area
Posts: 250

Bikes: 1987 Schwinn Mirada, 1989 Trek 420, 1995 GT Timberline, 1979 Schwinn Super Le Tour, Co-Op DRT 1.3

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 103 Post(s)
Liked 85 Times in 49 Posts

Got this as a freeby from a neighbor. Haven't done much to it except scrub the rust off the shiny parts, adjust brakes and shifting, adjust handlebars to a better angle. It's in my basement hooked up to a bike trainer now, but I took it for several 5 or 6 mile rides last fall. Gotta say, it's surprisingly fun to ride, for what it is. I have a relative who's owned a few new cheapo Walmart Huffys over the years and I rode them once or twice, and I can assure you I'd take a 40 year old Free Spirit over those any time...
Miradaman is offline  
Likes For Miradaman:
Old 02-03-21, 11:57 AM
  #15  
Wildwood 
Veteran, Pacifist
 
Wildwood's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Seattle area
Posts: 13,295

Bikes: Bikes??? Thought this was social media?!?

Mentioned: 284 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3873 Post(s)
Liked 4,766 Times in 2,199 Posts
One ride on this Carabela, and I knew it was a better fit for one of my almost-non-cyclist friends.
He will 'enjoy' it more than me as his 2nd bike - given the infrequency of his rides on his 1st bike.
edit: some times a clean and pretty-ish bike deserves the position of Garage Queen/King.
__________________
Vintage, modern, e-road. It is a big cycling universe.

Last edited by Wildwood; 02-03-21 at 05:33 PM.
Wildwood is offline  
Old 02-03-21, 12:23 PM
  #16  
Ironfish653
Dirty Heathen
 
Ironfish653's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: MC-778, 6250 fsw
Posts: 2,188

Bikes: 1997 Cannondale, 1976 Bridgestone, 1998 SoftRide, 1989 Klein, 1989 Black Lightning #0033

Mentioned: 19 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 889 Post(s)
Liked 906 Times in 534 Posts
Originally Posted by Pompiere

I bought this Kabuki for nostalgic reasons, my first ten-speed was a Kabuki. I have replaced the steel components and rims with alloy stuff from the parts bin, so it is down a few pounds from its original weight. I would love to find a Submariner or a Super Light some day, but this one works for now.
There’s nothing ‘light’ about a Bridgestone Superlight. It’s put together well, but man, is it overbuilt! Typical belt-and-suspenders engineering common to a lot of Japanese designs of the era. My ‘76 goes down the road just a tick under 30 lbs, in 90% of its original trim.

Ironfish653 is offline  
Old 02-03-21, 12:27 PM
  #17  
randyjawa 
Senior Member
 
randyjawa's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada - burrrrr!
Posts: 11,671

Bikes: 1958 Rabeneick 120D, 1968 Legnano Gran Premio, 196? Torpado Professional, 2000 Marinoni Piuma

Mentioned: 210 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1370 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1,743 Times in 934 Posts
Interesting that this thread would come up at this time. Though I have owned, street restored and ridden several old Torpados, from the sixties and seventies, the most recent was the lowest in the Torpado line up. I have never street restored a lower tiered bike...


But the bike was so complete, and so original, that I could not resist spending a couple of hundred bucks on a simple restoration. It is good to go now but too cold outside for me to be good to go...
__________________
"98% of the bikes I buy are projects".

Last edited by randyjawa; 02-03-21 at 05:13 PM.
randyjawa is offline  
Likes For randyjawa:
Old 02-03-21, 02:22 PM
  #18  
guy1138
Senior member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by randyjawa
...the most recent was the lowest in the Torpado line up.
Chrome lugs and downtube shifters? That bike is too nice for this thread!
guy1138 is offline  
Likes For guy1138:
Old 02-03-21, 02:23 PM
  #19  
guy1138
Senior member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by Miradaman
.. and I can assure you I'd take a 40 year old Free Spirit over those any time...
Man, look at the tires on that! What a perfect dirt path bike, as long as there are no huge hills!
guy1138 is offline  
Old 02-03-21, 03:01 PM
  #20  
guy1138
Senior member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 175
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 66 Post(s)
Liked 124 Times in 51 Posts
Originally Posted by Het Volk
While Made in France, and kind of a historical artifact to the Denver bike business (it was only sold in Denver),
OMG, I had the Mixte version of this bike! Same color and everything. It was.... not good. My old bike mechanic friend used to say that if you bought a low end French bike, better hope you got a "before lunch" bike, because they had so much wine at lunch, the quality got even lower. I trashed the front and rear Simplex then converted it to a 1x with an old derailleur and a sunrace thumb shifter, turned it into an OK neighborhood/campus cruiser.


guy1138 is offline  
Old 02-03-21, 04:29 PM
  #21  
Miradaman
Full Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2019
Location: Greater Chicago Area
Posts: 250

Bikes: 1987 Schwinn Mirada, 1989 Trek 420, 1995 GT Timberline, 1979 Schwinn Super Le Tour, Co-Op DRT 1.3

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 103 Post(s)
Liked 85 Times in 49 Posts
Originally Posted by guy1138
Man, look at the tires on that! What a perfect dirt path bike, as long as there are no huge hills!
Haven't taken it on any paths but I have tackled some modest Midwestern hills near my house and it's not at all bad in that regard...
Miradaman is offline  
Old 02-04-21, 11:23 AM
  #22  
Fahrenheit531 
52psi
 
Fahrenheit531's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 4,133

Bikes: Schwinn Volare ('78); Raleigh Competition GS ('79)

Mentioned: 29 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 790 Post(s)
Liked 800 Times in 390 Posts
For me it's absolutely, positively the Godzilla Takara.


(...apologies for the photobucket shot. guess it's been a while hahahaha)
__________________
A race bike in any era is a highly personal choice that at its "best" balances the requirements of fit, weight, handling, durability and cost tempered by the willingness to toss it and oneself down the pavement at considerable speed. ~Bandera
Fahrenheit531 is offline  
Old 02-04-21, 12:26 PM
  #23  
oneclick 
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2020
Posts: 2,868
Mentioned: 47 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1093 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1,295 Times in 765 Posts
Originally Posted by guy1138
Wow, that's a good looking bike! Reminds me of the Takara Horizon Mixte I bought. When I picked it up I thought someone put lead shot in the seat tube as a joke. Every component was steel. Swapped over aluminum components from another bike with a rotted frame, and it turned out OK, but still probably the heaviest small frame I've ever had.
Mixte (and berceau etcetera) frames feel different (=more heavy to some people) because their centre of gravity is lower.
oneclick is offline  
Old 02-04-21, 03:14 PM
  #24  
Medium Size Dog
Junior Member
 
Join Date: May 2020
Location: southern California
Posts: 101

Bikes: 98 Trek 6000 MTB, 70's mutant St. Etienne

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 45 Post(s)
Liked 49 Times in 32 Posts



Hey Het Volk and guy 1138! Too many similarities to deny. Bike I got in about 74. St. Etienne sticker, distinctive lug shapes and wannabe M on the steel fork crown. It must have been a morning bike. Similar to how vodka figures in to the quality of Baltic Birch plywood I use in my woodworking. I recently refurbished it. Bike is strong, solid, has a nice ride and I'm not afraid to get gravel bikey with it. Obscure wisdom and knowledge from verktyg and juvela were a big help. Triplizer from Red Clover. Now 52-42-30 and 14-28 makes hills easier and weighs in @ 26lbs as built. Still looking for 25-25.5ish alloy seat post to replace original steel. I like this bike.
Medium Size Dog is offline  
Likes For Medium Size Dog:
Old 02-04-21, 04:07 PM
  #25  
Darth Lefty 
Disco Infiltrator
 
Darth Lefty's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Folsom CA
Posts: 13,775

Bikes: Stormchaser, Paramount, Tilt, Samba tandem

Mentioned: 72 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3124 Post(s)
Liked 2,101 Times in 1,366 Posts
Paging past the pics of the yellow mixte, on first glance I thought the head badge said "Can't Either"
__________________
Genesis 49:16-17
Darth Lefty is offline  
Likes For Darth Lefty:

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.