[Industry_Hack]

Old Schwinns never die, they just lose their chains...

That chain looks like it just rusted out. The rest of the drivetrain may be ok.

[KyleER]

yeah i have to negotiate with him still but I think that's what I'm gonna shoot for now. might even leave it fully geared until it really gets cold out and I have nothing else to do but work inside...

[ak08820]

Here is a dept store single speed bike for $99. Wonder if it is really worth spending time on an old bike. ==> Walmart.com: Thruster 700c Men's Fixie Bike: Bikes & Riding Toys

[Industry_Hack]

Oooh, a $99 bicycle. I have some tires off my old fixed gear that cost that much.

[KyleER]

So I picked up the Schwinn for $15 today. It's looking pretty good but contrary to what I originally thought its not just that the chain fell off but the real derailer has also self-destructed to some extent. That's not too upsetting, however, because even though I probably wont pull all the gears off the cassett yet I'll just take the time to experiment with the gear ratio I want. Other than that everything seems to be in at least passable condition except the seat which i have a replacement for - oh and the tires are about to explode so i need to do something about that. still need to see if theyre 27" or 700c... I'll update as I progress...

[KyleER]

...cant sleep - think I'll start chopping a little...

[KyleER]

so, i got a fair amount accomplished on the schwinn: cut rusty old chain off, removed broken rear derailleur, removed the wheels and ancient tires that were fused to them, attempted to remove the remaining bar tape, BSed with a LBS owner about selling it, bought new tires, tubes & chain. if all goes well I'll be putting the tires, tubes and chain on tomorrow or the next day. at that point it'll technically be rideable except for one major issue:

try as I might I CAN NOT remove the seat post. this is extremely upsetting because i feel like it has the potential for ruining the frame. wanting to adjust the post and remove/replace the hideous saddle that's on there now I loosened the nut on the back of the seat tube and tugged, twisted, pulled, kicked, etc. and all i got was a slightly crooked seat. ...im pretty sure the seat clamp twisted on top of the post any way. im forced to assume that not only did the previous owner put the wrong size post in with a sledge hammer but they never lubricated it in any way. what is there for me to do about this? i tried squirting a little WD-40 on it and letting it sit but so far no luck...

my other problem is the bar tape. though it is mostly worn off some still remains and i want the bars totally clean...the tape is sort of cloth like hockey tape - i think thats all it is and the adhesive is really holding on. after peeling painstakingly with poor results i tried scraping with a razor and even my dremel with the wire brush attachment - both proved useless. how else might i get this off? I was thinking of removing the brakes to take the bars off and soak them in something but now thats a problem because they appear to somehow be taped on...or the tape runs under them I cant tell. either way they wont move much. any suggestions?

as far as future plans im going to leave all the gears on for now for 2 reasons: 1. i havent decided on a gear ratio 2. i may sell it

reason 2 has to do with the LBS owners comment which was basically: "if you put some flashy bar tape on this, polished the chrome and got new tires you could probably sell it for like $300 as a 'collectible' - that's what i would do"

now, aside from the fact that i would basically have to play salesman and really play up how nice the bike is to do that does anyone think its worth that or anywhere near that much?

[KyleER]

Ok, so I've come along a little bit since then. Lets see....I took off the derailleurs, put on a new chain, swapped the saddle for an old bontrager I had from my mountain bike, put on new tires and failed again to remoce the seat post. I checked out some info online about removing the seat post and I really have no idea where to go next. The post is just a bit high for my liking at this point but I guess its something I can deal with for the time being. next up are some new brake pads and hopefully using goof off to remove the old bar tape. does anyone have an opinion on how well that will work? another question i have is how will the brake levers work if i slide them up all the way to the stem? I'm really not super comfortable just using downbrakes all the time particularly when the frame + the permanently high seat post make me lean so heavily forward. it's really not ideal when I'm riding around campus. I'm thinking of changing the bars out for either bull horns or some shorter ones with a little bit of a rise. What are some of the benefits or drawbacks to those?

[twowheeltony]

If the wheels on the bike are road worthy, go to the local bike shop and either buy the tool or have them remove the gear cluster from the rear wheel. Spin on a single cog or freewheel, shorten the chain and you're there!
I've built dozens of fixies/singles. Flip flop hubs run about $50 new, or check eBay for a used Redline or Surly 1x1, and lace it up to the original wheel..
A set of 700c, flip flop wheels brand new should run $100- $150 on eBay.
I love building my own..
That's it! There are a few companies on eBay or google search that sell any part you could want at low prices!
I would be happy to talk you thru a build. If you can change a tire, you can build one. And that bike you have will make a sweet Fixie!! I'd buy that! Nice find..
Good luck!
Stay away from vertical dropouts and chain tensioners for fixies if at all possible. I have 2 that I've built (Cannondale and Specialized), love the bikes but stick with freewheel on those tensioners.. Trust me!

[peazweag]

Originally Posted by Industry_Hack

The longer arms are too mushy.

The only thing mushy is your attitude,27" wheels are fine lots of cheaper tire options available........GOOD GAWD