Is this bike worth repairing?

[joshman1204]

I bought this bike about 10 years ago at an academy sporting good store and put maybe 10 miles on it and then never rode it again. This bike was assembled so terribly that it was almost unusable as soon as I got it home. The shifters have never worked from day one and the whole thing just squeaks every time you move it.

I am just looking for a project I can work on without spending a bunch of money but I dont want to waste my time if the end product is still going to be a worthless pile of crap.

Here are some pics:

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[Bill]

Ok you will need a few tools. But I am going to asked this question. Are you planning to get into cycling again ? Also do you plan on restoring more bikes then just this one?

[joshman1204]

Ok so I got bored and decided to tear this bike apart and see what happened. I have never worked on a bike at all so this was a new experience for me but if I am going to rebuild this bike I want it to have a nice custom paint job so I knew it had to be disassembled. Figured there was no better way to learn than to just jump in feet first.

I really was never into cycling my wife and i bought two of these bikes with plans of getting into the sport but the bikes were so terrible that we just never did anything with them. I doubt I will restore more than just these two identical bikes but I might enjoy it enough to make a hobby out of it.

Here are the pics of the bare frame and a question:



And the pile of parts:



Do these black caps come off the frame or am I just going to have to mask them off when I paint?

[JohnV]

Question number 1: Why are you repainting the frame? I think it looks really good the way it is.
Question number 2: Since you have never worked on a bike before, did you mark where all the parts went so you can put it back without have parts left over?

If the bike wasn't assembled correctly by the department store where you bought it (they very seldom are) a trip to your local bike shop would have done the trick if you weren't certain on what to do.

[joshman1204]

(06-26-2011, 07:55 PM)JohnV Wrote:  Question number 1: Why are you repainting the frame? I think it looks really good the way it is.
Question number 2: Since you have never worked on a bike before, did you mark where all the parts went so you can put it back without have parts left over?

If the bike wasn't assembled correctly by the department store where you bought it (they very seldom are) a trip to your local bike shop would have done the trick if you weren't certain on what to do.

I am repainting the frame because I am just one of those people who really enjoys having unique stuff. I customize pretty much everything I own its just something I enjoy doing.

I guess marking all the parts would have been a good idea. I have a second bike identical to this one that I can use as reference when I go to reassemble this one. I have worked on cars my whole life so I am pretty good at reassembling things that I take apart and this bike really didn't seem all that difficult to reassemble.


I realize I could have just taken this bike to a bike shop and had it fixed but I really was just looking for something to do and my wife was going to scrap these bikes anyway.

[nfmisso]

the black caps are pressed into the frame. A LBS will have the tools to remove them without damaging the frame, but damage to the parts themselves is likely.

Note that there mating parts on the fork.

You can mask them off. Also note that you need to mask off all of the threaded holes (a M5 or M6 set screw will work in most - or you can chase the threads with a tap after painting - make sure you know the thread size for each hole. The threads in the bottom bracket also need to be masked.

You also need to mask the brake posts. and the suspension on the fork.

If you did not us a crank puller, your bottom bracket bearings are probably toast.

[joshman1204]

(06-26-2011, 08:44 PM)nfmisso Wrote:  the black caps are pressed into the frame. A LBS will have the tools to remove them without damaging the frame, but damage to the parts themselves is likely.

Note that there mating parts on the fork.

You can mask them off. Also note that you need to mask off all of the threaded holes (a M5 or M6 set screw will work in most - or you can chase the threads with a tap after painting - make sure you know the thread size for each hole. The threads in the bottom bracket also need to be masked.

You also need to mask the brake posts. and the suspension on the fork.

If you did not us a crank puller, your bottom bracket bearings are probably toast.

I bought a crank puller from REI for less than $20 ... I am probably going to replace the BB and crank anyway but figured I would remove it the right way incase I decide to reuse it.

I was planning on masking off both ends of the neck, both sides of the bottom bracket, and all the various other threaded holes in the frame.

If I was to spend $100 on upgrades what should be first on the list? I was thinking shifters and derailleurs because I hate those twist shifters and neither of these bikes shifted worth a crap when new so I figure these derailleurs are prolly junk.

[joshman1204]

Ok so this is what I was thinking for upgrades....

Rear Derailleur:

shimano LX M581
http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/RD309A01-Shimano+Lx+M581+Rear+Derailleur.aspx

Front Derailleur:

Shimano LX M571
http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/FD707A01-Shimano+Lx+M571+Front+Derailleur.aspx

Shifters:

Sunrace M53
http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/SL400B00-Sunrace+M53+Shifter+Set.aspx

Bottom Bracket:

Shimano UN54 square taper
http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/SL400B00-Sunrace+M53+Shifter+Set.aspx

This bike is going to be ridden by my wife around the neighborhood so it is by no means going to see anything extreme.

Will all of these parts work together and more importantly will they work with my frame and other components?

[JohnV]

Quote:I really was just looking for something to do and my wife was going to scrap these bikes anyway.

Sounds good. If you were going to throw them away, I guess they would make a good learning tool on how to build a bike. I need to get down to one of the county dumps and see what people have thrown away so I can pick up a bike or two just to learn how to do this stuff. I certainly am not going to use my road bike as a test machine and break things or screw things up.

[nfmisso]

I suspect there is nothing wrong with the derailleurs and shifters you have; they just need to be properly adjusted. Take a look at the Shimano tech documents on line, follow them, and adjust the bike that is still together - you may be amazed. Final adjustments are less than a ¼ turn of the screw. All Shimano derailleurs adjust more or less the same, as do almost all other modern derailleurs.

Your planned derailleurs/shifters will need to adjusted the same way anyways, so you may as well learn (and make mistakes) on the old stuff.

Jenson and REI are pretty expensive.

[cyclerUK]

As Nigel says, the black caps (bearing cups) are pressed in.
These can be removed by gently tapping them out with a hammer and drift.
Put the drift in from the opposite side to the cap you want to knock out.
Put the drift against the bottom edge of the cup and gently tap working your way round the cup as you go.
The cups should really be pressed in but can be knocked back in, if they are not a tight fit, using a block of wood and a hammer.
You can make your own press tool from washers and a long piece of screwed rod.

Have a close look at the cups as the rust doesn't look even around the inside. This would make me suspect that the cup possibly isn't square to the frame / steering??
This may require the ends of the headset refacing.
See Park Tool:-
http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/headtube-reaming-and-facing

[joshman1204]

(06-27-2011, 11:54 AM)nfmisso Wrote:  I suspect there is nothing wrong with the derailleurs and shifters you have; they just need to be properly adjusted. Take a look at the Shimano tech documents on line, follow them, and adjust the bike that is still together - you may be amazed. Final adjustments are less than a ¼ turn of the screw. All Shimano derailleurs adjust more or less the same, as do almost all other modern derailleurs.

Your planned derailleurs/shifters will need to adjusted the same way anyways, so you may as well learn (and make mistakes) on the old stuff.

Jenson and REI are pretty expensive.

The main problem with the current shifters and derailleurs is that I hate the twist shifters. Even with the cable unhooked you still cant twist either of the shifters so I think they are completely busted. I really want to replace all of the drivetrain with some modern stuff that can be swapped to another frame if I decided to get more into cycling.

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So got the frame sanded and prepped for primer. I am going to try and get it primed later this week and maybe get it painted this weekend.

Where is a good place to find cheap drivetrain parts? I dont mind if they are last years model as long as they are good quality parts.

[nfmisso]

I buy most of my stuff through Amazon, partly because we take our credit card rewards as Amazon gift cards. Quite a bit of my business goes to Niagara Cycle Works (via Amazon) - great company to deal with, and they take care of the customer when things go wrong. I also bought a lot of stuff from Crosslake sales, an ebay vendor. They close out new old stock, often incredible deals. I have also bought from Harris Cyclery (Sheldon Brown) because they were the only ones who had it. Usually a bit more expensive, but great service. And bought some tires from Outdoor Outfitters because they were $10- a tire cheaper - for Terry 28-571; not exactly a common tire. Delivery was on time.

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(06-27-2011, 10:53 PM)joshman1204 Wrote:  The main problem with the current shifters and derailleurs is that I hate the twist shifters. Even with the cable unhooked you still cant twist either of the shifters so I think they are completely busted. I really want to replace all of the drivetrain with some modern stuff that can be swapped to another frame if I decided to get more into cycling.
.....

then get the new shifters, and learn to adjust with the old derailleurs; improves your cash flow..... then decide if it really worth spending the extra money.

[joshman1204]

not too worried about spending $100. If I am going to spend this much time prepping and painting this frame then I would like for my wife to atleast have a good bike when it is all said and done.

[Joe_W]

Yeah, I do agree. Chain + cassette have to replaced anyway. So should the rear dérailleur (it is old -> spring will be weak -> impossible to adjust). So rather than replacing bit by bit you decide to take the plunge and do everything. Good luck and enjoy the wrenchwork and the cycling! It is a good feeling to ride something you built yourself.

[JonB]

I hate to say this but that new Shimano Derallieur you want simply won't work. The reason being the mech hanger (the strip of metal that attaches the derallieur to the frame) is integrated into the current derallieur, which loops around the rear wheel. You can only use that model (which in turn cannot be used on good modern frames), there's nowhere to attach the LX.

On the plus side however it's better to spend the money at the shifter end (where you WILL notice it more) than the derallieur end. If it's properly adjusted then I doubt you'd really miss the LX.

[Joe_W]

Ouch. I missed that, good point! However, I assume that the dérailleur spring will be worn (maybe not, as the bike has not seen any use in the past decade?), so adjusting it will be difficult (maybe even impossible)...

[nfmisso]

Or you can buy one of these:
http://www.amazon.com/SunRace-Index-Hanger-Shimano-compatible/dp/B001PT8M8C/
to install any derailleur without a hanger.

This derailleur comes with a hanger:
http://www.amazon.com/Shimano-Tourney-Rear-Derailleur-Hanger/dp/B003ZMDJSK/