Another Ugly Duckling followed me home

 

This unwanted heavy hulk came into the shop last year and has been moved from spot to spot. It was going to be moved upstairs to hide it in the dark. When there was talk of parting it out I had to bring it home. From what I can find out it is a 1969 Hercules ten speed. It was built in the Nottingham, England Raleigh factory. Some of the parts are Huret and others have the Raleigh Heron stamp on them (crank & hubs). It came with upright bars, fenders and head light. The rear fender and light are missing but the light bracket and  cool “peaked” front fender remains. The Huret rear derailleur is missing but I have an old one to put on. This bike isn’t in as bad of shape as the Follis Mixte that I rebuilt. (See my May of 2013 blog.) So hopefully it will turn out OK.

Schwinn Hollywood

Over a year ago I said I would go through an older Schwinn for a friend. I agreed to do it on the condition that I was helped in the clean-up. Well last week it had set in my shop long enough. It didn't need much to make it ride able again. It needed a chain, all the bearings cleaned and packed and lots of cleaning and polishing. This isn't a collectable Schwinn as someone has changed many parts on it but the owner loves it and that's all that matters. Below are a few before and after pictures.

Pictures of the NEW MIXTE!

In my last blog I told of getting a new mixte but didn't show any pictures of it completed. Well the bike was for my niece Amber as a surprise. She now has the bike so I can post some pictures.

 Love the look of rack, looks like it could be from the 30's.

 

With addition of some panniers, bell, lights and cappuccino holder she is ready to go to college.

A Brand New Mixte!

I got home from working at the bike shop Fri. night and the new Mixte I ordered was sitting there waiting on me. I ordered it on Tues. night and got it on Fri. And yes I said a NEW MIXTE! I haven't had a new Mixte for close to 40 years. I now have four old Mixtes after giving one away last year.

This is a different type of Mixte as it is a single speed with fenders. I dry fit everything on it that evening to make sure I had everything and had no problems. This is only the second bike I've ordered on line but they have both came in good condition with no problems. Today I tore it back down and greased all the bolts, stem, seat post, made adjustments to the fender and rack and tightened everything. I will add that if you don't have some wrenching background on bikes you may want to have someone else do the assembly for you, like your community bike shop. I will post more pictures soon.

The Ugly Duckling

Last year our shop got this ugly brown Follis from the local college that was left over after their bike auction. It was in bad shop with spray paint on lots of it including the rear wheel and spokes. After we had it siting around the shop for about eight months I bought it. I used to sell Follis in my shop and you don’t see many of them. I decided to do what I could to salvage it. I had it media blasted, powder coated and found new decals for it. I changed it from brown to silver and used blue housing  on it. I thought I was going to get it done today then remembered I didn’t have a set of matching pedals for it. The only thing new besides the finish and decals is the cables, handlebar grips and a full jar of Mother’s aluminum polish. I love the old Mixte’s and what is cool is the new ones look the same. I don’t know for sure if this Follis came from my shop or not but when I tore down the wheels I found red grease in them. It is Bull Shot red grease that I used in the 70’s so it could be.

Bitter Sweet

Just came back from a 1200 mile round trip to Mississippi. A very good friend that I used to work with and ride with has cancer. He is not good but has put his trust in God so anything can happen. I hadn't seen John in thirty-five years but it seemed like yesterday when we talked about the old days. He was a heck of a rider. We did several centuries back when they didn't count kilometers just miles. When we drove up to his home his old PX 10 was sitting out. It hadn't been out of the shed behind his house for fifteen years. It had a few wasp nests on it but other wise just needs a bath, a little polish and mechanicals gone through to be back on the road. John and his family told me to take the bike and see that it would do some good for someone else. After I go through the bike it will go to the Chain Reaction Bike Shop in Goshen, IN. our community bike shop that helps others have a bike that otherwise wouldn't be able to.

This is John's second PX 10. This one replaced the white one destroyed in a wreck he and I was in. We had ridden 50 miles that day and set up a camp site. We decided we should have a bottle of wine so we took off with another rider to the closest town. the Hi-way we were on had just been paved and it started to rain. It got real slick. John had glasses on and instead of stopping to remove them he just closed in on my back wheel and watched it. Well, my bike slide out from under me an John went over the top of me. He landed on his face and got cut up bad. Two young girls on their way to the prom all dressed up and took John to the Bluffton Clinic that was close. A Plastic Surgeon was on duty that week end and it was a good thing for John. The doctor worked on him for several hours an John still had to back and get more done. The other rider, well he just road around us and was OK. Some riders would have quite riding after that but not John as this bike shows he road many, many more miles. If your reading this take a moment to say a prayer for John and his family.

Mail Order Bride

Well I did it! No, I didn't get a mail order bride, but I did order a bike on line. I never thought I would do it but the temptation was just too strong. I have been looking at the single speed bikes but not seriously. Did I need another bike, no. Did I have better things to do with my money, yes. So why did I think I had to have one? Well 50% off was one reason then they threw "FREE SHIPPING" at me and I was hooked. Susie said I could get some bike parts for my Valentine's Day present so I ordered it and was surprised to get it in two days. I looked the shipping box over for damage and was again was surprised to not see any damage or marks on it. I couldn't open it right away because I was making a bed for Buddy for his Valentines Day gift. Later that day I opened the box like it had a bomb in it, not wanting to scratch anything. Taking each part out and checking it out. When I had my shop in the seventies I opened lots of these boxes and a few while I worked for Spencer. There was always something not right or missing so I was being extra careful. Well everything was fine and I carefully unwrapped each part and started dry fitting it. My fear of ordering a bike on line is what you do if something is wrong when you get it. I wasn't worried about normal assyembly of adjustments but bad threads, missing parts of damaged items. I am glad to say it was in very good condition. After I put it together out of the box I went through again it today and greased everything, trued the front wheel slightly, adjusted the brakes to my liking and put a coat of wax on everything. Would I every order another bike on line, Yes. Would I recommend it for everyone, no. I have been working on bikes for over fifty years so I have that in my favor. The other thing is size. Just because you're bike you have now fits you doesn't mean a different one of the same size will. You need to read and take measurements and if your not sure call the place your ordering from. A road bike, a mountain bike and a track bike may all be the same size but will fit differently. If you're not sure of anything it is best to buy from your local dealer.
I will change the handlebars, they are a little too stretched out for me. And yes, I did alter the cranks photo!