Bike updates

Updates on the bike projects:

The Bamboo bike

Removing the handlebars, greasing them, and reinstalling them (plus re-tightening the stem where it grabs onto the steerer tube) removed the creaking noise. The thing is, I had to reallllllllly tighten them down to get rid of the creak, I had to tighten them what I assume is far past the recommenced torque. I ordered a torque wrench, and I'm going to tighten them to spec and see how that goes.

Diamondback Outlook

The bike is looking really cool. I scored some mountain bike wheels for cheap off Nashbar, and snapped on some really big and cool looking tires. The seat is now a nicer looking and comfier Bontrager I pulled off an old trek hybrid, and the handlebars now have snappy click shifters and comfy Titchey grips. Next up? I couldn't resist a used Vuelta triple crankset I saw on Amazon, the granny gear was smaller than the granny on the current crankset, which is good because I'm not sure the granny on the cassette would be big enough for my girlfriend. My BB will theoretically work fine with it, but BB spindle/crank compatibility is a practice I've found to not always align with theory.

Harvey Dent

The dented schwinn is still dented and always will be. It is destined to become a suicide hub fixie, Sheldon says suicide hubs are perfectly safe if they are on a bike that is equipped with two brakes. So Harvey Dent will have two brakes. The rear axle needs to be re-spaced and the wheel redished for this to work, I have never redished a wheel, so this will be an interesting learning experience!

Other stuff

My winter beater, a old raleigh record converted to single speed, has a chain that recently started skipping. Perhaps that is because it has stretched a bit, and needs to be retensioned. The bridgestone still needs its bottom bracket removed, it will likely wait a while as I'm not sure when I will next have access to a vice grip!

Blah

Its time to organize my thoughts on all of my bike related projects.

Diamondback Outlook: This is an entry level trail riding bike to give to my girlfriend, a test ride to see if she might enjoy mountain biking. The front derailler is completely warped, rear derailler seems a-ok. The cassette is loose, and I can't get the rear wheel off because it is held in with pinhead bolts. A tool called the gator grip can supposedly get the pinhead bolts off, so I've ordered one off Amazon. The cockpit needs a lot of work: the seat looks lame, there are no grips, and there are grip shifters which no one should be subjected too. There are plenty of seats around my house I can use, and triggers shifters are cheap on amazon/ebay. The chain is rusty, I think I have a chain I can repurpose, the cranks seem fine and the wheels just need some minor truing. Oh and the fork probably needs some lube. And I should take it on a hard ride when I'm done to make sure the whole thing won't fall apart under her.

Schwinn Super Le Tour 12.2: What a frame. Beautiful red paint and its super light. Shame about the deep dent in the downtube. Despite the major dent I would feel safe riding it, it is steel after all, if this were aluminum or carbon I wouldn't touch it. The bike will likely be used for parts, I've already looted a bolt from the rear brake. The wheel rims were severely warped, but taking them out to my driveway stomping them back into place helped a lot. I'm having trouble adjusting the stem, and the fork might be bent. I plan on inspecting the damage more today, if the frame looks truly rideable this could make a cool junk fixie.

Zambike fixed gear: There is creaking from the stem area when I put my weight on the bars, and it is only getting louder with time. I'm going to reinstall it and see if it goes away, if not I'm going to try a new set of bars and see if it goes away, if not I'm going to try a new stem and see if it goes away, if not I'm going to try a new fork and see if it goes away. Fun.

Bridgestone: My pin spanner won't budge the bottom bracket, I've heard a couple of drill bits, a vice, and the frame for leverage can be used to remove an old bb like this. Need to wait til I have time to visit the local bike co op to make this happen. Also I don't have a proper tool to remove the freewheel, which I need to do in order to repack the hub.